Project 23550 is a class of armed icebreaking patrol ships under construction for the Russian Navy. Two ships were ordered from Saint Petersburg-based Admiralty Shipyards in 2016. The ships are designed to patrol the Russian territorial waters and exclusive economic zone in the Arctic. The ships are also referred as "Arktika" type ().
During the launching ceremony of the lead ship, it was announced that two additional ships of slightly revised design would be built for the FSB Border Service of Russia by Vyborg Shipyard. The derivative design is also referred to as "Ermak" type ().
Design
Project 23550 patrol ships have a planned displacement of , a length of and a draught of . The ships will be equipped with two s, a helicopter and small hovercraft. The core crew is planned at 60 with accommodation for an additional 50 mission specialists. Armament will include a naval gun (some sources state a naval gun) and Kalibr anti-ship missiles in the container variant.
Project 23550 will have an integrated electric propulsion with four Kolomna main diesel gensets consisting of 10D49 diesel engines driving alternators produced by Ruselprom. In addition, the ships will have two auxiliary diesel gensets with Kolomna diesel engines and Ruselprom alternators. While the early concept featured ABB Azipod azimuthing propulsion units, the final design has two conventional shaft lines, propellers and rudders. The propulsion motors will be produced by Ruselprom. The ships will have an endurance of 70 days and a range of at economic speed of . Their maximum speed is .
The vessels are strengthened for navigation in ice-covered arctic seas according to the Russian Maritime Register of Shipping ice class Arc7. They are designed to break ice up to thick.
Think tank Global Security pointed out several similarities between the Project 23550 design and , and Canada's . All three class are of approximately the same displacement, capable of transitting similar thickness of ice and have similar size crews, with room for mission specialist.
In 2020, it was announced that the Russian Navy would begin sea trials to test the installation of module containers on patrol vessels permitting such ships to carry significantly upgraded armaments tailored to different missions. The containers were envisaged to carry various weapons including sonars and torpedoes or anti-ship and cruise missiles.
Notable events On 25 March 2026, one of the Project 23550 patrol ships under construction at Vyborg Shipyard (likely Purga) was damaged in what has been reported as a Ukrainian attack.
Ships in class Name Russian Namesake Builder IMO number Laid down Launched Commissioned Status Russian Navy ("Arktika" type) Иван Папанин Ivan Dmitrievich Papanin Admiralty Shipyards, Saint Petersburg 19 April 2017 25 October 2019 5 September 2025 In service Николай Зубов Nikolay Nikolaevich Zubov Admiralty Shipyards, Saint Petersburg 9898163 27 November 2019 25 December 2024 2024 (original plan) Launched Coast Guard of the FSB Border Service ("Ermak" type) Пурга Russian for "blizzard" Vyborg Shipyard, Vyborg 9916599 25 July 2020 7 October 2022 ? Launched; likely damaged in Ukrainian drone attack in March 2026 Дзержинский Felix Edmundovich Dzerzhinsky Vyborg Shipyard, Vyborg 4775976 22 December 2023 Under construction
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