Maxim Gorkiy file photo [8845]

Maxim Gorkiy

CountryRussia
Ship ClassKirov-class Light Cruiser
Builder#189 Ordzhonikidze, Leningrad, Russia
Laid Down20 Dec 1936
Launched30 Apr 1938
Commissioned12 Dec 1940
Decommissioned17 Feb 1956
Displacement8,177 tons standard; 9,728 tons full
Length628 feet
Beam58 feet
Draft19 feet
MachinerySix Yarrow-Normand boilers, TB-7 geared turbines, two shafts
Bunkerage650t oil normal, 1,660t oil full
Power Output122,500 shaft horsepower
Speed37 knots
Range4,880nm at 17.8 knots
Crew963
Armament9x180mm/57 MK-3-180 guns, 6x100mm/56 B-34 DP guns, 9x45mm/46 21-K guns, 4x12.7mm DK machine guns, 6x533mm 53-38 torpedoes, 96 mines, 20 depth charges
Armor70mm belt, turrets, barbettes, bulkheads; 50mm deck; 150mm conning tower
Aircrafttwo KOR-1 floatplanes
Sold for Scrap18 Apr 1958

Contributor:

ww2dbaseLike most of her sisters, light cruiser Maxim Gorkiy was named after a famous Russian politician. She was assigned to the Baltic Fleet in late 1940 and performed training duties until the German invasion of the Soviet Union. Upon the German invasion, she immediate departed to escort minelayers in the eastern Baltic, but hit a German minefield on 23 Jun 1941 and was forced to enter the drydock at Kronshtadt, Russia for repairs; both Maxim Gorkiy and destroyer Gnevny lost their bows from the explosions, with the latter lost. Between 3 and 21 Jul 1941, she had a new bow installed, and on 12 Aug she conducted new machinery trials. As the German troops neared Leningrad, she supported the defensive garrison by providing naval gunfire. On 4 Apr 1942, she was targeted by more than 70 bombs; two of them were near misses, and none hit. On 24 Apr, she was once again attacked, this time by 150 bombs and 50 artillery shells; near misses killed three and wounded five. On 25 and 27 Apr, near misses heavily damaged radios, rangefinders, boiler number 3, and a turbine. She was refitted during the winter of 1942-1943, receiving additional armor for her upper deck. In the spring and summer of 1943, she resumed her role as a naval gun platform. In Jan 1944, she supported the efforts to break the siege of Leningrad, firing 701 rounds from her primary guns during the combat. In Jun 1944, she supported Russian troops during the Vyborg-Petrozavodsk Offensive against the Finnish defenses of the Mannerheim Line. She remained in Leningrad until the end of the war. On 25 Feb 1946, she arrived at Liepaya, Latvia. In Dec 1950, she performed trials with the first Soviet shipboard helicopter Ka-10. In the summer of 1953, she was inactivated for a major refit, but by 1955 Russian naval leaders thought that she could not be modernized sufficiently. Modernization work was halted in 1955, and she was sold for scrap in 1959.

ww2dbaseSource: Warship 2009.

Last Major Revision: Dec 2009

Photographs

Light cruiser Maxim Gorkiy in icy waters, Leningrad, Russia, 1941-1942Light cruiser Maxim Gorkiy, 1941Light cruiser Maxim Gorkiy receiving a new bow after mine damage, Kronshtadt, Leningrad, Russia, 3-21 Jul 1941

Maxim Gorkiy Operational Timeline

12 Dec 1940 Maxim Gorkiy was commissioned into service.
17 Feb 1956 Maxim Gorkiy was decommissioned from service.




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Light Cruiser Maxim Gorkiy Photo Gallery
Light cruiser Maxim Gorkiy in icy waters, Leningrad, Russia, 1941-1942
See all 3 photographs of Light Cruiser Maxim Gorkiy


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