The Russian Navy has seen its fleet of enormous floor combatants contract quickly for the reason that finish of the Chilly Conflict, with simply 3 cruisers and 11 destroyers at the moment in service down from 37 cruisers and 52 destroyers in 1989 when the battle concluded – or simply 16 p.c of earlier numbers. Whereas this has been primarily a results of sharp contractions in each GDP and defence spending relative to the Soviet period, the Russian Navy’s higher deal with submarines, coastal defence techniques, and new lessons of corvette and frigate sized ships able to carrying very massive missile lessons for his or her dimension, has additionally been a serious reason behind neglect for the fleet of bigger ocean going vessels. The contraction in fleet dimension has been all of the extra important when contemplating that each one cruisers and destroyers in Russian service at this time have been constructed within the Soviet Union, with none having been laid down for home use for the reason that state’s disintegration apart from two Sovrenemmy Class destroyers constructed for export to China within the Nineteen Nineties. To compensate for this lack of recent ocean going floor combatants the Russian Navy has invested in in depth modernisation of a number of of its older ships to permit them to stay related, and in some instances give them key efficiency benefits, in twenty first century fight. Whereas some ships have been closely uncared for for even fundamental modernisation, most famously the cruiser Moskva which consequently was left extremely susceptible to easy cruise missile strikes within the Black Sea in April 2022, one of the crucial bold modernisation program has been applied for the Udaloy Class destroyer Marshal Shaposhnikov.
Udaloy Class destroyers have been commissioned into service from 1980 to 1995, with 13 accomplished of which 8 are at the moment lively which means they signify the big majority of the Russian destroyer fleet at this time. The Udaloy and Sovremenny lessons have been developed and in-built parallel, the previous targeted on anti submarine warfare and the latter carrying outsized very lengthy ranged P-270 anti ship cruise missiles for anti floor strikes. Russia has since moved away from a reliance on outsized missiles as newer generations of standard sized missiles have gained most of the identical capabilities when it comes to vary, flight efficiency and velocity, and consequently the Udaloy has been seen as extra viable to obtain upgrades together with a a lot improved anti delivery functionality to make it a extra helpful ship class general. This has mirrored developments in China, the place its 4 bought Sovremenny Class ships have been refitted with common sized indigenous YJ-12 cruise missiles permitting them to hold considerably higher firepower.
The Udaloy Class destroyer Marshal Shaposhnikov, commissioned in 1985, acquired main enhancements to its sensors, electronics and armaments from 2017 together with alternative of its eight P-270 anti ship cruise missiles with 16 launchers from the brand new 3S14 vertical launch system, which offer compatibility with Russia’s newest cruise missile lessons. It additionally built-in two 3S24 quad launchers for the Uran subsonic anti ship cruise missiles – a category not incessantly deployed from Russian floor vessels carefully derived from the air launched Kh-35. The ship retained its main air defence functionality with an arsenal of 64 brief ranged floor to air missiles derived from these of the bottom primarily based Tor system, which though optimised to cruise missile interception are additionally able to partaking every kind of plane. The ship was recommissioned into service in 2020, and subsequently additionally built-in the brand new Otvet anti submarine missile which it examined conspicuously in 2021 earlier than the missile class was accepted into service the next yr. Though a lot stays unsure relating to the capabilities of the Otvet, it’s thought-about certainly one of Russia’s most potent anti submarine weapons and enhances the deep modernisation of the Marshal Shaposhnikov’s cruise missile arsenal.
Essentially the most aware enchancment to the Marshal Shaposhnikov has been its integration of the Zicron hypersonic cruise missile, which was confirmed in late 2019 and facilitated by its integration of the 3S14 vertical launch system. The Zicron may be very extensively thought-about essentially the most harmful class of ship launched anti ship cruise missile on the planet, with a completely unrivalled Mach 9 velocity, very excessive manoeuvrability and a 1000km vary permitting ships deploying it to train management over extraordinarily extensive areas of sea and doubtlessly neutralise fleets a number of occasions their dimension whereas remaining out of hurt’s manner. Its benefits in vary complement its very excessive penetrative capabilities, with the missile’s velocity, manoeuvrability, and probably plasma stealth capabilities, making it close to unimaginable for present defence techniques to intercept. This and the sheer kinetic power of its impacts permits it to successfully obtain one hit kills in opposition to even bigger enemy floor combatants. With the Marshal Shaposhnikov in a position to deploy as much as 16 of those missiles every alongside eight Urans and its anti submarine and air defence arsenals, the Zircons alone have the potential to neutralise a complete floor strike group with out the necessity to deliver the warship’s different weaponry into play, regardless of the Udaloy not having initially been designed primarily for anti delivery roles.
The Zicron is properly suited to the Marshal Shaposhnikov’s place within the Pacific fleet, the place the Russian Navy may be very closely outnumbered by Western and allied fleets and fights over considerably wider areas than the enclosed Black Sea or Baltic Fleets. It’s anticipated that ships within the Pacific will proceed to be prioritised to combine the pricey new missiles, which even in small numbers are main sport changers for the steadiness of energy within the area. The Zicron can also be anticipated to be deployed from bombers and strike fighters in future as an air launched variant, whereas a floor primarily based coastal defence system integrating the missile is at the moment below improvement. Deploying the Zicron, alongside its different enhancements, makes the Marshal Shaposhnikov a detailed contender for the title of the Russian Navy’s strongest floor combatant, with the missiles specifically offering a serious edge in floor to floor engagements over any non Russian ships on the planet. The American Harpoon and SM-6 and even the Chinese language YJ-18 and YJ-100 don’t come wherever shut when it comes to efficiency regardless of being the 2 international locations’ main ship primarily based weapons for tackling enemy floor combatants. Maybe the Marshal Shaposhnikov’s main downside its its lack of a large space defence functionality because of the restricted vary of its floor to air missiles, which means it should want cowl from ships with longer ranged anti air capabilities that are comparatively few and much between within the Russian fleet. Whereas a future Russian destroyer class designed as an enlarged variant of the Admiral Gorshkov frigate will reportedly deploy very lengthy ranged floor to air missiles primarily based on these from the S-400 system, none of those has as of but been laid down.
