Russian battlecruiser Admiral Nakhimov

Admiral Nakhimov (Russian: Адмирал Нахимов) is the third battlecruiser of the Russian Navy's Kirov class. The ship was originally commissioned into service with the Soviet Navy in the 1980s, known back then as Kalinin (Калинин), a name the ship kept until 1992. From 1997 Admiral Nakhimov is undergoing a repair and a refit to receive new and improved weaponry and is scheduled to re-enter service with the Russian Navy in around 2022.[1][2][3]

Kalinin c. 1991
History
Soviet Union → Russia
Name: Kalinin
Namesake: Soviet cruiser Kalinin (in Soviet service)
Builder: Baltiysky Naval Shipyard, Leningrad
Laid down: 17 May 1983
Launched: 25 April 1986
Commissioned: 30 December 1988
Identification: Pennant number: 180 (1988) → 064 (1989) → 085 (since 1990)
Namesake: Pavel Nakhimov (in Russian service)
Renamed: Admiral Nakhimov (since 22 April 1992)
Identification: Pennant number: 080 (1994)
Fate: In refit to be returned to service from 2022
Status: Undergoing refit
General characteristics
Class and type: Kirov-class battlecruiser
Displacement: 24,300 tons Standard, 28,000 (Full Load)
Length:
  • 252 m (827 ft)
  • 230 m (750 ft) (Waterline)
Beam: 28.5 m (94 ft)
Draft: 9.1 m (30 ft)
Propulsion:
  • 2-shaft CONAS, Nuclear propulsion with steam turbine boost
  • 100,000 kW (140,000 shp)
Speed: 32 knots (59 km/h)
Range:
  • 1,000 nautical miles (2,000 km) at 30 knots (56 km/h) (combined propulsion),
  • Essentially unlimited with nuclear power at 20 knots (37 km/h)
Complement:
  • 727
  • Aircrew: 18
  • Flag staff: 15
Sensors and
processing systems:
  • Voskhod MR-800 (Top Pair) 3D search radar on foremast
  • Fregat MR-710 (Top Steer) 3D search radar on main mast
  • 2 × Palm Frond navigation radar on foremast
  • 2 × Top Dome for SA-N-6 fire control
  • 2 × Eye Bowl for SA-N-4 fire control
  • Horse Jaw LF hull sonar
  • Horse Tail VDS (Variable Depth Sonar)
Armament:
Armour: 76 mm (3 in) plating around reactor compartment, light splinter protection
Aircraft carried: 3-5 Kamov Ka-27 "Helix" or Ka-25 "Hormone"
Aviation facilities: Below-deck hangar

Differences from lead ship

Aerial port view of the foredeck of Kalinin illustrating the differences from the lead ship of the class.
  2 CADS-N-1 point defense gun/missile system
  2 pop-up (lowered) SA-N-4 surface-to-air missile (SAM) launchers (one visible)
  20 SS-N-19 cruise missile launchers
  12 SA-N-6 surface-to-air missile (SAM) launchers
  place for 8 SA-N-9 surface-to-air missile (SAM) vertical launchers (not installed)

Kalinin was constructed differently from the lead ship of the class. On the forward part of the ship, the twin SS-N-14 ASW missile launcher was replaced with eight SA-N-9 surface-to-air missile vertical launchers (not installed). The forward 30 mm CIWS cannons were replaced by CADS-N-1. On the aft part, a single twin AK-130 130 mm gun, similar to the guns used on Slava and Sovremennyy, was used instead of two 100 mm guns. Near the flight deck, the 30 mm CIWS cannons were replaced by Kashtan CIWS and moved to the aft superstructure and replaced with eight SA-N-9 vertical launchers (not installed).

History

Kalinin was laid down on 17 May 1983 at Baltiysky Naval Shipyard, Leningrad, launched on 25 April 1986, commissioned on 30 December 1988.[4] It joined the Northern Fleet on 21 April 1989[5] though GlobalSecurity noted the cruiser was a Pacific fleet unit.[4] On 4 January 1991 she went on long voyage to the Mediterranean Sea. [6]After the end of the Cold War the cruiser was rarely deployed and by 1999 it was permanently docked in Sevmash awaiting repairs.

Admiral Nakhimov in Severomorsk in July 1994.

