04/09/2009

Rusya'ya Hollanda'dan 4 Adet LPD

Fransa ile Mistral sınıfı LHD için görüşmeler yapan Rusya, Hollandalı Damen Schelde Tersaneleri ile 4 adet LPD için görüşmelere başlamış. Gemilerin Johan de Witt tasarımını esas alacağı belirtiliyor. İlk gemi Damen Schelde'nin Romanya'daki Galati tersanesinde kalan 3 gemi Rusya'da inşa edilecek.

Rusya'nın amfibi - deniz piyade gücüne so günlerde büyük ağırlık vermesinin altında Kuzey Kutup bölgesindeki ve Karadeniz'deki gelişmelerin önemli rol oynamış olması muhtemel.





Russia eyes Dutch and French amphibious vessels
Date Posted: 03-Sep-2009

Jane's Navy International
Menno Steketee

Russia has approached Damen Schelde Naval Shipbuilding regarding the potential acquisition of four amphibious transport ships, the Dutch company's director has revealed.

Hein van Ameijden said that Moscow has expressed interest in procuring a design similar to the landing platform dock (LPD) HrMs Johan de Witt , which was commissioned into the Royal Netherlands Navy (RNLN) in November 2007.

A lead ship for the Russian Federation Navy would be built by Damen, presumably at the Galati yard in Romania, and fitted out at Flushing in the Netherlands. The three follow-on units would be built in Russia.

Damen is one of two Western European shipbuilders believed to have been approached in recent weeks by Russian authorities probing the possibility of buying amphibious warfare ships.

According to media reports at the end of August, the Chief of the Russian General Staff, General Nikolai Makarov, has been involved in discussions with French company DCNS over its Mistral-class amphibious assault ship. When approached by Jane's , however, DCNS declined to comment.

The 16,800-ton Johan de Witt is a development of the RNLN's 12,750-ton LPD HrMs Rotterdam , which entered service in 1998. The larger ship is equipped with podded propulsion and with enhanced command and control facilities.

A source told Jane's that Russian officials sent a letter to Dutch Defence Minister Eimert van Middelkoop in June, in which they expressed their interest in acquiring amphibious transports. Johan de Witt was dispatched to the International Maritime Defence Show in St Petersburg on 24-28 June, when a Russian delegation was shown around the ship. According to Van Ameijden, the visitors "were charmed by the design".

Van Ameijden said he was "surprised" by the interest of a country that has a well-developed indigenous defence industry, but added: "They apparently have an operational logic for replacing older vessels."

Dutch arms export regulations are not considered a barrier to any deal, since there is no EU or UN arms embargo. Previously, systems specialist Thales Netherlands investigated whether it was permissible to sell radar equipment to modernise some Russian naval vessels and, apparently, no hurdles were found. However, the proposed modernisation did not materialise.

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