Icebreakers of Russia

There is a disagreement as to whether the Russia first "true" icebreaker was Pilot (manufactured in Great Britain in 1862, whose ice-breaking capabilities were enhanced in Russia in 1864) or genuinely first 1898 Arctic ice-faring icebreaker Yermak.

Classification

In Russia, icebreakers are classified in several ways, according to different criteria:

• By purpose
• Leader icebreakers: The most powerful icebreakers that head ship caravans
• Line icebreakers: For guiding and towing of ships on sea routes, for freeing ice-stuck ships
• Auxiliary icebreakers: for work in ports, river mouths, and for emergency rescue operations
• By ice passability:
• heavy icebreakers can break through ice up to 2 m thick
• medium icebreakers, for ice from 1 to 1.5 m thick
• light icebreakers, for ice less than 1 m thick
• By power type:
• Steam engine; obsolete, unused
• Diesel-electric engine; the most common type
• Nuclear-powered icebreakers
• By operating method
• Ice-cutting. These ships existed in 19th-20th centuries, and for them the term was used in Russia
• Ice-breaking
• By operational area
• River icebreakers
• Marine icebreakers
• Port icebreakers

The official classification of a particular vessel may be found in the database of the Russian Maritime Register of Shipping.

The following lists include icebreakers owned and/or operated by either governmental or commercial entities. Ships known to be currently in service are presented in bold.

Nuclear-powered icebreakers

The following ships are nuclear-powered icebreakers;

• (1959–1989; museum ship in Murmansk)
• (1975–2008; ex-Leonid Brezhnev, ex-Arktika; decommissioned)
• (1977–1992; decommissioned)
• (1985–2013; decommissioned)
• (1990–2014; decommissioned)
• (1992–)
• (2007–)
• Taymyr class
• (1989–)
• (1990–)
• Project 22220
• (2020–)
• (2021–)
• (2022–)
• (2024–)
• (2026– (planned); under construction)
• (2028– (planned); under construction)
• (2030– (planned); under construction)
• Project 10510
• (2030– (planned); under construction)

Diesel-powered icebreakers

The following ships are/were fitted with diesel engines for powering their propulsion;

• Severny Veter (1944–1951; ex-USCGC Staten Island; returned to the United States)
• Severniy Polyus (1945–1951; ex-USS Westwind; returned to the United States)
• Admiral Makarov (1945–1949; ex-USCGC Southwind; returned to the United States)
• Kapitan Belousov class
• (1954–1991; sold to Ukraine)
• (1955–1996; broken up)
• (1956–1994; broken up)
• Moskva class
• (1959–1998; broken up)
• (1960–1993; broken up)
• (1965–1993; broken up)
• (1968–1995; broken up)
• (1969–1997; broken up)
• Civilian variants of (Project 97A)
• (1961–1989; ex-Ledokol-1; broken up)
• (1962–1992; ex-Ledokol-2; passed over to Ukraine)
• (1962–1996; ex-Ledokol-3; broken up)
• (1963–1988; ex-Ledokol-4; broken up)
• (1963–1993; ex-Ledokol-5; broken up)
• (1964–; ex-Ledokol-6)
• (1964–1988; ex-Ledokol-7; broken up)
• (1965–1988; ex-Ledokol-8; broken up)
• (1965–2021; ex-Ledokol-9; to be broken up)
• (1970–2013; broken up)
• (1971–1997; broken up)
• (1971–)
• Ermak class
• (1974–2021; broken up)
• (1975–)
• (1976–)
• Kapitan M. Izmaylov class
• (1976–)
• (1976–)
• (1976–1992; transferred to Azerbaijan)
• Kapitan Sorokin class
• (1977–; fitted with Thyssen-Waas bow in 1991)
• (1978–; rebuilt in 1990)
• (1980–)
• (1981–)
• Kapitan Chechkin class
• (1977–)
• (1977–)
• (1978–)
• (1978–)
• (1978–)
• (1978–)
• Mudyug class
• (1982–; fitted with Thyssen-Waas bow in 1986)
• (1982–)
• (1983–)
• Kapitan Evdokimov class
• (1983–)
• (1983–)
• (1983–)
• (1983–)
• (1984–)
• (1984–)
• (1984–)
• (1986–)
• (2000–; purchased from Sweden)
• (2002–2020; ex-Karhu, ex-Kapitan Chubakov; purchased from Estonia; broken up)
• (2006–; ex-Apu; purchased from Finland)
• Project 21900
• (2008–)
• (2009–)
• Project 21900M
• (2015–)
• (2015–)
• (2016–)
• (2019–)
• (2019–; ex-Antarcticaborg; purchased from Kazakhstan)
• (2020–)
• Project 21900M2
• Unnamed Project 21900M2 icebreaker (construction stopped as of 2021)
• Unnamed Project 21900M2 icebreaker (2028– (current estimate); under construction)
• Project 23620
• Unnamed Project 23620 icebreaker (2024– (original plan); ordered)
• Unnamed Project 23620 icebreaker (2024– (original plan); ordered)
• Project 22740M
• Unnamed Project 22740M icebreaker (under construction)
• Unnamed Project 22740M icebreaker (under construction)

Steam-powered icebreakers

The following icebreakers were powered by steam;

• (built in 1862; modified and operated as an icebreaker: 1864–1890; broken up?)
• (1890–1915; later converted to a gunboat)
• (1895–1923; handed over to Latvia)
• (1895–1968; sunk)
• (1897–1924; later converted to a gunboat)
• (1899–1963; scrapped, despite efforts to preserve it as a museum piece)
• (1898–1930; broken up)
• (1899–1923; broken up)
• (1907–1942; sunk by Germans)
• (1909–1942; sunk by Germans)
• (1909–1918; sank in 1918)
• (1909–1950s?; broken up)
• (1910–1918, 1922–late 1950s; broken up)
• (1912–1940; sunk in 1940)
• Volynets (1914–1918, 1940–1985; ex-Tsar' Mikhail Fyodorovich, ex-Wäinämöinen, ex-Suur Tõll; sold to Estonia in 1987)
• (1914–1958; ex-CGC Earl Grey; broken up)

• (1915–1967; ex-Beothic (1909–1915); broken up)
• (1915–1941; ex-Lintrose (1912–1915); sank in 1941)
• (1916–1918)
• (1916–1941; sank in 1941)
• (1916–1961; broken up)
• (1916–1954; broken up)
• (1917–1961; broken up)
• (1917–1932; sank in White Sea)
• (1917–1971; extensively rebuilt in 1953–1960, now a museum ship in St. Petersburg)
• (1917–1968; broken up)
• (1917–1941; sunk)
• (1929–1964)
• (1938–1973; ex-I. Stalin (−1961); broken up)
• (1938–1967; ex-L. Kaganovich (−1951); broken up)
• (1941–1967; ex-V. Molotov (−1956); broken up)
• (1941–1968; broken up)
• (1945–1970; ex-Voima; broken up)
• Sibiryakov (1945–1972; ex-Jääkarhu; broken up)
• Alyosha Popovich (1945–1970; ex-Eisvogel; decommissioned and abandoned off Russky Island)
• (1946–1979; ex-Eisbär; broken up in 1981)
• Peresvet (1951–1980; ex-Castor; decommissioned and abandoned off Reyneke Island)

References

External links

• MAJOR ICEBREAKERS OF THE WORLD, a USCG table, year 2017 version. Lists 61 Russian ships, of which 11 were under construction and 4 planned