Russia’s Project 22800–class guided-missile patrol combatants are known as the Karakurt class, which translates to Black Widow spider in English. These warships exemplify recent Russian naval attempts to maximize missile firepower on a compact and relatively simple hull. Based on a design by the Almaz Central Marine Design Bureau in St. Petersburg, the class incorporates stealth characteristics and seaworthiness. Although only a handful of the new patrol combatants—also classed as corvettes—have so far entered service, many more are planned. Units are being built at multiple shipyards across Russia and in occupied Crimea.
Displacing 800 tons standard and 870 tons fully loaded, the Karakurts measure 220 feet long with a 36-foot beam and an 11-foot draft. The first boat was laid down in 2015 at Pella Shipyard in St. Petersburg for the Baltic Fleet. Originally named the Uragan, she was renamed the Mytishchi and entered service in December 2018. Sister ships Sovetsk and Odintsovo (pictured) followed soon thereafter and were commissioned into the Baltic Fleet in October 2019 and November 2020.
A total of 16 Karakurt-class warships are thought to be planned through the early 2030s. Construction is expected to continue at Pella Shipyard, as well as at Zelenodolsk Shipyard in Tatarstan, at Amur Shipyard in Komsomolsk-on-Amur, and Zaliv shipyard in Kerch, occupied Crimea. In July 2023, the Russian Black Sea Fleet took delivery of the fourth Project 22800 craft, the Tsiklon, which also was the first to be completed in Crimea. Just a few months later, in November 2023, Ukrainian Air Force elements attacked the shipyard. Sister ship Askold, which had been launched in 2021 and was nearing delivery, was heavily damaged, most potentially beyond repair.
The Project 22800’s primary offensive armament is contained in an eight-cell vertical-launch system (VLS), capable of carrying 3M-14 Kalibr-NK (SS-N-30) land-attack missiles with a reported maximum range of roughly 1,350 nautical miles (nm), as well as 3M-54 (SS-N-27) or 3M-55 Oniks (SS-N-26) antiship missiles with ranges of more than 150 nm. At least some class members reportedly will be fitted with Tsirkon hypersonic missiles. All but the first two Project 22800 warships carry the Pantsir-M close-in weapon system (CIWS) for air and missile defense. The Pantsir-M mount consists of eight Hermes-K or 57E6 surface-to-air missiles seated atop two six-barrel 30-mm guns. The first two missile boats, the Mytishchi and Sovetsk, do not carry Pantsir-M and instead have two six-barreled AK-630 30-mm CIWSs.
All Project 22800 units are fitted with a 76-mm gun forward and can operate a small rigid-hull inflatable boat and an Orlan-10 unmanned drone aft. While no antisubmarine warfare (ASW) systems are thought to be carried, an ASW-focused coastal-defense variant is reportedly under consideration. The Karakurt class is powered by three diesels providing a top speed of 30 knots and a maximum cruising range of 2,500 nm. Crew complement reportedly is 39, although some sources register that number as high as 70 sailors and officers.
