The Russian Salvage Ship that is 110-Years-Old
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- Опубликовано: 22 май 2024
- So how exactly does a ship end up serving its country for over 100 years? Well, it is an extremely rare occurrence. Let’s explore the history and mysteries of this legendary vessel, known for its impressive salvage operations and unique design. We’ll look at the fascinating history and age of Kommuna, a remarkable vessel with a rich maritime heritage. From its early days to present, witness the evolution of this iconic salvage ship that has weathered the tides of time.
00:00 INTRO
01:09 Why 100 years?
01:49 The beginning
02:40 Twin Hull Vessel
03:44 Renaming of Kommuna
04:22 Kommuna and her purpose
05:18 Age is just a number
06:21 Kommuna in 2022
07:24 Deep diving submersible Alvin
09:28 OUTRO
Oceanliner Designs explores the design, construction, engineering and operation of history’s greatest vessels- from Titanic to Queen Mary and from the Empress of Ireland to the Lusitania. Join maritime researcher and illustrator Michael Brady as he tells the stories behind some of history's most famous ocean liners and machines!
#titanic #oceanlinerdesigns #mikebrady #history #facts #ship #Russia #shipwreck #exploration #underwater #salvage #maritime #history #diving #adventure #discover #shipwreckdiving #shipwrecks #travel #explore #ocean #mystery #underwaterexploration #marinearchaeology #deepsea #navalhistory 
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Imagine serving on a ship that is probably older than your grandfather. That is just incredible.
My roommate is from Russia his great grandfather during ww1 than his grandfather in ww2 and than his dad in Cold War served on this ship
The RSS Skrapeitoff
@@Dan_the_afol That is just so cool.
@@daniellclary My grandmother passed away at the ripe old age of 100. She was born in 1923. This ship was built before she was born. 😳
Even older than my Pop who would’ve been 100 this year
This ship is so fascinating and IF this ship doesnt end up becoming a museum it will be an absolutely tragedy
If it continues to operate in the black sea it might be sunk. Or a sailor decides to have a smoke :)
@@BL-yj2wpit can be an under water museum :)
If it doesn't become an artificial reef courtesy of Ukraine first.
Not every ship can be saved. If only an anchor or propeller is saved. That is fine.
@@TrickiVicBB71Agreed, but I do believe that this is one ship that DOES deserve to be preserved given that she was built and commissioned during the Romanov Dynasty!
I remember USAF jokes about the B-52 along the lines of "this may not be your grandpa's Air Force, but this may just be your grandpa's plane."
This would be your _great_ grandpa's boat.
Im pretty sure it's great great grandpas ship
The B-52 is actually expected to stay in service into the 2050s, at which point it will be almost as old as the Russian salvage ship. 🙂
A couple years ago at the Air Force Museum, an Air Force retiree told me "The last B-52 pilot has not yet been born".
A big reason Kommuna has survived, as a salvage/rescue vessel, she doesn't sail for long periods in heavy weather, and doesn't deploy for long periods, so her crew has plenty of time for maintenance tasks. As a salvage/rescue ship, she is very well equipped to maintain herself, with both the machine tools, and the people with the skills to fully use them.
There's also the possibility that the steel in her hull was heavily blued (like one might finish a firearm), which may have protected her hull in her early days, before paint technology had advanced to the point of providing the level of protection it does today. It was a common practice in Russia at the time, a well as elsewhere, and with quality control being what it was in Imperial Russia, Kommuna may have really lucked out.
" Коммуне " повезло.
В гражданскую войную ее не затопили . Как было с флотом у Новороссийска.
Не затопили по ошибке экипажа.
Она не взорвалась как " Императрица Мария"
Уцелела в годы второй мировой. После ее не разрезали на металл.
После развала СССР она тоже уцелела.
Удивительная судьба корабля.
This is the truth. The strength and stability of the hull is the result of the oxidation of steel sheets, which protected the ship with a corrosion-resistant film.
This didn't age well 😂
Minor quibble: the Iowas weren’t reactivated *just* for Desert Storm. Reagan had them modernized and they were recommissioned in 1982 as part of his goal for a 600-ship Navy.
Rather - situations like Desert Storm were created to help justify the massive cost of a 600-ship navy.
