Location via proxy:   [ UP ]  
[Report a bug]   [Manage cookies]                
Jump to content

Soviet destroyer Steregushchy (1938): Difference between revisions

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Browse history interactively
← Previous edit
Content deleted Content added
VisualWikitext
No edit summary
Monkbot (talk | contribs)
Bots
3,695,952 edits
m Task 20: replace {lang-??} templates with {langx|??} ‹See Tfd› (Replaced 1);
 
(30 intermediate revisions by 13 users not shown)
Line 1: Line 1:
{{short description|Destroyer of the Soviet Navy}}

{{other ships|Soviet destroyer Steregushchy}}
{|{{Infobox ship begin}}
{|{{Infobox ship begin}}
{{Infobox ship image
{{Infobox ship image
Line 8: Line 11:
|Ship country=[[Soviet Union]]
|Ship country=[[Soviet Union]]
|Ship flag={{shipboxflag|Soviet Union|naval}}
|Ship flag={{shipboxflag|Soviet Union|naval}}
|Ship name=''Steregushchy''
|Ship name=''Steregushchy'' ({{lang|ru|Стерегущий}} (Watchful))
|Ship renamed=
|Ship renamed=
|Ship ordered=[[Five-year plans for the national economy of the Soviet Union#Second plan, 1933–1937|2nd Five-Year Plan]]
|Ship ordered=[[Five-year plans for the national economy of the Soviet Union#Second plan, 1933–1937|2nd Five-Year Plan]]
|Ship builder=[[Severnaya Verf|Shipyard No. 190 (Zhdanov)]], [[Leningrad]]
|Ship builder=[[Severnaya Verf|Shipyard No. 190 (Zhdanov)]], [[Leningrad]]
|Ship original cost=
|Ship yard number=516
|Ship way number=
|Ship laid down=12 August 1936
|Ship laid down=12 August 1936
|Ship launched=18 January 1938
|Ship launched=18 January 1938
Line 21: Line 21:
|Ship completed= 30 October 1939
|Ship completed= 30 October 1939
|Ship commissioned=
|Ship commissioned=
|Ship fate=[[ship breaking|Scrap]], 1959
|Ship fate=[[ship breaking|Scrapped]], 1959
|Ship notes=
|Ship notes=
}}
}}
Line 27: Line 27:
|Hide header=
|Hide header=
|Header caption= (''Gnevny'' as completed, 1938)
|Header caption= (''Gnevny'' as completed, 1938)
|Ship class= {{sclass-|Gnevny|destroyer}}
|Ship class= {{sclass|Gnevny|destroyer}}
|Ship displacement=*{{cvt|1612|t|LT|lk=in}} ([[Displacement (ship)#Standard displacement|standard]])
|Ship displacement={{cvt|1612|t|LT|lk=on}} ([[Displacement (ship)#Standard displacement|standard]])
*{{cvt|2039|t|LT}} ([[deep load]])
|Ship length= {{cvt|112.8|m|ftin}} ([[o/a]])
|Ship length= {{cvt|112.8|m|ftin}} ([[o/a]])
|Ship beam={{cvt|10.2|m|ftin}}
|Ship beam={{cvt|10.2|m|ftin}}
|Ship draught={{cvt|4.8|m|ftin}}
|Ship draft={{cvt|4.8|m|ftin}}
|Ship propulsion=*2 shafts; 2 geared [[steam turbine]]s
|Ship propulsion=*2 shafts; 2 geared [[steam turbine]]s
|Ship speed= {{convert|38|kn|lk=in}}
|Ship speed= {{convert|38|kn|lk=in}}
|Ship range={{cvt|2720|nmi|lk=in}} at {{convert|19|kn}}
|Ship range={{cvt|2720|nmi|lk=in}} at {{convert|19|kn}}
|Ship power=*{{cvt|48000|shp|kW|lk=on}}
|Ship power=*3 [[water-tube boiler]]s
*{{cvt|48000|shp|kW|lk=on}}
*3 [[water-tube boiler]]s
|Ship complement=197 (236 wartime)
|Ship complement=197 (236 wartime)
|Ship sensors=Mars [[hydrophone]]
|Ship sensors=Mars [[hydrophone]]
|Ship EW=
|Ship armament=*4 × single [[130 mm/50 B13 Pattern 1936|{{cvt|130|mm}} guns]]
|Ship armament=*4 × single [[130 mm/50 B13 Pattern 1936|{{cvt|130|mm}} guns]]
*2 × single [[76 mm air defense gun M1938|{{cvt|76.2|mm|1}}]] [[AA gun]]s
*2 × single [[76.2 mm anti-aircraft gun Model 1935 (34-K)|{{cvt|76.2|mm|0}}]] [[AA gun]]s
*2 × single [[45 mm anti-aircraft gun (21-K)|{{cvt|45|mm}}]] AA guns
*2 × single [[45 mm anti-aircraft gun (21-K)|{{cvt|45|mm}}]] AA guns
*2 × single [[DShK|{{cvt|12.7|mm}}]] [[anti-aircraft machinegun|AA machineguns]]
*2 × single [[DShK|{{cvt|12.7|mm}}]] [[anti-aircraft machinegun|AA machineguns]]
*2 × triple {{cvt|533|mm}} [[torpedo tube]]s
*2 × triple {{cvt|533|mm|0}} [[torpedo tube]]s
*60–95 [[Naval mine|mine]]s
*60–96 [[Naval mine|mine]]s
*25 [[depth charge]]s
*2 × [[depth charge]] racks, 25 depth charges
|Ship notes=
|Ship notes=
}}
}}
|}
|}
'''''Steregushchy''''' was one of 29 {{sclass-|Gnevny|destroyer}}s (officially known as [[List of ships of Russia by project number|Project 7]]) built for the [[Soviet Navy]] during the late 1930s. Completed in 1939, she was assigned to the [[Baltic Fleet]].
'''''Steregushchy''''' ({{langx|ru|Стерегущий|lit=Watchful}}) was one of 29 {{sclass|Gnevny|destroyer}}s (officially known as [[List of ships of Russia by project number|Project 7]]) built for the [[Soviet Navy]] during the late 1930s. Completed in 1939, she was assigned to the [[Baltic Fleet]]. The ship played a minor role in the [[Winter War]] of 1939–1940 against the [[Finland|Finns]]. After the start of the [[Operation Barbarossa|German invasion of the Soviet Union]] (Operation Barbarossa) in June 1941, ''Steregushchy'' participated in the [[Gulf of Riga campaign|Gulf of Riga Campaign]]. The ship briefly provided [[naval gunfire support]] during the [[Siege of Leningrad]] before she was sunk by German [[dive bomber]]s on 21 September. Her wreck was [[Marine salvage|refloated]] in 1944, although the repairs were not completed until 1948. ''Steregushchy'' was [[ship breaking|broken up for scrap]] in 1959.


