Deep modernization of the Admiral Nakhimov heavy nuclear-powered missile cruiser is a logical decision for Russia in the current state of the Russian Navy, says Vasily Kashin, senior researcher at the HSE Center for Comprehensive and International Studies, military expert.

It was decided to modernize "Admiral Nakhimov"

It is noteworthy that the head of the United Shipbuilding Corporation Alexey Rakhmanov yesterday announced that the deep modernization of the cruiser "Admiral Nakhimov" should be fully completed in 2021.

According to Rakhmanov, the amount of new weapons that will be installed on this warship will unpleasantly surprise any possible adversary, since this missile cruiser will be armed to the teeth.

At the same time, according to Rakhanov, it is not yet clear whether the Peter the Great missile cruiser, which is the flagship of the Northern Fleet, will be put on the same repair. The fact is that total cost work on the "Admiral Nakhimov" is so large that it is comparable to the construction of a new ship of this class.

Note that "Admiral Nakhimov" and "Peter the Great" are "classmates" in the Soviet project of heavy nuclear missile cruisers 1144 "Orlan".

Despite the fact that only four such ships were built as a result, this project was implemented for more than twenty years. The first ship of the series, Kirov, was laid down in 1973, and the last, Peter the Great, has been in service since 1998.

Project 1144 turned out to be controversial for the Russian Navy

In total, five ships were planned under project 1144, and four were built - Kirov, Admiral Lazarev, Admiral Nakhimov and Peter the Great. The fifth, which had the project name "Admiral Kuznetsov", did not reach the implementation stage, and its construction was canceled in 1990.

In practice, project 1144 turned out to be extremely complex and extremely expensive even for the Soviet military-industrial complex, which is why these ships can only be called serial ships conditionally. Naturally, these military vessels have a similar hull, weapons systems, and also a power plant, but, in general, the Kirov differs from the Peter the Great so much that in practice they, in essence, are warships of completely different generations.

For example, "Kirov", due to a serious problem with the power plant, has not gone to sea since 1990 and today is "waiting for disposal." The fate of "Admiral Lazarev, who has been incapacitated for twenty years, has not yet been decided, but, apparently, he will follow the path of" Kirov ".

"Admiral Nakhimov" has also been on the sludge since 1999, but the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation nevertheless decided to restore it, and as for "Peter the Great", it has not yet passed overhaul, and this, in any case, will need to be done in the coming years.

In general, the 1144 project, despite the fact that it is still the line of the most powerful attack ships in the world, in practice turned out to be super-expensive and extremely difficult to operate for the Russian Navy.

Russia has no choice in modernizing the Admiral Nakhimov

Senior Research Fellow at the HSE Center for Comprehensive and International Studies, military expert Vasily Kashin in conversation with FBA "Economy Today" confirmed that the modernization of such a ship as the Admiral Nakhimov is indeed very expensive, comparable to the construction of a new ship.

“As part of these works, there will be a complete replacement of missile weapons and electronic equipment, as well as all related technical equipment of this vessel,” Kashin states.

According to Vasily Borisovich, in total this entails costs comparable to the construction of a new vessel of a similar class, but in practice all this is conditional, since we have not been building first-rank surface ships since Soviet times and therefore depend on old construction projects.

“In addition, within the framework of such modernization, the hull will remain, as well as the nuclear power plant which also cost a lot. In addition, today we will not be able to build a new ship from scratch in those terms and for a similar amount, since this would require expensive R&D, and this is a very serious additional funding and a lot of time, ”concludes Kashin.

All this testifies to the fact that the RF Ministry of Defense had no other choice but to make a decision on such work, for the reason that today we simply do not have another way of manning such warships.

“The construction of new ships required not only huge costs for the preparation of the project, but also funds for restoring certain production and competencies,” sums up Kashin.

As the expert notes, the restoration of the production chain after a break of more than twenty years is a very expensive and complicated matter, so it cannot be said that as part of the modernization of this cruiser, we preferred this option to the construction of new ships. It's not like that, so this decision The Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation is a forced step that we need to complete the domestic fleet.