I say this as an Iowa class fanboi, btw.
@@F-Man The 600 ship navy idea barely lasted a decade. The idea was to have a surface fleet capable of fighting the Soviet Union. Following their collapse in 1991, the now obsolete battleships were quickly decommissioned (with Iowa herself going first after her crew infamously blew up one of her guns)
@@paulheenan9098 In theory, they were supposed to counter the Soviet _Kirov_ class cruisers, which were monstrously large for Cold War missile-armed surface ships. Pretty sure the _Iowas,_ just post refit, mind you, have spent more time at sea and less time in drydock than the _Kirovs._
There was a reason for battleships. In Both Korea and Vietnam they provided valuable gun fire support. In 2 minutes an Iowa class ship can put down 3 salvoes of 9 * 16 inch shells. At 20 mile range. That's a lot of carrier planes
@@Dilley_G45 And cannon fire is much cheaper than planes and missiles. One of the lessons from Ukraine is that just because you *can* use a missile doesn't mean you should. We might see battleships making a return in the shore bombardment role.
This ship was around during BOTH world wars! That's astounding. Also just one year from when Titanic sank!
outlasted from formation to the dissolution of the Soviet Union
It'll even be around for the third
@@jonahhekmatyarhey now, watch that mouth, we don't wanna will something into existence
Something to mention, which is true for military vessels only, is that sometimes weapons hit their limits or become obsolete and can't be replaced. The Iowa class is a good example, because it's not like those three massive gun turrets can't be replaced with something else, the ship was designed around those. The Kommuna doesn't have this problem, because it's a support vessel.
All the more funny then that several navies, not least the US navy, is thinking about reviving the thought of the battleship as a type for the future. But this is because they have come to realise that the modern day weaponry like the cruise missiles and longer range defence missiles etc, are all becoming so expensive that even enormously rich countries like the US cannot hope to have limitless supplies of them during a prolonged war of attrition.
They are instead considering the big guns of former day coupled with the much cheaper ammo to fit these as the ammo types now coming forth can actually still be very precise and maneuverable and self propelled despite being fired from an old fashioned barrel rather than a missile ramp. And they have the advantage of the large battleship being capable of carrying an awful lot of anti aircraft weaponry with much better endurance in a single battle before running out of ammo.
So, give it time, and you might just see navies building battleships and heavy cruisers once more.
There is definitely merit to the idea of using cheaper tube artillery over rocket artillery, but there are still issues. For one, big ships are also big targets. Germany and Japan learned this the hard way in WWII with the Bismarck and the Yamato. And because range is the ultimate equalizer, no matter how big you make the gun, a rocket will be able to fire further. So these theoretical new battleships would be useless in naval on naval engagements, which was the original purpose of battleships. While you are right, missiles are getting very expensive, even a missile that costs millions to fire is worth it when you're pointing it at a ship that costs billions to build.
That leaves shore bombardment, which is fair enough, they would be useful for that. But that brings up the question of necessary size. Warships are only ever as big as they need to be, and part of the reason destroyers rose to be the standard is redundancy: two small ships are both cheaper to buy and harder to sink than one big one. It would probably be more cost-effective and safer to figure out a way to fit cruisers with bigger guns for this purpose rather than build huge battleships. So while I do think we're going to see more development in naval tube artillery, I doubt we'll see those 50.000 ton battleships again.@@Jens-Viper-Nobel
@@SRFriso94 Good point with one big caveat. Significant part in keeping Iowas in service so long was their size. As time went they needed newer and more equipment + power to run it. Iowas had enough spare space and big power plant to allow multitude of upgrades.
One complication with prolonging service life of Arleigh Burke is their lack of internal space (and reserve buoyancy) to add upgrades.
@@SRFriso94the only reason Bismarck and Yamato were big targets is the lack of carrier support
@@ComeAndTakeIt9235 And with carrier support you get the _Iowas,_ which never fired their guns at another warship.
This ship's job won't get obsolete at all. She will continue to serve as long as she's capable.
Eventually this ship will be like Lenin himself, little left of the original body with everything replaced.
@@GonzoIsCool...with multiple layers of paint providing structural integrity.
She gone 😂
@@TheRandompaintnah, she'll be back.
