WesWorld

Waders and swimmers, braving the still-chilly waters near the Baltic and Admiralty Yards at Petrograd, were rewarded by somewhat higher than usual Champagne content of the waters they were enjoying, as the twelve new destroyers of the Tashkent class were launched today. The wives of several local Duma representatives, governmental figures, and philanthropists did the honors, although several of the more delicate ladies underestimated the vigor their effort required on their first attempt. However, the second blow proved efficatious in all cases, and the twelve fine new destroyers slid down their slips to the cheers of all.

Chief of Naval Staff Admiral Flota Nikolai G. Kuznetsov was heard to remark "The Tashkent class represent the first effort to replace the pre-Novik classes of destroyer, whose insufficient speed and armament make them unsuitable for modern fleet operations. They introduce both the 130mm gun and the 53cm torpedo to the Russian destroyer force, feature increased depth-charge capacity, and will undoubtedly give good service for years to come."

Opposition party leaders pointed out however that that refits to the Bucharskiy and Sibirskiy Strelok classes would have been less expensive, and would have enabled these ships to serve for another 15 years. But a comparison of their small size, armament, range and speed to contemporary destroyers shows that this analysis merely demonstrates why the Opposition are in Opposition rather than in power.