Ship Admiral Blacksmiths characteristics. Aircraft carrier "Admiral Kuznetsov. Armament tavkr "admiral kuznetsov"

The doctrine of the Russian Navy is such that it practically does not provide for the use of aircraft-carrying ships. There are many reasons for this, but one of the main ones is the huge financial costs of maintaining such vessels. During the USSR, the first steps were taken on the way of their creation, but the only ship of this class in our country is "Admiral Kuznetsov". This aircraft carrier has a rather complex and interesting history of creation and operation.

Surely not everyone knows that a total of five aircraft-carrying cruisers were built in the USSR. Where did the other four ships disappear? We will answer these questions, as well as discuss the main technical characteristics of the Admiral Kuznetsov spacecraft. This aircraft carrier began to be designed shortly before the collapse of the Soviet Union (along with other similar ships).

Basic information

The beginning of work on the project dates back to 1978. The Leningrad Design Bureau was responsible for the design activity. First, the engineers offered the military specialists project 1143, which provides for the construction of a heavy aircraft-carrying cruiser. It was based on long-standing work on the cruiser 1160 with a nuclear power plant.

There are the following projects implemented in the form of built ships or existing in the form of models and sketches:

Sketch 1160, providing for the laying of an aircraft carrier with a displacement of 80,000 tons.
Type 1153. The displacement of this aircraft carrier was supposed to be 70 00 tons, the project provided for the powerful armament of the ship (in addition to the aviation group itself). There are no ships built or laid down.
The project, on which the Ministry of Justice Industry insisted. As in the first case, the displacement was supposed to be 80,000 tons. It was envisaged that at least 70 aircraft and combat helicopters would be based on board.
Project 1143 M. It was planned that the ship will be armed with supersonic aircraft vertical takeoff Yak-41. The third aircraft carrier is type 1143 - 1143.3. The ship was bookmarked in 1975. It was put into service seven years later, but already in 1993 it was written off and cut into metal. The reason is “economic inexpediency of exploitation”.
Type 1143 A. It is similar to the ships of Project 1143M, but an increased displacement was envisaged. This is the fourth aircraft carrier built in the USSR. The bookmark was made in 1978; it officially entered the fleet in 1982. In 2004, an agreement was concluded on the lease of the ship to the Indian Navy, and its modernization was carried out to meet their needs. It entered the Indian Navy three years ago, in 2012.
Heavy aircraft carrier - project 1143.5... As you might guess, this is another modernization of type 1143. The fifth and last aircraft carrier built.

So where is Kuznetsov?

Exactly last ship and there is "Admiral Kuznetsov". This aircraft carrier, by order of the Council of Ministers, began to be developed at the end of 1978.

This was project 1143.5. The final technical design of the vessel was ready by mid-1980. It was originally assumed that the construction of the new ship would be fully completed by 1990. The laying was carried out on the stocks of the Nikolaev shipyard. But the Admiral Kuznetsov appeared not so easily. The aircraft carrier before its "birth into the world" went through many obstacles, as the terms of its construction and commissioning were constantly postponed.

Development and construction history

The engineers had already prepared the initial draft design by 1979. Almost immediately, the document was approved by the commander of the Navy, who at that time was Admiral S. Gorshkov. The following year, D. Ustinov (the head of the entire army department) signed another document, in which he approved the need for cardinal changes in project 1143.5. Because of this, the actual start of construction of the ship was almost immediately postponed to 1986-1991.

But already in April 1980 S. Gorshkov approved a new project, to which all the necessary changes had already been made. Finally, in the summer of the same year, all the parties involved in the development of the new ship recognize the development of the 1143.5 cruiser as finally completed.

But this is still not the end of the project. A snag appeared in the list of necessary aviation weapons that should have been on the ship: it had to be worked out in full compliance with the decree of the USSR Council of Ministers, which left a certain imprint on the speed of work. At the end of the year, the project of the ship 1143.5 is again subjected to correction.

Some experts at that time expressed the opinion that it would be more expedient to build a second cruiser according to project 1143.4 (1143 A), and not spend time and money on revising the blueprints for a new one. However, this idea was soon abandoned, and project 1143.4 was itself finalized to stage 1143.42.

New delays

In the early spring months of 1981, the Nikolaev shipyard received a long-awaited order for the construction of a new cruiser. But already in the fall, significant changes were again made to the long-suffering project: the ship's displacement had to be increased immediately by 10 thousand tons.

As a result modern meaning this figure is 67 thousand tons. Among other things, the designers considered it necessary to add the following innovations to the sketches:

It was necessary to install an anti-ship missile "Granit" on board the vessel.
The need to increase the aviation group at once to 50 units.
Most importantly, the planes had to be launched without the use of a catapult, by a simple springboard method. This not only reduced the cost of construction, but also significantly extended the technical life of the cruiser.

The final model of the aircraft carrier "Admiral Kuznetsov" was ready only in 1982. It was laid down in September of the same year at the Nikolaev shipyards, initially assigning the name Riga and the number (according to the factory catalog) 105. Just two months later, the ship is renamed, after which it turns into Leonid Brezhnev. Already in December, the installation of the first structural unit was in full swing. In general, it was the first cruiser in the history of Soviet shipbuilding, which consisted entirely of blocks (24 pieces).