The Kommuna is still in active service where as most naval ships of similar age like the Aurora, Georgios Averof, Mikasa, USS Olympia etc are all museum ships
Well that's because unlike the rest of us Russia cant afford or rather lacks the capability to build shit like that now.
@@dinnertimemishapthey could build a ship like the komuna, but why would they? Komuna still works and I don't think they need an extra ship like the komuna.
@@dinnertimemishap yout mean like that junk hms prince of wales that almost sank by itself and now heading for scrap yard?
@@dinnertimemishap In 2024, 12 surface ships and 4 submarines will join the Russian Navy. In 2022, Russian shipyards handed over 86 civilian vessels to customers. In 2023, 90 civil vessels were commissioned in Russia. The English analytical agency Clarkson Research has published a rating in which Russia ranks second in the world in shipbuilding. The first place traditionally went to South Korea. Unexpected for you?
@@vladimirnikolskiy Komuna got upgraded to a submarine by Ukraine 😂
I would assume that once "Kommuna" is retired and if her hulls still withstand the water she may get a further lease on live as a specialized research platform
I thought so, too: either she, or a vessel inspired by her design, would be an ideal choice for operating on shipwrecks and other sites of investigation.
Yeah, the first thing worth researching is how thick the multiple layers of paint are on this thing.
@@BoraHorzaGobuchul The steel used in the construction of this ship has been treated with oxidation and bluing, so its hull has been preserved in excellent condition for so many years.
Museum status is more likely. That’s assuming Russia still exists 20 or 30 years from now.
@@TheSaneHatterThe catamaran hull design is a very good one & useful for this kind of operation. I just have my doubts whether Kommuna would be able to operate for any length of time outside of shallow, inland seas.
I recently toured the USS New Jersey and it’s clear that it’s maintained far above the normal museum ship standard. Wouldn’t be surprised if it was more of a mothball than a museum.
As a German I don't know many of the going ons regarding the "Museum status of the preserved Surface combatants" but I have seen a headline about the idea to bring some back very close to a fully operational status a couple of weeks back.
Also I recall that most of their primary offensive capabilities are more analogue than digital so they are pretty hard in terms of electro-magnetic interference,
@@HrLBolle The US Navy maintains many ships in a reserve mothballed status. Today those would be many built in the 1970s -1980s.They still receive some limited maintenance and can be readied for service if needed. But a museum ship such as the battleships are stricken from the Navies records and turned over to civilian groups which is solely responsible for upkeep and financing the upkeep. I dont know how other countries handle museum ships.
@@glennrishton5679 In St. Petersburg, the cruiser Aurora is moored, which was launched in 1900, and for the first time it entered service with the Russian Navy's warships in 1903. Despite the fact that this cruiser is a museum, it was still listed as part of the Russian Navy.
@glennrishton5679 not true the New Jersey is still owned by the US navy and is on loan to the museum. Her engines are preserved. The navy could take her back with as little as a 90 day notice.
I've been doing some restoration work on the S.S. Keewatin recently, and this video made me realize that - at that moment the notification popped up - the ship I was then standing on, was only six years older than the Kommuna. Remarkable work by the Russians for keeping this ancient workhorse afloat!
Although I'm 100% on Ukraine's side in their fight against said Russians, out of all of the ships they could target, this is one I sincerely hope they avoid targeting. I hope to see the Kommuna as a museum ship someday.
I am a supporter of the Keewatin project and I unfortunately missed the opportunity to board her on her journey to Kingston. Hope she’s in Bristol fashion.
Ukraine is likely to live less than this ship
Ukraine is a stillborn, failed state that has managed to transform itself over thirty years of independence from a prosperous republic with a magnificent economy, with aircraft manufacturing, metallurgy, automobile construction, machine tool construction, rocket engineering, into the poorest country in Europe.
Kommuna is up there with the B-52, HMS Victory and USS Constitution
Honorable mentions are the M3 Stuart and T34
Don't forget the Amerigo Vespucci
Its different. USS constitution and Victory are not in active use anymore, wheras komuna is still in active military service and being used in salvage operations.
B-52 is not a singular aircraft, its an aircraft type. Not the same comparison, but yes the B-52's are also close to half century old.
