Zhuk Class (Project 1400 Class) Ukrainian Patrol Boat



The Zhuk Class (Project 1400 Class) Ukrainian Patrol Boat is a small border patrol vessel of less than 40 ton displacement built in the Soviet Union and later in Ukraine. Over 300 boats were built between 1969 and 1991. Out of those, 110 were sold to 23 other countries. Exact numbers are unknown, but they were widely exported by the Soviet Union in addition to use in home waters as harbor patrol. The vessels were excellent for this task thanks to a cheap design for mass production. With only a single simple radar unit and manually-aimed machine guns, they made ideal patrol boats. The dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991, and the abolition of its primary user the, KGB Maritime Guard, it was taken over by the Russian Federal Coast Guard. By 2007 only 15-20 remained in service with the Russian Navy.