Vishnya-class intelligence ship

The Vishnya class (also known as the Meridian class) are a group of intelligence collection ships built for the Soviet Navy in the 1980s. The ships continue in service with the Russian Navy.[1] The Soviet designation is Project 864. The Russian Navy operates seven of these ships.[2]

SSV-535 Kareliya (foreground) and USS Texas in 1988
Class overview
Builders: Stocznia Północna, Gdańsk, Poland
Operators:
Preceded by: Balzam class
Succeeded by: Yury Ivanov class
Planned: 7
Completed: 7
Active: 7
General characteristics
Type: Intelligence collection ship
Displacement: 3,470 tons full load
Length: 91.5 m (300 ft 2 in)
Beam: 14.6 m (47 ft 11 in)
Draught: 4.5 m (14 ft 9 in)
Propulsion: 2 shafts, 2 Sulzer diesel engines, 4,400 bhp (3,300 kW)
Speed: 16 knots
Complement: 146 (= 6 passengers)
Sensors and
processing systems:		 Sonar: Pamyat hull mounted arrays, HF dipping
Electronic warfare
& decoys:		 Intercept arrays
Armament:

Design

These ships are large, purpose built ships designed for signals intelligence gathering via an extensive array of sensors.[3] The data could be transmitted to shore via satellite link antennas housed in two large radomes. The ships are armed with two AK-630 close-in weapon systems and SA-N-8 surface-to-air missile (SAM) launchers, for last resort self-defense.

Operations

Vasily Tatishchev was deployed to the Eastern Mediterranean Sea on 5 October 2015 to monitor the conflict in Syria.[4]

On February 15, 2017, CNN reported that SSV Viktor Leonov, a Russian spy ship was sitting 30 miles (48 km) off the coast of Connecticut. This is the farthest north the Russian spy vessel has ever ventured, according to US defense officials. CNN later reported that Viktor Leonov, which conducted similar patrols in 2014 and 2015, was off the coast of Delaware, but typically she only travels as far north as Virginia. The ship is based with Russia's Northern Fleet in the North Sea but had stopped over in Cuba before conducting her patrol along the Atlantic Coast and is expected to return there following her latest mission. She was spotted operating off the coast of South Carolina and Georgia in December of 2019. The United States Coast Guard at the time published a MSIB alleging unsafe operations being performed in that area, including running without navigation lights, and failing to respond to hails. The ship is outfitted with a variety of high-tech interception equipment and is designed to intercept signals intelligence. The official said that the US Navy was "keeping a close eye on it.".[5]

Ships
SSV-208 Kuril'y in 2005
Name Hull No. Laid down Launched Commissioned Fleet Status Notes
Fedor Golovin
(ex-Meridian)		 520 14 November 1985 Baltic Fleet Active
Kareliya 535 5 July 1986 Pacific Fleet Active Repairs and retrofit completed on 20 July 2017.[6][7]
Tavriya 169 17 January 1987 Northern Fleet Active
Priazovye 201 12 June 1987 Black Sea Fleet Active
Kurily 208 16 October 1987 Pacific Fleet Active
Vasiliy Tatishchev
(ex-Pelengator)		 231 27 November 1987 23 July 1988 Baltic Fleet Active
Viktor Leonov
(ex-Odograf)		 175 1988 Northern Fleet Active
gollark: I have my ways.
gollark: It does not yet run potatOS, even.
gollark: We're just using this great public billboard.
gollark: `fucn`
gollark: Java!

See also

References
  1. http://www.hazegray.org/worldnav/russia/aux_othr.htm/
  2. "Project 864".
  3. http://warfare.be/db/catid/296/linkid/2112/
  4. Pike, John. "Vishnya class".
  5. Ryan Browne; Barbara Starr. "Russian spy ship lurks off Connecticut coast". CNN.
  6. http://vestiprim.ru/news/ptrnews/52545-tof-vozvraschaet-v-stroy-srzk-kareliyafoto.html
  7. http://www.navyrecognition.com/index.php/news/defence-news/2017/july-2017-navy-naval-forces-defense-industry-technology-maritime-security-global-news/5417-vishnya-class-intelligence-ship-karelia-rejoined-the-russian-pacific-fleet.html
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