Yeah, Mike forgot the USS Constitution. She still is a commissioned warship, although I wouldn't want to take her up against the Houthis (cough cough, Iran) any time soon.
And I Raaaannnn, I Ran soooo far aawwwaaayyyyyy.... (Come on, you know you are singing it)
HMS Victory is getting a load of new frames and planking as we speak, so while she won't put to sea again she will be around for another century or so.
I know it's not a vehicle, but for longevity of design the Ma Deuce .50cal is right up there.
Kommuna should search the wreck of the flagship of the second pacific squadron, and see how many of the admiral's binoculars are still left out of the 50 he started out with that he didn't throw overboard at the Kamchatka!.
That's hilarious and hands-down the best comment I've seen in ages!
Imagine trying to organize a crew reunion.
Hope she gets to retire in peace and doesn’t get sunk. She’s earned it.
This comment did not age well.
@@milesskillman256no it did not😂. I'm just going through comments to see who was right .
Hey, if it ain't broke and still works why throw it out?
A fine show as usual Mike! Thanks!
Very well done Mike . Love your channel , with your attention to detail and professional presentation. 👌
I thought that the submersible Alvin was like Triggers broom with no original parts left on it making it literally a new sub
It is exactly like that Trigger's broom (had to look it up). Last time I check there were no original parts on it. There is also a thought experiment by the ancient Greek philosopher Plutarch known as the ship of Theseus. How much a percentage of original parts have to be replace before it is no longer the original ship?
@@shadowpulpfan1810I hope you enjoyed the Trigger's Broom metaphor.
@@bradfry5403 I had to look the clip up.. then I enjoyed it.
This is hands down my favorite maritime channel. Great video as always.
I’m surprised there was no mention of the Glomar Explorer, and the tale of the time the US Navy dunked on the Soviets and recovered their sunk ballistic missile submarine K-129
I was thinking the same thing
Thank you for another wonderful informative video. I must admit how wonderful it is to see each new video.
Another interesting video topic. Thanks for sharing!
Another fantastic, very interesting and informative video, thanks Mike!
Mike, have you done any videos on the USS Wolverine and USS Sable - two WWII US aircraft carriers based on Lake Michigan ? These two fascinating ships were converted from passenger liners and used for training during which over 100 assorted aircraft ended up in the lake. Many of these aircraft are now being recovered and sent to museums all over the USA and some are absolutely unique sole survivors of their type.
those are featured in a very recent video about ridiculous ship makeovers!
@@isthatrubble Yes, just watched that. Thanks. It was released about a week after I posted this comment !
That was awesome, informative, nostalgic, and overall, very enjoyable and entertaining.
A fascinating video! I can tell that a lot of research went into its making. It's heartwarming to know that steel hulled ships can last so long! It also makes it rather sad that so many ocean liners were scrapped after a much shorter life span just because no other use could be found for them.
I really enjoyed this video. Thanks!
Thank you Mike for another interesting video. This ship looks amazing, I hope she continues for a while yet. All the best from Sydney
Fascinating history. You definitely dug up some facts on this ship I hadn't known about. 👍
Really cool, another great job, thanks again
Always stellar content. Fascinating.
So informative, my husband and I love your videos. Your dedicated research and storytelling abilities breathe life back into the ships and passengers.
Reminds me of the ship you mentioned, Doulos Phos or originally, Medina. Launched in 1914. Although not a specialized vessel, she was adaptable. And her owners thoughout the years just kept refitting her when ships would normally be scrapped or sold.
Very interesting Mike, thankyou.
The Kommuna and her story is one of my favorite things, I was actually just thinking about this ship a couple of weeks ago, and I found the exact location where she is docked, on Google Maps the coordinates are: 44°36'05.8"N 33°28'13.9"E
Awesome video Mike
Thank you again for another wonderful video.
Mike, thanks so much for this fascinating story. As a retired submariner I was gob smacked to learn about this vessel. Awesome mate 👍
I love your videos. very interesting. especially the videos on the Titanic. Thank you and keep them coming
I served on a US ship that was built during the war then cut in half and extended to handle Polaris missile subs. It finally retired in the mid 90's. A big problem is the corrosive action of seawater on the hull which thinned the metal. I can only imagine what shape this ship is in but I am glad they can still use it.