“We never started building new ships of the first rank in the entire post-Soviet period, so they average age very large. At the same time, our growing foreign policy activity relies on such vessels - in particular, these are joint exercises with other countries, as well as the Russian military presence off the coast of the Horn of Africa and Syria, as a result of which this decision to modernize is logical,” Kashin states.

Accordingly, we will have to support the old Soviet ships of the first rank - whether we like it or not, and the modernization work within the framework of the 1155 project also correlates with the Admiral Nakhimov.

“Here we have no other choice, and all this work is a reserve for promising ships of this class, which will still be implemented in our country. Corps there will, of course, be different, but the weapons of radio electronics will be of the same class, ”concludes Kashin.

Admiral Nakhimov nuclear cruiser modernization 2019 - the latest news about what has already been done and will be done on the famous ship of the Russian Navy, as well as when it will finally go on a campaign. The name of Nakhimov is somehow unfortunate - in 1986, under this name, a steamship sank, in the crash of which more than 400 people died, and the missile cruiser, which was called the "killer of American aircraft carriers," did not last even 10 years. Launched in 1986, the nuclear cruiser "Admiral Nakhimov" already in 1997 embarked on modernization, in which it is to this day. For 20 years, the ship has been in the dock of Severodvinsk at the Sevmash enterprise, and 2 years ago, the process of dismantling old equipment was underway.

It should be noted that under the USSR the cruiser was built in just 3 years. Until 2013, almost no work was carried out on the ship, then dismantling took place, and in the last year, hull work, welding of the deck and foundations have been actively carried out. The hull of the cruiser was also primed, and the internal redevelopment of the ship was going on in parallel.

Why is the modernization of Admiral Nakhimov taking so long? It's all about the lack of adequate funding, in addition, there is a significant shortage of qualified personnel. Soviet specialists have already retired, and among the young it is not so easy to find even an intelligent welder.

What will be installed on the cruiser?

The power plant on the nuclear cruiser "Admiral Nakhimov" will not be upgraded, it will only be refueled with fresh nuclear fuel, which will allow the ship to sail without refueling for several years.

For the rest, weapons, navigation systems, communications, electronics, emergency, loading and auxiliary equipment will be replaced.

The list of modernization works, systems and cost are shown in the table.

The total cost of modernization of "Admiral Nakhimov" will be about 10 billion rubles.

System	Description	Cost in rubles
	Cruiser hardware control system	500 million
RESU 5P-10 "Puma"	Artillery control system	40 million
UKSUR ZR-14N-11442M	Fire control system	120 million
	General control system	450 million
	loading system	88 million
MREK 5P-20K	Electronic target detection complex	60 million rubles
	Complex for processing radio-electronic information	71 million
MP-650 "Boletus"	Shipborne electronic station model 1982	144 million
NRS MR-232−3 and MR-231	Navigation systems	30 million
	emergency system	4 million
Minotaur ISPN-M.1	Towed sonar system
	System against sabotage	15 million
POA-RG ARGA-M		10 million
Armament
	Launcher for missiles "Caliber", "Onyx", "Brahmos", "Zircon".	1.2 billion
	Automatic system air defense command	80 million
ZM-48 "Fort-M"	Anti-aircraft missile system S-300 model 1984 with a range of 150 km
	Anti-aircraft missile system of the 1970s model	280 million
	Anti-aircraft missile system "Pantsir-M" model 1994 short range.	80 million
	Control module	75.2 million
MTPK Package	Anti-submarine complex to repel torpedo attacks and suppress submarines.	203 million rubles

This is not a complete list of modernization of the Admiral Nakhimov nuclear missile cruiser; additional equipment has thousands of items.

Considering that most of the modernized weapons were developed back in the USSR (although they have been finalized today), some experts are of the opinion that after the launch of the updated Nakhimov, it is immediately time to modernize it again.

When will the upgrade be completed?

According to preliminary data, the modernization of Admiral Nakhimov will be completed by 2020. However, according to other information, the cruiser will be released for navigation as early as 2019, when a similar ship, Peter the Great, will go to the dock for repairs.