The length of each was about 32 meters, the height was 13 meters. The weight of each element sometimes reached 1.7 thousand tons. By the way, all the superstructures of the huge ship are also made according to the block scheme. But not only this is the unique "Admiral Kuznetsov". The aircraft carrier, the characteristics of which we are describing in this article, under normal operation of the supply plants could be built in three to four years, which is an absolute record for ships of this class.

Alas, the unhurried work of the factories slowed down its entry into the Soviet Navy several times.

Installation of onboard systems

The order for all power and power plants was made for 1983-1984. The factories failed: they deviated greatly from the schedule, as a result of which the hull had to be partially disassembled for the installation of engines and turbines and in some areas the upper deck had to be removed. The French spy satellite first captured the ship in 1984. At that time, its readiness was already at least 20%.

The cruiser was lowered from the stocks at the end of 1985. The weight of the hull and the systems installed at that time did not exceed 32 thousand tons. Experts assessed the aircraft carrier's readiness at 38.5%.

The following year, the changes again affected the "Admiral Kuznetsov" (aircraft carrier). The designer of the 1143.5 project has changed, it was P. Sokolov. By mid-1987, the ship was renamed for the third time. This time it is TAKR "Tbilisi". The readiness was close to 57%. By that time, the cruiser could be about 71% completed, but due to equipment suppliers, the project was repeatedly roughly stalled. Only by the end of 1989 did the readiness begin to reach 70%.

The cost of the ship in those years was estimated at 720 million rubles, and the rise in price by 200 million was caused precisely by the delays of the suppliers. In response to this, the chief designer was again changed, who this time was L. Belov. The ship was about 80% complete. By that time, more than half of all radio-electronic equipment was installed on the ship, and most of it could only be delivered by 1989 (and delivery was planned for 1984).

First out to sea

The first exit to the sea dates back to October 20, 1989. It was officially approved and approved by all project participants. In principle, by that time the ship was finally fully ready, but the aviation group had not yet been delivered. The hike lasted a little over one month. When was the first landing on the aircraft carrier "Admiral Kuznetsov" made? It happened on November 1, 1989. The Su-27 K was the first to start testing. Immediately after landing, the MiG-29 K left the deck, with which there were no problems either.

All weapons and radio-technical systems were installed only in 1990. But all the same, the readiness of the cruiser reaches 87%. In the spring and summer of the same year, sea trials of the ship began. Finally, in October of the same year, the ship acquires its final name. Now this is the very same aircraft carrier of Russia "Admiral Kuznetsov".

During the first stage of tests alone, the cruiser covered more than 16 thousand nautical miles on its own, aircraft took off from its deck almost 500 times. Not a single landing on the aircraft carrier "Admiral Kuznetsov" ended in an emergency, which for the first time tested ships is just an excellent indicator!

The first tests were completed at the end of 1990. Until 1992 passed the final stage State acceptance (as part of the Black Sea Fleet), after which the aircraft carrier ship "Admiral Kuznetsov" is included in the Northern Fleet.

Basic information on ship construction

As we have already said, the ship consists of exactly 24 blocks, each of which weighs about 1.5 thousand tons. The hull was manufactured by welding, it has seven decks and two huge platforms at once. To lift parts of this size and mass, Soviet engineers had to use Finnish Kane cranes, each of which could lift up to 900 tons to the required height. Another feature of the ship is that its entire hull is covered with a special coating that effectively absorbs the signal of enemy radars.

By the way, about the recent modernization that the aircraft carrier Admiral Kuznetsov has undergone. The latest news suggests that this composition has been significantly improved, so that the ability of the huge ship to literally "dissolve" in the sea has become even more impressive.

Other figures

If (rather tentatively) divide the ship into average floors of a residential building, then their number will be 27. In general, there are 3857 rooms inside the cruiser, which perform a variety of functions. It is worth noting that there are 387 cabins (which are divided into four classes), 134 sailors' quarters, six huge mess rooms, fifty perfectly equipped showers for personnel. Thus, the Russian aircraft carrier "Admiral Kuznetsov" is a real floating city! Its autonomy is one and a half months.

It may seem that this is not enough. But this is until you know the number of crew and flight personnel. The personnel on board is more than 1.5 thousand people. There are 626 pilots. Just imagine the laboriousness of providing food and drink for more than two thousand people for a month and a half on the high seas! So the aircraft carrier "Admiral Kuznetsov", the size of which can really amaze the imagination, is indeed monumental.

In total, when building the ship, engineers used more than four thousand (!) Kilometers of cable, 12 thousand kilometers of pipes for circulating liquids of various purposes. The area of \u200b\u200bthe through deck is 14,000 m². It ends with a springboard, the slope of which is 14.3 degrees in its steepest part. The springboard at its highest point rises 28 meters above the water. Maximum speed movement - 32 knots. In economy mode, the ship accelerates to 16 knots.

Deck and runways

Special fairings are installed on the edges of the deck and on the forward springboard itself. Aircraft are delivered to the cruiser's runway deck using hoists, each with a lifting capacity of 40 tons. Aviation units are delivered to the stern and bow. The deck width is 67 meters. The total length of the aircraft carrier "Admiral Kuznetsov" is 304.5 meters.

The depth of the giant cruiser draft is 10.5 meters.

Directly for landing, a section of the deck with a length of 250 meters and a width of 26 meters is intended. It is located with a slope of seven degrees. To cover this area, scientists once developed a special composition "Omega", which prevents slipping and protects the deck material from extremely high temperatures. For the areas from which the Yak-41 vertical aircraft take off and land, AK-9FM heat-resistant plates are used.

