Project 22160 Class patrol ship demonstrated at Russian Navy Days in St Petersburg.

The Navy Days that recently took place in Saint Petersburg gave the opportunity of seeing the number 368 "Vasily Bykov" of the Project 22160-Class patrol ships. JSC Zelenodolsk plant is building six of these ships named after A. M. Gorky and intended for use by the Russian Navy’s Black Sea Fleet command. The vessels are designed by Russian ship designing firm JSC Severnoye Design Bureau. The first ship was laid down in February 2014 and by December 2016 five ships were under construction. The first ship joined the Russian Navy in December 2018.

Project 22160-Class patrol ship Vasily Bykov, which entered service in December 2018 (Picture source: Russian MoD)

These vessels are primarily intended for duties such as patrol, monitoring and protection in the exclusive economic zone (EEZ) and territorial waters of Russia in open and closed seas. It can also be used to offer protection for ships in transit, water areas as well as naval bases against enemy attack in wartime. Other missions of the patrol ship are search and rescue, assistance to disaster victims, environmental monitoring, and combat smuggling and piracy activities.

Featuring modular design, the Project 22160-class patrol ship is 94m-long, 14-m-wide, and 3.4m- high, has a standard displacement of 4,550 tons and can accommodate up to 80 personnel. The vessel is equipped with a telescopic hangar and helicopter deck with facilities at the aft to facilitate take-off, landing, and maintenance of one 12-ton rescue helicopter such as Kamov Kа-27 PS. An inflatable boat can be carried for patrol and transportation tasks.

The Project 22160-class is armed with one 57mm А-220М naval gun on the bow of the main deck. With a rate of fire of 300rpm, the gun is designed to defeat air, surface and coastal targets. Two 14.5mm heavy machine guns are mounted on the bridge deck. The ship is also equipped with two DP-65 grenade launchers and one Gibka air defense missile turret mount, armed with eight Igla man-portable air-defense systems (MANPADS). It is optionally offered with one Club-N integrated missile system as well as one Shtil-1 air defense system with two 3S90E.1 modular launchers. The class's armament includes the Kalibr-NK cruise missile. The demand for the ships armed with Kalibr cruise missiles raised particularly after Russia's successful combat use of the missiles in Syria.  It can carry various drones, underwater unmanned craft, and unmanned boats.

The onboard PK-10 close-range decoy dispensing system offers protection against electro-optical guided weapons and radars. A TK-25 ship-based electronic countermeasure system is used to deceive sonar, radar, and lasers.

Fitted atop the bridge, a Pal-N shipborne navigation radar is used to scan, detect, identify and track air or surface targets for safe maneuvering. A Pozitiv-ME1 air/surface flat phased array search radar, also located on the top of the bridge, is designed for the detection and tracking of air and surface targets.

A Pallada sonar system aboard the patrol ship detects and tracks divers, while a Vinyetka-EM active/passive sonar system detects the surface ships, submarines, and torpedoes. The ship is also fitted with an MGK-335EM-03 sonar system on the hull.

The Project 22160-class is driven by CODAG (combined diesel and gas) type propulsion system with a total output power of 25,000kW. Electrical systems installed in the ship include four 300kW diesel-generators and one 100 kW emergency and harbor diesel generator.

The patrol and maximum speeds of the ship are 16kt and 30kt respectively. The ship has a cruising range of 6,000 nautical miles at patrol speeds and an endurance of 60 days.