Many associate the restoration of the cruiser with the revival of the Russian Navy, however, the country has not been able to return to the USSR indicators in terms of the number of cruisers and nuclear submarines. Moreover, ships of this class could not afford even a fairly stable (in the 70s-80s) economy of the country of the Soviets.

Nevertheless, the modernization of the Admiral Nakhimov is a serious step towards strengthening Russia's positions in the maritime space, although it does not pose a particular threat to potential adversaries (if they include the block of NATO countries), since they have ten times more ships of this type.

Modernization of the cruiser project "Orlan"

This year on heavy nuclear missile cruiser "Admiral Nakhimov" project 11442M "Orlan", which is undergoing repair and modernization at Sevmash, a new front of work will be opened - the delivery of large-sized equipment will begin.

In addition, in 2017 on the cruiser will begin installation of systems and pipelines. Now Sevmash shipbuilders are busy installing hull saturation, preparations are underway for electrical work. When repairing a ship, it is used innovative methodology work related to 3D modeling. Combining numerous ship equipment in one space in real conditions and checking their relative position in the model helps to make the work more efficient.

As noted by Vladimir Pavlov, the responsible deliverer, the experimental work that was carried out by the pipe preparation shop in some areas of the ship showed good results. At new system production time should be significantly reduced.

The nuclear submarine "Prince Pozharsky" was laid down >>

This ship, which began service in 1988, was sent for repairs in the late nineties and has not yet returned to service. Long years the downtime affected the condition of the ship, in addition, the armament and onboard equipment were already outdated and must be replaced for the further operation of the ship. For these reasons, the Russian Ministry of Defense ordered the repair and upgrade of the missile cruiser. Of the four ships of this project in the Navy, only the flagship of the Northern Fleet, Peter the Great. Two "Orlan" mothballed: "Admiral Lazarev" in the Pacific Fleet, "Admiral Ushakov" in the North.

Video for your attention(from 5 min 35 sec) grandiose construction of the new flagship of the Russian fleet - the nuclear cruiser "Admiral Nakhimov", the former "Kalinin". After the repair is completed, it will be the most modern and powerful warship equipped with unique radio electronics and the latest weapons.

The main goal of modernization is to give the combat unit of the Northern Fleet the combat effectiveness required by modern realities. This requires not only the complete replacement of obsolete equipment and weapons systems, but also the provision of the possibility of further modernization.

Of the most labor-intensive tasks assigned to Sevmash shipbuilders, the first place is the replacement of inclined silo launchers designed for 3M45 missiles with universal vertical launch complexes UKSK 3S14. It is possible that they will not refuse the inclined scheme (many details of the project are kept secret), but the launch will no longer be carried out from flooded positions (the need for this was dictated by the "submarine" origin of the obsolete 3M45).

The construction of a series of submarines for the Black Sea Fleet of the Russian Navy has been completed >>

as new strike weapons missile systems of 2 types can be considered. The cruiser "Admiral Nakhimov", depending on the wishes of the military, can be equipped with the P-800 "Onyx" or "Caliber" complex. It should be noted that when using Onyx missiles, the ship's ammunition will remain the same - only 20 missiles of this type can be placed in the dimensions of the existing launchers. When using the "Caliber" system, the total ammunition load of the cruiser can be many times larger. According to some reports, launchers for 80 missiles for various purposes can be installed on the Project 11442M cruiser. Such a large number of missiles in the arsenal of "Admiral Nakhimov" is dictated by the way they are used - the "wolf pack". It is almost impossible to repel such a group attack.

The cruiser "Admiral Nakhimov" will presumably be armed with the "Packet-NK" complexes for combating submarines (it is possible that the well-proven and not outdated "Vodopad-NK" will remain in the armaments). Rocket bombers RBU-6000 will replace the Udavy-1, capable of providing reliable protection against torpedo attacks.

Tests of the nuclear submarine "Podmoskovye" >>

The main anti-aircraft missile system of the Fort ship will also be replaced. Since its inception, the S-300 land systems have gone through several stages of modernization. For example, the latest modification of the S-300PMU is on the cruiser "Peter the Great". However, most likely, Admiral Nakhimov will receive a much more advanced S-400 Triumph system.