в те времена краски были плохие и корабли делали из оружейного металла
It is still a mystery, overgrown with a lot of legends, the excellent condition of the hull of this ship. At one time, there were legends that before the construction of the "Commune", steel was allegedly soaked in the Pinsk marshes.
Excellent. Thank you
Best history channel I know today
You know too little
Interesting Ship and Story
For a second I thought this was a Drachinifel video.
Drach has done a 5 minute video.
And yet another outstanding video, mate.........like Singapore Airlines, your'e consistently the world's best!
What a beautiful & efficient engineering 👏🏻
Well well well, came back to this video after recent news...
For those looking for a more in depth video, Calum did a long video.
Was looking for this. I rather enjoyed Calcum's video.
Ukraine has just de-commissioned Kommuna 19/4/24
No, it seems she was damaged but can be repaired
@@lorenzogrimaldi1312won’t remain there and it’s useless regardless
Never heard of this ship before! Interesting video!
What a fascinating ship - thanks for telling us about her. :)
Just wanted to say this page is great. Thanks
I love your videos man❤❤❤
Thanks Mike.
What a delightful vessel.
I'd love to see more of these.
One can only dream, eh?
Strange that with the Kommuna being a submarine recovery ship it was never used to rescue the crew of the Kursk
It would not have had time to reach the scene of the tragedy in the required time.
It's now a submarine itself😂
Hey Mike, I have a suggestion for a future project you might look into. Since you're so awesome at making these documentary style videos about shipwrecks, how about making one of the MV Derbyshire? An English bulk freighter that sank in the South China Sea in 1980 during a typhoon. It's a really riveting story and tragedy that went unsolved for over 20 years. The ship was the largest ever built in Britain and sank so fast, the crew had no chance to fire off a mayday. It sank from one moment to the next without a trace and all hands lost. The wreck wasn't even found until about 20 years later and it took some real detective work to figure out what happened. I'm sure this would make some great material for another one of your videos.
Indeed...the story of Derbyshire is very trilling!! And very tragic too for the reasons you mentioned...hope Mike gets to see your post!🙏
I've always been interested in how long things can last, especially support/unsung stuff. While Kommuna is already a famous case, it's always good to learn more....!
Dear Mike! As usual, you have once again produced a great and extremely informative video that reveals information and stories that were completely unknown to me! ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Cool story. The Ship of Theseus, indeed.
Thank you. This video was amazing. I would love to see a video on the Imperial Russian Yacht Standart. It has a very interesting history.
Another fascinating ship, although not quite as old is the Brazilian River Monitor Parnaíba. Launched in 1937, she is the oldest active warship in the world and one of the last remaining Monitors. Great little ship!
110 YEARS OLD?!?!?!
YES!!!!!!!
Russia or not, that's INSANE! And great!😊😊😊
It's more insane because 90% of their equipment is barely usable if not totally unusable and 5% more are cannibalised to the remaining active one. And those aren't in tip-top shape as well and I'm not excaterating (probably butchered this word), and knowing the Russians it's even worse but behind rows of lies and propaganda (objectively speaking). It's a miracle it survived until this time
As someone stationed on an Arleigh Burke class destroyer, I can confirm they are probably the most dependable and overall capable platform the US Navy has ever made. Hoo ya tin can sailors!
Kommuna has never been in rough seas as far as I know. So the hull hasn't really been stressed too badly. It might be in excellent shape.
Thank you. Incidentally, my cat has a little known recovery vessel from 534 BC! I know it's hard to believe, and it's still active!!🙀 He very much enjoys your videos, and we both wish you continued success 😺
Talk about fascinating! 😳🔥
Another fabulous video.
Calum also has a video on this too that goes a bit more in depth
It’s crazy how we went from the first powered flight in 1903 to the B-52 in the 1950s. People in 1952 must’ve been thinking “with this level of progress, I wonder what we’ll have in 100 years time!” Uhhh yeah still the b-52 actually 😅
793 views IN 18 MINUTES! !! That has to be a record! Great channel Mike, cheers.
Nah, GTA6 trailer had like 1 million views.
The ship is super cool. It's gonna keep having work to do by the looks of things.
