Marynarka Wojenna – The Polish Navy (Cold War)

The Warsaw Pact: East Germany, Poland, Romania, Bulgaria, Albania, Czechoslovakia, Hungary

The inhertitance of WW2

“The Polish Navy was re-established between 1945 and 1948 with the destroyer Byskainca, three submarines, four minesweepers, two minesweepers acquired in Britain and nine minesweepers, twelve
patrol craft and a sail training ship (all of Polish origin), three BYMS type minessweepers from Britain, twelve Submarine chasers and two MTBS from the Sovier Union in lieu of war reparations from the Knegmarine. The units thus asembled were insufficient for the detence of over 500km of coastline, and in 1947 a Naval Estimate was prepared for the construction of a 42,000 ton fleet (eighteen submarines, twenty-four MTBS, nine escorts, forty-four patrol craft, sixty-six minesweepers), over 20 years.

This programme reflected adoption of the Soviet naval doctrine of that timne, which confined the navy to covering the flanks of large land armies with extensive use of minefields guarded by constal artillery while attack on enemy communications would be executed by small combatant and naval aviation. The 1947 estimate evidently exceeded what was possible from a war-shattered economy and was substituted by a 1950-55 plan for construction of five MTBS, five patrol craft, five minesweepers and five minesweeping boats.

This plan was abiandoned in 1950 by the Soviet officers in command, who saw the Polish Navy as a local detachment of the Soviet Baltic Fleet. In 1951 the ‘Plan for Reinforcing Defences’ was authorized, as a modernisation of the army, air force and AA defence. The navy’s role was confined to the defence of the main base at Gdynia, and further development was restricted to the placing in service of suitable ships. As a temporary measure, a landing craft flotilla was formed. It comprised former German and US boats, and the ageing destroyer Burra was modemised. The necessity of replacing ageing naval craft
was only acknowledged four years later in the ‘Military Development Plan for 1955-60’, which proposed increasing the navy to five destroyers, nine frigates, twelve submarines and ninety-six MTBs (all to be imported from the Soviet Union), in addition to sixty minesweepers and eight submarine chasers built locally.

This enforced rearmament programme brought about a sharp decline in the national economy, the first sign of which was an acute food shortage in 1952. However, only the easing of tension, both internationaly (Geneva conference of July 1955) and internally after the 1956 riots in Poznan made it possible to halt the Soviet program. This resulted in the wihdrawal of certain command posts and the return of Polish Military Uniforms. The military expansion program was halted, but at that point, the navy had already purchased two Skoriy class destroyers, six ‘MV’ type submarines, twenty-seven fast craft, while twelve ‘T43’ type and seven ‘TR40’ type minesweepers were to be built locally under Soviet licence.

The Khrushchev regime forced Poland to adopt a new armament programme approved in March 1961, which provided within a period of seven years, a destroyer flotilla of three ships, a missile boat flotilla of seven boats, a submarine brigade of seven boats, an MTB brigate of nineteen, and a sub-chaser flotolla of eight boats, plus a minesweweepers flotilla of twenty-four, a riverine flotilla of seven boats, plus a landing brigade of twenty-eight ships.

The Polish Navy had to undertake the construction of the minesweepers, sub-chasers, MTBs, landing ships and auxiliaries, like East Germany. The desired force at least on paper was only achieved in the late 1960s, but numerous earlier vessels already needed a replacement. The declined of Polish planned economy, burdened with excessive military expenditures and lack of modern technology led to social unrest in December 1970. The ailing economy caused delays in replacement and was made only worse by the attitude of the Polish ministry of defence, emphasised a stronger development for better integration nto the Warsaw Pact strategic planning.

Therefore the basic combat potential planned for the Polish Navy in 1961 was never reached, and at the end development of the decade the Polish Navy only comprised a single ‘Kotlin SAM’ guided missile destroyer, four “Whiskey V’ class submarines, 50 small surface combatants, 33 landing ships and 24 to be imported from the Soviet Union, but the naval aviation division had not been modermised. Thus the Polish Navy, which had been the largest of the non-Soviet naval forces lost its position to East Germany in the early 1980s.

The 1980 program focused on locally-built small surface combatants, FACs, MCVs and assault craft, equipped with Soviet armaments and sensors, but its development was plagues by strikes, notably at Gdansk and Gdinya. Therefore after the withdrawul of the 30 years old destroyer Warsawa in 1986, the Poles were unable to contribute to the Warsaw Pact joint Baltic squadron until the arrival of the “Kashin mod” misile destroyer was lend by USSR in 1988. Construction of FAC/M only started with difficulties by 1988, in coperation with East Germany, und only the landing craft program wa pursued nore vigorously, even though only five Lublin class have been completed. ”

ORP Warsaw, flagship, Kotlin SAM II type.

ORP Poznan of the Lublin class LSTs

ORP Warsaw (iii) of the Kashin Mod class in 2004

ORP Wilk of the Foxtrot type

ORP Orzeł of the Whiiskey class (cutaway)

Pilica class patrol crafts

ORP mewa of the Krogulec class minesweepers

ORP Kaszub corvette in Gdynia

Missile Corvette ORP Metalowiec in Gdynia (Tarantul class)

ORP Grom, Orkan class Missile corvettes

Additional purchases from the Soviet Union proved a considerable strain on the economy, but included four “Tarantul class” corvettes FAC/M replacing the old OSA I boats. Noteworthy was the transfer of the submarine Orzel in 1986 (sole Kilo class), and the smaller and cheaper Foxtrot class followed, with the Wilk and Wicher.