A feature of the "Triumph" is a more advanced radar that allows you to detect targets at a distance of up to 400 km. In a more powerful computer, capable of determining the nature of emerging threats much faster and hitting the most dangerous targets. The complex's radar provides simultaneous tracking of up to 100 targets and accurate tracking of up to 6. It simultaneously fires at 36 targets with up to 72 missiles aimed at them.

Another feature of the S-400 is that the system can hit different types of targets with different missiles. For example, with one missile, aerodynamic targets are destroyed at a distance of up to 400 km, while the other is capable of shooting down an object even at a height of 5 meters. In addition, it is the world's first anti-aircraft missile system capable of shooting down nuclear warheads, which is why it is considered the main element of Russia's non-strategic missile defense system.

The near air defense zone of the ship will most likely be reinforced by a naval analogue of the Pantsir land-based anti-aircraft missile system. In any case, in the Tula Design Bureau, where the system was created, they repeatedly spoke about the possibility of its inclusion in the ship's armament.

It is planned that the repair and deep modernization of the heavy nuclear missile cruiser (TARKR) "Admiral Nakhimov" will be completed by 2021.After 25 years of inactivity at the quay wall of the main base of the Northern Fleet in Severomorsk, as a floating headquarters for a squadron of surface ships, the cruiser will again become the most powerful combat unit of the fleet, capable of representing the interests of the country in the World Ocean.

TARKR "Admiral Nakhimov" project 1144 "Orlan" until 1992 had the name "Kalinin". The cruiser was laid down on May 17, 1983 at the Baltic Shipyard. April 25, 1986 launched. December 30, 1988 replenished the combat strength of the USSR Navy, April 22, 1992 was renamed Admiral Nakhimov.

Articles that you may be interested in:

The heavy nuclear missile cruiser Admiral Nakhimov (tail number 080 since 1994) is the second in a series of Project 11442 ships built at the Baltic Shipyard. Since 1999, it has been under modernization. Currently, the TARKR of this project is in service.

The main purpose is the destruction of enemy aircraft carrier groups.

Designer - Northern Design Bureau.

TARK "Admiral Nakhimov" was laid down at the Baltic Shipyard under the name "Kalinin" (building number 802) on May 17, 1983. Launched on April 25, 1986. Commissioned December 30, 1988. Became part of the Northern Fleet. Location - Severomorsk. April 22, 1992 was renamed "Admiral Nakhimov".

Had the following tail numbers: 180 (1988), 064 (1989), 085 (1990), 080 (1994).

Main characteristics: Standard displacement 24300 tons, total displacement 26190 tons. Length 251 meters, width 28.5 meters, draft 9.1 meters.

Engines: 2 boilers, nuclear reactor.

Power: 140,000 hp with. (103 MW).

Travel speed 32 knots, 17 knots on boilers. The cruising range is not limited on the reactor, 1000 days on the boilers at 17 knots. Autonomy of navigation is 60 days. The crew of 727 people, including 97 officers.

Armament:

Artillery: 1 × 2 AK-130.

Anti-aircraft artillery: 6 ZRAK "Dagger".

Missile armament: 20 P-700 Granit anti-ship missiles, 12 × 8 S-300F Fort air defense systems (96 missiles), 2 × 2 Osa-M air defense missile launchers (40 missiles).

Anti-submarine weapons: 1 × 10 RBU-12000, 2 × 6 RBU-1000.

Mine-torpedo armament: 10 × 533-mm TA (20 torpedoes or PLUR "Waterfall").

Aviation group: 3 Ka-27 PL.

In July 1997 he made the last trip to the place of repair.

On August 14, 1999, it was put for repair and modernization at the Sevmash enterprise in Severodvinsk under project 11442M. As part of the repair and modernization of the cruiser, it is planned to replace obsolete radio-electronic equipment. It is assumed that modern digital systems will be installed on the ship, which will bring the radio electronics of the cruiser to the level of the 21st century.

In 2008, the repair plan was adjusted, which made it possible to speed up the modernization: in September, the unloading of spent nuclear fuel began. Commissioning was planned for 2012.

In 2012, preparatory work and design of a new look for the ship were completed.

