Manufacturer catalog

Almaz Central Marine Design Bureau

Almaz Central Marine Design Bureau is a Saint Petersburg naval design bureau associated with Russia's United Shipbuilding Corporation. Its public record centers on high-speed combat ships, patrol craft, missile boats, minesweepers, and dynamically supported craft such as hydrofoils, hovercraft, surface-effect ships, and air-cushion landing craft.

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Established in October 1949, Almaz grew from Soviet shipbuilding design organizations oriented toward fast naval and maritime border-guard craft. Public reference material describes the bureau as a leading Russian designer of small and medium-displacement surface combatants, with particular depth in high-speed missile boats, patrol ships, anti-submarine craft, mine-countermeasure vessels, and air-cushion vehicles.

The bureau's designs span Cold War missile and patrol boats through later Russian naval and coast-guard programs. Open sources associate Almaz with the Project 1241 Molniya / Tarantul missile-corvette family, the Project 206MR Vikhr / Matka hydrofoil missile boat, the Project 1204 Shmel patrol boat, and the Project 12322 Zubr / Pomornik air-cushion landing craft. Those records point to Almaz primarily as a naval design and engineering organization rather than a shipyard production site.

Naval design bureauHigh-speed combat ships and patrol craftMissile boats and small surface combatantsAir-cushion, hydrofoil, and surface-effect craftMine-countermeasure and special-purpose vessels

Notable Systems

Project 1241 Molniya / Tarantul-class missile corvette, Missile corvette class, Naval Systems

Project 1241 Molniya / Tarantul-class missile corvette

Missile corvette class

Fast missile-corvette and missile-boat family publicly associated with Almaz design work and listed among the bureau's corvette and missile-craft products.

Sources: FAS Almaz Central Marine Design Bureau, VPK.name TsMKB Almaz profile
Zubr-class air-cushion landing craft (Project 12322 Pomornik), Air-cushioned landing craft, Naval Systems

Zubr-class air-cushion landing craft (Project 12322 Pomornik)

Air-cushioned landing craft

Large air-cushion landing craft identified in open references as an Almaz project and cited by FAS as a major achievement in Russian large ACV development.

Sources: FAS Almaz Central Marine Design Bureau, VPK.name TsMKB Almaz profile
Project 206MR Vikhr / Matka-class missile boat, Hydrofoil missile boat / patrol boat, Naval Systems

Project 206MR Vikhr / Matka-class missile boat

Hydrofoil missile boat / patrol boat

Hydrofoil missile-boat design included in public summaries of Almaz's high-speed combat-craft portfolio.

Sources: FAS Almaz Central Marine Design Bureau
Project 1204 Shmel / Shmel-class patrol boat, Armored patrol boat / river gunboat, Naval Systems

Project 1204 Shmel / Shmel-class patrol boat

Armored patrol boat / river gunboat

Small patrol and artillery craft in the catalog connected to the Almaz design lineage for Soviet-era fast boats and patrol vessels.

Sources: FAS Almaz Central Marine Design Bureau

Manufacturer History

  1. Design bureau established

    Open reference material traces Almaz to 22 October 1949, when the bureau was formed for high-speed boats and ships serving Soviet naval and maritime border-guard requirements.

    Sources: Almaz history, FAS Almaz Central Marine Design Bureau

  2. Almaz name adopted in Soviet ship-design structure

    Russian-language historical summaries describe the bureau receiving the Almaz name in the 1960s as Soviet small-combatant and fast-craft design organizations were reorganized in Leningrad.

    Sources: Almaz history

  3. Project 12322 Zubr enters serial construction

    FAS identifies the Type 12322 Zubr landing air-cushion vehicle as series-produced from 1988 and as the largest ACV class of its kind in the Almaz portfolio.

    Sources: FAS Almaz Central Marine Design Bureau

  4. Part of United Shipbuilding Corporation

    Almaz's official history page describes the joint-stock company as part of United Shipbuilding Corporation since 2009, placing the bureau within Russia's state shipbuilding group.