==Design and description==
==Design and description==
Having decided on the specifications of the large {{convert|40|kn|lk=in|adj=on}} {{sclass-|Leningrad|destroyer|0}} [[flotilla leader|destroyer leader]]s, the Soviet Navy sought Italian assistance in designing smaller and cheaper destroyers. They licensed the plans for the {{sclass-|Folgore|destroyer|4}} and, in modifying it for their purposes, overloaded a design that was already somewhat marginally [[ship stability|stable]].<ref>Yakubov & Worth, pp. 99, 102–103</ref>
Having decided to build the large and expensive {{convert|40|kn|lk=in|adj=on}} {{sclass|Leningrad|destroyer|0}} [[flotilla leader|destroyer leaders]], the Soviet Navy sought Italian assistance in designing smaller and cheaper destroyers. They licensed the plans for the {{sclass|Folgore|destroyer|4}} and, in modifying it for their purposes, overloaded a design that was already somewhat marginally [[ship stability|stable]].<ref>Yakubov & Worth, pp. 99, 102–103</ref>


The ''Gnevny''s had an [[length overall|overall length]] of {{convert|112.8|m|ftin|sp=us}}, a [[beam (nautical)|beam]] of {{convert|10.2|m|ftin|sp=us}}, and a [[draft (hull)|draft]] of {{convert|4.8|m|ftin|sp=us}} at [[deep load]]. The ships were significantly overweight, almost {{convert|200|MT|LT|0|lk=on}} heavier than designed, displacing {{convert|1612|MT|LT}} at [[Displacement (ship)#Standard displacement|standard load]] and {{convert|2039|MT|LT}} at deep load. Their crew numbered 197 officers and sailors in peacetime and 236 in wartime.<ref>Yakubov & Worth, p. 101</ref> The ships had a pair of geared [[steam turbine]]s, each driving one propeller, rated to produce {{convert|48000|shp|lk=on}} using steam from three [[water-tube boiler]]s which was intended to give them a maximum speed of {{convert|37|kn}}.<ref>Budzbon, p. 330</ref> The designers had been conservative in rating the turbines and many, but not all, of the ships handily exceeded their designed speed during their [[sea trial]]s. Others fell considerably short of it. ''Steregushchy'' reached {{convert|35.2|kn}} during trials in 1948. Variations in [[fuel oil]] capacity meant that the range of the ''Gnevny''s varied between {{convert|1670|to|3145|nmi|lk=in}} at {{convert|19|kn}}. ''Steregushchy'' herself demonstrated a range of {{convert|2500|nmi|abbr=on}} at that speed.<ref>Yakubov & Worth, pp. 101, 106–107</ref>
The ''Gnevny''s had an [[length overall|overall length]] of {{convert|112.8|m|ftin|sp=us}}, a [[beam (nautical)|beam]] of {{convert|10.2|m|ftin|sp=us}}, and a [[draft (hull)|draft]] of {{convert|4.8|m|ftin|sp=us}} at [[deep load]]. The ships were significantly overweight, almost {{convert|200|MT|LT|0|lk=on}} heavier than designed, displacing {{convert|1612|MT|LT}} at [[Displacement (ship)#Standard displacement|standard load]] and {{convert|2039|MT|LT}} at deep load. Their crew numbered 197 officers and sailors in peacetime and 236 in wartime.