Kralj Dmitar Zvonimir (RTOP-12) photographed in Makarska in 2008 during the Croatian Navy Day | |
Class overview | |
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Builders | Kraljevica Shipyard, Kraljevica, Croatia |
Operators | Croatian Navy |
Preceded by | Končarclass |
In commission | 1992–present |
Completed | 2 |
Active | 2 |
General characteristics | |
Displacement | 390 tons (full load) |
Length | 177 ft 8 in (54.15 m) |
Draft | 11 ft 8 in (3.56 m) |
Propulsion |
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Speed |
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Range | 1,700 nautical miles (3,100 km) at 18 knots (33 km/h) |
Complement | 5 officers, 27 enlisted |
Armament |
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The Kralj class (English: King) is a class of two missile boats, one of which was on order for the SFR Yugoslav Navy and one of which, following the break-up of Yugoslavia, was built for the Croatian Navy. As of 2009 both vessels remain in service. It is an upgraded version of the Rade Končar missile boat class and is 8.5 metres (28 ft) longer. Kralj Petar Krešimir IV and its sister ship Kralj Dmitar Zvonimir are the only ships in their class. A potential third ship was under consideration in 1999, but the ship was never commissioned due to budget restraints.
Kralj means "king" in Croatian - both vessels are named after historic kings of Croatia.
The Kralj class was developed by the Brodarski institut (BI) from Zagreb for the Yugoslav Navy as a successor to the Končar-classmissile boats. The project was started during the 1980s but was reported as suspended in 1989 only to be restarted again in 1991. The first ship in the new class was to have a pennant number RTOP-501 and named Sergej Mašera after Sergej Mašera, an officer of the Royal Yugoslav Navy who died preventing the destroyer Zagreb from falling in Italian hands during the Axis invasion of Yugoslavia. The new class was also referred to as the Kobra class or Type 400 in some sources. [1] [2]
Compared to the earlier Končar class, the new class was to have a longer hull and an all-diesel propulsion unlike the Končars which were equipped with a CODAG type of propulsion. The new class was also to be the first in Yugoslav service to be equipped with Swedish RBS-15 anti-ship missiles which were acquired in 1988 and 1989. At the start of the Croatian War of Independence, the first ship in the class was nearing completion at the Kraljevica Shipyard. The unfinished ship was captured by Croatian forces and was subsequently commissioned with the Croatian Navy as Kralj Petar Krešimir IV. (RTOP-11). A second, slightly modified ship was laid down by Croatia during the 1990s and commissioned in the early 2000s as Kralj Dmitar Zvonimir (RTOP-12). [3] [4] [5]
There are slight differences between the two ships of the class; Kralj Dmitar Zvonimir, which was completed during the early 2000s, has a longer hull and features a slightly redesigned bridge. Kralj Petar Krešimir IV measures 53.63 m (175 ft 11 in) with a 8.54 m (28 ft 0 in) beam and a 2.94 m (9 ft 8 in) draft.
Name | Pennant number | Namesake | Builder [6] | Launched [3] | Commissioned [3] | Fate [3] |
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Kralj Petar Krešimir IV | RTOP-11 | Peter Krešimir IV | Kraljevica Shipyard, Kraljevica, Croatia | 21 March 1992 | 7 June 1992 | in active service with the Croatian Navy |
Kralj Dmitar Zvonimir | RTOP-12 | Demetrius Zvonimir | 30 March 2001 | June 2002 | in active service with the Croatian Navy |
The Croatian Navy is a branch of the Croatian Armed Forces. It was formed in 1991 from what Croatian forces managed to capture from the Yugoslav Navy during the breakup of Yugoslavia and Croatian War of Independence. In addition to mobile coastal missile launchers, today it operates 30 vessels, divided into the Navy Flotilla for traditional naval duties, and the Croatian Coast Guard. Five missile boats form Croatian fleet's main offensive capability.
Kralj Petar Krešimir IV is a Kralj-class missile boat in service with the Croatian Navy. It was laid down in 1990 at the Kraljevica Shipyard as the first ship in a new class being built for the Yugoslav Navy. As the Croatian War of Independence started gaining momentum, shipyard workers stalled the completion of the ship until the remaining Yugoslav forces retreated, preserving the ship for the Croatian Navy that was being formed.
The Yugoslav Navy, was the navy of Yugoslavia from 1945 to 1992. It was essentially a coastal defense force with the mission of preventing enemy landings along Yugoslavia's rugged 4,000-kilometer shoreline or coastal islands, and contesting an enemy blockade or control of the strategic Strait of Otranto.