    Sources: Almaz history, United Shipbuilding Corporation Almaz profile

Website links
Official websiteOfficial history pageUnited Shipbuilding Corporation profileOFAC sanctions list entry

Public English-language detail is uneven because Almaz is a Russian naval design bureau whose official site and Russian industry sources provide much of the available organizational context. U.S. Treasury records identify the entity and aliases under Russia-related sanctions and link it to United Shipbuilding Corporation.

Manufacturer Sources

  • Almaz historyPublisher: Almaz Central Marine Design Bureau | Note: Official history page for the bureau, including founding background, design focus, and United Shipbuilding Corporation relationship. | Accessed: 2026-07-11
  • United Shipbuilding Corporation Almaz profilePublisher: United Shipbuilding Corporation | Note: USC enterprise page for Almaz, supporting its corporate placement and naval design focus. | Accessed: 2026-07-11
  • FAS Almaz Central Marine Design BureauPublisher: Federation of American Scientists | Note: Reference profile describing Almaz's founding date, high-speed naval craft focus, and associated missile, hydrofoil, patrol, and air-cushion systems. | Accessed: 2026-07-11
  • VPK.name TsMKB Almaz profilePublisher: VPK.name | Note: Russian defense-industry directory page listing the bureau's address, official website, and product families including Project 1241 Molniya and Project 12322 Zubr. | Accessed: 2026-07-11
  • OFAC Russia-related designations, 7 April 2022Publisher: U.S. Department of the Treasury | Note: U.S. Treasury designation notice listing Almaz Central Marine Design Bureau Joint Stock Company aliases, addresses, website, tax ID, and link to United Shipbuilding Corporation. | Accessed: 2026-07-11
  • OFAC Sanctions List Search entry 36060Publisher: U.S. Department of the Treasury | Note: Current sanctions-list entry confirming Almaz aliases and Saint Petersburg addresses. | Accessed: 2026-07-11

Produced weapons

Category

Naval Systems

Warships, submarines, unmanned surface vessels, naval craft, and maritime combat systems.

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Zubr-class air-cushion landing craft (Project 12322 Pomornik), Air-cushioned landing craft, Naval Systems2014 Russia-Ukraine WarZubr-class air-cushion landing craft (Project 12322 Pomornik)Air-cushioned landing craftBuilt in: Soviet Union / Ukraine / ChinaThe Zubr class is a Soviet-designed Project 12322 Pomornik air-cushion landing craft developed by Almaz for high-speed amphibious lift. It can carry tanks, armored vehicles, troops, cargo, or naval mines directly onto prepared or unprepared shores, using bow and stern ramps and integral close-in armament. Greece operates the type as the Kefalonia/PTM class, while China acquired and locally expanded the related Project 958/Type 958 line.
Project 1204 Shmel / Shmel-class patrol boat, Armored patrol boat / river gunboat, Naval Systems2014 Russia-Ukraine WarProject 1204 Shmel / Shmel-class patrol boatArmored patrol boat / river gunboatBuilt in: Soviet UnionThe Project 1204 Shmel class is a Soviet armored river gunboat family designed by Almaz Central Marine Design Bureau for shallow rivers, lakes, and coastal waters. It put a PT-76-derived 76 mm turret, a BM-14-17 rocket launcher, automatic cannon, machine guns, and mine rails on a compact shallow-draft hull, making it a fire-support and patrol craft rather than an oceangoing combatant. Russian Shmel boats were documented in the Kerch and Sea of Azov security context during the Russo-Ukrainian War, while Ukrainian Sea Guard Dzhmil examples survived in Danube-area service and training.
Project 206MR Vikhr / Matka-class missile boat, Hydrofoil missile boat / patrol boat, Naval Systems2008 Russo-Georgian War, 2014 Russia-Ukraine WarProject 206MR Vikhr / Matka-class missile boatHydrofoil missile boat / patrol boatBuilt in: Soviet UnionProject 206MR Vikhr, known to NATO as the Matka class, is a Soviet hydrofoil missile-boat class built for high-speed coastal attack with P-15M anti-ship missiles, a 76 mm gun, and close-in 30 mm defense; surviving post-Soviet boats appeared in Georgian and Ukrainian service, including Tbilisi in the 2008 war and Pryluky during Ukraine's coastal defense in 2022.