Russian Stealth Corvettes to Hold Live Fire Drills in Caspian

Two Buyan class corvettes from Russia’s Caspian Flotilla have sailed into the Caspian Sea for a 10-day training mission involving live firing drills, the press service of the Southern Military District said on Wednesday.
“The Astrakhan and the Volgodonsk ships have left their base in Astrakhan on the Caspian Sea to carry out joint exercises,” the press service said in a statement.
The drills will involve live firing at land- and sea-based targets as well as aerial targets, coordinated maneuvering in tight formation, and navigation in varied weather conditions.
It will be the first full-scale training mission for the crew of the Volgodonsk, which joined the Caspian Flotilla in July of this year. The Astrakhan was commissioned in 2006.
Buyan class corvettes have been specifically designed to operate in shallow waters and carry out a broad range of missions in the Caspian Sea, as well as in adjoining river deltas.
The vessels feature a reduced radar signature and high maneuverability.

They were built at the St. Petersburg-based Almaz Shipyard and are armed with an A-190 artillery system, two AK-306 30-mm six-barrel machineguns and Grad-M 40-tube 122-mm multiple rocket launch systems.
The third corvette of the Boyan class, the Makhachkala, is expected to join the Caspian Flotilla in November.