Soviet cruiser Varyag (1963)

Varyag on 9 September 1989.
History
Soviet Union
Name	Varyag
Namesake	Varangians
Builder	A.A. Zhdanov, Leningrad
Yard number	783
Laid down	13 October 1961
Launched	7 April 1963
Commissioned	20 August 1965
Decommissioned	19 April 1990
Stricken	April 1990
Fate	Scrapped
General characteristics
Class and type	Groznyy class cruiser
Displacement	4,350 tonnes (4,280 long tons; 4,800 short tons) standard, 5,400 tonnes (5,300 long tons; 6,000 short tons) full load
Length	142.7 m (468 ft)
Beam	16 m (52 ft)
Draft	5.01 m (16.4 ft)
Propulsion	2 shaft; 4 x KVN-95/64 boilers, 2 x TV-12 GTZA steam turbines, 45,000 shp (34,000 kW)
Speed	34.5 knots (64 km/h)
Range	4,500 nmi (8,334 km) at 14.3 knots (26 km/h)
Complement	25 officers, 304 men
Sensors and processing systems	2 x MR-300 Angara air/surface search radars, 1 x Bizan, 1 x MRP-11-12, 2 x MRP-13-14 and 2 x MRP-15-16 Zaliv reconnaissance radars, 1 x Don navigation radar, 2 x Nickel-KM and 2 x Khrom-KM IFF, 1 x Vizir-1 and 1 x GS-572 Gerkules-2M sonar
Electronic warfare & decoys	2 x Krab-11, 2 x Krab-12 ESM radar system
Armament	8 × SM-70 P-35 launchers with 16 4K44 (SS-N-3 'Shaddock’) anti-ship missiles (2x4) 2 × ZIF-102 M-1 launchers with 16 V-600 (SA-N-1 ‘Goa’) surface to air missiles (1x2) 4 × 76 mm (3 in) AK-726 guns (2×2) 2 × 45 mm (2 in) 21KM guns (2x1) 2 × RBU-6000 Smerch-2 Anti-Submarine rockets 6 × 533 mm (21 in) torpedo tubes (2x3)
Aircraft carried	Helipad for 1 Kamov Ka-25 'Hormone-A'

Varyag (Russian: Варяг) was the fourth and final ship of the Soviet Navy Project 58 Groznyy-class Guided Missile Cruisers (Ракетные крейсера проекта, RKR), also known as the Kynda Class.

Displacing 4,350 tonnes (4,280 long tons; 4,800 short tons) standard and 5,300 tonnes (5,200 long tons; 5,800 short tons) full load, Varyag was 142.7 m (468 ft) in length.^[1] Power was provided by two 45,000 horsepower (34,000 kW) TV-12 steam turbines, fuelled by four KVN-95/64 boilers and driving two fixed pitch screws. Top speed was 34.5 knots (64 km/h).^[2]

The ship was designed for anti-ship warfare around two quadruple SM-70 P-35 launchers for 4K44 missiles (NATO reporting name SS-N-3 'Shaddock’), the vessel carrying a full set of reloads making a total of sixteen missiles.^[2] To defend against aircraft, the ship was equipped with a single twin ZIF-102 M-1 Volna launcher with sixteen V-600 4K90 (SA-N-1 ‘Goa’) missiles forward and two twin 76 mm (3 in) guns aft, backed up by two single 45 mm (2 in) guns.^[2] Four AK-630 close-in weapon systems were added in the early 1980s.^[3] Defence against submarines was provided by two triple 533 mm (21 in) torpedoes and a pair of RBU-6000 213 mm (8 in) anti-submarine rocket launchers.^[1]

Laid down 13 October 1961 with the name Soobrazitelnyy (Russian: Сообразительный – Astute), the vessel was renamed Varyag on 31 October 1962 while under construction.^[4]

Varyag was launched on 7 April 1963 and accepted to the Pacific Fleet on 23 September 1965 as part of the 175th Anti-Submarine Warfare Brigade, sailing to Vladivostok via the northern sea route. The vessel served in the Indian Ocean between 13 December 1971 and 6 March 1972 as part of a substantial Soviet naval presence during the Indo-Pakistani War ostensibly as a counterweight to ensure non-intervention by the Royal Navy and US Navy. Between 1975 and 1981, Varyag underwent repairs and modernisation, returning to service in the Indian Ocean with a cruise that included a visit to Da Nang, Vietnam between 10 and 14 October 1981. The ship was attached to the 183rd Anti-Submarine Warfare Brigade from 1 March 1985, taking part in a large surface fleet exercise with other Soviet vessels between 7 and 10 October 1988.^[4]

Varyag was the first in the class to be decommissioned, being stricken in April 1990.