Admiral Nakhimov

1986 was a truly 'anno horribilis' for the Soviet system and society: the Tchernobyl Atomic reactor disaster, the sunk Michail Lermontov in New Zealand and the sunken Admiral Nachimov as mentioned here as well. In many ways this year of 1986, and the second year of growing glasnost(openess, transparency) and perestrojka, was the tip which doomed the system of silence and hidden news as mentioned by the author here above, correctly. Actually I think the exact name of the collision ship was PYOTR VASYOV (Пётр Васё&#1074. It was immediately renamed and later sold. I guess a look in the Lloyd's Register would reply upon that. Despite all, the NACHIMOV was a fine and nice vessel despite her high age, spotlessly clean and very nice to be on board on as a passenger.

What level of luxury or comfort compared to a western cruise ship on the mid 1980's though?

Apart from the bow damage, Pyotr Vasev ( Pyotr Vasyov ) wasn't severely damaged. The following year, the ship resumed trading under a new name, Podolsk, until 1996. Later names were: Langeron ( 1996 - 1999 ), An An ( 1999 - 2002 ), Myroessa ( 2002 - 2006 ), Orbit ( 2006 - 2010 ) and Jiajiaxin I, untill 2012, when the vessel ( built in 1981 ) was scrapped.

Both captains, Markov of Admiral Nakhimov and Tkashenko of Pyotr Vasev were sentenced to 15 years in jail, however, realeased after 6 years. As I understand it, from a Russian Google translation, Captain Markov, until his retirement, continued to serve in an educational capacity for the Black Sea Steamship Co.,the owner of Admiral Nakhimov. Captain Tkashenko had his surnamed changed. Thereafter, he served as a captain on yachts. The former captain of Pyotr Vasev, some years later, at New Foundland, suffered an accident, possibly a grounding, with a yacht he was commanding with the loss of several lives. He is burried in Tel Aviv, Israel.

Regards.

The tanker's name was PYOTR VASYOV (not VASEV). The old elegant NACHIMOV had her old class-style elegance with swimming pools and large outdoor decks and tastefully class saloons, restaurants and cabins, but she was, after all, also thoroughly renewed in her interiors at the German Warnowwerft of Warnemünde (off Rostock)in 1949-1957 after she was impressingly -more or less doomed in advanced to be a CTL- but captured and salvaged by the USSR Navy's famous salvage squadron EPRON (who also salvaged the sunken HANSA(tbr. SOVETSKIJ SOJUZ) and CORDILLERA(tbr. RUSS) and the even more famous IMPERATOR PYOTR VELIKIY built in Scotland in late 1890's with three sisterships, which after the war became the JAKUTIJA a ship which impressingly served from Imperial Russian era, through two world wars and all the USSR era (some rumours say she still existed in independant Russia from 1992 with the Russian tricolor haised on her flagpole), was sunken three times and ended her days in late 1980's as the JAKUTIJA in the North-East Russia as a floating hotel. Originally also the ADMIRAL NACHIMOV was planned for and intended for the Far-Eastern waters in the Pacific for the DVMP/FESCO - but she ended up in the TchMP/BLASCO fleet after the compulsory dry docking at Sevastopol after delivery from Warnowwerft in 1957 (as did the SOVETSKIJ SOJUZ in 1956 before going to the Pacific, from 1956 until 1957 she was rarely seen and painted black). ADMIRAL NACHIMOV made some interesting what Russians call "komandirovka" - special journeys - except the well-known transfer of Army specialists to save Cuba in 1962 from U.S. invasion, she has also been chartered to transport muslim pilgrims from Algeria to Saudi Arabia and served sometimes as hotel off the western African coast. Generally she served the traditional Odessa-Crimea-Caucasus line down to Batumi in subtropical Georgia - I can't recall she ever served the regular lines in the Med. However she now and then served the regular civilian merchant line between Odessa and La Habana on Cuba on a closed timetable and closed for non-USSR and non-Cuban citizen passengers. Often these ships on the line brought special cargo with specialists, engineers and students and researchers from both these closely allied countries. Later this line was run by the a bit larger ROSSIJA (ex. PATRIA) and the IVAN FRANKO.
The many 1986 disasters were indeed true (and needed) eye-openers for many USSR Citizens in combination with the many setbacks for the USSR Army's and the GRU and KGB's letal fights against the violently dangerous US- and British supported islamist extremists in Afghanistan against the legal Afghan government which really fought for dear life (a military operation which today can be seen much more correct than in those days) - I was student in the USSR then, and all these disasters had a psychological setback in the social and political mind and in many ways opened up for a more intensive perestrojka by the Michail Gorbatchov and his team in the Kremlin.
A maritime follow-up to the 1986 disasters was that all passenger ships older than 30 years were to be withdrawn from service, despite many were in excellent condition (like the UKRAINA, BALTIKA and some of the older MICHAIL KALININ-class, and the Black Sea and Caspian Sea based KIRGIZSTAN-class units for example). Many former Soviet Citizens often remember with good memories their summer Cruises on the NACHIMOV - she was very popular among tourists. Now and then the Intourist also took foreign cruise passsengers on her in the 1960's and 1970's.

Naucler, pictures of Pyotr Vasev / Pyotr Vasyov on the internet site, Shipspotting showing the vessel under her subsequent names, Podolsk, Orbit and Myroessa confirm, that the ship was, infact, a bulker, not a tanker. When Pyotr Vasev / Pyotr Vasyov rammed into Admiral Nakhimov she was, as well, carrying a cargo of wheat from Canada.

Available internet sources refer to the ship solely as Pyotr Vasev. However, you could possibly be right, that Pyotr Vasyov is the more correct spelling of the ship's name.

Thank you very much for your interesting narrative with the additional information.

Regards