During the press conference he gave on July 11 to detail the threats to France, the chief of the armies [CEMA]General Thierry Burkhard, stressed that Russia has a “complete army model”, for which it “consecrates colossal efforts that are difficult to imagine”. And to add: “I do not see any lack of capacities. […] Overall, on paper, the Russian army has everything you need ”.
The fact remains that, even if its army model is “complete”, Russia does not have aeronaval capacities worthy of the name, unlike other great military powers. And for good reason: Moscow has never attached great importance to it, including during the Cold War. Without being able to access the Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean without risking NATO intervention, it has given priority to long-range strategic bombers, long-range missiles and underwater capacities.
However, in the years 1970/80, Soviet Russia provided with four aircraft carriers with a classic propulsion and in so-called Stobar configuration [avec un plan incliné et des brins d’arrêt]. Only Baku [ou Amiral Gorchkov ] is still in service today … but in India, under the name of Ins Vikramaditiya.
Then, two other ships of the same type were built from 1983: the Varyag, sold by Ukraine to China, which made it CNS Liaoning, and Admiral Kouznetsov, which is the only aircraft carrier of the Russian Navy.
Admitted to the service in 1995, that is to say twelve years after the start of its construction, Admiral Kouznetsov was deployed in the eastern Mediterranean in October 2016, in order to support the Russian forces engaged in Syria. During this unique operational commitment, he lost two on-board hunters, namely a MIG-29KUBR and a SU-33.
Then, at the end of this deployment, Admiral Kouznetsov set up towards Severodvinsk to be modernized. It was then a question of replacing four of its eight boilers, of equipping it with new systems [guerre électronique, communication, défense anti-aérienne] And to improve its combat system as well as its aeronautical installations. This project was to last three years.
Only eight years later and after several incidents [chute d’une grue sur le pont d’envol, incendies à bord, découverte de malfaçons, arrestation du chef de projet pour corruption, etc.]the Russian aircraft carrier has still not resumed its operational cycle, while the United Shipbuilding Corporation Lited Shipbuilding Lite [USC] had assured that he would be ready for tests from 2024.
A priori, Admiral Kouznetsov could never take over the sea again. On July 11, relying on “well-informed” sources, the Russian newspaper Izvestia revealed that the Russian navy and USC planned to put an end to the aircraft carrier modernization program, which would therefore be sent to scrap. While waiting for a decision to be made, the work has been suspended.
In fact, the Russian navy probably has no choice insofar as it no longer has a qualified crew [soit 1 500 marins] To guarantee the proper functioning of the aircraft carrier but also and above all to ensure the smooth running of air operations. In addition, since Admiral Kouznetsov has been being modernized, many skills have been lost: the oldest sailors [et donc les plus expérimentés] For the most part, have been returned to civilian life while the youngest were affected elsewhere.
It remains to be seen if Russia will replace its only aircraft carrier in the future. In recent years, a few projects have been announced … but none has materialized to date.
Anyway, two visions compete. Thus, for Admiral Sergei Avakyants, former commander of the Pacific Russian fleet, the aircraft carrier has become useless, too expensive and vulnerable. “The future belongs to robotic aircraft carriers and drones,” he said in the pages of Izvestia. Also, the cessation of repairs of Admiral Kouznetsov “would be a completely judicious decision,” he thinks.
Reserve officer and military expert, Vassili Dandykine defends an opposite line. “The fact that many countries, including India and China, are currently developing a fleet of aircraft carriers suggests that such ships are necessary,” he said. Member of the Center for Strategic Planning Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Ilya Kramnik shares this opinion.
“A modern fleet is unthinkable without the support of aviation, and the absence of aircraft carriers means that everything is based on the support of coastal aviation,” he said. Favorable to the withdrawal of Admiral Kouznetsov because it has become obsolete, Mr. Krmanik pleads in favor of the construction of a “smaller” aircraft carrier, if only for industrial considerations.
However, according to him, failing to have hunters on board the “good size” [le Su-33 étant trop imposant]Russia could turn to China to get J-35 and airwatch of the KJ600 type. Unless a naval version of the SU-75 “Checkmate” is developed by Sukhoï by then.