There is a disagreement as to whether the Russia first "true" icebreaker was "Pilot" (manufactured in Great Britain in 1862, whose ice-breaking capabilities were enhanced in Russia in 1864) or genuinely first 1898 Arctic ice-faring icebreaker "Yermak".
Classification.
In Russia, icebreakers are classified in several ways, according to different criteria:
The official classification of a particular vessel may be found in the database of the Russian Maritime Register of Shipping.
The following lists include icebreakers owned and/or operated by either governmental or commercial entities. Ships known to be currently in service are presented in bold.
Nuclear-powered icebreakers.
The following ships are nuclear-powered icebreakers;
Diesel-powered icebreakers.
The following ships are/were fitted with diesel engines for powering their propulsion;
Steam-powered icebreakers.
The following icebreakers were powered by steam;