Barabanov doubts France will supply Russia with SENIT 9 system

DATELINE: MOSCOW March 4

Russian shipyards are capable of designing and building large landing ships comparable with the French Mistral-class amphibious assault ship, but domestic designers haven’t been given the chance, editor-in-chief of the Moscow Defense Brief edition Mikhail Barabanov told Interfax-AVN on Wednesday.

“The Russian military command does not invite domestic designers and shipyards to take part in the large landing ship tender. There have been numerous claims that the domestic shipbuilding industry is not experienced in designing and building such ships,” he said.

Nevskoye Design Bureau designed a large landing ship of Project 1174 (a helicopter-carrying ship with a full displacement of 14,000 tonnes). The Kaliningrad Yantar shipyard built three ships of that project in 1974-1989.

The ships were never repaired and eventually became obsolete. The last ship of the series, the Mitrofan Moskalenko, arrived in Vladivostok in 1990 and never made another voyage.

The Nevskoye Design Bureau developed a universal landing ship of Project 11780 with a full displacement of over 30,000 tonnes in the 1980s. The ship was never built due to the absence of free docks, Barabanov said.

The expert doubts that France may supply Russia with the SENIT 9 advanced information and control system together with the Mistral ship.

The access to technologies the Russian military command is seeking in the Mistral deal “will most probably imply the acquisition of a self- propelled ship hull built by simple commercial standards. It seems not only Russian but also Chinese or Eastern European shipyards can do the same,” he said.

Source: Interfax-AVN