June 13, 2013 . According to the terms of the contract, the ship should enter the combat fleet in 2018. The cost of the signed contract for the repair and modernization of "Admiral Nakhimov" is 50 billion rubles. During the modernization, Nakhimov should receive the Caliber missile system and the Poliment / Redut air defense system. As a result, the cruiser will become multi-purpose and will be able to strike with cruise missiles not only at surface and underwater targets, but also at coastal facilities. As Sergey Marichev, the first deputy general director of the Severodvinsk shipyard, informed, the scope of work at the TARK is comparable to the scope of work on the repair and modernization of the Vikramaditya aircraft carrier for the Indian Navy. As a result of the modernization, the Admiral Nakhimov should become the most modern nuclear cruiser in the Navy. It will be equipped with modern types of weapons. According to the press service, the next serious stage of work on the ship is docking at the hydroelectric complex. It is scheduled for 2014. In accordance with the concluded agreement, the ship should enter the combat fleet in 2018. Development technical project modernization of the cruiser will be carried out by the St. Petersburg Northern Design Bureau.

In December 2013, the ship completed the installation of technological support systems for repair work, as well as flaw detection and unloading of equipment.

On January 24, 2014, the Sevmash press service reported that. This will be the main task for 2014. The cruiser will be raised with the help of four pontoons specially made for this purpose, for transfer through the threshold of the batoport.

February 04, 2014 was . For loading the ship into the bulk pool, 2 more additional pontoons from the blocks that were used when docking the aircraft carrier Vikramaditya will also be used. According to information as of June 04, to the dock support device, where they are being finalized. TARKR will be delivered to the dock of the enterprise for repairs in the autumn of 2014. The cruiser continues to dismantle equipment, systems and mechanisms; in the summer of 2014, work will begin on welding the pontoons to the sides of the ship; docking of the cruiser is planned to be carried out within 20 days, depending on weather conditions; work is progressing according to schedule. As of July 10, the 2nd pontoon was made out of 4 planned for docking the cruiser.

October 24, 2014 Sevmash. According to a message dated November 25, on a solid basis for further repairs and deep modernization. As reported on November 27 to carry out repairs.

According to a message dated January 30, 2015, a heavy nuclear missile cruiser: gas cutting, welding and other fire hazardous types production activities. According to a message dated June 26, the Commander-in-Chief of the Russian Navy, Admiral Viktor Chirkov, will complete the modernization of the Admiral Nakhimov heavy nuclear missile cruiser in 2018. According to a message dated August 28 on the ship. At present, the heavy nuclear-powered missile cruiser has been handed over for abrasive cleaning of the premises, which is carried out by the workshop of painting and insulation works and special coatings. According to a message dated November 02, an important production stage is the dismantling of old equipment, and new equipment is being prepared for installation. According to a message dated January 28, 2016 on the cruiser, the fault detection of hull structures and the workers of the enterprise began to update them. In 2017, the supply of large equipment.

It is planned that the complete repair and modernization of the Admiral Nakhimov TARKR until 2020. Life support systems, missile and artillery weapons systems will be completely replaced on the ship, and radio equipment will be updated.

Admiral Nakhimov is the name of a heavy nuclear-powered missile cruiser that entered service with the Northern Fleet of the USSR Navy in 1988. He did not have time to be noted for any special merits, a decade later he was put in for repairs with a large-scale modernization. This process includes the application of the most modern technologies adopted for service in modern shipbuilding.

It remains under repair even now, the details, for obvious reasons, are not covered too much. It is not known whether the Admiral will become the flagship of the Russian fleet after this, but there is no doubt that it will be one of the best ships of this type.

The first "Admiral Nakhimov" - the countdown of the "unfortunate" ships

Few people know, but the current nuclear cruiser is already the seventh ship in the history of the Russian fleet, bearing the name of the famous naval commander. All his predecessors suffered a sad fate, as if some kind of fate haunts ships with this name. Sailors, a superstitious people, tend to see a mystical trace in this - supposedly, there were some ubiquitous otherworldly forces here. Such an explanation, of course, is far from scientific, but there is something inexplicable in the tragic fate of each "Nakhimov".