Reactivation

In 2006, a decision was made to modernize this ship instead of completing the construction of the submarine Belgorod. Later in 2006, she was undergoing refit at Sevmash shipyard in Severodvinsk, but was reported finished ahead of schedule and was announced to again be in service with the Northern Fleet. However, later reports state that the cruiser has been docked at Sevmash since 1999 without any activity.[7] On 30 October 2008, Russian Navy representatives of the Northern Fleet announced that the first modification on Admiral Nakhimov had been started and that the ship would re-join the Russian fleet by 2012.[8][9] In November 2010 the director of Sevmash, Nikolai Kalistratov, repeated this statement confirming that the Russian government had appropriated money for Admiral Nakhimov to be repaired in 2011 (costing over 50 billion rubles.) However he also said that the funds were insufficient and more were needed to bring the ship back to active service.[10] After finishing repairs, Admiral Nakhimov was reported as likely to join the Russian Pacific Fleet.[11]However, by 2020 it was reported that she would remain with the Northern Fleet.[12]

In December 2011 the Sevmash shipyard stated that the refit of the ship would not be finished until after 2012. According to Sevmash General-Director Andrei Dyachkov the repairs were stopped because it was senseless to continue without having determined the final variant of modernization.[13]

Work on modernizing Admiral Nakhimov was resumed in January 2014 with the vessel being projected to rejoin the Russian Navy in 2018. Admiral Nakhimov is slated to carry the P-800 Oniks supersonic anti-ship missile and a navalized variant of the S-400 (missile) SAM system, among other weapons. According to Sevmash as of 2 November 2015 work on removing the battlecruiser's old equipment had been completed, and work to install its replacement was about to be commenced.[14]

In 2018, Aleksey Rakhimov, the leader of the United Shipbuilding Corporation, stated that the end date of the reconstruction remained 2021 or 2022, but additional changes made by the Ministry of Defense had made would require an amendment to the contract or a new contract.[15] Trials are due to begin in 2020.[16] In September 2019, state news agency TASS quoted Russian deputy defense minister Alexsey Krivoruchko that "It will be the most powerful navy warship. We inspected the project, the ship is now about 50% ready. As was agreed with Sevmash shipyard, we expect to receive the ship in late 2022." as reported by Jane's.[17]

She was relaunched in August 2020 and is expected to start sea trials in about 2022.[1] [18] It's expected to receive 174 VLS tubes: 80 for anti-surface and 94 for anti-air warfare [19]

References

  1. https://www.navalnews.com/naval-news/2020/08/russian-navy-kirov-class-cruiser-admiral-nakhimov-back-in-the-water/
  2. Ремонт и модернизация тяжелого атомного ракетного крейсера «Адмирал Нахимов» идет в соответствии с графиком Archived 2017-09-29 at the Wayback Machine Russian MoD, 27 September 2017.
  3. Ремонт атомного ракетного крейсера "Адмирал Нахимов" завершат к 2021 году Archived 2017-09-29 at the Wayback Machine RIA Novosti, 27 September 2017.
  4. "Project 1144.2 Orlan Kirov class Guided Missile Cruiser (Nuclear Powered)". GlobalSecurity.org. Archived from the original on 22 February 2014. Retrieved 18 July 2015.
  5. "Атомные крейсера типа Киров" (in Russian). Archived from the original on 2016-01-17.
  6. https://wiki.wargaming.net/ru/Navy:Адмирал_Нахимов_(1986)#.D0.98.D1.81.D1.82.D0.BE.D1.80.D0.B8.D1.8F_.D1.81.D0.BB.D1.83.D0.B6.D0.B1.D1.8B
  7. "The Return of Admiral Nakhimov". Barents Observer. 21 May 2008. Archived from the original on 26 December 2010.
  8. http://www.zibb.com/article/4388497/Russias+Admiral+Nakhimov+cruiser+scheduled+to+be+back+in+service+in+2012. Retrieved January 16, 2009. Missing or empty |title= (help)
  9. Pettersen, Trude (27 September 2012). "Only one nuclear cruiser to be modernized". Barents Observer. Archived from the original on 26 March 2018. Retrieved 18 July 2015.
  10. "Russia to repair nuclear-powered missile cruiser". rusnavy.com. 11 November 2010. Archived from the original on 22 July 2015. Retrieved 18 July 2015.
  11. ВМФ России модернизирует атомный крейсер "Адмирал Нахимов". lenta.ru (in Russian). 25 March 2011. Archived from the original on 19 July 2015. Retrieved 18 July 2015.
  12. https://www.forbes.com/sites/davidaxe/2020/08/20/at-russias-rusty-northern-shipyard-a-giant-battlecruiser-emerges/#6de7fd933328
  13. "Russia to refit Admiral Nakhimov nuclear cruiser after 2012". RIA Novosti. Archived from the original on December 5, 2011. Retrieved December 4, 2011.
  14. "Готовимся принять оборудование". sevmash.ru (in Russian). 2 November 2015. Archived from the original on 25 October 2016. Retrieved 11 October 2016.
  15. "Most powerful Navy vessel now almost 20 years under reconstruction". The barents Observer. July 18, 2018. Archived from the original on October 31, 2018. Retrieved October 10, 2018.
  16. https://twitter.com/statuses/1086329881808429061
  17. "Russian nuclear-powered cruiser to return to fleet in 2022". Jane's 360. Retrieved 18 September 2019.
  18. "Россия получит второй атомный крейсер-гигант". Яндекс Дзен | Платформа для авторов, издателей и брендов. Retrieved 2020-04-02.
  19. Admiral Nakhimov modernization. February 2020, retrieved 2020-05-17

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