'Sverdlov Class / Project 68bis
Light Cruiser in Pictures

This section is dedicated to pictures of the 'Sverdlov' Class light cruiser.  Our pictures are all authentic and were taken at some time when the ship was in active service.  The first two photos were taken during the early Cold War, acquired by NATO, then cut and altered to be used in United States military recognition manuals.  They show weapons and radar systems in great detail.  It should be mentioned that these pictures have been since been released to the public, where we acquired them.  The middle two pictures were taken from Soviet sources.

 

The front starboard twin 100mm turret

In this picture several sailors are working on one of the turrets holding two 100mm dual purpose guns.  Also visible in the picture is the 'Egg Cup' fire control radar.

The gun has a 15 km (9.3 miles) range against surface targets and 8 km (5 miles) against aircraft.

  

'Sun Visor' Fire Control Radar

This photograph is a view of the port side of the ship as seen from the bridge area looking astern.  The large circular turret is a 'Sun Visor' fire control radar which the 100mm guns use to acquire surface targets.  The twin 37mm anti-aircraft guns can be seen to the left of the 'Sun Visor' radar in the picture.  In the background two of the 100mm gun turrets can also be seen.

The 37mm gun has a 3000 meter effective range and a 6700 meter maximum range.

  

A sailor on the Sverdlov

In this picture you can see a sailor on board one of the Sverdlov class cruisers.  The twin 100mm guns can be seen behind him in an elevated position.  The 'Egg Cup' fire control radar can also be clearly seen.

This picture was taken sometime in the late 1950's by a friend of the sailor in the picture.  It was part of the sailor's personal collection of photographs when it entered our collection.

   

Manning the Guns!

Here you can see the five man crew of one of the 37mm anti-aircraft guns in action.  The men wearing the black berets are Naval Infantrymen, while the gun commander (in the center) is a sailor.  Many details of the gun station can be seen here, as can two of the larger 100mm gun turrets in the background.  A 'Sun Visor' fire control radar can also be seen at the extreme right of the picture.

  

A rear view of a Sverdlov cruiser

In this picture you can see the rear port side of a Sverdlov cruiser.  The single rear gun turret can be seen.  This fact, coupled with the unusual antennae array show that it is most likely one of the command cruiser variants.  This picture was taken by the US Navy in January of 1974.

    

A portside view of Sverdlov 890

This picture shows a view of the classic unmodified Sverdlov.  All four gun turrets can be seen as well as its original electronics array.  Some later Sverdlov's would have their X turret removed for a anti-aircraft missile launcher or a command center.  This picture was taken on 14 October 1967 by the US Navy, but no location was given.

  

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