ORP Warszawa (1970), polish project 56AE-class (NATO: Kotlin-class) guided missile destroyer

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Now, when to in-game navies arrive first destroyer with guided missiles - project 56K-class “Bravyy”, it’s time to propose version of those class of destroyer, which was used by Poland.

Short story & few facts:

Soviet Project 56AE-class destroyer (the letter “E” comes from the word “eksportnyy” means “export”) was a derivate of project 56A-class. Project 56A-class, on the other hand, was a modernization of the classic destroyers project 56-class, consisting at the installation of the “Volna” anti-aircraft missile launcher for price of reducing the torpedo and artillery armament and the ship range.

ORP Warszawa (named from capital of Poland), the only one made 56AE-class guided missile destroyer, was purchased by Poland from the Soviet in 1969 as a replacement for the already worn-out 30bis destroyers (ORP Wicher and ORP Grom), still in-use by the Polish Navy.

Built in the A. Zhdanov shipyard in Leningrad and launched in April 1956. She started service in the Soviet Baltic Fleet on 27 December 1956 under the name " Справедливый" („Spravedlivyy” means righteous’). The Polish ensign was raised on 25 June 1970. This information was secret at the beginning. New destroyer received pennant number 275 and became the flagship of the Polish Navy. Information about entering new unit into naval service was made official public by government of the People’s Republic of Poland after a year after that fact.

Peaceful service consisted of exercises interrupted by courtesy visits. Withdrawn from duty in January 1986 and scrapped a year after.

Few (lesser known) facts:

  1. The first guided missile destroyer of the Polish Navy,
  2. Only the Polish Navy was user of missile destroyer project 56AE-class, Soviets did not make any ship of this class available to other countries,
  3. Project 56AE-class destroyer had older versions of radar and sonar equipment than Soviet counterparts - project 56A-class destroyers. Nevertheless, it was a valuable bought for the PMW - its systems were a new quality for Polish seamen,
  4. According to the stories of former crewmembers taking over the warship from the Soviets, there were notes in Arabic on the technical documents. There is therefore a possibility that the ship was originally intended for Egypt - the letter “E” in the designation then takes on a double meaning,
  5. The ship took part in the last major sea parade of the People’s Republic of Poland in 1975 on the celebration of the Polish Navy Day,
  6. From ship has been preserved the RGB-2500 depth charge rocket launcher.

Photos & plan:

Podsumowanie

https://www.magnum-x.pl/files/2015/Morze%20Statki%20i%20Okrety/01%20NS/Dzieje%20niszczyciela%20ORP%20Warszawa%20-%20www.jpg
https://www.graptolite.net/Facta_Nautica/images/Warszawa_I-001-facta-nautica.jpg
https://images26.fotosik.pl/211/ef894bd69448bf1b.jpg
https://www.smartage.pl/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/710.jpg
https://a.allegroimg.com/original/1ed161/c7d185f942a987b8e445668aa7e0

Technical data (1970):
Displacement standard: 3,060 long tons
Displacement full: 3,620long tons
Length: 126,1 m (o/a)
Breadth: 12,8 m
Draught: 4,4 m
Machinery and power: 2 sets geared steam turbines, 4 boilers, 2 shafts, 72,000 shp
Max speed: 34,5 knots
Range: 2150 nmi at 17 knots
Crew: 268 men
Armament (1970):
1 x double ZIF-101 launcher SAM system Volna, 1 x double 130 mm gun turret SM-2-1, 1 × quadruple 45 mm SM-20 AA guns, 1 × quintuple 533 mm torpedo tube, 2 × rocket depth charge launcher RBU-2500, 128 rocket depth charges.
Radars:
Don (navigation radar), MR-300E Angara (air control radar), Jatagan (SAM aiming radar), Jakor-2M (main guns radar), Fut-B (AA-guns radar)
Sonar: Pegaz-2M
IFF: Kremnij-2
Radio reconnaissance system: Bizan-4A

Beside this, 56AE-class destroyers are absent in game and this ship is original representative of own subclass. IMO would be a nice, interesting addition to game.

Sources:

  1. Niszczyciele Polskiej Marynarki Wojennej, Witold Koszela, Almapress (publishing house) 2013, Warszawa (Warsaw),
  2. Robert Rochowicz. Dzieje niszczyciela ORP Warszawa. „Morze, Statki i Okręty”. Nr specjalny 1/2015, 2015. Warszawa (article in polish military magazine),
  3. Robert Rochowicz. Ostatnia parada MW PRL. „Morze, Statki i Okręty”. Nr 5-6 (204), 2021. Magnum-X (article in polish military magazine).