Russian ship Liman


Liman was a Russian naval intelligence vessel that sunk after a collision in 2017 which resulted in no casualties.

Description

The ship was long, with a beam of and a draught of. It displaced 1,542 tons at full load. The vessel was propelled by two Zgoda-Sulzer 6TD-48 diesel engines, rated at each. The ship had a speed of. Armament was sixteen Strela-2 surface-to-air missiles.

History

The ship was built in 1970 by Stocznia Polnocna, Gdańsk as a hydrographic survey vessel and converted to military use in 1989. It was outfitted for signals intelligence purposes. It initially served with the Northern Fleet and was transferred to the Black Sea Fleet in 1974. In April 1999, Liman was deployed in the Adriatic Sea at the request of Yugoslav president Slobodan Milošević to monitor NATO operations against Yugoslavia. It also saw service during the Russian intervention in the Syrian Civil War.

Sinking

On 27 April 2017, the vessel sank in the Black Sea following a collision with, a Togo-flagged livestock freighter. The location of the collision was off Kilyos. At the time it sank, the ship carried a crew of 78, all of whom were rescued: 63 – by the Turkish Coast Guard and 15 – by the Youzarsif H itself. Later all crew were transferred to the Russian cargo ship. Youzarsif H proceeded to Capu Midia, Romania due to concerns about the welfare of the livestock she was carrying.
On 3 May, Russia sent the rescue ships and to the area where Liman sank to try to salvage sensitive equipment from the ship or even raise the vessel, which sank in international waters.