Project 20385 Lead Corvette Enters State Trials

Russia's Project 20385 lead corvette "Gremyashchiy," has entered the White Sea for state trials.

"The Project 20385 lead corvette Gremyashchiy armed with Kalibr cruise missiles has entered the White Sea for state trials.The corvette will test-fire its main missile system against various types of targets," Northern Fleet's press office said in a statement Friday.

The equipment and functioning of the boat including radio-technical armament will be tested during the state trials, the press office said.

The boats are set to be armed with Tsirkon hypersonic anti-ship missiles. “It will certainly have Tsirkon,” Russian President Vladimir Putin said last month. In February, Putin asserted that work on the advanced Tsirkon, with maximum speed of about Mach 9 and range of 1000km, will be completed as per schedule, without any delays.

The warship will become the first in the Pacific fleet to be equipped with Kalibr missiles when it enters service by the end of 2019. In addition, the boats of this class will have Redut anti-aircraft missile complexes and Paket anti-submarine warfare technology.

Project 20385 envisages a hangar for a Ka-27 helicopter. The corvettes displace 2,200 tonnes, have an operating range of 3,500 miles and their sea endurance is 15 days.