The first of these was the armored cruiser (frigate) "Admiral Nakhimov", launched from the stocks of the Baltic shipyard in 1885. The ship was designed by the ingenious military shipbuilder engineer-colonel Samoilov, who achieved amazing results.

Thanks to his efforts, the cruiser was the most modern and spectacular warship at the time of launching. He became the first of the courts of the Russian Imperial Navy equipped with gun turrets, deck artillery played a secondary role, and it was a thing of the past.

Length, m	101,3
Width, m	18,6
Draft, m	8,3
Displacement, tons	8473
Power, l. with. -medium - limiting	4000 7768
Maximum travel speed, knots	16,7
Armor protection, mm sides barbets felling decks	254 203 152 51-76
Main naval artillery	4x2 x 203mm 10 x 152mm
Additional armament	12 x 47mm 6 x 37mm 2 x 64mm
torpedo tubes	3 x 381 mm
Crew, man	572

The military history of the ship was not too long, the first and last war in which he took part was the Russian-Japanese. But the armored cruiser "Admiral Nakhimov" was not lucky enough to show all its fighting qualities in a serious clash. Passing the Korean Strait, the Russian squadron was attacked by the Japanese fleet, the cruiser received 30 holes and began to draw water.

Near the island of Tsushima, it was torpedoed by Japanese destroyers, having received a hole in the bow on the starboard side. On the morning of May 15 (28), 1905, when enemy ships appeared, it was flooded by the crew.

The tragic history of ships bearing the name of the famous admiral

"Admiral Nakhimov" was not the first, and far from the last of the ships of the same name, which literally pursued misfortune. Many associate these events with the name, attribute some secrets and try to find a pattern in this. But nothing of the kind can be traced in the history of all "Admirals", everything that unites them is limited only by the name.

As for the death of ships, there is nothing mystical about it, it seems natural, although not everything is so simple, some moments simply defy explanation.

The first, whose death subsequently gave grounds to speak of a fatal pattern, was the merchant steamer Admiral Nakhimov, which in 1897 made a regular voyage to Constantinople. He got into a storm near the Bosporus, and sank with a cargo of grain and the entire crew.

The next of the "unfortunate ships" was the cruiser Black Sea Fleet"Chervona Ukraine", before the October Revolution was called "Admiral Nakhimov". In November 1941, after a massive raid by enemy aircraft, while at the entrance to the Tsemess Bay, she received numerous damages, and sank a few hours later.

The only one of the Nakhimovs that did not sink, but ended its days quite peacefully, was a Soviet cruiser built shortly after the war. In 1960, it was decommissioned, and for some time it was used as a target when testing new anti-ship missiles, as a result of which it received serious damage - the bottom of the cruiser was deformed so much that it could not be repaired.

For some time, secrecy was maintained around him, as a result of which, many people had a fantasy. But again, it is difficult to draw parallels between him and the armored cruiser Admiral Nakhimov, which sank off the island of Tsushima.

But in the death of the fifth and sixth "Admirals Nakhimovs", indeed, something mysterious and unnatural can be traced. First, the scientific research vessel, which sank unexpectedly in 1973, sank like a stone in front of numerous witnesses, just minutes after it capsized.

This happened in the notorious fatal bay, literally at the very pier of Novorossiysk, and half of the crew drowned along with the ship. The most tragic was the fate of the last of the sunken ships with the name of the great naval commander. In its history there is no relationship with the armored cruiser "Admiral Nakhimov", but the crash site, strangely, but again became the Tsemes Bay.

On the last day of August 1986, the cruise ship "Admiral Nakhimov", in good visibility, collided with the bulk carrier "Petr Vasev" at Cape Doob, 13 km from the port of Novorossiysk.

At 23:20, just 8 minutes after it is not clear how the collision occurred, the ship completely disappeared under water. This was a real disaster that shocked the entire Soviet people - out of almost 1,000 passengers and crew members, 423 people died or went missing, including almost 100 children.

