Lewin of Greenwich Naval History & Forum

Nanuchka III Class Guided Missile Corvette RFS Mirazh pictured at Sevastopol in July 2018.

Nanuchka III Class Guided Missile Corvette RFS Geyzer pictured launching one of her Malakhit SS-N9 (NATO reporting name Siren) Anti-Ship Missiles...2019.

Potentially POTENT lil WARships, obviously no match for the USN's "transformational" PO$ LC$s tho........ In some USN Admirals' dreams....... Uh-huh. At least some L-M n Au$tal lobbyists are probably getting rich from this major fubar.

Specs (Wiki): Displacement: 560 long tons (569 t) standard, 660 long tons (671 t) full load
Length: 59.3 m (194.6 ft)
Beam: 12.6 m (41.3 ft)
Draught: 2.4 m (7.9 ft)
Draft: 2.7 m[1]
Propulsion: 3 shaft Diesels, 30,000 hp (22,371 kW)
Speed: 32 knots (59 km/h)
Range: 2,500 nautical miles (4,630 km) at 12 kn (22 km/h); 900 nmi (1,667 km) at 30 kn (56 km/h)
Complement: 60
Sensors and
processing systems: Radar:
Band Stand fire control
Bass Tilt
Peel Pair surface search
Pop group

Armament: 6 SS-N-9 SSM (2x3) or 4 x SS-N-2 (export ships)
1 SA-N-4 SAM (1x2) - 20 missiles
Twin 57mm AK-257 gun (I) or 1 x 76mm AK-176 gun (III)
1 x 30mm AK-630 gun (III)

At a fraction of the size of the LC$ (I know..no helo...aaaawww) they carry a POWERFUL PUNCH instead of effectively no real ability to damage anything much larger than a wood rowboat. Strange concept: small, but heavy hitting.

A true littoral STREETFIGHTER.

Apparently there were 20 of the III series, including 1 incomplete unit. The most obvious (?) visual "clue" was the single 76 mm main gun in lieu of twin 57mm on earlier units...... DFO

Here is a recently modernized NANUCHKA III fitted with, among other things, new SSMs! DFO

They certainly seem to be ramping it up a bit . They can walk the walk , but I hope we are not going to enter another "mine's bigger than yours" phase .

Nanuchka III Class Guided Missile Corvette RFS Razliv.

Nanuchka III Class Guided Missile Corvette RFS Mirazh showing off her six P-120 Malakhit ASM launch tubes..she was decommissioned in 2020.

Another view of one of these seemingly "potent" little missile boats, but are they? IMO, I think I'd take these for COMBAT over any of the HUGE, PO$ U$N LC$s!........DFO