The total number of launch strips is two, and they converge at the highest point of the springboard, which generally distinguishes the aircraft carrier "Admiral Kuznetsov" from other ships of a similar class. The star, located on its stem, emphasizes the majestic and formidable features of the huge cruiser.

On the left side there is a spare runway, the length of which is already 180 meters. To protect the operating personnel, deflectors are installed throughout the deck, equipped with powerful cooling systems. To ensure the safe landing of flying units, the Svetlana-2 aerofinishers are used. In case of an emergency, there is an installation (emergency barrier) with the “talking” name “Hope”. The Luna-3 telemetry and control system is responsible for aircraft landing.

Survivability service

A special protective hangar 153 meters long and 26 meters wide serves to store most of the air group. The height of this office space equals 7.2 meters. The hangar houses approximately 70% of all flight units of the ship. In addition, it also houses fire trucks and emergency tractors. Aircraft from the hangar are displayed in semi-automatic mode, on the deck they are driven by tractors. The entire hangar is divided by four special "curtains", which are mounted in order to increase fire safety.

To increase the "survivability" of the ship, its internal partitions are made according to the sandwich scheme - with alternating layers of steel and fiberglass. The yield point of the metal used for the construction of partitions is 60 kgf / mm². All tanks of tankers, premises and vehicles for the supply of ammunition are protected by a layer of armor.

"Kuznetsov" is also unique in that it (for the first time in the history of Russian shipbuilding) used combined underwater protection. Its depth is about five meters. The ship can withstand the flooding of five adjacent compartments at once, the total length of which is approximately 60 meters.

"Reports from the fronts"

By the way, where is the famous aircraft carrier "Admiral Kuznetsov" now? News reports indicate that the ship and its crew are currently in Severomorsk, returning from a long training cruise in the North Atlantic and Mediterranean. In its course, the aircraft and helicopters of the deck flight repeatedly practiced aerial combat and preventive interception of targets.

This is where the aircraft carrier "Admiral Kuznetsov" is now. It should be noted that at any time he can leave the parking lot and once again go on a long hike.

"Admiral of the Fleet of the Soviet Union Kuznetsov" - Project 11435 heavy aircraft-carrying cruiser, the only ship of this type in Russia.

Base location

Northern Fleet, Severomorsk.

Building, name

The ship (in the project was named "Soviet Union") was laid down at the Black Sea shipyard on September 1, 1982 under the name "Riga" and launched on December 4, 1985 under the name "Leonid Brezhnev". On August 11, 1987 it was renamed "Tbilisi". On October 4, 1990, it became known as "Admiral of the Soviet Union Fleet Kuznetsov". Enlisted in the Northern Fleet on January 20, 1991.

Milestones

On October 21, 1989, it was put to sea in an unfinished and understaffed state for flight design tests of onboard aircraft. On November 1, 1989, the first landings of the MiG-29K, Su-27K and Su-25UTG were made. On November 23, 1989 he returned to the plant for completion. In 1990 he went to sea for testing many times.

In the 90s, he regularly went to sea for exercises, carried out military service in the Mediterranean. From 1996 to 1998 it was under repair. In 2000 he took part in the exercises in which the Kursk submarine was killed, participated in the rescue operation.

From 2001 to 2004 it was under repair. In 2004 he took part in a month-long trip to the North Atlantic. In 2005-2007 he went to sea several times a year. On December 5, 2007, he headed a detachment of warships on a campaign to the Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea, which ended on February 3, 2008.

Until December 2008 it was under repair.

In the period from December 6, 2011 to February 16, 2012, the ship carried out a long voyage to the Mediterranean Sea as part of the provision of the naval presence of the Russian Navy ships in the oceans.

In May 2014, the ship's seventh long-distance cruise ended, which lasted almost six months.

In September 2014, the ship completed the planned restoration of technical readiness.

Tactical and technical characteristics

Speed: 29 knots
Swimming endurance: 45 days
Crew: 1960 people
Steam turbine power: 4x50000 HP
Turbine generator power: 9x1500 kW
Diesel generator power: 6x1500 kW

Dimensions

Length: 302.3 meters
Waterline length: 270 meters
Width: 72.3 meters
Width at the waterline: 35.4 meters
Draft: 9.14 meters
Standard displacement: 43,000 tons
Gross displacement: 55,000 tons
Maximum displacement: 58,600 tons

Armament

The aircraft carrier is equipped with rocket launchers (12 Granit anti-ship missiles and 60 Udav-1 missiles), Klinok anti-aircraft missile systems (192 missiles, 24 launchers) and Kashtan (256 missiles). It can carry up to 24 Ka-27 multipurpose helicopters, up to 16 Yak-41M supersonic multipurpose vertical takeoff and landing aircraft and up to 12 Su-27K carrier-based fighters.

Its architecture has acquired a more "aircraft carrier" look: a continuous flight deck (75 m wide) with a springboard, an air guard and an emergency barrier, two onboard aircraft lifts. The "island" has remained much the same. The surface structural protection was improved, the autonomy was increased, the underwater protection of the hull was installed.

