The Russian Navy's Admiral Kuznetsov, the sole aircraft carrier in its fleet, is mired in a quagmire of operational setbacks, repair delays, and technological hindrances. This troubling trajectory is compounded by the lack of a ready crew and the outdated and environmentally unfriendly fuel it uses – Mazut. Despite its checkered history, Moscow persists with…
The Russian Navy's Admiral Kuznetsov, an aircraft carrier with guided-missile cruiser capabilities, faces operational delays amid the Ukraine conflict and sanctions.
Updated Feb 09, 2021 | 17:24 IST
The project has, reportedly, been in the pipeline since the late 2000s and the two ships were to be based on the designs of the South Korean Dokdo Class and French Mistral Class carriers. The Russian Navy s Admiral Kuznetsov aircraft carrier. | Photo Credit: Twitter
Key Highlights
The collapse of the Soviet Union saw what was once an unparalleled carrier force and a world leader in vertical takeoff technology on the back of the Yak-141 fighter reaching the final prototype stage, descend into a period of obscurity
The contract between the Russian Defence Ministry and the United Shipbuilding Corporation for the construction of the two carriers was inked in May 2020 at a cost of just $1.36 billion