MOSCOW. April 18 (Interfax-AVN) - The Svir hospital ship of the Russian Northern Fleet is getting ready for circumnavigating the globe on the route followed by Russian seafarers Ivan Kruzenshtern and Yuri Lisyansky 200 years ago.
The voyage is authorized by the Navy commander-in-chief, Rear Admiral Vasily Kanevsky, vice president of the Security, Defense and Law Enforcement Academy, told an annual meeting of the academy on Friday.
"The administration of our academy made a proposal to Navy Commander-in-Chief Vladimir Kuroyedov to arrange a circumnavigation in the second half of the year following the route settled in 1803-1806 by military seafarers Lieutenant Captains Ivan Kruzenshtern and Yuri Lisyansky on the Nadezhda and Neva sloops. The Navy command decided to prepare the Svir hospital ship of the Northern Fleet for the voyage. The ship was involved in supporting the recovery of the Kursk nuclear submarine," Kanevsky told Interfax-Military News Agency.
Technical services of the Northern Fleet have started checking the Svir vessel displacing 13,000t. "It will be a very tough test for the ship and its crew. That is why we need to check thoroughly the ship's seafaring abilities. It is not ruled out that the ship will be placed in a dock," Kanevsky said.
According to him, the voyage will begin in St. Petersburg in late 2003. "We are planning to cover the route of Kruzenshtern and Lisyansky in one year, not in three years as they did. Research will be conducted and peacekeeping and cultural programs implemented during the voyage," the vice president said.
He stressed than the circumnavigation will be sponsored by the Security, Defense and Law Enforcement Academy, but supervised by the Navy command.