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"Admiral Kuznetsov" - Project 1143.5 heavy aircraft-carrying cruiser

"Admiral of the Fleet of the Soviet Union Kuznetsov" - Project 1143.5 heavy aircraft carrying cruiser

In the spring of 1982, the first "real" aircraft carrier was laid down in Nikolaev. The aircraft carrier of project 1143.5 was laid down under the name "Riga"; November 26, 1982 renamed Leonid Brezhnev; sea \u200b\u200btrials in 1987 he passed under the name "Tbilisi"; entered service as "Admiral of the Fleet of the Soviet Union Kuznetsov." Although he retained the design number of the first aircraft carrier, Kuznetsov has little in common with him, except for the power plant. Its architecture has acquired a more "aircraft carrier" look: a continuous flight deck (75 m wide) with a springboard, an air guard and an emergency barrier, two onboard aircraft lifts. The "island" has remained much the same. The surface structural protection was improved, the autonomy was increased, the underwater protection of the hull was installed.

The PTZ system has a depth of 4.5 m and consists of three chambers: expansion, absorption (filled with fuel), filtration. Between the latter two, there is a protective bulkhead of variable thickness, made of high-strength ductile steel Ak-25. Steam TZA are similar to those installed on "Baku".
According to the project, the air group was supposed to consist of 24 carrier-based aircraft and 42 helicopters, but the staff number of machines was not reached due to lack of funds. The aircraft landing was controlled by the Luna optical system. In the bow of the aircraft carrier "Admiral Kuznetsov" there are 12 under-deck launchers for the P-700 "Granit" attack cruise missiles. Four six-rocket modules of the Kinzhal air defense missile system are placed in the bow and stern on board sponsons.

The ship's defense is provided by 8 Kortik anti-aircraft artillery systems, 6-30-mm AK-630M gun mounts, and 2 Udav anti-torpedo launchers. In parallel with the construction of the ship, there was a development of deck aircraft for it and aviation technical equipment. In Crimea, at the Novo-Fedorovka airfield, a polygon with a steel airfield in the form of a ship's deck was built, which was named "Thread". In the summer of 1982, the first takeoffs of the Su-27 and MiG-29 from a ground springboard with an angle of 8.5 degrees were made on it. A year later, they began to work out the Svetlana-2 air defense officer. On September 1, 1984, the first landing of the Su-27 with the help of an aerofinisher took place.
In 1985, aircraft of the conventional scheme began to take off from a steeper ramp (angle of 14 degrees), adopted for the aircraft carrier. 09/01/1989 test pilot Viktor Pugachev made the first landing on the deck of the aircraft carrier "Admiral Kuznetsov". On the same day, test pilot Takhtar Aubakirov took off from the ship in a MiG-29 aircraft. Before the completion of state tests of the ship, more than 300 flights were performed from it. However, combat pilots began to master the Kuznetsov deck much later.

01/20/1991 Kuznetsov entered the Northern Fleet. The declining economy of the state significantly complicated and delayed the development of the ship, the supply of its air group with serial Su-27K fighters and the training of flight crews. Only in 1993 did the aircraft intended for the aircraft carrier arrive at the Northern Fleet, and only the next year it was possible to train ten combatant ship pilots.
At the end of August 1995, they made their first landings on the aircraft carrier, and in September "Kuznetsov" took part in the exercises of the fleet, during which the practical development of its aviation weapons began.
As for the basing problem, it remained unresolved. True, a floating pier was built for Kuznetsov in Ura-Guba, but they could not build a coastal power plant and a boiler house. To ensure its life, the ship has to constantly "drive" two main boilers.

Even during the operation of "Kiev" in the North, one interesting feature... The aircraft carrier has a huge upper deck, which is actively cooled in cold weather (eight months a year). Since the heating system in the harsh conditions of the Arctic does not cope with its duties, there is continuing education condensate, causing corrosion of decks, bulkheads, cable routes, failure of devices. In addition to premature aging of the ships, low temperatures and high humidity significantly worsen the living conditions of the crew. Thus, on Kuznetsov, in the cockpits located at the ends of the ship, the temperature in winter does not rise above 10-12 degrees.

The performance characteristics of the aircraft carrier "Admiral Kuznetsov"
Displacement 55,000 (70,500) tons
Dimensions 304.5 x 38 x 10.5 m

Power of a four-shaft power plant 200,000 HP: 4 PT
Speed \u200b\u200b32 knots

Cruising range 8000 miles at 18 knots

Armament 12 launchers for anti-ship missiles "Granit", 4 air defense missile systems "Dagger", 8 missile systems "Kortik", 6-30-mm automatic rifles AK-630M, 2 RBU-12000
Air group (March 1996) 15 Su-27K fighters, 1 Su-25UTG, 11 Ka-27 helicopters, 1 Ka-31 helicopter

The beginning of design work on the creation of a cruiser of project 1143.5 - 1978. The work is being carried out by the Leningrad Design Bureau. The first option is an improved preliminary design of the heavy aircraft-carrying cruiser 1143. The design is carried out in accordance with the research work called "Order", which is a military-economic justification of the aircraft-carrying cruiser with nuclear facility project 1160.

The design was carried out on the basis of the following projects:
- preliminary design 1160 - an aircraft carrier with a displacement of 80,000 tons;

Project 1153 is a large cruiser with aircraft weapons (50 aircraft), a displacement of 70 00 tons. There are no pledged and built ships;
- design aircraft carrier, recommended by the Ministry of Justice Industry, displacement of 80,000 tons, aircraft and helicopters up to 70 units;
- Project 1143M - an aircraft carrier armed with supersonic aircraft of the Yak-41 type. This is the third aircraft carrier ship of Project 1143 - 1143.3. It was founded in 1975, adopted in 1982, decommissioned in 1993;
- project 1143A - aircraft carrier of project 1143M with increased displacement. The fourth aircraft carrier built. Laid down in 1978, adopted in 1982. Since 2004, the ship has been modernized for the Indian Navy. Adopted to the Indian Navy in 2012.
- heavy aircraft-carrying cruiser of Project 1143.5 - this is the next fifth modification of Project 1143 and the fifth aircraft-carrying cruiser built.

