Russia’s Donuzlav hydrographic vessel discovers four unknown zones in Red Sea.

The Black Sea Fleet’s Donuzlav hydrographic vessel has covered a distance of more than 5,500 nautical miles and surveyed an area of about 7,000 square kilometres in the Black, Mediterranean and Red Seas over 99 days of its voyage, the Defense Ministry’s press office said.

Project 862/II Yug class hydrographic survey vessel Donuzlav transits Bosphorus en route to the Mediterranean (Picture source: Twitter account: Yörük Işık)

During the expedition, the seamen also discovered four unknown zones in the Red Sea and explored three islands, the press office added.

"The expedition resulted in the discovery of coral islands, the update of maps and the filling of the so-called blank spaces in seas, which had not been explored before," the press office said.

The results of the expedition have been sent to the Navy’s central map production service and will be used to update navigation charts in order to ensure safe shipping.

The Project 862/II Yug-class Hydrographic vessel “Donuzlav” was built in 1983. It has a length of 82.5 m, a width of 13.5 m and a draft of 4 m. The vessel has a standard displacement of 1842 tonnes and full load displacement of 2435 tonnes. It has a maximum speed of 15.9 knots, range of 8650 nm at 13 knots and an endurance of 40 days.

The vessel is equipped with two Don navigation radars, Khrom-K IFF, Rumb radio direction finder, MG-13 underwater communication station and MG-26 Khosta underwater communication station. The Donuzlav vessel is furnished with advanced sonars, meteorological and chemical-hydrographical equipment and two hydrographic survey boats.

Donuzlav is powered by two 2200 hp Cegielski-Sulzer 12AB25/30 diesel rotating two controllable pitch propellers. It also has two 143 hp mSS5e electric motors. four 480 kW diesel-generators and one 220 kW diesel generator.

The vessel has a crew of 58 and it can carry a research team of 12 persons.