What an awesome vessel. I really do hope that she gets a beautiful retirement home when she finally gets decommissioned. Either as a research vessel or museum ship. Such stories are so rare that it would be devastating to scrap such a magnificent piece of history.
Loved this. @calumraasay has a great video on Kommuna too. I find both of your videos fascinating for many of the same reasons.
I remember a RUclips video explaining the metallurgy of this ship was unique and rust resistant.
Awesome history.
Thanks for the channel! I grew up on a freight ship in Europe in the 70s so it’s in my blood.👍
"You lost you flagship?"
"During a land war?"
"To a country without a navy?"
"They had anti ship missiles."
"few months into three-days «operation»?"
Very interesting.
Amazing story
The now former recovery ship!
I served in the Navy in the late 70s and the ship I served on was at that time built in 59. It was very n service and until 92, and scrapped in 2018.
I had a shipmate who sent me a piece of our flight when it was scrapped.
I always get sad thinking back on that old ship and how it’s no longer sailing the open oceans.
I was on a sea going tug headed to Puerto Rico, was called to the wheelhouse to see the Constellation under town headed for the ship breakers in Texas. That was a sad sight, My ship used to tie up at North Island along with them in the early 70s. I may or may not have gotten a little misty eyed at that.
Think of the crew who first served on her. I bet they’d never have imagined her trying to salvage a ship who was younger than her by decades!
Well, to be fair i bet they never imagined Communism would take over their country in only a few years. the crew 50 years later probably never imagined the Soviet Union would fall, the crew now probably cant wait for Russia to fall.
While serving in the Air Force, got to see plenty of those magnificent B-52's: pure awesomeness.....
Really interesting
Wow thats cool
Hehe
Great vid!
Thanks!
It's so sad that videos like this get so little fanfare on your channel. I love when you shine the spotlight on these unique vessels. I like your titanic content too but I feel like I'm gonna blow my head off if I hear about Titanics funnels again.
"Russian"/"Soviet" and "bizarre engineering" go hand-in-hand fairly often, as I've found out in my silly deep dives into the Cold War (and some things before and after). It's not necessarily bad - the ekranoplan, in particular, comes to mind - but there's always something just a bit uncanny about the idea, design, and/or execution.
As always, another fascinating video, Mike!
If you made deep dives, you probably know about it already, but if no, there's a topic rarely discussed, "spiral" program. Basically soviet spaceplane projects before Buran-Energia
Very interesting, as always. But on an unrelated note; looking sharp. That is a crisp as heck collar.
The New Jersey was brought on line for a while during Vietnam.
I've seen Communa in person multiple times sailing out of Sevastopol. She's a damn beautiful ship!
Wow, the oldest ship I worked on was the Liberty ship SS Jerimiah O\Brien and she was 30 years younger (the diesels would have made life easy... reciprocating steam is cool, but a lot of work...)
I remember when Liberty and Victory ships were still working vessels in the 1960s coming into the port here although many were foreign flag at that time.
@@glennrishton5679 I was attending The California Maritime Academy at the time and it was my first ship I actually worked on (it was a short trip though... San Francisco to Sacramento... She was already a museum at that point, but a museum that moves!
@@mssuxmyass I'd have loved making even a short trip on a Liberty ship just for the experience. Any of the old stick ships would have been interesting.
One of the things about Star Wars that always fascinated me is the concept of incredibly complicated vehicles that are hundreds of years old but still applicable, I guess that’s a mirroring of real life
Victory and Constitution really make that record of Kommuna's a mouthful, and you did great
That's one awesome ship!
You should check out the Last Walking beam steam ship, Ss Ticonderoga here at the Shelbourn Meuseum in Vermont.
With respect to old aircraft, the Douglas DC-3/C-47 is even older than the B-52 and many of them are still in active use, though now mostly civilian. Some have even recently undergone major modernisation that includes receiving new turboprop engines and modern "grass" cockpits/avionics, but still largely using the original 1930s-40s airframes, and are expected to be in service for possibly as much as another 50 years yet.
Another amazing story. I Wonder how many lives she's saved hauling up subs. Thanks Mike.
This is the only time I've heard of a ship being renamed and it going on to be ok!