In October 1978, by a decree of the Council of Ministers of the USSR, the Ministry of Defense was instructed to develop a tactical and technical assignment for the project of the ship 1143.5, the Ministry of the Shipbuilding Industry to issue a draft design and technical design by 1980. The estimated start of the serial construction of Project 1143.5 ships is 1981, the end is 1990. Bookmark and construction of ships - slipway "O" of the Nikolaev shipyard.

The draft design was prepared for 1979, in the same year it was approved by the Commander-in-Chief of the Navy S. Gorshkov. A few months later, in 1980, the head of the military department D. Ustinov signed a directive of the General Staff, which spoke of the need to change project 1143.5. Now the term of readiness of the technical project was postponed to 1982, construction to 1986-91. In April 1980, the Commander-in-Chief of the Navy S. Gorshkov approved the tactical and technical assignment with the changes in the project. In the summer of 1980, all parties involved - the Ministry of the Shipbuilding Industry, the Ministry of the Aviation Industry, the Air Force and the Navy recognize the development of the project of the ship 1143.5 as fully completed.

However, changes to the project continue. The use of aircraft weapons on the project 1143.5 ship was worked out in accordance with the decree of the Council of Ministers of the USSR. At the end of 1980, the Central Research Institute of Military Shipbuilding corrects the tactical and technical assignment for the project of the ship 1143.5. At the same time, a decision was made to build a second ship of Project 1143.4 (1143A) instead of the ship of Project 1143.5. However, in the future, the project is being finalized again - technical project 1143.42. In the early spring of 1981 from the Main Directorate of the Navy the Nikolaev shipyard received a contract for the production of order 105. In the fall of 1981, changes were made to the ship's project - the displacement was increased by 10 thousand tons. Further, the following changes are made to the project:
- installation on board the ship anti-ship missiles "Granit";
- an increase in aircraft armament up to 50 units;
- springboard takeoff of aircraft without the use of a catapult;

The final technical design 1143.5 was ready by March 1982. Adopted by the Resolution of the Council of Ministers of the USSR No. 392-10 of May 7, 1982.

On September 1, 1982, the project 1143.5 ship was laid down on the modernized slipway "O" of the Nikolaev shipyard and given the name "Riga" with serial number 105. Two months later, the ship was renamed "Leonid Brezhnev". In December 1982, the installation of the 1st block of the hull structure began. By the way, this was the first ship, consisting of 24 hull blocks. Blocks hull width, 32 meters long, 13 meters high, weighing up to 1.7 thousand tons. The ship's superstructures were also installed in the form of a block.

All motor and energy systems were ordered for 1983-84. Their assembly and installation was carried out on an already partially assembled hull, which led to the opening of decks and some bulkheads and greatly slowed down the entire construction process. The first photographs of the new ship, taken from a satellite, appeared in the French press in 1984, the readiness of the aircraft carrier for this year was 20 percent.

The ship was launched from the slipway at the end of 1985, the weight of the ship did not exceed 32 thousand tons, the ship's readiness was estimated at 35.8 percent. In 1986, P. Sokolov was appointed chief designer of the 1143.5 project. In mid-1987, the ship was renamed again - now it became known as the TAKR "Tbilisi", the ship's readiness is estimated at 57 percent. There is a delay in the construction of the ship (approximately 15 percent) due to the disruption in the supply of various equipment. At the end of 1988, the readiness of the aircraft carrier is estimated at 70 percent. The estimated cost of the ship in 1989 was about 720 million rubles, of which almost 200 million are delayed in the supply of equipment and systems. In the same year, a new chief designer L. Belov, the ship's readiness is estimated at 80 percent. The ship has about 50 percent of electronic equipment and systems, most of the equipment arrived on the ship in 1989.

The first exit of the ship to the sea was made on 10/20/1989. It was officially approved by all project participants. Of ready-made solutions on the ship, the air group was ready for use. The ship's exit was completed on November 25, 1989. Tests of the air group begin on November 1, 1989 - the Su-27K was the first to land on the deck. Immediately after landing, it took off from the deck of the TAKR MiG-29K.

The ship was completed with weapons and electronic equipment by 1990, and the ship's full readiness is estimated at 87 percent. Running factory tests were carried out in the spring and summer of 1990. In October 1990, the ship changed its name for the last time, which it carries to this day - TAKR "Admiral of the Fleet of the Soviet Union Kuznetsov". During the first stage of the tests being carried out, the ship successfully passed more than 16 thousand miles, more than 450 aircraft took off from the deck of the ship. The state tests of the first aircraft carrier of project 1143.5 were completed on 12/25/1990, after which it was accepted into the Navy. Further tests of the ship took place until 1992 in the Black Sea, after which it goes into the Northern Fleet.