<ref>Yakubov & Worth, p. 101</ref> The ships had a pair of geared [[steam turbine]]s, each driving one propeller, rated to produce {{convert|48000|shp|lk=on}} using steam from three [[water-tube boiler]]s which was intended to give them a maximum speed of {{convert|37|kn}}.<ref>Budzbon, p. 330</ref> The designers had been conservative in rating the turbines and many, but not all, of the ships handily exceeded their designed speed during their [[sea trial]]s. Others fell considerably short of it. ''Steregushchy'' reached {{convert|35.2|kn}} during trials in 1948. Variations in [[fuel oil]] capacity meant that the range of the ''Gnevny''s varied between {{convert|1670|to|3145|nmi|lk=in}} at {{convert|19|kn}}. ''Steregushchy'' herself demonstrated a range of {{convert|2500|nmi|abbr=on}} at that speed.<ref>Yakubov & Worth, pp. 101, 106–107</ref>


As built, the ''Gnevny''-class ships mounted four [[130 mm/50 B13 Pattern 1936|{{convert|130|mm|in|adj=on|sp=us}} B-13 guns]] in two pairs of [[superfiring]] single mounts fore and aft of the [[superstructure]]. [[Anti-aircraft warfare|Anti-aircraft defense]] was provided by a pair of [[76 mm air defense gun M1938|{{convert|76.2|mm|adj=on|sp=us|1}} 34-K]] [[AA gun]]s in single mounts and a pair of [[45 mm anti-aircraft gun (21-K)|{{convert|45|mm|adj=on|sp=us}} 21-K]] AA guns<ref>Hill, p. 40</ref> as well as two {{convert|12.7|mm|adj=on|sp=us}} [[DShK|DK or DShK]] [[machine gun]]s. They carried six {{cvt|533|mm|in}} [[torpedo tube]]s in two rotating triple mounts; each tube was provided with a reload. The ships could also carry a maximum of either 60 or 95 [[naval mine|mines]] and 25 [[depth charge]]s. They were fitted with a set of Mars [[hydrophone]]s for [[anti-submarine warfare|anti-submarine work]], although they were useless at speeds over {{convert|3|kn}}.<ref>Yakubov & Worth, pp. 101, 105–106</ref>
As built, the ''Gnevny''-class ships mounted four [[130 mm/50 B13 Pattern 1936|{{convert|130|mm|in|adj=on|sp=us}} B-13 guns]] in two pairs of [[superfiring]] single mounts fore and aft of the [[superstructure]]. [[Anti-aircraft warfare|Anti-aircraft defense]] was provided by a pair of [[76.2 mm anti-aircraft gun Model 1935 (34-K)|{{convert|76.2|mm|adj=on|sp=us|0}} 34-K]] [[AA gun]]s in single mounts and a pair of [[45 mm anti-aircraft gun (21-K)|{{convert|45|mm|adj=on|sp=us}} 21-K]] AA guns<ref>Hill, p. 40</ref> as well as two {{convert|12.7|mm|adj=on|sp=us}} [[DShK|DK or DShK]] [[machine gun]]s. They carried six {{cvt|533|mm|in}} [[torpedo tube]]s in two rotating triple mounts; each tube was provided with a reload. The ships could also carry a maximum of either 60 or 95 [[naval mine|mines]] and 25 [[depth charge]]s. They were fitted with a set of Mars [[hydrophone]]s for [[anti-submarine warfare|anti-submarine work]], although they were useless at speeds over {{convert|3|kn}}.<ref>Yakubov & Worth, pp. 101, 105–106</ref> The ships were equipped with two K-1 [[Paravane (weapon)|paravanes]] intended to destroy mines and a pair of depth-charge throwers.<ref>Berezhnoy, p. 335</ref>


