Manufacturer catalog

Shipyard named after Kirov, Astrakhan

Shipyard named after Kirov, Astrakhan was a Soviet shipyard in Astrakhan's Kazachiy district with a public record tied to wartime small-combatant and auxiliary production, postwar small naval craft, and the two-vessel Project 697TB inshore minesweeper series.

2 weapons

The Astrakhan Kirov shipyard is best documented in open sources through historical accounts rather than a surviving corporate website. Regional reporting based on enterprise archival material describes the yard as a major local industrial site during the Great Patriotic War, when it supported State Defense Committee tasks alongside its fishing-fleet work. That account says the plant produced aviation bombs, mines, shells, grenades, pontoons, carts, mortars, shell bodies, hand-grenade bodies, and Morskoy Okhotnik-type boats.

Later naval reference sources connect the yard to Project 697TB, an experimental two-boat inshore minesweeper class built on small trawler hulls. KCHF identifies RT-59 as laid down at the Shipyard named after Kirov in Astrakhan and commissioned into the Caspian Flotilla in 1976; RussianShips.info lists both RT-59 and RT-181 under the same Astrakhan shipyard, with commissioning dates in 1976 and 1980. Local reporting also records that the former shipyard was privatized in 1993 and broke into smaller enterprises, which explains the limited modern company footprint for a historically important Soviet-era production site.

small naval craft constructioninshore minesweeperssubmarine chaser and patrol boat productionwartime munitions and auxiliary fabricationCaspian and Volga flotilla ship repair support

Notable Systems

Project 697TB, Inshore minesweeper, Naval Systems

Project 697TB

Inshore minesweeper

Two-vessel experimental inshore minesweeper class built on small trawler hulls; RussianShips.info lists both RT-59 and RT-181 under Shipyard named after Kirov, Astrakhan.

Sources: Project 697TB - RussianShips.info, RT-59 - KCHF.ru
Morskoy Okhotnik (MO-type) submarine chaser, Small submarine chaser / patrol boat, Naval Systems

Morskoy Okhotnik (MO-type) submarine chaser

Small submarine chaser / patrol boat

Wartime small submarine-chaser and patrol-boat family; regional archival reporting says the Astrakhan Kirov shipyard built Morskoy Okhotnik-type boats, while technical references document MO-4 construction at Astrakhan among several wartime yards.

Sources: Astrakhan 24 wartime Kirov shipyard article, MO-4 - Engines of the Red Army

Manufacturer History

  1. Wartime industrial mobilization

    Regional archival reporting says the Kirov shipyard in Astrakhan carried out State Defense Committee work during the Great Patriotic War, including munitions, pontoons, mortars, and Morskoy Okhotnik-type boats.

    Sources: Astrakhan 24 wartime Kirov shipyard article

  2. State Defense Committee banner

    Astrakhan 24 reports that the shipyard received the State Defense Committee's transferable Red Banner in 1944 for high labor performance.

    Sources: Astrakhan 24 wartime Kirov shipyard article

  3. RT-59 commissioned

    KCHF states that RT-59, a Project 697TB inshore minesweeper laid down at the Shipyard named after Kirov in Astrakhan, was commissioned on 26 October 1976 and assigned to the Caspian Flotilla.

    Sources: RT-59 - KCHF.ru

  4. RT-181 commissioned

    RussianShips.info lists RT-181 as the second Project 697TB vessel from the Astrakhan Kirov shipyard, commissioned on 11 November 1980.

    Sources: Project 697TB - RussianShips.info

  5. Former shipyard privatized

    AST-NEWS reports that the former Kirov shipyard was privatized in 1993 and split into several small enterprises.

    Sources: AST-NEWS former shipyard memorial article

Website links
Project 697TB at RussianShips.infoRT-59 at KCHF.ruAstrakhan 24 wartime shipyard article

The public record is strongest for Soviet-era production and later local history. No active official website was found for the former shipyard, so the website field points to a current regional source that documents the Astrakhan Kirov shipyard's wartime production record.

Manufacturer Sources

  • RT-59 - KCHF.ruPublisher: KCHF.ru | Note: Supports RT-59 as a Project 697TB inshore minesweeper laid down at the Shipyard named after Kirov in Astrakhan, commissioned on 26 October 1976, and assigned to the Caspian Flotilla. | Accessed: 2026-07-11
  • Project 697TB - RussianShips.infoPublisher: RussianShips.info | Note: Supports Project 697TB as a two-unit inshore minesweeper class and lists Shipyard named after Kirov, Astrakhan for RT-59 and RT-181 with their commissioning dates. | Accessed: 2026-07-11
  • Astrakhan 24 wartime Kirov shipyard articlePublisher: Astrakhan 24 | Note: Supports the shipyard's Astrakhan identity, wartime production role, State Defense Committee tasks, Morskoy Okhotnik-type boat construction, and 1944 transferable Red Banner statement. | Accessed: 2026-07-11
  • MO-4 - Engines of the Red ArmyPublisher: Engines of the Red Army in WW2 | Note: Supports MO-4 technical context, wartime roles, and construction at several shipyards including Astrakhan from 1937 to 1943. | Accessed: 2026-07-11
  • AST-NEWS former shipyard memorial articlePublisher: AST-NEWS.ru | Note: Supports the former shipyard's Astrakhan memorial context, wartime workforce losses, and the report that the shipyard was privatized in 1993 and split into several small enterprises. | Accessed: 2026-07-11
  • MO-125 subchaser image - Wikimedia CommonsPublisher: Wikimedia Commons | Note: Supports rights-clear image provenance for a Soviet MO-4-type submarine chaser used as an illustrative product-family image. | Accessed: 2026-07-11

Produced weapons

Category

Naval Systems

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

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Morskoy Okhotnik (MO-type) submarine chaser, Small submarine chaser / patrol boat, Naval SystemsSecond World WarMorskoy Okhotnik (MO-type) submarine chaserSmall submarine chaser / patrol boatBuilt in: Soviet UnionMorskoy Okhotnik was a Soviet small submarine-chaser and patrol-boat family built for coastal anti-submarine warfare but used more broadly during the Second World War for convoy escort, patrol, landing support, mine-related work, and small-boat combat. The wooden-hulled MO-4 was the main wartime type, built at several yards including Astrakhan, and individual boats such as MO-103 were documented in Baltic anti-submarine actions.