Direct proof of use
Project 22160 patrol ships are directly documented in the maritime phase of the 2014 Russia-Ukraine War. The Maritime Executive reported that Moskva and Vasily Bykov bombarded Snake Island with deck guns on February 24, 2022, before Russian forces landed, while Naval News identified Vasily Bykov as the Project 22160 patrol boat in the attack force.
The later combat record is clearest for Ukrainian attacks on Sergey Kotov, another Project 22160 ship. Ukraine's Defence Intelligence said its Group 13 unit, working with the Ukrainian Navy, attacked Sergey Kotov with MAGURA V5 maritime drones on the night of March 4-5, 2024 near the Kerch Strait; RFE/RL and AP reported Ukraine's claim that the ship was sunk, while noting the verification limits around immediate battlefield reporting.
Sources: The Maritime Executive: Russian Navy Captures Ukraine's Outpost on Snake Island, Naval News: Opinion - Why did Russia give up Snake Island?, DIU: Sergei Kotov enemy warship destroyed, RFE/RL: Russian Patrol Vessel Sunk Off Crimea, AP News: Ukraine claims it has sunk another Russian warship
Timeline
The class first appears in the war record on the first day of the full-scale invasion, when Vasily Bykov was reported alongside Moskva in the assault on Snake Island. By mid-2022, after Ukraine had pressured Russian positions around the island and Russia had lost Moskva, Naval News described Snake Island as part of Russia's western Black Sea coverage and blockade effort before Russian forces withdrew from the island.
In June 2022, Navy Recognition reported imagery of Vasily Bykov fitted with a Tor-M2KM air-defense module on the helicopter deck, a field adaptation that reflected the ship's force-protection role in the Black Sea. In March 2024, Ukraine reported the MAGURA V5 attack on Sergey Kotov near the Kerch Strait, making the class part of the war's wider pattern of Ukrainian uncrewed-surface-vessel attacks on Russian Black Sea Fleet ships.
Sources: Naval News: Opinion - Why did Russia give up Snake Island?, Navy Recognition: Russian patrol ship Vasily Bykov equipped with Tor-M2KM system, DIU: Sergei Kotov enemy warship destroyed, RFE/RL: Russian Patrol Vessel Sunk Off Crimea
Narrative
In Russian service, the Project 22160 ships functioned as Black Sea patrol vessels rather than large surface combatants. Their documented conflict tasks included supporting the opening seizure of Snake Island, patrolling and helping enforce Russian control around contested Black Sea waters, and carrying additional short-range air-defense equipment as Russia adapted to Ukrainian anti-ship, drone, and strike threats.
The class's limitations also became visible in the same theater. Navy Recognition reported the Tor-M2KM installation as a way to add air-defense capability to Vasily Bykov. Ukraine's 2024 claim against Sergey Kotov, and the accompanying reports of damage to the stern and both sides from MAGURA V5 maritime drones, placed Project 22160 ships among the Russian naval assets exposed to Ukraine's campaign against the Black Sea Fleet.
Sources: Navy Recognition: Russian patrol ship Vasily Bykov equipped with Tor-M2KM system, DIU: Sergei Kotov enemy warship destroyed, RFE/RL: Russian Patrol Vessel Sunk Off Crimea, AP News: Ukraine claims it has sunk another Russian warship