The last of the "Admirals": a new word in shipbuilding

Nuclear cruiser pr. 1144 Orlan "Admiral Nakhimov" (TARKr) is one of the 4 battleships of this type. It was lowered from the stocks on April 29, 1986, 4 months before the crash of the cruise ship of the same name, and two years later it entered service with the Northern Fleet. True, it was then called "Kalinin", it was renamed after the collapse of the USSR, in 1992. The track record of the new "Admiral" consists of several exits to tactical exercises with firing in the waters of the Barents and White Seas.

According to the results, the cruiser showed itself perfectly, and although in general the project 1144 was recognized as a failure, the Admiral Nakhimov was the only one of its kind that lived up to expectations.
First of all, "Admiral Nakhimov", then "Kalinin", after launching, went to the Baltic, where he underwent a 2-month test of running capabilities. The technicians were satisfied with all the indicators, after which the cruiser went to the North Sea, where more difficult conditions were created at the final stage of testing.

In total, during this time he covered more than 5,000 nautical miles, no malfunctions in the operation of the engines and the navigation system were found. The new missile cruiser was recognized as quite fit for service, and at the end of 1988 it joined the 120th Brigade, which was part of the Red Banner Northern Fleet, where it became the most powerful of its ships.

After firing practice, using the main missile system, conducted in 1989 in the water area Barents Sea, the future "Admiral Nakhimov" deservedly received the award of the Commander-in-Chief of the USSR Navy. A year later, in 1990, he again distinguished himself in firing in the waters of the White Sea, and was recognized as the best combat ship of the 7th operational squadron of the Northern Fleet.

In early 1991, the missile cruiser, already well-deserved and recognized by the command, included in the tactical group consisting of 4 ships under the command of Alexander Brazhnik, went on its first combat duty to the Mediterranean Sea.

Here the cruiser was in the center of events, at the time of the rescue of the crew from the sinking Turkish ship Sveroglu. His mission lasted six months, after which the heavy cruiser returned to Severomorsk at the end of July 1991.

"Admiral Nakhimov" in difficult years for the Russian fleet

With the collapse of the Soviet Union for the cruiser, then still bearing the name "Kalinin", as well as the entire Russian Navy, hard times came. At the very end of September, the 120th Red Banner Brigade, one of the most combat-ready in the Northern Fleet, was disbanded. From separate ships, the brigades created the 43rd missile-carrying division, and again the cruiser was more fortunate than many others who went for dismantling and disposal, he was accepted into the ranks of the newly formed tactical flotilla.

Six months later, in April 1992, the ship received its current name and became the object of close attention of foreign delegations from Finland and Italy who visited the Admiral Nakhimov in the same autumn.

In mid-autumn 1994, the nuclear-powered cruiser took part in tactical exercises as part of the strike group, the 7th operational squadron, along with the destroyers Rostoropny and Bezuderdny. Training firing was carried out with the direct participation of the commander of the 43rd missile-carrying division, Rear Admiral Lyakin, and under the leadership of Rear Admiral Dobroskochenko, who was on board the Admiral Nakhimov.

The exercises were carried out in extremely difficult conditions, which indicated their significance, especially for this they blocked the water area in an area of ​​300 km. Like 4 years earlier, the cruiser showed best result and deservedly received the award of the Commander-in-Chief of the Navy.

Once again, "Admiral Nakhimov" proved its uniqueness and viability.

Of the 11 training targets in the form of cruise missiles, moving along a low trajectory with a launch interval of 5 seconds, the heavy cruiser hit 7 of them. The missiles of the Fort and Osa-MA complexes were used for firing, 19 of which were fired within 70 seconds, only 4 warheads passed by and fell into the sea.

For comparison, the destroyers from the task force, having used up much more ammunition, shot down only 2 targets. Results shown heavy cruiser, became a turning point, and an example to follow when equipping other warships of the Russian Navy.

The Withering Power of the Carrier Killer

To date, the Russian Navy's missile cruiser remains the largest warship of its type in the world. Representatives of the NATO bloc could not fail to notice its fighting qualities, noting the striking force and power of the ship with a well-aimed and capacious characteristic, calling the cruiser an "aircraft carrier killer".

But in reality, the capabilities of "Admiral Nakhimov" are much wider than they think in the West. It is capable of equally effectively hitting both surface and underwater targets. Repel air attacks, and make long hikes, remaining virtually invisible to radar.

