Air-Cushioned Landing Craft For Russian Navy

Serna Air-Cushioned Landing Craft

06/12/2012 by Paul Fiddian - Armed Forces International's Lead Reporter

The Russian Navy's purchased three more Serna class air-cushioned landing craft for its Caspian Sea-based forces, complementing the nine examples already in service.

Air-cushioned landing craft equip several of the world's navies, including the United States Navy, the Hellenic Navy and China's People's Liberation Army Navy. Their key advantage is versatility, since they're able to deliver troops to coastlines much more readily than conventional boats.

Russia's Serna class air-cushioned landing craft can carry up to 92 troops, 50 tons of equipment or a single tank. 57 feet long, they can travel at over 50 kilometres an hour and they have a range of approximately 180 kilometres.

Russian Navy Sernas

Typical Russian Navy Serna craft missions last for 24 hours. The Russian Navy got its first Serna in 1994 and the last of its current nine-strong fleet in 2010. Production was halted in the early-mid 1990s as a result of the financial crisis after the Soviet Union's dissolution but was reactivated in 2001.

Russia's naval forces have carried out more than 25 tactical exercises over the past 12 months, alongside some 90 expeditions and missions in waters the world-over.

Serna Air-Cushioned Landing Craft

The Caspian Flotilla is Russia's oldest and dates back to the early 18th century. It currently has in service two frigates, six corvettes, three missile boats, three minesweepers and five Serna air-cushioned landing craft

Russia also builds the Zubr class air-cushioned landing craft, which are much larger designs than the Sernas. They can transport three tanks or other military equipment of equivalent weight (around 130 tons). In addition, compared to the Sernas, they're over twice as fast and have well over two times their range.

Right now, the Zubrs are the largest air-cushioned landing craft used by any Navy and, besides the Russian Navy, they also equip the People's Liberation Army Navy, the Hellenic Navy and the Ukrainian Navy. Additional foreign sales are now being pursued.