== Construction and service ==
== Construction and service ==
Built in [[Leningrad]]'s [[Severnaya Verf|Shipyard No. 190 (Zhdanov)]] as [[yard number]] 516, ''Steregushchy'' was [[laid down]] on 12 August 1936, [[Ceremonial ship launching|launched]] on 18 June 1938, and was completed on 30 October 1939.<ref>Rohwer & Monakov, p. 233</ref>
Built in [[Leningrad]]'s [[Severnaya Verf|Shipyard No. 190 (Zhdanov)]] as [[yard number]] 516, ''Steregushchy'' was [[laid down]] on 12 August 1936 and [[Ceremonial ship launching|launched]] on 18 June 1938. The ship was completed on 30 October 1939.<ref>Rohwer & Monakov, p. 233</ref> and assigned to the Baltic Fleet. After the Winter War began on 30 November, she bombarded Finnish coastal defense positions on Saarenpää Island, part of the [[Beryozovye Islands]], on 10 and 18–19 December, in conjunction with other ships.<ref>Rohwer, pp. 11–12</ref>

When the Germans invaded the Soviet Union on 22 June 1941, ''Steregushchy'' was assigned to the 1st Destroyer [[Division (naval)|Division]] of the Light Forces Detachment, based in [[Ust-Dvinsk]], [[Latvia]]. The following day the division, the [[light cruiser]] {{Ship|Soviet cruiser|Maxim Gorky|4=2}}, ''Steregushchy'' and her sisters {{Ship|Soviet destroyer|Gordy|1937|2}} and {{Ship|Soviet destroyer|Gnevny|1936|2}}, was tasked with covering [[minelaying]] operations at the mouth of the [[Gulf of Finland]]. They entered a German [[minefield]] {{convert|16|to|18|nmi}} northwest of [[Tahkuna Lighthouse]] and ''Maxim Gorky'' had her [[bow (ship)|bow]] blown off by a [[naval mine|mine]]. After ''Steregushchy'' detonated two mines with her paravanes that knocked out one of her turbines, she accompanied ''Maxim Gorky'' to [[Tallinn]], [[Estonia]]. On 2 July the destroyer helped to lay a minefield near [[Gogland]] Island. ''Steregushchy'' participated in an unsuccessful attack on a group of German [[landing craft]] off the mouth of the [[Daugava River]] on 13 July. Two days later, the ship was attacked by German bombers in the Väike Strait between [[Muhu]] and [[Saaremaa]] Islands. [[Shockwave]]s from four near misses dimpled plates in her hull, but caused no significant damage.<ref>Platonov, p. 184; Rohwer, pp. 81, 86</ref>

Under the flag of Light Forces detachment commander ''[[Kontradmiral|Kontr-admiral]]'' (Rear Admiral) [[Valentin Drozd]], she and the destroyer {{Ship|Soviet destroyer|Serdity|1940|2}} covered minelaying by the [[guard ship]]s ''Tucha'' and ''Sneg'' on 18 July. By 14:00 of that day they returned to the Kübasaar [[roadstead]] near Saaremaa, but quickly turned back after receiving a message that a German convoy had been spotted. Due a lack of coordination with [[Soviet Naval Aviation]], both destroyers came under [[Friendly fire|friendly air attack]] and at 15:31 a bomb dropped by a [[Tupolev SB]] bomber exploded close to ''Serdity'', knocking out a [[boiler]] and both [[Rangefinding telemeter|rangefinder]]s in the [[conning tower]]. ''Steregushchy'', which escaped unscathed, engaged the German convoy escorts, but was only joined by ''Serdity'' at 17:24 after they had lost sight of the convoy.<ref name=":0">Balakin, pp. 67–68</ref>

