Russian frigate Admiral Essen
Frigate of the Admiral Grigorovich class
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Admiral Essen is a frigate of the Admiral Grigorovich class of the Russian Navy named in honour of Admiral Nikolai Ottovich von Essen. The ship construction began at the Yantar Shipyard in Kaliningrad in July 2011, and it was launched in November 2014.[7] It is based with the Black Sea Fleet at Sevastopol.
Admiral Essen in 2016 | |
| History | |
|---|---|
 Russia | |
| Name | Admiral Essen |
| Namesake | Nikolai Essen |
| Builder | Yantar Shipyard |
| Laid down | 8 July 2011[1][2] |
| Launched | 7 November 2014[3] |
| Commissioned | 7 June 2016[4] |
| Identification | 751 |
| Status | Active but damaged according to Ukrainian sources[5] |
| General characteristics | |
| Class & type | Admiral Grigorovich-class frigate |
| Displacement |
|
| Length | 124.8 m (409 ft) |
| Beam | 15.2 m (50 ft) |
| Draught | 4.2 m (14 ft) |
| Propulsion |
|
| Speed | 30 kn (56 km/h; 35 mph) |
| Range | 4,850 nmi (8,980 km; 5,580 mi) at 14 kn (26 km/h; 16 mph) |
| Endurance | 30 days |
| Complement | 200 |
| Sensors & processing systems |
|
| Electronic warfare & decoys |
|
| Armament | |
| Aircraft carried | 1 × Ka-27 series helicopter |
| Aviation facilities | Helipad and hangar for one helicopter |
Service
Russian military intervention in the Syrian civil war
In May and September 2017, in the course of the Russian military campaign in Syria, Admiral Essen fired Kalibr cruise missile at targets in the Hama and Deir ez-Zor regions, respectively.[8]
On 25 August 2018, the Black Sea Fleet reported Admiral Essen, along with its sister ship Admiral Grigorovich, were making a "planned passage from Sevastopol to the Mediterranean Sea" to join the Russian Navy's Mediterranean task force.[9]
2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine
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During the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine the ship was involved in cruise missile strikes against Odesa.[10]
On 29 March 2022, two Kalibr cruise missiles launched from the ship destroyed the regional council building in Mykolaiv.[11]
According to an advisor to the Ukrainian President's Office, Oleksiy Arestovich, on 3 April 2022 the ship was allegedly seriously damaged by Ukrainian Armed Forces as a result of an attack using an initially unspecified weapon system, later reported as being a R-360 Neptune anti-ship cruise missile.[12][13] According to Ukrainian accounts referring to this attack (without a date), the Neptun missile burst close to the ship.[14]
On 12 April 2022, Russian Defence Ministry released a video showing Admiral Essen allegedly destroying a Ukrainian Bayraktar TB2 unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) off the coast of Crimea, using two missiles of the Shtil-1 surface-to-air missile system. No video of an impact or wreckage was provided.[15][16]
Sometime between 1 and 3 October 2023, Admiral Essen was transferred - along with Admiral Makarov - to Novorossiysk, Krasnodar Krai.[17]
On 22 January 2026, in Moscow, the Second Western District Military Court formally accused Andrii Shubin, then commander of the 406th Artillery Brigade of the Ukrainian Navy, of damaging the frigate Admiral Essen on 2 April 2022 with a missile, injuring one person.[18][19]
On 2 March 2026, Ukrainian drones struck Novorossiysk, damaging buildings and starting a fire at the Sheskharis oil terminal.[20] Five Russian Navy vessels of the Black Sea Fleet were damaged, including the Admiral Essen, killing 3 sailors and wounding 16. The PK-10 decoy launchers were struck at midship. Also damaged were "TK-25 electronic warfare complex, the MR-90 "Orekh" target-illumination radars, and the Fregat-M2M surveillance radar".[21]
On 6 March 2026, Ukraine's General Staff confirmed that two vessels of Russia's Black Sea Fleet, the Admiral Essen and Admiral Makarov frigates, had been damaged.[22]