Russia's 110°
THE” WARZONE
Russia’s 110-Year-Old Salvage Ship Deploying
To Moskva Wreck: Report
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SOUTo1sr2022, 21:12 Russia's 110-Yoar-Old Salvage Ship Deploying Te Moskva Wrack: Report
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EMMA HELFRICH
View Emma Helfrich's Articles
salvage operation following the sinking of the Russian Slava class cruiser Moskva may
be underway, according to a report by independent defense analyst HL, Sutton, The
ship reported to be carrying out this operation happens to be a 10-year-old Russian Navy
rescue vessel named ommuna— one of the oldest operational naval vessels in existence,
The unique-looking Kommuna first entered active service as the Voikhovin 1915 to act as a
submarine tender and salvage ship for the Russian Navy's Baltic fleet. She is a double-hulled
catamaran design and was active through the Russian Revolution and two World Wars,
serving in the Russian Imperial, Soviet, and now Russian Federation navies.
ing launched in 1913. The ship has seen an amazing amount of histor
hitpsswwwthedrive.comihe-war-zonertussias-110-year-old-salvage-ship-doploying-o-moskva-wreck report antovisra0z2, 21:12 Russias 110.Yoa-Old Salvage Ship Deploying To Moslva Wreck: Report
In 1922, she was officially renamed Kommuna, or Communein English, which matched
Russials drastically changed political reality at the time. That name even succeeded the
eventual fall of the Soviet Union.
In her early life, she tended submarines, including repairing and refueling them and
swapping out their crews, in addition to executing recovery missions. The latter missions
ranged from salvaging everything from ships to aircraft. Kommunawas even awarded the
Medal For The Defense of Leningrad for her role in salvaging vehicles from sunken supply
ships during the harrowing World War II Leningrad campaign. Following a refitting in 1967,
she moved to the Black Sea and was equipped with recovery submersibles.
fe ship-catamaran. Photo taken in the Sevastopol bay, in Ukrai
The ship’ double-hull design was initially intended to provide space for docking submarines
and salvaged objects. As she was upgraded over the years and submarines grew much larger,
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the central area became home to compact rescue submarines, smaller remote-controlled
submersibles, as well as parts of wreckage that had been hoisted into the ship.
According to Sutton, itis likely that Kommunais carrying AS-28 deep-submergence rescue
vehicles (DSRV) that are designed to dive 1,000 meters deep. Kommuna has long been based
in Sevastopol, Crimea, near the location in the Black Sea where the Moskva had sunk. Sutton
believes the depth of the wreck will be easily reached by the ancient ship's more modern
hardware,
8 Priz class submarine.
Due to her proximity to where the Moskva sinking occurred, deploying Kommuna as the
designated salvage vessel to surveil the wreckage seems to be a logical choice, despite being
over a century old.
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For background, Moskva was severely damaged in mid-April after being struck by Ukrainian
Neptune shore-based anti-ship cruise missiles while sailing the Black Sea. The vessel then
caught fire which led to a full-crew evacuation. The ship was equipped with a triple-tier air
defense system, as well as long-range anti-ship cruise missiles, among other weaponty.
Moskva in the Black Sea
explosion. 7
While circumstances surrounding the Black Sea flagship’s sinking remain mysterious, an
official announcement was made by Russia's Ministry of Defense confirming Moskva had
sunk while being towed back to port the day after an explosion on board. This is now
considered to be the most prominent naval loss during combat in decades.
Experts like Sutton are not sure if Russia will try to salvage all or even large sections of its
sunken cruiser. There are no official reports surrounding what exactly was aboard the
‘Moskva in terms of sensitive materials, but classified items and sensitive weapons and
communications systems would be a high priority for immediate recovery efforts.
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While there have been claims that nuclear warheads for the ship's P-500/P-1000 anti-ship
missiles were on board at the time of its sinking, there is currently zero evidence to back this
up, When considering the sailors that were aboard the ship at the time of the explosion, itis
unknown how many of the approximately 500 crew members survived or were injured.
‘The Russian Ministry of Defense claimed just today that 396 sailors on the ship had been
rescued, one has been found dead, and 27 remain missing, but we do not know if those
numbers match reality. However, itis also being speculated that the potential recovery of
bodies will be a part of Kommuna’s Moskva salvage mission,
World's oldest active naval vessel in ACTIVE SERVICE ...
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The time it will take for Kommunato see even a reconnoitering operation through is also a
growing concern, if indeed it is going to work the site of Moskva's sinking. It could become a
juicy target for Ukrainian forces who have already made it clear they can reach out far from
their shore to strike an enemy ship.
Inhis coverage, Sutton also noted that the Russian Navy's Project 11982-class oceanographic
survey vessel Lagoda could also be deployed in support of Kommuna’s mission.
‘Whether the mission will be solely focused on investigation, recovery, or both, the antique
‘Kommuna may once again get the chance to ply her trade as the matriarch of naval salvage
ships on what may become the highest-profile mission of her very long career.
Contact the author: Emma@thewarzone.com
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