On 11 August, ''Steregushchy'' was one of the escorts for the [[passenger ship]] {{SS|Vyacheslav Molotov}} as she steamed from Tallinn to [[Kronstadt]] when they entered a minefield. The destroyer had one of her fuel tanks flooded when a mine detonated in her starboard paravane. After the transport was damaged by a mine off Gogland, she was towed to Kronstadt by ''Steregushchy''. After repairs, the ship supported the defenders of Leningrad with 350 shells from her main guns. On 21 September, she was attacked by [[Junkers Ju 87]] ''Stuka'' [[dive bomber]]s of [[Sturzkampfgeschwader 2|StG 2]]. Hit three times, the bombs disabled one engine and quickly flooded the aft [[Fire room|boiler room]]. Her [[captain (nautical)|captain]] took her into shallow water where she capsized to starboard, 15 minutes after being hit. A single 130&nbsp;mm gun and some parts were salvaged by [[Underwater diving|divers]] in October to repair the destroyer {{ship|Soviet destroyer|Strashny||2}}. The wreck was refloated in June 1944 and it was [[drydock]]ed on 20 July for repairs that lasted until 1948. ''Steregushchy'' was stricken from the [[Navy List]] on 28 January 1958 and scrapped the following year.<ref>Platonov, pp. 184–185; Rohwer, pp. 91, 97, 102; Yakubov & Worth, pp. 108–109</ref>


==Citations==
==Citations==
Line 67: Line 71:


==Sources==
==Sources==
*{{Cite book|title=Легендарные "семёрки" Эсминцы "сталинской" серии|last=Balakin|first=Sergey|publisher=Yauza/Eksmo|year=2007|isbn=978-5-699-23784-5|location=Moscow|pages=|language=Russian|trans-title=Legendary Sevens: Stalin's destroyer series}}
*{{Cite book|title=Легендарные "семёрки" Эсминцы "сталинской" серии|last=Balakin|first=Sergey|publisher=Yauza/Eksmo|year=2007|isbn=978-5-699-23784-5|location=Moscow|language=ru|trans-title=Legendary Sevens: Stalin's destroyer series}}
*{{Cite book|title=Крейсера и миноносцы. Справочник|last=Berezhnoy|first=Sergey|publisher=Voenizdat|year=2002|isbn=5-203-01780-8|location=Moscow|pages=|language=Russian|trans-title=Guide to Cruisers and Destroyers}}
*{{Cite book|title=Крейсера и миноносцы. Справочник|last=Berezhnoy|first=Sergey|publisher=Voenizdat|year=2002|isbn=5-203-01780-8|location=Moscow|language=ru|trans-title=Guide to Cruisers and Destroyers}}
*{{cite book|title=Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships 1922–1946|editor-last=Chesneau|publisher=Conway Maritime Press|location=Greenwich, UK|year=1980|isbn=0-85177-146-7|last=Budzbon|first=Przemysaw|pages=318–346|chapter=Soviet Union|editor-first=Roger}}
*{{cite book|title=Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships 1922–1946|editor-last=Chesneau|publisher=Conway Maritime Press|location=Greenwich, UK|year=1980|isbn=0-85177-146-7|last=Budzbon|first=Przemysaw|pages=318–346|chapter=Soviet Union|editor-first=Roger}}
* {{cite book | last = Hill | first = Alexander | year = 2018 | title = Soviet Destroyers of World War II | place = Oxford, UK| publisher = Osprey Publishing| isbn = 978-1-4728-2256-7|series=New Vanguard|volume=256}}
* {{cite book | last = Hill | first = Alexander | year = 2018 | title = Soviet Destroyers of World War II | place = Oxford, UK| publisher = Osprey Publishing| isbn = 978-1-4728-2256-7|series=New Vanguard|volume=256}}
*{{cite book |last1=Platonov |first1=Andrey V.|title=Энциклопедия советских надводных кораблей 1941–1945 |trans-title=Encyclopedia of Soviet Surface Ships 1941–1945 |date=2002 |publisher=Poligon |location=Saint Petersburg |isbn=5-89173-178-9 |language=ru}}
* {{cite book|last=Rohwer|first=Jürgen|title=Chronology of the War at Sea 1939–1945: The Naval History of World War Two|publisher=Naval Institute Press|location=Annapolis, Maryland|year=2005|edition=Third Revised|isbn=1-59114-119-2|authorlink=Jürgen Rohwer}}
*{{cite book|last1=Rohwer|first1=Jürgen|last2=Monakov|first2=Mikhail S.|title=Stalin's Ocean-Going Fleet|publisher=Frank Cass|location=London|year=2001|isbn=0-7146-4895-7|lastauthoramp=y}}
* {{cite book|last=Rohwer|first=Jürgen|title=Chronology of the War at Sea 1939–1945: The Naval History of World War Two|publisher=Naval Institute Press|location=Annapolis, Maryland|year=2005|edition=Third Revised|isbn=1-59114-119-2|author-link=Jürgen Rohwer}}
* {{cite book|last1=Yakubov|first1=Vladimir|last2=Worth |first2=Richard |chapter=The Soviet Project 7/7U Destroyers|editor1-last=Jordan |editor1-first=John |editor2-last=Dent |editor2-first=Stephen |publisher=Conway|location=London|year=2008|title=Warship 2008|pages=99–114|isbn=978-1-84486-062-3|lastauthoramp=y}}
*{{cite book|last1=Rohwer|first1=Jürgen|last2=Monakov|first2=Mikhail S.|title=Stalin's Ocean-Going Fleet|publisher=Frank Cass|location=London|year=2001|isbn=0-7146-4895-7|name-list-style=amp}}
* {{cite book|last1=Yakubov|first1=Vladimir|last2=Worth |first2=Richard |chapter=The Soviet Project 7/7U Destroyers|editor1-last=Jordan |editor1-first=John |editor2-last=Dent |editor2-first=Stephen |publisher=Conway|location=London|year=2008|title=Warship 2008|pages=99–114|isbn=978-1-84486-062-3|name-list-style=amp}}


