Russia commissions third Aleksandrit-class minesweeper ‘Ivan Antonov’

The Russian Navy commissioned its third Aleksandrit-class minesweeper Ivan Antonov in a ceremony on January 26.

The flag raising ceremony for Ivan Antonov was held in Baltiysk and the ship will be homeported in Sevastopol as part of the Russian Navy’s Baltic Sea fleet.

The Sredne-Nevsky shipbuilding plant began construction on the ship in January 2017 and launched it in April 2018.

Ivan Antonov displaces 890 tons and measures 62 meters in length. It has a crew of 44.

The ship is designed to provide mine protection of naval bases, coastal sea areas, detect and destroy mines, provide mine protection for ships in transit, exclusive economic zone and mineral deposits at sea, carry out mine reconnaissance, lay minefields. During low mine threat periods, the ships can be used both for protection of a water area and training purposes.