Destroyer «Kalinin» («Pryamislav»)

Technical Data
  • Full displacement: 2,200 t
  • Length: 107 m
  • Beam: 9.5 m
  • Maximum draft: 4.9 m
  • Engines: 2 steam turbine units in 2 engine rooms, 5 Normand water-tube boilers (4,050 sq.m., 17 kg/sq.cm.) in 5 boiler rooms, total power 32,700 hp
  • Maximum speed: 27 knots, economical: 16 knots
  • Range: 1,880 miles at 21 knots
  • Crew: 168 men
  • Main armament: five 102/60mm guns (some sources state 4)
  • 4 x 12.7mm machine guns
  • 4 x 45mm guns
  • 2 x triple above-water 450mm torpedo tubes
  • 2 bomb racks, up to 60 mines
  • Lost on August 28, 1941
  • Discovered jointly with Finnish team SubZone on August 11, 2018
Photos and Diagram of Sister Ship Karl Marx
Historical Information

Kalinin (until February 5, 1925 known as Pryamislav) was an Izyaslav-class destroyer, belonging to the third series of Novik-type destroyers.
Izyaslav-class destroyers were ordered under the «enhanced» shipbuilding program for 1913–1917 as part of 36 destroyers with 35-knot speed for the Baltic Fleet. These ships were the most heavily armed and largest destroyers of the Russian fleet at the time, effectively serving as flotilla leaders.
Unlike other Novik-type turbine destroyers, the Izyaslav class featured vertical hull sides, an extended forecastle, and Frahm anti-roll tanks. The design was developed by the French firm A. Normand. The French increased displacement by 25 tons and length by 2.3 meters, and installed more modern Brown-Boveri-Parsons turbines and high-output Normand boilers. All auxiliary machinery was duplicated to improve survivability.
The destroyer Pryamislav was laid down on November 9, 1913 in Reval (Tallinn), launched on July 10, 1915. She was renamed Kalinin on February 5, 1925 and joined the Baltic Fleet on July 20, 1927. She underwent a major overhaul from June 14, 1937 to June 1941.
With the start of the Great Patriotic War, the destroyer participated in minelaying operations in the Gulf of Finland. On July 4, the minelayer Ural and destroyer Kalinin laid minefield 14-A between Vaindloo and Rodsher islands. In late August 1941, Kalinin took part in the Tallinn Breakthrough — the Baltic Fleet’s breakout from Tallinn to Kronstadt.
Three Novik-type destroyers — Kalinin, Artyom, and Volodarsky — along with patrol ships Sneg, Burya, and Cyclone formed the rearguard tasked with laying mines and covering Convoys III and IV. Rear Admiral Yuri Rall commanded from aboard Kalinin.
Due to delays, the three destroyers only reached the designated channel at 9:00 PM. The established formation was disrupted — the patrol ships ended up behind rather than ahead of the destroyers. At about 10:20 PM, Kalinin spotted the silhouettes of trailing transports and veered 3–4 cables north, increasing speed to 12–14 knots.
At about 10:45 PM, minesweeper No. 44 signaled to Kalinin: «You are heading into a minefield — follow us, we are sweeping.» Moments later, Kalinin struck a mine on the northern part of mineline I-8. The shell-shocked Admiral Rall and wounded crew were evacuated to Gogland Island by patrol boat MO-211.
Command passed to Captain 2nd Rank Sidorov aboard Artyom. After 20–30 minutes, Kalinin signaled «Need immediate assistance.» Meanwhile, destroyer Volodarsky struck a mine and sank rapidly. Artyom, attempting rescue, struck a mine in turn and sank within 40–50 seconds. Patrol boats managed to save only 71 men from both destroyers.
Minesweeper No. 47 reached Kalinin and rescued 160 crew members between 10:52 and 10:59 PM. Kalinin, the last of the Baltic Noviks, stayed afloat for about an hour before sinking near Mohni Island in the Gulf of Finland, closing the storied history of this class of ships.

Discovery and Survey of Kalinin

During a joint expedition in August 2018, while searching for submarines Shch-301, Kalev, and M-98 in the Juminda mine barrage area, Finnish sonar operator Immi Valen (SubZone) detected an object resembling the submarine Kalev. On August 11, 2018, a joint dive identified the object as a Novik-class destroyer. Its construction features and damage pattern confirmed it could only be Kalinin.
The destroyer lies at 86 meters depth on her port side, with roughly three-quarters of the hull buried in silt. Only 2–3 meters of deck and hull, the propeller, and parts of superstructure are visible above the seabed. The bow is fractured from the mine explosion; the stern is mangled from depth charge detonation as the destroyer sank.

Sonar Images, Maps and Diagrams