Every year Russia celebrates the Day of the Russian Navy. The commemorative day began to be celebrated back in the Soviet Union. It has been celebrated since 1939. It was re-approved and returned in 2006 by the decree of the President of Russia. Traditionally, many events are held for the holiday. Including a naval parade. What will the Russian fleet shine and boast about this year?
What's in store for the parade
Important: the organizers of the parade officially announced that in connection with the pandemic, only those citizens who come with all the necessary protective equipment - masks and gloves - will be allowed to attend a public event.
In 2020, the Day of the Russian Navy will be celebrated on July 26. In honor of this event, solemn events will be held in several cities of the country, including naval parades. According to the Soviet tradition, the main parade will be held in St. Petersburg and Kronstadt. The event will begin at 10 am Moscow time at the cruiser Aurora. The ceremony of raising the St. Andrew's flag will be held there. Cannon volleys will be fired.
The parade itself, in which more than 40 aircraft, 46 ships and over 4 thousand military will take part, starts at 11 o'clock. The ships will pass in dense formation. The distance between small vessels will be 30 meters, and between large ones - 185.2 meters. They will move in wake formation (in a straight line) at a speed of about 16 km / h. The solemn passage will end under the divorced sections of the Palace Bridge.
Separately, it should be mentioned that in addition to the main parade, the so-called "static" will traditionally take place. Some of the ships will be anchored on the Neva. This is done due to the fact that some ships are too large for such ceremonial maneuvers. The Kronstadt part of the parade is held only for the military, veterans and their families.
Admiral of the Fleet Kasatonov
The main participant of the solemn parade will, of course, be the first serial frigate of the new model called "Admiral of the Kasatonov Fleet". The battleship was named in honor of the hero of the Soviet Union, military leader and admiral of the fleet Vladimir Afanasyevich Kasatonov. During World War II, he commanded the submarine fleet in the Baltic, later this man made a huge contribution to the development of the combat training system in the fleet.
As for the frigate, it was laid down on November 26, 2009 at the St. Petersburg Severnaya Verf. The ship was launched on December 12, 2014, after which tests and system checks were carried out all this time. The frigate was accepted into service on July 21, 2020. It was created as part of the 22350 project.
A multipurpose ship with a displacement of 5.4 tons and dimensions of 135x16.4x4.53 (length, width, rigging) is equipped with a diesel-gas turbine unit that allows it to accelerate to 29.5 knots. In a fully autonomous mode, the ship can spend up to 30 days. The cruising range at a speed of 14 knots is 4.5 thousand nautical miles. The frigate's crew is 180-210 people.
Peter the Great's boat "Fortuna"
Separately, it should be remembered that, according to tradition, the parade in St. Petersburg will be opened by the boat of Peter I. The only ship of the amusing flotilla of the Russian emperor that has survived to this day. The small vessel is designed for 5 pairs of oars and has a place for a mast. The ship spends all its time in the museum and leaves it only once a year in order to lead the naval parade. Of course, no one will launch a rare boat. Instead, he will be taken in front of the audience on a special boat. It should be recalled that it was Peter I who became the creator of the Russian fleet.
If you want to know even more interesting things, then you should read about why do military submarines hide propellers.