Three Polish warships of the Vietnamese Navy

Not including the 6 Polish SAR vessels soon to be built for the Vietnamese Coast Guard, the Vietnamese Navy already has 3 warships of Polish origin in its fleet.

According to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI), during the period 1979-1980, the Vietnamese Navy received three used Polnocny-B - Project 771 ships donated by the Soviet Union. These are medium-sized landing ships designed jointly by Poland and the Soviet Union, with production beginning in Poland in 1967.

The Vietnamese Polnocny-B squadron is numbered from 511 to 513. Basic specifications include a length of 73 m; beam of 9.02 m; draft of 2.3 m; full load displacement of 834 tons; and a crew of 37 (including 4 officers).

The heart of the ship is a twin-shaft Kolomna 40-D diesel engine, manufactured in the Soviet Union, with a power output of 4,400 horsepower, giving it a maximum speed of 18.4 knots (33 km/h) and a maximum range of 1,000 nautical miles.

Polnocny-B landing ship - Project 771 of the Vietnamese Navy

The Polnocny-B vessel is designed in a traditional style with a bow featuring two large, arched doors that can be opened to allow vehicles to enter or exit, and a ramp to facilitate landing on the beach.

Compared to Western landing ships, the Polnocny-B is considerably smaller and lacks a helicopter landing deck. However, it is still capable of carrying a relatively large number of tanks, armored vehicles, and marines inside its hold.

The Polnocny-B can carry 6 BMP-1 infantry fighting vehicles, or 6 BTR-60 (or BTR-80) armored personnel carriers, or 5 PT-76 light tanks, along with over 100 fully armed marines.

The Vietnamese Navy's "fleet" of 3 Polnocny-B landing ships.

The Polnocny-B's armament consists of two twin-barreled AK-230 30mm high-speed automatic cannons. In addition to its primary air defense role, it can also be used for effective fire support or suppressing surface targets.

In addition, there are two WM-18A Ogon 140 mm multiple rocket launchers with 18 rounds each, used for clearing landing zones. Finally, there are four SA-N-5 man-portable air defense missiles (the naval version of the SA-7), which can easily be upgraded to SA-N-10 (SA-16).

In the near future, the Polnocny-B ships currently in service with the Vietnamese Navy are expected to be replaced by advanced landing ships manufactured domestically by the country's defense industry, fully capable of troop deployment, site clearing, and the deployment of attack helicopters.

According to Dat Viet Newspaper