The Battle of the Barracks was a series of engagements that occurred in mid-to-late 1991 between the Croatian National Guard and the Croatian police on one side and the Yugoslav People's Army (JNA) on the other. The battle took place around numerous JNA posts in Croatia, starting when Croatian forces blockaded the JNA barracks, weapons storage depots and other facilities. It formally began on 14 September; its objective was to neutralise the JNA positions in ZNG-held territory and to secure arms and ammunition supplies for the poorly equipped ZNG.
The Shershen class was the NATO reporting name for a class of torpedo boats built for the Soviet Navy and allies. The Soviet designation was Project 206 Shtorm.
The history of the Croatian Navy can be traced from the Middle Ages until modern times. See List of admirals of Croatia
Split was a Koni-class frigate in service with the Yugoslav Navy (JRM). Laid down and completed during the late 1970s as Sokol of the Soviet Navy, it was the fourth ship of a class that was being built by the Zelenodolsk Shipyard primarily for export to various friendly navies. The ship was acquired by the JRM in 1980 and commissioned as Split, becoming the second ship in JRM service to be named after the city of Split. It was soon followed by a second Koni-class hull, Koper (VPBR-32), commissioned in the JRM in 1982. Designated as a Large Patrol Boat by the JRM, Split's original armament consisting of naval guns, anti-submarine rocket launchers and anti-aircraft missiles was further improved by the addition of four P-20 anti-ship missiles, making it the most versatile ship in the JRM inventory at the time.
The Končar class is a class of six missile boats built for the Yugoslav Navy during the late 1970s at Tito's Shipyard Kraljevica, SR Croatia. The boats featured a mixture of Western and Eastern European equipment, including Soviet anti-ship missiles and Swedish guns.
The Battle of the Dalmatian Channels was a three-day confrontation between three tactical groups of Yugoslav Navy ships and coastal artillery, and a detachment of naval commandos of the Croatian Navy fought on 14–16 November 1991 during the Croatian War of Independence. On 14 November, the commandos torpedoed the Mirna-class patrol boat PČ-176 Mukos close to the island of Brač in the Split Channel of the Adriatic Sea, prompting a Yugoslav naval bombardment of Brač and Šolta Island the same day. The drifting Mukos was salvaged by Croatian civilian boats and beached at Nečujam bay.
The Mornar class consisted of two large patrol boats built for the Yugoslav Navy by the Tito's Shipyard in Kraljevica during the late 1950s and early 1960s. The boats were based on the Udarnik (PBR-581), a French-built Le Fougueux-class submarine chaser acquired in 1956. Both boats had an uneventful career and were deleted in 1992.
The Una-class submarine was a class of six midget submarines built for the Yugoslav Navy at the Brodogradilište specijalnih objekata during the 1980s. They were designed with the purpose of laying small minefields and transporting naval special forces, with or without their submersibles, in shallow waters that were inaccessible for larger submarines. Due to their mission profile that called for a small design as well as the need to stay undetected, they lacked torpedo armament and a generator for battery recharging.
Velebit was a modified Una-class midget submarine and the only submarine to see service with the Croatian Navy. It was built for the Yugoslav Navy during the 1980s where it was named Soča. At the outbreak of the Croatian War of Independence Soča was being overhauled in the Brodogradilište specijalnih objekata division of Brodosplit shipyard in Split, Croatia. Although stripped of all equipment, it was preserved from the retreating Yugoslav forces by the shipyard workers.
Šibenik is a Končar-class missile boat in service with the Croatian Navy. It was built for the Yugoslav Navy at the Kraljevica Shipyard in the 1970s as Vlado Ćetković (RTOP-402). In 1991 during the early stages of the Croatian War of Independence it was captured by Croatian forces while being overhauled at the "Velimir Škorpik" shipyard in Šibenik.
Šolta is a Mirna-class patrol boat in service with the Croatian Navy. Completed during the 1980s as Mukos (PČ-176), it was the sixth ship of a class that was being built for the Yugoslav Navy in the Kraljevica Shipyard.
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Kralj Dmitar Zvonimir is a Kralj-class missile boat in service with the Croatian Navy. Like its sister ship Kralj Petar Krešimir IV, Kralj Dmitar Zvonimir features a mixture of Western and Eastern equipment including a Swedish forward gun and anti-ship missiles as well as Russian-built propulsion and close-in weapon system (CIWS).
Andrija Mohorovičić is a Moma-class hydrographic survey ship used as a training vessel by the Croatian Navy. The ship was built by the Gdańsk Shipyard in 1971 for use by the Hydrographic Institute of the Yugoslav Navy. At the start of the Croatian War of Independence, the ship was captured by Croatian forces and commissioned in the HRM in 1993.
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