Armored boats of the type "Bayonet" in the Navy of the USSR

The messenger ships of the "Bayonet" type of the Amur military flotilla, built by the Putilov factory in 1909, were in fact the first armored boats in the world ^[1] . They were delivered for assembly in the village of Kokui, the village of Kokui, of the Trans-Baikal region by rail ^[3] . "Bayonet" until 1913 at the Baltic Sea for testing. 4 in 1915 were transported to the Baltic (in 1818 captured by the Finns) and 4 to the Black Sea. "Peak" and "Spear" until 1947 in the Amur Flotilla ^[2] .

By 1929, the Amur military flotilla also included the spear and Peak armored boats, and they participated in the first major armed conflict after the Civil War in 1929 on the Chinese-Eastern Railroad as part of the Amur Flotilla. During the fighting, Soviet sailors participated in the defeat of the Sungari military flotilla. The armored "Spear" and "Pick" together with the armored "Leopard" under fire explored the passages in the barriers of the Chinese to Lachasus and then to Fugdin . Planted under fire from ships of the flotilla, the Red Army units, supported by naval artillery, captured the cities of Lahasus and Fugdin. For successful combat operations, the Amur Flotilla in 1930 was awarded the Order of the Red Banner ^{[4] [5]} .

Normal displacement : 23.5 t ;

Length: 20.4 m ;

Width: 3.13 m;

The largest draft : 0.69 m;

Maximum height of the board: 1.6 m;

The height of the conning tower: 3.9 m;

Engines: 2 gasoline engines Daimler 100 liters each. with. ;

Fuel capacity: 1.7 tons of petrol B-70;

The speed of travel is greatest with respect to / against: 8.6 (16) / 6.2 (11.5) knots (km / h);

Sailing range at full speed with / against: 297 (550) / 313 (580) miles (km);

Artillery guns: 1 76.2-mm sample from 1909 ;

Ammunition: 240 unitary cartridges ;

Machine guns: 2 7.62 mm Maxim ;

Booking: Boards, chopping and gun shields - 8 mm;

Crew: 12 people (1 officer , 4 foremen , 7 privates ) ^[6] .

1. No. 93 (until September 15, 1934 “Spear”, until April 15, 1937 BK-103)

Bookmark in 1908 at the Putilov plant , launched in the summer of 1910, the entry into operation of the Amur Flotilla in 1912 as a messenger ship . January 19, 1918 passed to the Soviet government . September 7, 1918 captured by the Japanese in Khabarovsk and taken to Sakhalin Island . On May 1, 1925, it was returned to the USSR , repaired, and on October 16, 1925, it entered the Amur military flotilla of the Naval Forces of the Far East as an armored trooper. In October-November 1929 during the conflict on the CER took part in the hostilities. Overhaul in 1934. October 24, 1940 handed over for disassembly for scrap , but soon returned to the Amur Flotilla. Participated in the Soviet-Japanese war in the Manchurian offensive on August 9 - September 2, 1945 . In 1954, scrapped ^[3] .

2. No. 94 (until September 15, 1934 of “Pika”, until April 15, 1937 of BK-104)

Bookmark in 1908 at the Putilov plant, launched in the summer of 1910, the entry into operation of the Amur Flotilla in 1912 as a messenger ship. January 19, 1918 passed to the Soviet government. Participated in the civil war. September 18, 1918 the crew was disabled because of the threat of capture by the Japanese . February 17, 1920 again entered the Soviet fleet . In 1925, underwent a refurbishment and on October 16, 1925, it was reclassified into an armored boat. In October-November 1929, he participated in the Soviet-Chinese conflict on the CER. On June 27, 1931 entered the Amur Flotilla. In 1934, was overhauled. Delivered on October 24, 1940 for dismantling for scrap, but soon returned to the Amur flotilla. Participated in the Soviet-Japanese war in the Manchurian offensive on August 9 - September 2, 1945. In 1954, scrapped ^[3] .

Participation in the 1945 Manchurian Operation

The armored boats BK-93 and BK-94 (former “Spear” and “Pika”; speed on quiet water is 16 km / h, armament: one 76 mm mountain cannon of the model of 1909 by August 1945), together with 2 armored units of the type “ N ”- BK-81 and BK-84 (displacement 18 t; armament: one 76-mm short cannon of the model of 1913 ) were part of the 2nd detachment of armored boats of the Sretensky separate battalion (sodrk) of the Amur Flotilla. Sodrk was supposed to support the 74th border detachment in operations on the border along the Aygun and Amur rivers from the beginning of the Amur River to the village of Dzhindda , located (and currently) on the meridian of Skovorodino station . Also in the task of the detachment was the interaction with the neighboring border detachment located downstream of the Amur River below Dzhindy. In the event of hostilities in the upper reaches of the Amur, the interaction was carried out with the 368th Mountain Rifle Regiment of the 2nd Red Banner Army , which was located at the railway station Erofei Pavlovich .

