SEVASTOPOL. Jan 10 (Interfax-AVN) - The Russian Black Sea Fleet is expected to commission the Ochakov large anti-submarine ship and a diesel submarine after repairs this year, Rear Admiral Alexander Kovshar, deputy fleet commander in charge of armament operation and repairs, said on Thursday.
A 21-percent increase in allocations on ship repairs will enable the repairers to complete the vessels on time, Kovshar told Interfax-Military News Agency.
"In general, the vessels of the fleet are kept in good technical condition mainly thanks to specialists of electromechanical combat units," he said.
According to Kovshar, the fleet's mechanics are distinguished by high professionalism, they are multidimensional engineers, and "we can say it today, on the 147th birthday of the Russian Navy's engineer officer corps, that they measure up to their predecessors."
It is the engineer officers' supreme qualification that enabled the Black Sea Fleet permanent-readiness forces to commission the Moskva guard missile cruiser very quickly, though the officers had to work in very complicated conditions, the deputy commander said. The officers also ensured the cruiser's smooth long-term voyage to the Mediterranean Sea with stopovers in French, Italian and Tunisian ports.
The fleet's engineering personnel demonstrated its high professionalism during the autumn training voyage of the fleet's vessels, as well as during the Peace Fairway 2001 exercise held jointly by Russia and Ukraine.