Kuznetsov class aircraft carrier

Role

The Kuznetsov-class ships were described by their Soviet builders as tyazholiy avianesushchiy kreyser (TAKR or TAVKR) – “heavy aircraft-carrying cruiser” – intended to support and defend strategic missile-carrying submarines, surface ships, and maritime missile-carrying aircraft of the Soviet fleet. In its fleet defense role, the Admiral Kuznetsov's P-700 Granit (SS-N-19 NATO reporting name: Shipwreck) anti-ship cruise missiles, 3K95 Kinzhal (Gauntlet) surface-to-air missiles, and Su-33 (Flanker-D) aircraft are its main weapons. The fixed-wing aircraft on Kuznetsov are intended for air superiority operations to protect a deployed task force. The carrier also carries numerous helicopters for anti-submarine warfare (ASW) and search and rescue (SAR) operations.

Transiting the Turkish Straits

Kuznetsov's classification as an aircraft-carrying cruiser is very important for the purposes of international law. Under the Montreux Convention, aircraft carriers heavier than 15,000 tons may not pass through the Turkish Straits. Since Kuznetsov exceeds the displacement limit, it would have been stuck in the Black Sea if Turkey had treated it as an aircraft carrier. However, there is no tonnage restriction on capital ships operated by Black Sea Powers. Turkey allowed the Kuznetsov to pass through the Straits, and no other signatory to the Montreux Convention has objected to its designation as an aircraft cruiser.

The Chinese Navy considers its Type 001 ships to be aircraft carriers. The Chinese carriers are armed only with air defense weapons, and they are not equipped with the anti-ship missiles or anti-submarine rockets that are on Kuznetsov. China is not located on the Black Sea, so it does not need and cannot use the tonnage exception for capital ships from Black Sea Powers.

Hull and flight deck

The hull design is derived from the 1982 Kiev class, but is larger. The ships are the first Soviet carriers to be designed with a full-length flight deck. The foredeck is dedicated to aviation instead of surface weaponry, as on the Kiev-class ships.

The aircraft carriers are of a STOBAR configuration: Short Take-Off But Arrested Recovery. Short take-off is achieved by using a 12-degree ski-jump on the bow. There is also an angled deck with arrester wires, which allows aircraft to land without interfering with launching aircraft. The flight deck has a total area of 14,700 square metres (158,000 sq ft). Two aircraft elevators, on the starboard side forward and aft of the island, move aircraft between the hangar deck and the flight deck.

Air wing

In the original project specifications, the ship should be able to carry up to 33 fixed-wing aircraft and 12 helicopters .

Armament

To comply with the Montreux Convention restricting the transit of aircraft carriers through the Turkish Straits, the Kuznetsov-class ships were originally designed as aircraft cruisers. Kuznetsov carries twelve launchers for P-700 Granit (SS-N-19 Shipwreck) anti-ship surface-to-surface missiles, which also form the main armament of the Kirov-class battlecruisers. The heavy surface armament makes Kuznetsov different from other countries' aircraft carriers, which carry only defensive armament and rely on their aircraft for strike power.

For long-range air defense, Kuznetsov carries 24 vertical launchers for Tor missile system (SA-N-9 Gauntlet) surface-to-air missiles with 192 missiles. For close-range air defense, the ship carries eight Kashtan Close-in weapon system (CIWS) mounts. Each mount has two launchers for 9M311 SAMs, twin GSh-30 30mm rotary cannons, and a radar/optronic director. The ship also carries six AK-630 30mm rotary cannons in single mounts. For defense against underwater attack, the ship carries the UDAV-1 ASW rocket launcher.

Electronics

Kuznetsov has D/E band air and surface target acquisition radar (passive electronically scanned array), F band surface search radar, G/H band flight control radar, I band navigation radar, and four K band fire-control radars for the Kashtan CIWS.

The ship has hull-mounted medium- and low-frequency search and attack sonar. The ASW helicopters have surface search radar, dipping sonar, sonobuoys, and magnetic anomaly detectors.

Propulsion and performance

Admiral Kuznetsov is conventionally powered by eight gas-fired boilers and four steam turbines, each producing 50,000 hp (37 MW), driving four shafts with fixed-pitch propellers. The maximum speed is 29 knots (54 km/h; 33 mph), and her range at maximum speed is 3,800 nautical miles (7,000 km; 4,400 mi). At 18 knots (33 km/h; 21 mph), her maximum economical range is 8,500 nautical miles (15,700 km; 9,800 mi).

Reliability

Since the inauguration of Admiral Kuznetsov it has been plagued by years of technical problems. The vessel's steam turbines and turbo-pressurised boilers have been reported to be so unreliable that the carrier is accompanied by a large ocean-going tug whenever it deploys, in case it breaks down. Other problems include flaws in the water piping system, which causes it to freeze during winter. To prevent pipes bursting, the water is turned off to most of the cabins and half the latrines do not work.

Type 001 design changes

The Chinese Type 001 ships are configured as aircraft carriers, and they are not equipped with anti-ship cruise missiles. The air-defense system consists of FL-3000N surface-to-air-missiles and the Type 1130 CIWS.

Several design changes were made to the Type 001A aircraft carrier Shandong. The ship has a revised flight deck arrangement, as well as a modified island for the 3-D phased array radar.

Hull 1 – Admiral Kuznetsov

Admiral Flota Sovetskogo Soyuza Kuznetsov was designed by the Neva Design Bureau, St. Petersburg, and built at Nikolayev South Shipyard (Chernomorskoye Shipyard) in Ukraine. She was launched in 1985, commissioned in 1990, and became fully operational in 1995. The vessel was briefly sequentially named Riga, Leonid Brezhnev, and Tbilisi. During the winter of 1995–1996 Admiral Kuznetsov deployed to the Mediterranean Sea to mark the 300th anniversary of the Russian Navy. In the autumn of 2000, Admiral Kuznetsov went to sea for rescue and salvage operations for the submarine Kursk. During the winter of 2007–2008, Admiral Kuznetsov again deployed to the Mediterranean.

Although technical and financial problems have limited operations, Admiral Kuznetsov is expected to remain in service to 2025.

Hull 2 – Liaoning

The second hull of the Kuznetsov class took a much more roundabout route to active service. Known first as Riga and then Varyag, she was laid down by Nikolayev South Shipyard in 1985 and launched in 1988. Varyag had not yet been commissioned when the Soviet Union dissolved in 1991, and was left to deteriorate in the elements. In 1998, the hull was sold by Ukraine to what was apparently a Chinese travel agency for ostensible use as a floating hotel and casino. After an eventful journey under tow, she arrived in China in February 2002 and was berthed at the Dalian naval shipyard, where she was overhauled and completed as China's first aircraft carrier.

In September 2012, the ship was commissioned in the Chinese navy as Liaoning, 27 years after the ship was laid down. Liaoning was named after the province where the shipyard is located, and the Chinese ship class is Type 001. Today, she serves as a training carrier and its home port is Qingdao.

Hull 3 – Shandong

Chinese aircraft carrier Shandong is under construction to a modified design, known as Type 001A. Satellite imagery and photos have revealed some differences from the original Kuznetsov-class design, reflecting over 30 years of technological development since the first ship in the class was laid down. The ship was laid down in 2013 at the Dalian naval shipyard and is expected to embark on sea trials in 2019.