==Further reading==
==Further reading==
Line 79: Line 84:


{{Gnevny-class destroyer}}
{{Gnevny-class destroyer}}
{{September 1941 shipwrecks}}


{{DEFAULTSORT:Steregushchy (1937)}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Steregushchy (1937)}}
Line 84: Line 90:
[[Category:1938 ships]]
[[Category:1938 ships]]
[[Category:Ships built at Severnaya Verf]]
[[Category:Ships built at Severnaya Verf]]
[[Category:Destroyers sunk by aircraft]]
[[Category:Ships sunk by German aircraft]]
[[Category:Maritime incidents in September 1941]]
[[Category:Cold War destroyers of the Soviet Union]]

Latest revision as of 09:03, 30 October 2024

For other ships with the same name, see Soviet destroyer Steregushchy.
Aerial view of sister ship Razumny, March 1944
History
Soviet Union
NameSteregushchy (Стерегущий (Watchful))
Ordered2nd Five-Year Plan
BuilderShipyard No. 190 (Zhdanov), Leningrad
Laid down12 August 1936
Launched18 January 1938
Completed30 October 1939
Stricken28 January 1958
FateScrapped, 1959
General characteristics (Gnevny as completed, 1938)
Class and typeGnevny-class destroyer
Displacement1,612 t (1,587 long tons) (standard)
Length112.8 m (370 ft 1 in) (o/a)
Beam10.2 m (33 ft 6 in)
Draft4.8 m (15 ft 9 in)
Installed power
Propulsion2 shafts; 2 geared steam turbines
Speed38 knots (70 km/h; 44 mph)
Range2,720 nmi (5,040 km; 3,130 mi) at 19 knots (35 km/h; 22 mph)
Complement197 (236 wartime)
Sensors and
processing systems		Mars hydrophone
Armament

Steregushchy (Russian: Стерегущий, lit. 'Watchful') was one of 29 Gnevny-class destroyers (officially known as Project 7) built for the Soviet Navy during the late 1930s. Completed in 1939, she was assigned to the Baltic Fleet. The ship played a minor role in the Winter War of 1939–1940 against the Finns. After the start of the German invasion of the Soviet Union (Operation Barbarossa) in June 1941, Steregushchy participated in the Gulf of Riga Campaign. The ship briefly provided naval gunfire support during the Siege of Leningrad before she was sunk by German dive bombers on 21 September. Her wreck was refloated in 1944, although the repairs were not completed until 1948. Steregushchy was broken up for scrap in 1959.

