Moscow. February 4. INTERFAX-The Admiral Kuznetsov heavy aircraft carrier and the Admiral Nakhimov heavy nuclear missile cruiser are planned to be handed over to the Russian Navy after repairs and modernization in 2022, Alexey Rakhmanov, General Director of the United Shipbuilding Corporation (USC), said in an interview with Interfax on Thursday.
"We had an unreliable contractor who let us down pretty badly, and we had to change it and speed up the work. We will try to keep the charts. To date, we have a directive deadline - the delivery of both ships in 2022, " Rakhmanov said.
When asked about the consequences of the fire on the aircraft carrier "Admiral Kuznetsov" for the timing of the completion of repairs, the head of USC said: "This incident did not cause much damage to the ship. All damaged structures and premises were subject to repair and replacement, and this will not seriously affect the timing."
Admiral Kuznetsov was laid down on the slipway of the Black Sea Shipyard in 1982. The ship can carry over 50 aircraft. During the modernization, Admiral Kuznetsov will receive a marine version of the Pantsir air defense system, new boilers, pumps, and new flight and communication systems. The ship will undergo additional repairs to the main turbines of the power plant.
On December 12, 2019, a fire broke out on the aircraft carrier Admiral Kuznetsov, which was under repair at a factory in Murmansk. According to preliminary data, the fire occurred during welding operations. It was put out for a day. As a result of the fire, two people were killed and 14 others were injured. As Rakhmanov previously told Interfax, the fire caused damage to the only Russian aircraft carrier in the amount of 500 million rubles.
"Admiral Nakhimov" after the repair will be the most modern cruiser of the Russian Navy. It will be armed with hypersonic missiles "Zircon" (a new Russian hypersonic missile, is being tested, "NPO Mashinostroeniya", the corporation " Tactical Missile Weapons") and Kalibr cruise missiles (Almaz-Antey concern).
"Admiral Nakhimov" refers to the cruisers of the project 1144 "Orlan". In total, four cruisers of this class were built for the Navy. One of them - the flagship of the Northern Fleet "Peter the Great" - is in a combat-ready state. It was reported that the modernization of the "Peter the Great" will begin after the return to the combat structure of the "Admiral Nakhimov".
