Aircraft carrier - a type of warship, which includes a certain amount of military aircraft, it also represents the main striking force. On board there is a runway of the required length for the take-off of aircraft, hangars, means for refueling, maintenance and flight control. Despite its large dimensions, the aircraft carrier is a highly maneuverable ship and responds quite quickly to dislocation signals. One of the representatives of such military equipment is the aircraft-carrying cruiser Admiral Kuznetsov. More on this later.
Destination
As mentioned above, aircraft carriers are types of warships that are huge in size. On board there are more than a dozen combat aircraft: fighters, attack aircraft, tanker aircraft, anti-submarine equipment, as well as rescue and combat helicopters.
Such ships are used by many countries to carry out duty services along the water borders of a state. They are also intended to assist ground forces during the invasion of enemy forces on the territory. They are used to destroy various enemy boats, as well as to destroy airborne equipment, which is located above the body of water and in the coastal zone.
An aircraft carrier must have a powerful power plant and a large supply of fuel in order to stay at a distance from the coast for a long period.
Historical path
The first steps in the construction of the above cruiser were made at the Nikolaev shipyard in 1982. He repeatedly changed the name in connection with historical events. Finally, in 1990, after lengthy sea trials, his final name appeared on board - “Admiral of the Fleet of the Soviet Union Kuznetsov”. And a year later, already a heavy aircraft-carrying cruiser was on the naval armament of Russia. This is a reliable fact.
At the beginning of construction, the armament already had aircraft carriers of Russia. Each of them performed certain functions. However, the ship "Admiral Kuznetsov" had a significant difference. That is, it has elongated deck sizes. This allowed the aircraft to make the traditional type of take-off and landing.
After the collapse of the Soviet Union, in the early 1990s, the Russian Navy was quite worried that the Ukrainian authorities could make claims to own a cruiser. Therefore, at the end of 1991 he was secretly transported to the city of Severomorsk, which was the new base for the aircraft carrier "Admiral of the Fleet of the Soviet Union Kuznetsov." Since that time, he undergoes many trials of various kinds. It also replenishes with a new combat unit - serial SU-33 fighters.
In 1995, in honor of the celebration of the 300th anniversary of the Russian fleet, the aircraft carrier-cruiser Admiral Kuznetsov set out on a campaign in the Mediterranean Sea. Having passed the Strait of Gibraltar, he stopped off the coast of Tunisia. At the same time, an American ship was also present there. This allowed us to carry out some training tests together. According to eyewitnesses, during the joint parking of two aircraft carriers, corresponding takeoffs and landings of aircraft were performed both from the Russian and American fleets. Some military personnel of the Russian Federation were even able to ride on US aircraft. The aircraft carrier cruiser "Admiral Kuznetsov" did not disappoint in the further exercises of the Northern Fleet, which were enough for the command. But not without negative aspects. Throughout the entire sea voyage, a constant failure of the power plant was observed, and there were malfunctions of other ship systems. This testified to his incomplete combat readiness. And already after a short period of time after arriving home, after a thorough repair, the cruiser Admiral Kuznetsov set off again for the next journey. Not without his participation was the operation "Kursk" in 2000
In 2004, the cruiser Admiral Kuznetsov made a trip to the North Atlantic together with nine ships of the Northern Fleet. The main purpose of the trip was to test the takeoff and landing of the new SU-25KUB fighter. This was followed by regular departures on duty (2005-2007). And in 2007, the cruiser went on another voyage to the Mediterranean Sea, where everything went well.
Of course, in addition to successful voyages, emergency situations occurred on board the aircraft carrier, which is why no super-modern combat ship in the world is insured:
- The first incident happened at the end of 2004. As a result of the next departure, a small accident occurred on board the cruiser when landing on the SU-25UTG deck. But, fortunately, everything turned out only to damage the landing gear, and the ship did not suffer significant losses.
- Also, misfortune overtook an aircraft carrier in the early fall of 2005 in the North Atlantic. Here the cruiser "Admiral Kuznetsov" suffered more significant losses. When approaching the landing of two SU-33 fighters, one could not resist and fell into the water. The pilot catapulted already at great depths. They managed to save the second apparatus with the joint efforts of the crew. They tried to destroy the sunken car, which contained secret technological developments, with the help of water bombs. However, this could not be done. The cause of the emergency was a break in the cable of the air finisher.
- The following emergency occurred in January 2009. During a stay in the Turkish port of Akzas-Karagach, a sudden fire occurred in the bow of the deck. The crew managed to cope with this situation on their own, but the sailor was killed. The aircraft carrier itself did not suffer significant damage.
To date, the ship "Admiral Kuznetsov" is one of the representatives of heavy naval artillery. Its main tasks are the defeat of goals of a certain nature that pose a threat to the state. The heavy aircraft-carrying cruiser “Admiral Kuznetsov” looks decent along with similar combat units of various countries. Can it not impress a huge twenty-story building that moves unhindered through the water element? There are 8 boilers and 4 steam turbines on board the aircraft carrier . With their help, it can accelerate to a maximum speed of 29 knots. At this pace, he overcomes up to 3800 miles, at a speed of 18 knots - 8500 miles. In order to make sure of its power, at least you can take a look at the aircraft carrier Admiral Kuznetsov, the photo of which is presented in this text.
Design features
There are many interesting things here. The Admiral Kuznetsov model has the following decks: smooth and additional take-off. These are important structural elements. In the tail part of the ship there is a take-off springboard, that is, the architecture of this ship is smooth-deck. This is an essential design feature. There is also a corner flight deck, the area of which is 14,700 m², and a developed superstructure on the starboard side. The existing springboard, which is located in the bow, has an angle of descent of 14 degrees. Its implementation is integral with the hull of the aircraft carrier, which has a height of 7 decks and two necessary platforms.