Design and description

[edit]

Having decided to build the large and expensive 40-knot (74 km/h; 46 mph) Leningrad-class destroyer leaders, the Soviet Navy sought Italian assistance in designing smaller and cheaper destroyers. They licensed the plans for the Folgore class and, in modifying it for their purposes, overloaded a design that was already somewhat marginally stable.[1]

The Gnevnys had an overall length of 112.8 meters (370 ft 1 in), a beam of 10.2 meters (33 ft 6 in), and a draft of 4.8 meters (15 ft 9 in) at deep load. The ships were significantly overweight, almost 200 metric tons (197 long tons) heavier than designed, displacing 1,612 metric tons (1,587 long tons) at standard load and 2,039 metric tons (2,007 long tons) at deep load. Their crew numbered 197 officers and sailors in peacetime and 236 in wartime.[2] The ships had a pair of geared steam turbines, each driving one propeller, rated to produce 48,000 shaft horsepower (36,000 kW) using steam from three water-tube boilers which was intended to give them a maximum speed of 37 knots (69 km/h; 43 mph).[3] The designers had been conservative in rating the turbines and many, but not all, of the ships handily exceeded their designed speed during their sea trials. Others fell considerably short of it. Steregushchy reached 35.2 knots (65.2 km/h; 40.5 mph) during trials in 1948. Variations in fuel oil capacity meant that the range of the Gnevnys varied between 1,670 to 3,145 nautical miles (3,093 to 5,825 km; 1,922 to 3,619 mi) at 19 knots (35 km/h; 22 mph). Steregushchy herself demonstrated a range of 2,500 nmi (4,600 km; 2,900 mi) at that speed.[4]

As built, the Gnevny-class ships mounted four 130-millimeter (5.1 in) B-13 guns in two pairs of superfiring single mounts fore and aft of the superstructure. Anti-aircraft defense was provided by a pair of 76.2-millimeter (3 in) 34-K AA guns in single mounts and a pair of 45-millimeter (1.8 in) 21-K AA guns[5] as well as two 12.7-millimeter (0.50 in) DK or DShK machine guns. They carried six 533 mm (21.0 in) torpedo tubes in two rotating triple mounts; each tube was provided with a reload. The ships could also carry a maximum of either 60 or 95 mines and 25 depth charges. They were fitted with a set of Mars hydrophones for anti-submarine work, although they were useless at speeds over 3 knots (5.6 km/h; 3.5 mph).[6] The ships were equipped with two K-1 paravanes intended to destroy mines and a pair of depth-charge throwers.[7]

Construction and service

[edit]

Built in Leningrad's Shipyard No. 190 (Zhdanov) as yard number 516, Steregushchy was laid down on 12 August 1936 and launched on 18 June 1938. The ship was completed on 30 October 1939.[8] and assigned to the Baltic Fleet. After the Winter War began on 30 November, she bombarded Finnish coastal defense positions on Saarenpää Island, part of the Beryozovye Islands, on 10 and 18–19 December, in conjunction with other ships.[9]

When the Germans invaded the Soviet Union on 22 June 1941, Steregushchy was assigned to the 1st Destroyer Division of the Light Forces Detachment, based in Ust-Dvinsk, Latvia. The following day the division, the light cruiser Maxim Gorky, Steregushchy and her sisters Gordy and Gnevny, was tasked with covering minelaying operations at the mouth of the Gulf of Finland. They entered a German minefield 16 to 18 nautical miles (30 to 33 km; 18 to 21 mi) northwest of Tahkuna Lighthouse and Maxim Gorky had her bow blown off by a mine. After Steregushchy detonated two mines with her paravanes that knocked out one of her turbines, she accompanied Maxim Gorky to Tallinn, Estonia. On 2 July the destroyer helped to lay a minefield near Gogland Island. Steregushchy participated in an unsuccessful attack on a group of German landing craft off the mouth of the Daugava River on 13 July. Two days later, the ship was attacked by German bombers in the Väike Strait between Muhu and Saaremaa Islands. Shockwaves from four near misses dimpled plates in her hull, but caused no significant damage.[10]