Following economic restraints brought about as a result of this program, the Polish economy once again showed sign of crisis. Hardship suffered by the people caused much social unrest in the summer of 1988, and the Communist Party, discouraged by Moscow’s unwillingness to compromise its new image by supporting an unpopular regime, decided to negotiate with leaders of the hitherto illegal opposition. This resulted in the peaceful removal of communist rule after elections in June 1989, and triggered a similar process in neighbouring countries.

Poland was the first country to join the ‘Partnership for Peace’ programme, and the most eager to join NATO, making the best possible use of the time given by the temporary weakness of the Russian Empire. An estimate to create a balanced and independent naval force was drawn up, and provided for five submarines, twelve ASW escorts, eighteen FACs, twenty MCVS and a naval aviation of eighty aircraft. This programme was however still well beyond the capacity of the Polish economy, driving forcefully from the centralised system to the open market.

The Polish Navy in 1995 comprised on paper at least, three submarines, a single missile destroyer, a surface escort, thirteen TACM, nineteen sub-chasers, twenty-four mineweepers and the landing ships. However most of these ships were without practical military value eiher because of obsolescence or lack of modern weapon systems, not even talking about NATO standards total incompatibility. The only units pratical value came from the single Kilo class submarine, the four Tarantul class corvettes, the five landing ships, the sixteen MCVS.

The Coast Guard was separated from the navy in 1991. The tleet headquarters are at Gdynia, and bases were at Gdynia Oksywie, Hel, Swinoujscie and Kolobraeg. Naval aviation comprised by then the 34th Fighter Wing (at Gdynia Babie Doly) 38 MIG-21 fighters, 4 TS-11 Iskra training aircraft, two AN-2 transport planes and two Mi-2 ‘Hoplite’ helicopters, and the 7th Training Wing irowice with fifteeri TS-11, eight An-2 and two An-28 bombers, an Helicopter Squadron at Darlowo, with fourteen Mi-14 ‘Haze’ and Mi-2 ‘Hoplite’, the 18th Despatch and Rescue Squadron with four RW Anakonda, three W-3 Sokol, ten Mi-2 helicopters and two An-28.

Articles planned:

ORP Wicher of the Skoryy type

Grom class destroyers (Skoryy class) 1957, stricken 1967
Warsawa Kotlin SAM acq.1970, stricken 1986
Warsawa Kotlin Mod acq.1988, discarded 2000s
Kaszub Corvette (Balcom 6) 1986
MV class subs (1948-52), delivered 1954, stricken 1970
4 Whiskey class subs (transferred 1962-69), stricken 1990
Orzel (Kilo class) acquired 1986, extant
Wilk class (Foxtrot) acquired 1987-88, extant

Gdynia class landing ships (Polocny A) 1965-68, discarded 1990s
Lenino class landing ships (Polocny B) 1968-71, discarded 1990s
Lublin class LSTs (Balcom 11) 1989-92, extant.
Command ship Grunwald (Polocny C) 1972 (+27 exported)
Eichstaden class LCs (LCP(L) type 1962, stricken 1990s
Marabut class LCs 1973 stricken 1987
3 Deba class LCs (1987), extant

‘P6’ type FAC(T) (1956) discarded 1970s-80s
OSA I type FAC(M) 1963-69, discarded 1990s
Blyskawiczny experimental FAC(T) 1958, discarded 1970s
Bitny class FAC(T) (NATO Wisla) 1962, discarded 1984
Project 665 FAC(M) 1977, construction abandoned.
Tarantul class missile corvettes delivered 1983-89
Orkan class FAC(M) (Balcom 10) 1990s
-Sub-chaser Bitny 1952, experimental.
Kronstadt class sub chasers (delivered 1955-57), stricken 1969-72
Oksywie class large patrol craft (Op 201 type) 1957, stricken 1980
Gdansk Large Patrol Crafts (1959), discarded 1980s
LPC/SC (1965-72) extant 1990s
Kaper class patrol craft (SKS 40 type) built 1991
Pilica class PC/SC 1971-74/1973-83, extant
KP 100 class inland patrol boats (1953-54), stricken 1970s
Wiloska class coastal patrol craft (1970s), extant 1990s

T43 licence bult minesweepers 1955-62, stricken 1987-93
Krogulec class minesweepers 1962-67, stricken 1990s
GRP hull Goplo class minesweepers 1981-85, extant
Mamry class (improved Goplo) 1990s
Leniwka class experimental coastal mineswpeers 1984
‘TR40’ type river minesweepers 1954-56, stricken 1969-70
‘K8’ type minesweeping boats 1956-60, stricken 1986

Nomenclature

WW2 legacy ships

ORP Blyskawica, modernized 1949-50 and 1957-61, Polish flagship until the late 1960s

• -Destroyer Burza (Wicher class 1929), BU 1977
• -Destroyer Blyskawica (Grom class 1936), preserved 1976
• 3 Wilk class subs (Rys, Wilk, Zbik) BU 1952-54
• -Sep (Orzel class 1938), stricken 1969
• 4 Jakoslka class minesweepers, stricken 1970
• 9 Transferred T371 boat, stricken 1959
• 2 D3 class MTBs stricken 1959
• 11 OD-200 sub chasers, stricken 1959
• 6 misc. ships stricken 1957-1961
• 6 former German MFP landing ships, stricken 1957-1963
• 1 former Italian MS landing ship acq. 1950, BDD 4, ODD 4, stricken 1963
• 11 LCT-5 acq. 1950, stricken 1957-60
• 3 LCM-3 acq. 1950, stricken 1960s
• 4 YMS type minesweepers purchased 1948, stricken 1955-57

-6 , delivered 1954, stricken 1970

-4 transferred 1962-69, stricken 1990