First Look - 08 June 2008

The Black Sea Fleet's main base is still in Sevastopol' for now.

Novorossiysk Prepares to Greet the Black Sea Fleet

Unprecedented constructon has begun in Novorossiysk. The goal of the construction is a base for the Russian Black Sea Fleet. A mole is being constructed right now. It is a unique hydro-technical structure, an analogue of which cannot be found in the world (TR Note: As always with the Russians. Yawn.)

The harbor, designed to protect ships of the Black Sea Fleet will be finished by 2014. It will be a kilometer and a half long. The construction will take place at a depth of 45 meters. General-Major Michael Tashlyk, the commander of Spets-Stroy Russia in the Southern Federal District has declared that no one else in the world has done such construction work at such a depth on such a scale. (TR Note: Again. Yawn.)

The base will be completed by 2020. Forty billion rubles have been allocated for this program. We remind you that the lease on the Black Sea Fleet base in Sevastopol' runs out in 2017.




Fire Drill Conducted on the "Yuri Dolgorukiy"

OAO Sevmash conducted a fire drill on the SSBN Yuri Dolgorukiy. Colonel-General Pavel Plat, the chief military expert for the Ministry of Emergency Situations (MES) observed the exercise. According to the scenario, a fire broke out in one of the compartments. In addition to civilian firefighters, members of the crew under the command of Kapitan First Rank Konstantin Mit'kin extinguished the "blaze".

It was a high level exercise. At the end of the event, the captain of the Dolgoruki was given an icon of the Holy Mary in the Burning Bush (TR Note: As a theme in the Russian Orthodox art, depiction of the Blessed Virgin in the center of the two four-pointed stars, holding close the Child in clerical robes as the "Great High Priest") on behalf of the leadership of the Russian MES, considered to defend lives against fire and the savior of firefighters.