Sonya-class minesweeper

Class overview
Russian Navy minesweeper German Ugryumov in 2015.
Name	Sonya class (Project 1265)
Operators	Soviet Navy Russian Navy Ukrainian Navy Azerbaijani Navy Bulgarian Navy Cuban Revolutionary Navy Syrian Arab Navy Vietnam People's Navy
Preceded by	Zhenya class
Succeeded by	Alexandrit class
Built	1971–1991
In commission	1971–present
Completed	72
Retired	?
General characteristics
Type	coastal minesweeper
Displacement	400 tons standard, 450 tons full load
Length	48.8 m (160 ft)
Beam	8.8 m (29 ft)
Draught	2.1 m (6 ft 11 in)
Propulsion	2 shaft diesel engines 2,400 hp (1,800 kW)
Speed	15 knots (28 km/h)
Range	3,000 nautical miles (5,556.0 km) at 10 knots (19 km/h)
Endurance	10 days
Complement	43
Sensors and processing systems	Radar: Spin Trough Sonar: MG-89
Armament	1 × twin 30 mm guns 1 × twin 25 mm guns Sweeps GKT, PEMT-2, ST-2

The Sonya class, Soviet designation Project 1265 Yakhont, are a group of minesweepers built for the Soviet Navy and Soviet allies between 1971 and 1991.

Design

The Sonya-class ships are wooden hulled coastal minehunters, built as successors to the Vanya class with new sweeps and more effective sonar. A central safe explosion proof area is fitted and all key systems can be remote controlled from there.

Operators

A total of 72 ships were built by Uliis yard in the Vladivostok and Avangard yards in Petrozavodsk between 1971 and 1991. One ship, BT-730, was lost in an accident in 1985. Another unit collided with a Swedish surveillance ship HSwMS Orion east of Gotland in the Baltic Sea in November 1985.^[1]

Russian Navy

19 ships (2023).^[2]^[3]
- Baltic Fleet – 4 ships
- Northern Fleet – 5 ships^[3]
- Pacific Fleet – 7 ships
- Caspian Flotilla – 3 ships

Ukrainian Navy

2 ships in service.
- U330 Melitopol
- U331 Mariupol

Azerbaijani Navy

2 ships in service.

Bulgarian Navy

4 ships transferred.

Cuban Revolutionary Navy

4 ships transferred.

Syrian Arab Navy

1 ship transferred.

Vietnam People's Navy

4 ships transferred.

Citations

^ "Катастрофа базового тральщика БТ-730 в бухте Цыпнаволок 27.11.1985г" [Accident of the base minesweeper BT-730 in Tsypnavolok Bay on 27 November 1985]. Navycollection.narod.ru (in Russian). Archived from the original on 19 February 2012. Retrieved 29 December 2011.
^ "1265 Yakhont/Sonya class | Russian Military Analysis". Warfare.ru. Retrieved 28 December 2011.^{[dead link]}
^ ^a ^b "Coastal minesweeper - Project 1265". Russianships.info.

References

Gardiner, Robert, ed. (1995). Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships 1947–1995. London: Conway Maritime. ISBN 0-85177-605-1. OCLC 34284130. Also published as Gardiner, Robert; Chumbley, Stephen; Budzbon, Przemysław (1995). Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships 1947–1995. Annapolis, MD: Naval Institute Press. ISBN 1-55750-132-7. OCLC 34267261.
"All Sonya Class Minesweepers - Complete Ship List". Russianships.info.