The main area of ​​joint action Sodka and border guards appointed Manchu district town Mohe , where there was a Japanese garrison.

The order to start hostilities was received on the evening of August 8. Boats of the 2nd detachment Sodrk, brought into combat readiness, came out at night along the Amur River to the village of Pokrovka ( Mogochinsky District ).

At dawn on August 10, the armored forces of the 2nd detachment took the landing of border guards and entered the mouth of the Argun river, firing at the mouth of the Japanese observation posts from machine guns. A border guard landing force landed from boats captured a Japanese stronghold in the village of Elehekhad, destroying an ambush and a group of suicide bombers in the village.

The armored boats of the 2nd detachment climbed up along the Argun only by 10-15 km, the depth of the river was not allowed to go further, and small border boats began to operate there.

The main task was to capture the city of Mohe, located opposite the village of Ignashino . In Mohe were the main garrison and command of the Japanese troops stationed at the headwaters of the Amur River and at the Argun River. The 368th Mountain Rifle Regiment (the 368th MTP) overnight went from the station of Yerofey Pavlovich to Ignashino, in order to cross the Amur and capture Mohe.

At dawn on August 10, the armored forces of the 2nd detachment of the Sodrk troops landed 368th gsp two to three kilometers above Mohe, and the armored troops of the 1st detachment fired at firing points and other targets near the water in Mohe and took firing positions for fire support of the landing the main landing of the 368th gsp. Under the cover of armored boats, units of the 368th gsp were landed on the PB-4 floating base and small border boats and began disembarking at Mohe.

The units of the mountain rifle regiment and the border guards entered the city and began to advance in depth. Less than an hour, white flags appeared on the buildings of the city, and the inhabitants of the city also went with white flags to the bank of the river. Artillery fire from armored boats was stopped. The Japanese of the garrison, along with their families, left the forest paths to the mountains, after having given fire to warehouses with weapons and food.

Units of the 368th gsp advanced a kilometer and a half. The border guards began the pursuit of the retreating enemy and checking the surrounding area for ambushes and suicide groups.

After the capture of the Mohe, the 368th GSP was recalled to another direction. The boats of the Sretensky Division transported it back to the left bank of the Amur River, from where the regiment headed for the station Yerofey Pavlovich. In Mohe and other captured strongholds of the Japanese, units of the 74th border detachment remained.

As a result of military operations on ships of Sodka, there are no casualties of personnel, several people were wounded by border guards.

The next few days of the armored boat of the Sretensky division were in high alert in Mohe in case of a Japanese attack. Only when all the shores at the mouth of Argun to Sella Dzhalind, all roads and paths from the rivers were checked by border guards for three to five kilometers and they did not find any ambushes there, the boats of the division departed to the left bank of the Amur River, to the Pokrovka area and switched to daily activities ^{[7 ]} .

• Platonov A.V. Soviet monitors, gunboats and armored boats. Part I. - St. Petersburg: “Galea Print”, 2004. - 120 p. ISBN 5-8172-0090-2 Tsar's heritage, table 2 - TTE of river cannon boats for 1917, table 4 - TTE of river cannon boats for 1944
• Chernikov I.I. Encyclopedia of monitors. Defenders of the river borders of Russia. Shipbuilding. 2007. ISBN 978-5-7355-0706-2 . River armored boats of the Military Department.
• Shirokorad A. B. Japan. Unfinished rivalry. - M.: Veche, 2008. - 448 p. : il. - (Friends and enemies of Russia). - Circulation 4000 copies. - ISBN 978-5-9533-3472-3

• Amur Flotilla (1857-1918). Chernikov I.I. Encyclopedia of monitors. Defenders of the river borders of Russia.
• Amur flotilla in the prewar years. Chernikov I.I. Encyclopedia of monitors. Defenders of the river borders of Russia.
• River armored boats of the Military. Chernikov I.I. Encyclopedia of monitors. Defenders of the river borders of Russia.
• Type “Bayonet” - 2 units. Ships of the Soviet Navy on the eve of and during the Great Patriotic War
• Thirties, pre-war years. A.V. Platonov. Soviet monitors, gunboats and armored boats. Part I.
• A.V. Platonov. Soviet monitors, gunboats and armored boats. Part I. Table 4
• Actions Sretensky separate division of river ships. Chapter 38 Fighting Amur Flotilla. Shirokorad A. B. Japan. Unfinished rivalry