Where is it all sailing

It is planned to allocate up to 50 billion rubles for the repair and modernization of the heavy aircraft -carcass cruiser Admiral Kuznetsov. This was reported by Interfax with reference to a source familiar with the situation.

Next week, interested departments will determine the practical filling of the accepted "road map" of the repair and modernization of the only Russian aircraft carrier, the source said.

“Despite the fact that the repair and modernization of Admiral Kuznetsov is supposed to be performed in the minimum volume, it is planned to allocate up to 50 billion rubles,” the source noted. “This is a lot or a little - obviously, a little. 50 billion rubles - this is a slightly more than 800 million dollars. Repair and modernization of the Vikramatia’s single aircraft carrier for the Indian Navy cost evaluatively 2.3 billion dollars, ”the agency’s interlocutor recalled.

The Vikramatia aircraft carrier, which was part of the Soviet and Russian fleet since 1988 under the name Admiral Gorshkov, was sold to India in 2004. Its repair and modernization were commissioned by the Indian Navy in Russia and should have been completed in 2007. However, the work dragged on, and the ship was transferred to India only in 2013.

On February 9, ADIRAL KUZNETSOV returned from a campaign to the Mediterranean Sea, where they will take part in an air operation in Syria. At the same time, two deck aircraft were lost due to accidents. As RBC calculated, Russia spent from 7.5 to 10 billion rubles on the Syrian campaign of Kuznetsov and escort ships. This amount includes food expenses, fuel, combat sorties, the cost of lost fighters and "combat" allowances. The real cost of the campaign can be greater, since the data on the use of the underwater fleet and the weapons of the group of ships during the operation were not published by the military department.

After the return of Kuznetsov, the need to send the cruiser for repairs was announced by Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Rogozin. On March 17, sources reported that the ship’s repair could take about five years and cost the state more than 20 billion rubles .

On April 22, a source in the military-industrial complex said that the repair with the modernization of Admiral Kuznetsov will cost almost 40 billion rubles , and this price has already been agreed. Work should begin in September at the 35th Shipyard in Roslyakovo near Murmansk, a source noted. They are planned to be completed in the fourth quarter of 2020.

The source said that the granite missile system will be replaced by the Caliber-NK complex. The cruiser’s air group will remain mixed, it will still include heavy Su-33 fighters and light MiG-29K/cube.

On May 13, Interfax, citing an informed source, said that during the modernization of Admiral Kuznetsov, they will not replace the missile system . "For financial reasons, the replacement of the granite missile system with another is unlikely to be carried out," the source noted. According to him, modernization will be primarily associated with the replacement of four boilers of the main energy installation. Two of them have already been manufactured at the Baltic Plant of the United Shipbuilding Corporation.

At Admiral Kuznetsov, radar and electronic weapons, an aviation navigation complex will also be modernized. “So far, there is no clarity about which enterprise the modernization will be carried out and about the time of the start of work,” the source noted.