Alligator-class landing ship

Nikolai Fil'chenkov in Sevastopol
Class overview
Operators	Soviet Navy  Russian Navy  Ukrainian Navy
Succeeded by	Ivan Gren class
Built	1964–1975
In commission	1965–present
Planned	15
Completed	14
Cancelled	1
Active	3
Lost	1
Retired	10
General characteristics
Type	Landing Ship Tank
Displacement	3,400 tons standard 4,360–4,700 tons full load
Length	112.8 metres (370 ft)–113.1 metres (371 ft) long
Beam	15.3 metres (50 ft)–15.6 metres (51 ft) beam
Propulsion	2 diesels, 2 shafts, 9,000 bhp (6,700 kW)
Speed	16-18 knots (33 km/h)
Capacity	1,000 tons
Troops	300–425 troops and, 20 tanks or 40 AFVs or 1,000 tons
Crew	55
Armament	Missiles: 1 × 122 mm naval Grad bombardment rocket launcher in some, 3 × SA-N-5 SAM positions in some.[1] Guns: 1 dual 57 mm/70 cal DP, 2 dual 25 mm AA in some.[1]

Project 1171 (Tapir-class) landing ship (NATO reporting name: Alligator) is a class of Soviet / Russian general purpose, beachable amphibious warfare ships (Soviet classification: large landing ship, Russian: БДК, большой десантный корабль).

History

In Soviet post-World War II analysis of amphibious operations, the recommendation was made that the Soviet Navy should start building dedicated amphibious ships. Among the first ships, launching in 1967, was the Polnocny class of medium landing ships, whose 900-ton vessels could transport six tanks and 180 troops.

Saratov in Sevastopol, 2007

A newer type of amphibious warship followed in the late 1950s, a true landing ship tank (LST) that was named Project 1171 and also called Tapir. Labelled "Large Landing Ship", its displacement was 4,360 tons full load and could transport up to 313 troops and 20 tanks. Additional vehicles could be stored on the upper deck. NATO gave these ships the code name "Alligator", and several subtypes were created.

The design of Project 1171 was initiated in 1959 by the Navy, while a similar dual-purpose Project 1173 was ordered by the civilian Ministry of Shipping. Eventually both designs were merged under the Project 1171 umbrella, and the resulting vessel was a compromise between military (speed, survivability) and civil (fuel economy) objectives. The design team produced four different configurations; the Navy selected the most powerful and fastest option, which was also the least fuel-efficient, while the civil Ministry of Shipping withdrew from the project completely. All production ships were made for the Navy and never operated on shipping lines.^[2]

A total of 14 vessels were completed between 1964 and 1975; all were retired between 1992 and 1995.^[2]

Saratov on fire after March 2022 attack, with Ropucha-class Caesar Kunikov and Novocherkassk steaming out of port of Berdyansk after the attack

As of September 2008, two vessels, currently named Orsk and Saratov, were in active service with the 197th Brigade of Landing Ships in the Russian Black Sea Fleet.^[3] As of March 2014, Saratov and Nikolay Filchenkov were in service with the 197th Brigade of Landing Ships in the Black Sea Fleet, Nikolay Vilkov was in service with the 100th Brigade of Landing Ships in the Russian Pacific Fleet, and Orsk was inactive and undergoing refits.^[4]

Saratov (BDK-65) was launched in July 1964, commissioned in 1966 as Voronezhsky Komsomolets. As a lead ship of a formation, it lacked the habitable troop compartments installed on other ships of the class. Saratov was stationed in Donuzlav (Black Sea Fleet) until the Union collapsed and then remained mothballed in Odessa until 1994. The ship was reported in active operations in 2000 and later.^[5]

From 2013 on, Nikolai Fil'chenkov and Saratov were used to transport military equipment from Novorossiysk to Tartus in Syria, during an intervention in the Syrian civil war, along with Ropucha-class ships.^[6]

Orsk (BDK-69) was launched and commissioned in 1968 as Nikolay Obekov. It served a total of 11 campaigns in the Indian and Atlantic oceans and the Mediterranean. Later, under the Russian flag, it carried troops and materials to Yugoslavia, Adjaria, and Abkhazia.^[7] In 2018 the vessel was seen transporting Russian equipment to Syria.^[8]

During the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, in the aftermath of the Battle of Berdiansk, Saratov was reported as destroyed by a Ukrainian attack on 24 March 2022 while in the harbour of Russian-occupied Ukrainian port Berdyansk.^[9] Video showed a large fire, smoke, and explosions, with one explosion engulfing the bow of the ship.^[10][11] The ship was originally reported as having been Orsk, but the General Staff of the Ukrainian Armed Forces later reported that Saratov had been destroyed, and two Ropucha-class ships, Caesar Kunikov and Novocherkassk damaged.^[12]

Ships of class

See also

• List of active Russian Navy ships
• List of ships of the Soviet Navy
• List of ships of Russia by project number

References

External links

Media related to Voronezhskiy Komsomolets class landing ship at Wikimedia Commons

• All Alligator Class Landing Ships – Complete Ship List