This is reported by the magazine of the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation “Army Collection”.
“This year, the Black Sea Fleet will be reinforced with four more ships, including three of the latest small missile carriers of the Karakurt type, equipped with high-precision weapons,” the publication says.
It should be noted that the Project 22800 ships under construction for the Russian Navy since 2015 are designed to perform tasks in the near sea and river areas. Standard displacement – 800 tons. Crew – 39 people. The speed is 30 knots and the cruising autonomy is 2,500 nautical miles.
The main armament of the “Karakurt” consists of eight cells of the vertical launch system, capable of using “Onyx” and “Caliber” cruise missiles. The possibility of equipping the new corvettes with the Zirkon anti-ship hypersonic missile, which is capable of reaching speeds of the order of Mach 9, is also not ruled out.
As previously noted by The National Interest magazine, Karakurt corvettes are capable of hitting not only enemy surface ships, but also ground military installations.
Relatively fast and agile, these ships are suitable for a wide range of combat missions including search and rescue and air defense.