Chassis
As already mentioned, this aircraft carrier has an advanced power plant. It consists of 8 steam boilers and 4 turbines, each of which has a capacity of 50,000 liters. from. As a result of this, this system is able to accelerate a huge machine to 29 knots and maintain this speed for a long time. The specified power plant also has additional fuel containers. With the help of such a system, this heavy aircraft-carrying cruiser is able to stay on the water for a long time. The maximum range at a speed of 18 knots is approximately 8500 miles.
Armament
In this regard, the corresponding equipment is defined. The armament on the Admiral Kuznetsov ship is represented by aviation equipment and missile launchers. This is an essential fact. The first type includes all kinds of military aircraft in Russia. This includes about 28 aircraft (SU-33, MiG-27K, YAK-141 series fighters) and 24 combat helicopters.
In addition, the aircraft carrier includes a number of short, medium and long-range missile launchers. These devices at any time can either deliver a targeted strike to the enemy, or prevent a torpedo or missile strike. In all likelihood, in the near future they will be improved as a result of the complete modernization of this ship.
Electronic equipment
It is also an important feature. Radio-electronic equipment on the aircraft carrier Admiral Kuznetsov allows you to constantly have a picture of the exact location of similar equipment nearby. It includes the Lumberjack system, the Mars-Passat multifunctional device. Also included here are devices such as the Frigate-2M, which makes it possible to detect targets in three-dimensional space, and the Tackle for detecting aircraft at low altitudes. This ship also has certain communication and flight control systems. All this allows you to accurately determine the position of the enemy and deliver effective strikes, as well as have constant communication with allies.
Technical characteristics of this cruiser
The following is taken into account here:
- The main manufacturer of the aircraft carrier Admiral Kuznetsov is the Black Sea company for the construction of warships in the city of Nikolaev.
- Developer - OJSC "Nevskoye PKB".
- The maximum speed of the ship is 29-30 knots. The usual suspension is 18.
- The maximum range with optimal movement is 18,000 miles.
- Offline can work for about 45 days.
- It has a displacement of 58,500 tons.
Crew
Of course, to keep the Admiral Kuznetsov aircraft carrier afloat, a significant number of qualified crew are needed. It consists of 1960 people, 200 of them are officers. Due to the fact that the main combat power is represented by aviation equipment, there are 626 pilots on board. Of these, the command staff totals 40 people. Also on the specified ship is 3857 necessary premises. This includes 387 cabins, 50 showers and 6 dining rooms, 120 storage rooms.
Improvement
Although the aircraft-carrying cruiser Admiral Kuznetsov has been proving its full combat readiness for many years and quite effectively fulfilling its tasks, like all equipment, it requires appropriate modernization. Designers and developers of the ship are not going to stop there and in the near future they plan to improve this combat vehicle, giving it additional power and installing additional modern weapons.
First of all, modernization will affect the power plant, as this is the most problematic place and often leads to minor breakdowns. It is planned to replace the existing boiler turbine plant. In this regard, several options are being considered, that is, they intend to replace them with a gas or nuclear turbine installation. Thus, the number of breakdowns will be limited, and the additional carrying power of the ship will be added.
Arms give in to some change. In the future, the elimination of the Granit rocket launchers is possible. As a result, the area of aircraft parking spaces will increase, and, accordingly, the number of aircraft units themselves. Also, dagger missile launchers are also subject to replacement with advanced medium-range anti-aircraft devices. This is important. For near-range installations, it is planned to replace the existing ones with the Pantsir-C1 complex. It will include 4-6 anti-aircraft artillery devices. With all this, the installation of a modern system of electronic equipment is planned for the specified aircraft carrier cruiser. With its help, in the future, interaction with other warships will be tracked.
It is planned to equip the aircraft carrier with catapults as a launch system. Since no one is going to abandon the runway and jumps in the future, accordingly, they will be on the corner deck. To ensure launch using steam catapults, it is necessary to have a nuclear power plant. This is what developers are striving for. But if the ship has a gas turbine installation, the steam catapults will be replaced by electromagnetic ones. This device is not an innovation in combat shipbuilding. Many foreign aircraft carriers already have a similar system in their use. It was also tested by our developers even during the existence of the Soviet Union. Therefore, it is worth it to fit into the design of the ship "Admiral Kuznetsov".
The aircraft will include 26 MiG-29K fighters and helicopters (from 18 to 28 units). In general, the release of the updated cruiser Admiral Kuznetsov is planned for 2020. By this time, the release of a new generation of T-50 fighters is already expected, which will undoubtedly appear on board the ship.
It’s even scary to imagine the capabilities of the updated cruiser, including the existing ones!
The current state of the ship
Today, this heavy aircraft-carrying cruiser stands in defense of Russia's interests. In general, he regularly copes with the tasks. It has advanced weapons and is able to prevent almost any enemy invasion. And it was his campaign in the Mediterranean Sea and the North Atlantic that renewed the presence of the Russian navy in the World Ocean. These types of warships, such as the indicated cruiser, are in service with most countries. Therefore, Russian developers are making every effort to modernize it.
Conclusion
After reviewing the above, everyone can imagine what it represents, what functions it performs, and also what military equipment the aircraft-carrying cruiser Admiral Kuznetsov possesses. In general, this ship is definitely an impressive military unit of the army of the Russian Federation.