Project development of the ship:
- improvement of project 1143 - five options were proposed, the main nodes being worked out: a catapult, an emergency barrier, aerofinishers, KTU. Displacement up to 65,000 tons. Main armament: 12 Granit missile launchers;

Project 1143.2 is the next option for improving the ship. The main components being worked out: two catapults, an enlarged hangar, a flight deck. Displacement up to 60,000 tons. Main armament: an air group of 42 aircraft (some of which may be helicopters);
- draft version of project 1143.5 - the proposed version was worked out as far as possible docking. With a displacement of up to 65,000 tons. Armament - an air group of 52 vehicles (30 aircraft and 22 helicopters) and 12 launching missile systems "Granit";
- Project 1143.5 (Ustinova-Amelko) - changes in the ship's design to meet the requirements of the Ministry of Defense. Nodes under development: springboard, KTU or AEU projects 1143.4 / 1144. Displacement up to 55,000 tons. Main armament: 12 Granit missile launchers and an air group of 46 Yak-41 aircraft;
- Project 1143.5 (TsNIIVK) - a revised project of the Central Research Institute of Military Shipbuilding. Displacement up to 55,000 tons. Nodes under development: a reserve catapult has been added, the hull structure has been reduced, and the supply of aviation fuel has been reduced. Main armament: air group of 46 aircraft (short and vertical takeoff aircraft of the Yak-41 type).
- project 1143.42 - revised project in favor of the second ship of project 1143.4. Displacement up to 55,000 tons. Nodes being worked out: increase in deck, catapult. Main armament: an air group of 40 aircraft (there are AWACS aircraft), Basalt anti-ship missiles;
- project 1143.42 (correction of the Ministry of Defense) - a revised project by the decision of the military department. Displacement - up to 65,000 tons. Nodes under development: springboard. Main armament: 12 Granit missile launchers, an air group of 50 aircraft.

The device and design of the aircraft carrier project 1143.5
Structurally, the ship consists of 24 blocks, weighing about 1.7 thousand tons. Welded hull with 7 decks and 2 platforms. During the construction of the ship, two Finnish-made Kane cranes were used, each with a lifting capacity of 900 tons. The ship's hull is covered with a special radio-absorbing coating. If we conditionally divide the ship into floors, then their number will be 27 floors. In total, 3857 rooms for various purposes were made inside the ship, of which we note: cabins of 4 classes - 387 rooms, cockpits - 134 rooms, dining rooms - 6 rooms, showers - 50 rooms. During the construction of the ship, more than 4 thousand kilometers of cable routes, 12 thousand kilometers of pipes for various purposes were used. The ship received a through deck area of \u200b\u200bmore than 14,000 m2 with a springboard at an angle of 14.3 degrees in the bow of the ship. Profiled fairings are installed on the springboard and the edges of the deck corners. The aircraft are delivered to the take-off deck by 40-tonne lifts (starboard) to the bow and stern of the ship. The deck width is 67 meters. The section of the landing strip is 205 meters long and 26 meters wide and is located at an angle of 7 degrees. The deck surface is covered with a special anti-slip and heat-resistant coating "Omega", and vertical take-off / landing areas are covered with heat-resistant plates "AK-9FM". On the left and right sides of the launchers are two runways (takeoff run 90 meters), which converge at the upper end of the springboard. The third runway is 180 meters long (the port side is closer to the stern). Cooled deflectors are used on the deck to provide protection for support personnel and aircraft from aircraft taking off. To land the aircraft on the deck, the Svetlana-2 aerofinishers and the Nadezhda emergency barrier are used. The aircraft is landed using a short-range navigation radio system and an optical landing system "Luna-3". The closed hangar, 153 meters long, 26 meters wide and 7.2 meters high, accommodated 70 percent of the regular air group. It also stores tractors, fire trucks, a special set of tools for servicing the LAC. The hangar is equipped with a semi-automatic chain transport system for standard aircraft; transportation of the aircraft on the deck is carried out using tractors. The hangar is divided into 4 compartments with folding fireproof curtains with electromechanical control to ensure fire safety. Structural protection of the surface of the ship is of a shielded type, internal protective barriers are composite structures of the steel / fiberglass / steel type. High-strength steel was chosen as the main material (yield point 60 kgf / mm2). Aviation fuel, fuel and ammunition tanks are protected with local box armor. For the first time in the construction of domestic ships, underwater structural protection is used. The depth of the PKZ is about 5 meters. Of the 3 longitudinal partitions, the second was an armored multilayer type. Unsinkability was ensured when 5 adjacent compartments were flooded, no more than 60 meters long.

Power - boiler-turbine type, consisting of 8 new steam boilers, 4 main turbo-gear units TV-12-4, providing a total power of 200,000 hp Propellers - 4 fixed pitch propellers.

Energy - 9 turbine generators with a total capacity of 13,500 kW, 6 diesel generators with a total capacity of 9,000 kW.

Armament and equipment of aircraft carrier of project 1143.5
12 underdeck launchers of the “Granit” strike anti-ship missile are located at the very base of the springboard. The launchers are covered with armored covers flush with the deck. Jamming systems 4 PK-10 launchers and 8 PK-2M launchers with 400 rounds of ammunition ("Tertsia" fire control system).

The ship's anti-aircraft armament - 4 modules of the Kinzhal anti-aircraft missile system with 192 missiles ammunition, 8 Kortik air defense systems with 256 missiles ammunition, 48,000 shells. The modules are installed side by side, providing a circular attack on air targets.

The ship's artillery armament is three AK-630M batteries with an ammunition stock of 48,000 ammunition.

The ship's anti-torpedo armament consists of two 10-barreled RBU-12000 installations installed in the stern side by side. Ammunition 60 RSL.