Under the flag of Light Forces detachment commander Kontr-admiral (Rear Admiral) Valentin Drozd, she and the destroyer Serdity covered minelaying by the guard ships Tucha and Sneg on 18 July. By 14:00 of that day they returned to the Kübasaar roadstead near Saaremaa, but quickly turned back after receiving a message that a German convoy had been spotted. Due a lack of coordination with Soviet Naval Aviation, both destroyers came under friendly air attack and at 15:31 a bomb dropped by a Tupolev SB bomber exploded close to Serdity, knocking out a boiler and both rangefinders in the conning tower. Steregushchy, which escaped unscathed, engaged the German convoy escorts, but was only joined by Serdity at 17:24 after they had lost sight of the convoy.[11]

On 11 August, Steregushchy was one of the escorts for the passenger ship SS Vyacheslav Molotov as she steamed from Tallinn to Kronstadt when they entered a minefield. The destroyer had one of her fuel tanks flooded when a mine detonated in her starboard paravane. After the transport was damaged by a mine off Gogland, she was towed to Kronstadt by Steregushchy. After repairs, the ship supported the defenders of Leningrad with 350 shells from her main guns. On 21 September, she was attacked by Junkers Ju 87 Stuka dive bombers of StG 2. Hit three times, the bombs disabled one engine and quickly flooded the aft boiler room. Her captain took her into shallow water where she capsized to starboard, 15 minutes after being hit. A single 130 mm gun and some parts were salvaged by divers in October to repair the destroyer Strashny. The wreck was refloated in June 1944 and it was drydocked on 20 July for repairs that lasted until 1948. Steregushchy was stricken from the Navy List on 28 January 1958 and scrapped the following year.[12]

Citations

[edit]
  1. ^ Yakubov & Worth, pp. 99, 102–103
  2. ^ Yakubov & Worth, p. 101
  3. ^ Budzbon, p. 330
  4. ^ Yakubov & Worth, pp. 101, 106–107
  5. ^ Hill, p. 40
  6. ^ Yakubov & Worth, pp. 101, 105–106
  7. ^ Berezhnoy, p. 335
  8. ^ Rohwer & Monakov, p. 233
  9. ^ Rohwer, pp. 11–12
  10. ^ Platonov, p. 184; Rohwer, pp. 81, 86
  11. ^ Balakin, pp. 67–68
  12. ^ Platonov, pp. 184–185; Rohwer, pp. 91, 97, 102; Yakubov & Worth, pp. 108–109

Sources

[edit]
  • Balakin, Sergey (2007). Легендарные "семёрки" Эсминцы "сталинской" серии [Legendary Sevens: Stalin's destroyer series] (in Russian). Moscow: Yauza/Eksmo. ISBN 978-5-699-23784-5.
  • Berezhnoy, Sergey (2002). Крейсера и миноносцы. Справочник [Guide to Cruisers and Destroyers] (in Russian). Moscow: Voenizdat. ISBN 5-203-01780-8.
  • Budzbon, Przemysaw (1980). "Soviet Union". In Chesneau, Roger (ed.). Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships 1922–1946. Greenwich, UK: Conway Maritime Press. pp. 318–346. ISBN 0-85177-146-7.
  • Hill, Alexander (2018). Soviet Destroyers of World War II. New Vanguard. Vol. 256. Oxford, UK: Osprey Publishing. ISBN 978-1-4728-2256-7.
  • Platonov, Andrey V. (2002). Энциклопедия советских надводных кораблей 1941–1945 [Encyclopedia of Soviet Surface Ships 1941–1945] (in Russian). Saint Petersburg: Poligon. ISBN 5-89173-178-9.
  • Rohwer, Jürgen (2005). Chronology of the War at Sea 1939–1945: The Naval History of World War Two (Third Revised ed.). Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press. ISBN 1-59114-119-2.
  • Rohwer, Jürgen & Monakov, Mikhail S. (2001). Stalin's Ocean-Going Fleet. London: Frank Cass. ISBN 0-7146-4895-7.
  • Yakubov, Vladimir & Worth, Richard (2008). "The Soviet Project 7/7U Destroyers". In Jordan, John & Dent, Stephen (eds.). Warship 2008. London: Conway. pp. 99–114. ISBN 978-1-84486-062-3.

Further reading

[edit]
  • Whitley, M. J. (1988). Destroyers of World War 2. Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press. ISBN 0-87021-326-1.
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Soviet_destroyer_Steregushchy_(1938)&oldid=1254291986"