Pitomnik
- "But, Commander, that's the Prime Minister talking. Please, stand down, we don't know what we're fighting for anymore. Sir, please, cancel engagement..."
- ― Captain of the Pitomnik[1]
The Pitomnik was a Yuktobanian Krivak-class frigate that served during the Circum-Pacific War. She was sunk by her countrymen after the Pitomnik's captain refused his fleet commander's standing orders to sink the OFS Kestrel and kill the Yuktobanian prime minister, Seryozha Viktrovich Nikanor.
History
The Pitomnik was constructed sometime before 2010; her battle record prior to the Circum-Pacific War remains unknown. However, at some point, the Pitomnik became attached to a sizable Yuktobanian naval armada stationed in the Ceres Ocean.
On December 29, 2010, at 1721hrs, the Pitomnik and its battle group encountered a small Osean fleet, which included the OFS Kestrel, and began making battle preparations. Yuktobania's prime minister, Seryozha Viktrovich Nikanor, who was aboard the Kestrel after being freed from captivity one week earlier, attempted to mollify his countrymen via the Kestrel's loudspeaker. However, the prime minister's conciliatory words were disregarded by the Yuktobanian fleet commander, who branded Nikanor a traitor for siding with the Oseans, and ordered his fleet to sink the Osean vessels along with Nikanor.[1]
In an act of brave defiance, the Pitomnik's captain protested the order and pleaded with his commander to stand down; he then redirected the Pitomnik to block the fleet's path. In response, the fleet commander ordered all "loyal" vessels to fire on the Pitomnik. At approximately 1722hrs, the Pitomnik was hit by four artillery rounds on its port and starboard sides; the resulting damage engulfed the Pitomnik in flames, sinking her within minutes. It is unknown if any crewmen survived the attack.[1]
The callous sinking of the Pitomnik compelled several other Yuktobanian warships—led by the missile destroyer Gumrak—to defect to the Kestrel's fleet and defend the prime minister. The Yuktobanian nationalist fleet consequently engaged the defectors and Oseans alike, which prompted Razgriz Squadron to launch and provide air support for the new coalition fleet.[1][2]
Gallery
The Pitomnik is hit by naval gunfire from her fleet
The burning hull of the Pitomnik, moments before she sank
Trivia
- The Pitomnik shares its name with Pitomnik Airfield, a Soviet air base used by the German Wehrmacht during the Battle of Stalingrad.
- The Pitomnik's insubordination may have been inspired by the revolt of the Russian battleship Potemkin in 1905; the two vessels also have phonetically similar names.
- The Pitomnik shares a class with the Soviet frigate Storozhevoy, a ship involved a mutiny led by its political commissar, Valery Sablin, over an ideological dispute between members of the crew (including Sablin himself) and the Soviet government, which could be another possible inspiration, but the choice of class is most likely a coincedence.
- The Russian word "pitomnik" (Питомник) translates to "[plant] nursery" in English.
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 Cutscene 24, Ace Combat 5: The Unsung War.
- ↑ Sea of Chaos, Ace Combat 5: The Unsung War.