Lewin of Greenwich Naval History & Forum

Soviet Kiev Class Aircraft Carrier 'Minsk' (Known in the USSR as a 'Heavy Aviation Cruiser') pictured with Yakovlev YAK-38Ms,the Soviet's only operational VTOL aircraft (NATO reporting name 'Forger')..1979.
Minsk operated with the Pacific Fleet. Shortly after the Sino-Vietnamese War of 1979, Minsk was deployed to the South China Sea, making a port of call at Cam Ranh Bay, Vietnam, in September 1980. She visited Vietnam again in 1982 during her second deployment before sailing onto the Indian Ocean.In 1984, Minsk, the Ivan Rogov-Class landing ship Aleksandr Nikolayev, and Vietnam forces conducted the Soviet Navy's first amphibious landing in Vietnam.The Carrier was retired as a result of a major accident (details not known) which required the facilities at the Chernomorskiy yard, in Mykolayiv, located in the newly independent Ukraine (the reasons for not attempting a repair are not known).

Not to worry: she has made a wonderful family "amusement" park in Red China. Who needs Disneyworld?? ....DFO

Going back a few decades, some sov SKORYI class postwar DDs. Handsome tincans and the largest class of destroyers the sovs ever built.......DFO

specs (Wiki):
Displacement: 2,316 long tons (2,353 t) standard, 3,066 long tons (3,115 t) full load
Length: 120.5 m (395 ft 4 in)
Beam: 12 m (39 ft 4 in)
Draught: 3.9 m (12 ft 10 in)
Propulsion: 2 shaft geared turbines, 3 boilers 60,000 shp (44,742 kW)
Speed: 36.5 knots (67.6 km/h; 42.0 mph)
Range: 4,080 nautical miles (7,556 km; 4,695 mi) at 16 kn (30 km/h; 18 mph)
Complement: 286
Sensors and
processing systems: Radars: Gyus-1, Ryf-1, Redan-2, Vympel-2
Sonar: Tamir-5h

Armament: 2 × 2 – 130 mm (5.1 in) guns
1 × 2 – 85 mm (3.3 in) AA guns
7 × 1 – 37 mm (1.5 in) AA guns
2 × 5 – 533 mm (21 in) torpedo tubes
60 mines or 52 depth charges
Modernisation included removing one set of torpedo tubes, replacing the 37 mm guns with 57 mm guns and adding RBU 2500 anti-submarine rockets

Thanks Dennis , and for sharing them with us all .

These 2 pics came from a friend, down in OZ, many thanks to "JJ"!!

The SKORYIs have always been a personal favorite of mine, because of some family history. In 1956 Popular Mechanics magazine (or Popular Science??) ran a article @ naval strength that illustrated the Soviet Fleet was #3 and nipping at the RNs' heels. I was getting interested in warships about then. My dad scratch built a model of the SORYI for me out of pine. My very first-long gone -ship model. Many years later I built one in JFS scale (1"=128') for my growing collection. That one I do still have...

Here is a modified SKORI (bottom pic), similar in concept to USN FRAM DDs.......... DFO

BLACK WIDOW

https://www.rt.com/uk/410389-soviet-sub ... er-medway/

Also, from the glory daze of the Sov Navy.......the 5.1" gunned UDALOY class
ADM. CHABENKO........... DFO

A formidable looking bit of Kit Dennis , could do a lot of damage with that if not tackled correctly

Here is Soviet "WHISKEY" class S-63 in 1962 with world's first (?) DSRV on bow. Given the sub losses since then; a follow up would have helped save lives..........

Also, two early W with faired in light AA, plus 3.9 (?)aft of sail, and a later W sail sans guns. DFO

Soviet era Naval Aviators stroll past their Yakovlev Yak-38 VTOL Strike Fighters (NATO reporting name 'Forger') aboard through deck Carrier Kiev..Kamov KA-25 ASW Helo (NATO reporting name 'Hormone') in the background ,November 5th 1987.