Kaspiysk harbor, Republic of Dagestan — Russian Federation
A white relict lays abandoned in the Kaspiysk harbor since the collapse of Soviet Union.
The sole vessel of her class, this exotic vehicle entered service with the Black Sea Fleet in 1987. A flying-boat – moving along on a dynamic cushion of air that is generated by its forward movement – this aircraft was equipped for anti-surface warfare.
Eight turbojets were mounted on forward-located canards. The warcraft was fitted with six missile launchers, mounted in pairs on the dorsal surface of the fuselage. Nose and tail were hosting advanced tracking systems. The commissioned cruise speed was 297 knots (550 km/h), with a maximum range of 1,000 nm (1,860 km).
Abandoned to its destiny following the fall of the Soviet regime, its existence and capabilities were kept secret until 1990: a common fate with the Soviet spacecraft Buran — a russian version of the Space Shuttle.
Some rumors on the internet say that in 2007, the Ministry of Defence of the Russian Federation decided to resume production of this model of ekranoplan (screen craft or skimmer, in Russian). As of today, it is just of interest for Cold War archeologists.
The coordinates to find the ekranoplan on Google Maps are: 42.881859,47.656519
More resources
Some old pictures, and a rare video were posted on Russian Connection. The pictures posted here are taken from a Russian blog, where more are available. A video of flying Ekranoplan: http://www.megavideo.com/v/TSQWEWTDadbaea899fd650ccdc1cc181639077b7
Like this? Take a look here!
Like Soviet and post-Soviet spacecrafts, aircrafts and warfare? Me too! Take a look here, my other posts and photo-galleries:
- This is Not the Space Shuttle: the Soviet Buran
- The Baikonur Cosmodrome
- A Siberian factory: air superiority fighters, being constructed!
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I am often to blogging and I really appreciate your content. The article has actually peaked my interest. I’m going to bookmark your website and maintain checking for new information!
You are welcome to come back! I will post more on post-soviet relics and cold war archeology! I found some other interesting pictures, about aircrafts, and dismissed (or abandoned) nuclear missile launch-pads! Coming soon!
Very interesting. I wonder if is it possible to visit the place where the ekranoplan is docked?!
This is a good question. I guess that there should be a way.
Thanks for sharing the story of the Ekranoplan!
You are welcome! Happy you liked it!
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