Boris Chilikin-class fleet oiler

The Boris Chilikin class, Soviet designation Project 1559V Morskoy prostor (Sea space), is a series of fleet replenishment oilers built in 1970s for the Soviet Navy and currently in service with the Russian Navy.

Boris Chilikin-class replenishment oiler Dnestr underway
Class overview
Name	Boris Chilikin class
Builders	Baltic Shipyard, Saint Petersburg, Russia
Operators	Soviet Navy  Russian Navy  Ukrainian Navy
Planned	6
Completed	6
Active	3
Retired	3
General characteristics [1]
Type	Replenishment oiler
Displacement	6,950 tons (standard load) 22,460 tons (full load)
Length	162.3 m (532 ft)
Beam	21.4 m (70 ft)
Draught	9.0 m (29.5 ft)
Propulsion	1 Sulzer diesel 6DNRN-74/160, 1 shaft 9,600 bhp (7,159 kW)
Speed	16 knots (30 km/h)
Range	22,000 km (12,000 nmi) at 12 knots (22 km/h; 14 mph)[1] 19,000 km (10,000 nmi) at 16 knots (30 km/h; 18 mph)
Endurance	90 days[1]
Capacity	13,440 tons[1]
Complement	75-93[1]
Armament	2 × 57 mm AK-725 guns 2 × 30 mm AK-630 rotary cannons

History

As the Soviet Navy began to more regularly operate in large areas of the world's oceans and because of the emergence of the Kiev-class aircraft carriers, demand for large surface supply ships increased. In 1967, the TsKB "Baltsudoproyekt" (now Baltic Shipyard) received technical and tactical assignment for the design of Project 1559V sea oilers based on the civilian Project 1559 or Velikiy Oktyabr class. The main designers were S.N. Shumilov and Captain 2nd rank Yu. D. Makshanchikov.^[2]

Construction

The maximum length of the ship is 162.3 m (532.5 ft), the maximum width 21.4 m (70.2 ft) and draft 9.0 m (29.5 ft).^[1] When in standard load, the ship has displacement about 6,950 tons and 22,460 tons while fully loaded. Endurance of the ships is 90 days during which they can travel the distance about 22,000 km (12,000 nmi).

The oilers of this class are equipped with a device for the transfer of goods in move by the traverse method. This allows carrying out cargo operations during significant sea waves. A wide range of transported goods (for example, bunker fuel - 8,250 tons, diesel - 2,050 tons, jet fuel - 1,000 tons, drinking water - 1,000 tons, boiler feedwater - 450 tons, lube oil - 250 tons, provisions 220 tons) allows to rank the oilers of this class to the ships for providing of complex supply.^[2]

Armament

Originally, the ships were armed with two 57 mm AK-725 guns and two 30 mm AK-630 rotary cannons, but during later operations these defensive weapons were removed.^[2]

Ships

An aerial port bow view of the Soviet aircraft carrier Minsk and the Boris Chilikin-class oiler during an underway replenishment.

Name	Builder	Laid down	Launched	Commissioned	Fleet	Status
Boris Chilikin	Baltic Shipyard			October 1970	Black Sea Fleet	Decommissioned in 2004
Vladimir Kolechitskiy	Baltic Shipyard			1972	Pacific Fleet	Decommissioned in 2012
Sergey Osipov (ex-Dnestr)	Baltic Shipyard			1973	Northern Fleet	Active
Ivan Bubnov	Baltic Shipyard		20 April 1974	19 July 1975	Black Sea Fleet	Active
Genrikh Gasanov	Baltic Shipyard			1976	Northern Fleet	Decommissioned in 2015
Boris Butoma	Baltic Shipyard			30 October 1978	Pacific Fleet	Active

Boris Chilikin was transferred to Ukrainian Navy in 1997 as Makeevka and used as commercial bulk carrier since 2001.