“Severomorsk” is a large anti-submarine destroyer of Project 1155. This project includes a series of Soviet large anti-submarine ships and Russian multi-purpose frigates of the First Rank with guided missiles suitable for the off-shore maritime and ocean zone. According to the NATO classification, they are designated as anti-submarine destroyers. Currently, the Russian Navy has eight such vessels in service, including the Admiral Kharlamov anti-submarine destroyer, which has been in reserve since 2006.
This large anti-submarine destroyer was built as part of Project 1155 (code “Frigat”), developed by the Northern Design Bureau. The project was conceived in order to produce an improved version of the Project 1135 patrol ship.
The large anti-submarine destroyer Severomorsk was laid down at the Yantar Plant in Kaliningrad on July 12, 1984. During the construction process, she was designated as “Marshal Budyonny” and “Marshal Zhukov”. She was launched in 1985 under the designation “Simferopol”. She received her current name in 1996.
The ship’s hull-mounted 360-degree omni-directional sonar and a target acquisition system are capable of detecting enemy submarines, torpedoes and moored mines at a distance of up to 40–50 kilometers. The Severomorsk is equipped with a special system that during heavy rolling reduces the amplitude of vibrations by a factor of three. This facilitates the work of the crew and increases the stability of the destroyer. Two fixed-pitch propellers set the ship in motion. Each is connected to its own power source, which includes two gas turbine engines — a main engine and an afterburner. The engines produce 9,000 and 22,500 total shaft horsepower, respectively.
The ship has repeatedly been recognized as one of the best vessels of the Northern Fleet in anti-submarine training. The Severomorsk participated in Russian-Norwegian and Russian-American joint exercises.
From December 18, 2012 to June 26, 2013, the ship made a 190-day voyage to the Gulf of Aden area across the Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea. During the campaign, the Severomorsk traveled over 30,000 miles.
