Admiral Kuznetsov Class

[Tanz]

Russia's Admiral Kuznetsov class aircraft carriers.

 

 

There were originally 2 ships of this class Kuznetsov and Varyag. Admiral Kuznestsov was first laid down as Riga, launched as Leonid Brezhnev, embarked on sea trials as Tbilisi, and finally named Kuznetsov in the 1990's, and is part of the Northern Fleet.  This class of aircraft carrier supports strategic missile carrying submarines, surface ships and maritime missile-carrying aircraft of the Russian fleet. The ship is capable of engaging surface, subsurface and airborne targets.

Superficially similar to American carriers, the design is in fact "defensive" in support of SSBN bastions. The lack of catapults precludes launching aircraft with heavy strike loads, and the air superiority orientation of the air wing is apparent. Her air wing is small compared to US Carriers, but unlike US ships...she is thought of as a “heavy aircraft-carrying cruiser”, like the old Kiev Class. Yet, even without her air wing, she is still a very capable & potent warship.

Initially Western analysts anticipated that the ships would have a Combined Nuclear And Steam (CONAS) propulsion plant similar to the Kirov battle cruiser and the SSV-33 support/command ship. However the class was in fact conventionally propelled with oil-fired boilers.

 

She's a great looking ship but has in the past been plagued with mechanical problems.

 

Construction of the Varyag started in December 1985 at Nikolayev, and the ship was launched in November 1988. The Varyag was intended to be the second ship of the class, but in late 1991 the Defense Ministry halted financing, and construction work was halted in January 1992. In 1994 Russia declined to resume the Varyag's construction, which was 70 percent complete. The total estimated cost of the ship was about US$ 2.4 billion, and more than US $500 million was needed to complete her construction. Further complicating matters was the fact that many of the ship's equipment systems reached their planned operational life limits by the end of 1997. The government of Ukraine decided in June 1994 to scrap the vessel, after unsuccessful attempts to sell it of Russia, China or India.

 

Then in 1998, a chinese company bought the hulk. It took china a while to get the Varyag as Turkey would not let it pass through. Then finally in 2001 Turkey allowed her to go through. The story was that she was to be turned into a floating casion/hotel, but Navies knew better. The Varyag (not sure of her chinese name) has now been totally modernized and is now china's first carrier or one would say training carrier..and is undergoing sea trials.

 

Built: 1982-1990

Laid down: 22 February 1983

Launched: 5 December 1985

Commissioned: 21 January 1991

Fully operational in 1995

 

Designer: Nevskoye Planning and Design Bureau

Builder: Nikolayev South

Displacement: 43 000 standard, 55 000 t full, 58 600 t max load

Length: 300 m (984 ft) overall, 270 m (886 ft) at waterline

Beam: 73 m (240 ft) overall, 38 m (125 ft) waterline

Draft: 11 m (36 ft)

Armament:

12 × P-700 Granit SS-N-19 'Shipwreck' SSM launchers

24 x 3K95 Kinzhal SA-N-9 'Gauntlet' SAM launchers with 8 missiles each

8 x Kashtan CIWS air defense modules, each with

2 x 9M311 SA-N-11 'Grison' SAM launchers with 4 missiles each

2 × GSh-6-30 30mm rotary cannon

6 x AK-630 30mm rotary cannon, 6,000 round/min/mount, 24,000 rounds

2 x RBU-12000 UDAV-1 antisubmarine rocket launchers (60 rockets)

Aircraft (no more than a combination of 67 aircraft can be aboard at one time)

Fixed Wing:

14 × Su-33 fighters (current)

28 × MiG-29K fighters

(planned after refit)

4 × Sukhoi Su-25UTG/UBP aircraft

Rotary Wing:

4 × Kamov Ka-27LD32 helicopters

11 × Kamov Ka-27PLO helicopters

2 × Kamov Ka-27S helicopters

Propulsion: Steam turbines, 8 boilers, 4 shafts, 200,000 hp (149 MW)

2 × 50,000 hp (37 MW) turbines

8 boilers

4 fixed pitch props

9 × 1500 kW turbogenerators

6 × 1500 kW diesel generators

Range: 3850 nautical miles (7 100 km) at 32 knot (59 km/h); endurance: 45 days

Speed: 32 knots (59 km/h)

[JeeWeeJ]

Wow, that IS a good looking ship! I never knew that Russian carriers didnt have catapults, as i do see Su-33's on deck (thank you wikipedia)... Are they STOL capable or something? (i'm not really into planes)

[Tanz]

JeeWeeJ, on 29 August 2012 - 02:34 PM, said:

Wow, that IS a good looking ship! I never knew that Russian carriers didnt have catapults, as i do see Su-33's on deck (thank you wikipedia)... Are they STOL capable or something? (i'm not really into planes)

Nah..the Su-33 is not VSTOL..just your regular fighter. The Ski ramp removes the need for a catapult but at a cost..the weapon payload on the fighters.

[ReactorNo4]

The Kiev Class Carriers had Yak 36 Forgers, those are VTOL Aircraft.

I also had this as my forum signature before I made the one I have now.