Air group - project 50 aircraft. For 2010, it included 18 Su-33s, 4 Su-25Ts, 15 Ka-27s and 2 Ka-31s.

Radio-technical weapons and equipment of the ship - 58 systems and complexes, the main ones are:
- BIUS "Lumberjack";
- SOI "Tee";
- complex of long-range target designation "Coral-BN";
- multifunctional radar "Mars-Passat" with a phased array antenna;
- three-coordinate radar "Fregat-MA";
- two-coordinate radar "Podkat" for detecting low-flying air targets;
- navigation complex "Beysur";
- communication equipment "Buran-2";
- active jamming stations MP-207, MP-407, TK-D46RP;
- "Resistor" flight control radar;
- complex electronic warfare "Cantata-1143.5";
- complex of hydroacoustics "Polynom-T";
- hydroacoustics stations "Zvezda-M1", "Amulet", "Altyn";
- navigation radar stations "Nayada-M", "Vaygach-U";
- station of underwater communication "Shtil";
- space communication system "Kristall-BK";
- system combat control Aircraft "Tour-434";
- television landing system "Otvedok-Emancipation";
- guidance station "Lawn";
- "Control" auto-control system;

The antenna devices of most systems and complexes are located on the superstructure of the ship. Radio transmission and reception facilities - more than 50 units. These are 80 paths for receiving and transmitting information and data, most of which can work simultaneously.

The auxiliary equipment has more than 170 items and consists of 450 individual units.

The ship's life-saving equipment is a command boat of project 1404, two boats of project 1402-B, two 6-oar yalas (project YaL-P6), 240 PSN-10M (life rafts in containers).

The main characteristics of the aircraft carrier "Admiral of the Fleet of the Soviet Union Kuznetsov":
- length - 304.5 meters;
- width of waterline / deck - 38/72 meters;
- draft - 10.5 meters;
- the height of the springboard above the water - 28 meters;
- displacement standard / full / max - up to 46000/59000/67000 tons;
- speed economy / max - 18/32 knots;
- range of economy / max travel - 8000/3800 miles;
- autonomy - 1.5 months;
- the personnel of the ship crew / flight personnel - 1533/626 people.

This year TAKR "Admiral of the Fleet of the Soviet Union Kuznetsov":
- January 8 - entered the Syrian port of Tartus with an official friendly visit as part of the aircraft carrier group of the Russian Navy;

February 16 - completed a cruise across the Mediterranean Sea as part of a shipborne aircraft carrier group of the Russian Navy and returns to the Severomorsk home base;
- 2012-17 - modernization of the ship should begin, the work will be carried out by the production association "Sevmash".

Information sources:
http://militaryrussia.ru/blog/topic-5.html
http://flot2017.com/item/opinions/55248
http://www.atrinaflot.narod.ru/2_mainclassships/01_takr_11435/0_11435_1.htm
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v\u003d163tmz19FQI

The Russian fleet includes the only aircraft carrier, Admiral Kuznetsov. He is unique in his class, but not alone in anything else. Assessments of the qualities and usefulness of most Russian military equipment are often ambiguous. “Kuznetsov” did not escape this either. Someone claims that he "laughs at NATO ships", pointing to its powerful weapons. Someone considers the cruiser "a shame of the Russian fleet", referring to the long periods of being under repair.

To date, the ship managed to fight and was awarded the Order of Ushakov, so they were clearly in a hurry to declare his "shame".

Brief history of creation

Aircraft carriers first appeared during the First World War. They had no influence on its course, but almost all sea powers became interested in them. And by the beginning of World War II, most of the warring states had aircraft carriers.

The experience of using aircraft carriers has shown that the star of battleships has entered, and henceforth it is the “floating airfields” that are the strongest warships... If at the beginning of the 20th century every maritime state tried to get hold of at least one battleship, then by the middle of the century aircraft carriers became the subject of desire.

Things were different in the Soviet Union. Before the Great Patriotic War not a single aircraft carrier was even laid down. After her, an outstanding naval commander, Admiral of the Fleet N.G. Kuznetsov.

However, his personal conflict with Marshal Zhukov, which led to the admiral's disgrace, and the peculiar position of the party leadership, who proclaimed the aircraft carriers "the weapon of aggressors", buried this idea.

The only aircraft-carrying ships of the Soviet fleet were Project 1123 anti-submarine helicopter carriers. Their successors, the Project 1143 ships, were originally also considered anti-submarine ones, but later they were reclassified as “aircraft-carrying cruisers”. The development of these ships became "Admiral Kuznetsov".

The project 1143.5 ship became the development of the Kiev aircraft-carrying cruisers. If the project 1143 aircraft weapons were rather auxiliary, the new cruiser had to carry not only anti-submarine aircraft, but also "real" fighters and attack aircraft.

For this purpose, for the first time in the USSR, deck-based horizontal take-off aircraft with a short take-off run before lift-off were designed.

The cruiser was laid down in Nikolaev, in early September 1982. The ship was laid under the name "Riga", but in November it was renamed in honor of the late Leonid Brezhnev. With the name of the general secretary, the aircraft carrier survived until 1987, and for the first tests (not yet fully completed) came out under the name “Tbilisi”.

