Tracking "Ametist"

Tracking "Ametist" along the inland waterway system, May-June 2015

In 2012, Almaz Shipyard (St Petersburg) was awarded a contract for the construction of the shipyard's fifth Rubin-class (Project 22460) patrol ship "Ametist". The unit rolled out of the shipyard in March 2014, and began sea trials in August. The ship was officially handed over the Russian Coast Guard in October and transferred to Kronshtadt, where it remained until May of this year.

"Ametist" could not transfer to the Black Sea in late 2014 as the inland waterway system would close during its transit, forcing it to winter somewhere along its journey. This is exactly what happened to "Izumrud" the year before: it departed St. Petersburg on October 4, 2014, arrived in Volgograd on December 1, and eventually transferred to the Caspian Sea to winter over. It remained there until resuming its transit on April 7 and arriving in Balaklava on May 1, making this a 210-day transfer.

So, how long does it take to transfer from St. Petersburg to Balaklava during the summer? The below chart and Google Earth plots depict the ship's transit along the Neva, Volga, and Don Rivers during its May 12-June 30 (50-day) transit.

May 12	Day 1	St. Petersburg
May 13	Day 2	Svir River Entrance Buoy
May 14	Day 3	Upper Svir River Lock
May 15	Day 4	Vytegra Lock
May 16	Day 5	Kovzha River Estuary
May 21	Day 10	Yaroslavl
May 22	Day 11	Gorodets
May 23	Day 12	Nizhniy Novgorod
May 25	Day 14	Novocheboksarsk
May 26	Day 15	Kazan
May 28	Day 17	Tolyatti
May 30	Day 19	Balakovo
June 7	Day 27	Saratov
June 11	Day 31	Volga-Don Canal Lock 1
June 12	Day 32	Volga-Don Canal Lock 11
June 14	Day 34	Nikolayevskaya Hydroelectric Plant
June 16	Day 36	Koluzayevo
June 30	Day 50	Balaklava

"Ametist" arriving in Balaklava - June 30, 2015

XLT: Buran-6M, Uragan-P Communications Suites

Delta IV SSBN
(image courtesy of Wikipedia)

(translation of Control Systems Holding Company press release)

UIC Equips New “Okean” Escort Ship with Modern Communications Suite

Moscow/August 21, 2014

Control Systems Holding Company (part of the United Instrument-Production Corporation (UIC)  - RosTekh State Corporation) has completed delivery of a Buran-6M unique, multifunction communications suite for the lead unit of the new generation Project 22100 “Okean” class of escort ships.

“Okean” is the first ice-class ship to be fully designed in accordance with the requirements of the Border Service – Federal Security Service of Russia. Based on its overall characteristics, “Okean” has no equal among vessels of its class.

The Buran-6M automated communications suite (ACS) installed on the “Okean” was manufactured at one of Control Systems’ companies – Neptun Scientific Research Institute (SRI). The suite provides communications between ships in a group and shore-based control posts, transfers data to ship- and land-based airborne vehicles, receives and transmits files over radio channels, shares data with the shipboard combat information management system, and records communications. The Buran system includes a “drive” mode for airborne vehicles, which supports the launch and recovery of shipborne helicopters while taking into consideration all safety requirements for civilian and military aircraft.

“At the heart of the Buran-6M ACS are hardware components that, in terms of power, exceed similar components produced by us in previous years,” notes UIC department director Aleksandr Kalinin. “Ethernet network technology has been introduced into the communications suite, and this allows for modern digital communications hardware to be connected to the system. The suite uses open architecture, which provides broad capabilities for future upgrades and integration of modern technologies and resources, which are necessary to defend the State border.”

Neptun SRI also has completed development of another modern transmission suite, which will be used in the Uragan-P submarine communications suite.

“The transmission suite was fully created using technology developed by Neptun SRI that has no equal among technologies used in the Russian Navy,” said Control Systems acting general director Andrey Riznyk. “The technology is designed to transmit information from a submarine to control posts during independent operations. The output of the transmission suite significantly exceeds the capability of earlier equipment, which allows for increased communications range and continuity.”

The use of special software in the Uragan-P suite reduces the possibility of operator error. The suite uses open architecture, it has the capability of being further upgraded, and its functionality can be expanded.