For comparison, we can cite the famous missile cruisers put into service with the US Navy and a number of friendly countries, such as the Ticonderoga. And also, the most powerful of the NATO ships, the now decommissioned missile cruiser Colbert. This is the closest analogue of the project 1144 Orlan, they are designed to perform the same functions:

Name	TAKR "Admiral Nakhimov"	Ticonderoga-class guided missile cruiser	French Navy cruiser Colbert
Length, m	251	172,8	180,5
Width, m	28,5	28,5	20,3
Draft, m	9,1	9,7	6,5
Displacement: - standard - full, tons	24300 26190	- 9800	9085 11100
Travel speed: - average - maximum, knots	17 32	- 32	- 33
Power, l. with.	140000	80000	87000
Travel distance, miles	With no restrictions	6000	4000
Artillery	1 x 2 AK-130	2 x 1 AU Mk 45 127 mm	2 x 1 100mm Model68
Anti-aircraft weapons	6 ZRAK "Dagger"	2 x 6 Phalanx CIWS 20mm 2 x 1 Mark-38 25mm	6 x 2 57mm modele 1951
Missile weapons	20 anti-ship missiles P-700 "Granit" SAM S-300 "Fort" PU SAM "Osa-M"	PKRP "Harpoon" UVP "Tomahawk"	1 x 2 PU SAM "Masurka"
Anti-submarine weapons	1 x 10 RBU-12000 2 x 6 RBU-1000	-	-
Aviation support	3 Ka-27	2 Bell AH-1Z Vipers:	1 helicopter
Crew, man	727	387	560

It is quite obvious that the characteristics of modern heavy and armored cruiser the nineteenth century "Admiral Nakhimov" cannot be compared. However, at the end of the last century, the command of the Northern Fleet of the Russian Navy recognized it as technically obsolete.

In terms of service life, it is much inferior to its predecessor, its combat path turned out to be unusually short, only 9 years. He never managed to reach the coveted combat duty in the open spaces of the North Atlantic strategic sector. Instead, in 1997, after visiting and blessing the patriarch, the cruiser left on her last trip to date - to the docks of the Severodvinsk repair plant.

Repair of "Admiral Nakhimov" and general modernization of obsolete systems

According to the initial plan, it was supposed to launch the modernized nuclear missile cruiser of the new generation Admiral Nakhimov by the end of this year. But the delays associated with the high cost of the planned project did not allow this to be done, it was frozen for more than a decade. From 1999 to 2012 he stood untouched at Sevmash in Severodvinsk, for 12 years, the only thing they did was unload the spent nuclear fuel.

From 2011 to 2012 work was underway to prepare the battleship for the transformation, and only in 2013, after the final conclusion of the contract with the Ministry of War, the transition to the active phase of modernization began.

For 3 years, the complete dismantling of obsolete electronics and technical equipment. In parallel with this, the repairmen were engaged in fault detection of the hull - the only thing left of the old cruiser. At the end of 2014, the thoroughly unloaded "Admiral Nakhimov" was transferred to the dock with a bulk pool, where in early 2015 the firing part of the work began.

At the end of 2015 - beginning of 2016. completed the unloading of the old equipment and fault finding work, moving on to the process of priming the updated design. At the moment, active work on installation is already underway. modern systems and technical complex.

The same cardinal changes, except for the technical part, will also affect weapons, the cruiser will be completely re-equipped. Complexes "Kortik", "Smerch" and "Fort", developed 40 years ago, are hopelessly outdated, they are ineffective compared to modern standards NATO.

Instead of the old Soviet weapons, it is planned to install 10 of the latest Kalibr and Onyx vertical missile launch systems on the Admiral Nakhimov.

Particularly noteworthy are those reaching speeds of Mach 8, and destroy even small targets at a distance of more than 1000 km. But the main features of such weapons are the complete helplessness of air defense against them.

According to the new plan announced official representatives Sevmash, the completion of the modernization is scheduled for 2021. What it will be, one can still imagine, even taking into account the meager information about it. But what awaits the seventh Admiral Nakhimov in the future, and whether it will repeat the fate of its predecessors, one can only guess about this

Video