The first aircraft landed on the deck of the cruiser in November 1989, with the Su-27K (aka Su-33) piloted by the famous test pilot Viktor Pugachev. After successful tests of the aircraft, the ship returned to Nikolaev. And at the end of 1990 the series of renaming finally ended. The cruiser was named after Fleet Admiral N.G. Kuznetsov, unfortunately, did not live to see the first full-fledged aircraft carrier in the Navy.

Description of the ship

A feature of the Kuznetsov's design was the absence of steam catapults on the take-off deck - they were replaced with a springboard. This solution saved weight and useful space, positively influenced the survivability. But this does not make it possible to use the entire flight deck for launch, and aircraft with insufficiently powerful engines simply cannot take off from the springboard.

This led to the emergence of a serious weakness of the aircraft carrier - there were no specialized reconnaissance aircraft with a long range in the air group. Later, the problem was solved by installing "electronic reconnaissance containers" on carrier-based fighters. However, they still depend on control from the ship, and containers with various equipment are placed not on one fighter, but on a group of three.

The ship was powered by eight boilers and four steam turbines. There is nothing unusual in such a system, but at one time it served as a reason for criticism of the ship. The smoke from the chimney of the only Russian aircraft carrier observed by the journalists was regarded as a sign of the poor condition of “Admiral Kuznetsov”.

And the point is just that the cruiser's boilers run on heavy fuel oil. And when the ship is parked, the engines operate in such a mode in which carbon deposits are deposited in the pipe.

Of course, fuel oil boilers do not provide unlimited cruising range like nuclear reactors, but they are simpler and much cheaper to maintain. And the fuel-filled compartments are part of the anti-torpedo protection system.

When the aircraft carrier was being developed, it was designed with resistance to nearby explosions of nuclear weapons (with a capacity of up to thirty kilotons). It was expected that the flight deck in any case, due to radioactive contamination, would become unusable, and enemy ships would have to be hit with Granit missiles.

Torpedo protection consists of many bulkheads and fuel oil compartments, alternating with empty ones. It is designed to be protected against explosions with a yield equivalent to 400 kg of TNT.

In order for the aircraft carrier to attack enemy ships without lifting planes into the air and without resorting to the services of escort vessels, it was armed with long-range heavy missiles P-700 "Granit".

Rockets have never been used for their intended purpose. It seemed likely that Granites would be modified to attack ground targets, but judging by the fact that the launchers have now been dismantled, it will not be carried out.

The air defense of the cruiser is provided by the Kortik rocket and gun mounts and the 30 mm AK-630 six-barreled automatic cannon. To protect against enemy torpedoes and submarines, the boa rocket launcher is used.

Initially, the air group of "Admiral Kuznetsov" was to be made up of deck modifications, a light MiG-29 and a Su-25 attack aircraft.

In fact, during the 90s, only "dryers" were used, with the Su-25 only in a training version.

MiG-29K fighters began to be supplied only in 2015, and it is expected that they will replace most of the Su-33s. The remaining "drying" is supposed to be used as attack aircraft, increasing their bomb load. Most of the aircraft carrier's helicopters are Ka-27PL anti-submarine helicopters, with the Ka-52K assault being a recent addition.

Interesting facts and specifications

The unique class of the ship - "aircraft-carrying cruiser" gave him the legal opportunity, being in fact a full-fledged aircraft carrier, to operate freely in the Black Sea (the Montreux convention prohibits aircraft carriers from passing through the Bosphorus).

If in the course of modernization the strike missile weapon is lost by the Kuznetsov, he may lose the opportunity. But this is hardly critical, since the Black Sea region does not really need aircraft carriers.

Somewhat different in design, in the 90s it went to Ukraine and was not completed. It was then sold to China, ostensibly to be converted into a floating hotel. As a result, since 2012 under the name "Liaoning" he serves in the PLA Navy.

The table shows the data of the cruiser "Admiral Kuznetsov", the American aircraft carrier "Nimitz", as a typical representative of the "supercarriers" of the USA, the French "Charles de Gaulle" of recent construction, and the newest British ship "Queen Elizabeth".

	TAKR "Admiral Kuznetsov"	USS Nimitz (CVN-69)	Charles de Gaulle (R91)	Hms queen elizabeth
Length, m	305	332,9	261,5	284
Flight deck width, m	70	76,8	64,36	73
Full displacement, t	55000	106300	42000	65000
Travel speed, knots	29	30	27	25
Sailing range	8000 miles at 18 knots	Unlimited	Unlimited	10,000 miles at 15 knots
Armament	12 x Granit anti-ship missiles, 24 x Dagger launcher, 8 Kortik air defense missile system, 6 x AK-630, 2 x Udav RBU	2 x PU SAM Sea Sparrow, 2 x PU SAM RAM, 2 x AU Phalanx, 2 x 25mm guns, 10 x 12.7mm machine guns	4 x Aster SAM, 2 x Mistral SAM, 8 x 20mm guns	No data
Air group	28 aircraft, 14 helicopters	90 airplanes and helicopters	up to 40 planes and helicopters	up to 40 planes and helicopters
Crew, people	1960	over 5000	1950	up to 1600

Indeed, "Kuznetsov" is inferior to American heavy aircraft carriers in terms of the power of the air group and the range. But does this deserve devastating criticism - after all, modern European aircraft carriers in terms of their qualities (and sizes) are close to Kuznetsov. It is possible that it is not advisable to place powerful missile weapons on an aircraft carrier. But the initial design of the last British aircraft carrier does not even provide for defensive weapons, and whether it will be installed later is still unknown. It's hard to consider this an advantage.

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