Project 1144.2 Orlan
Kirov class
Guided Missile Cruiser (Nuclear Powered)

According to the concept of strategic non-nuclear deterrence, voiced by V. Chirkov on 20 December 2013, the basis of grouping SNYAS Navy, equipped with high-precision weapons long range, in the medium term, they will make up APCR of 885M, pr.949M and TARKR pr. 11442. In order to always include at least one heavy cruiser as part of the forces of constant readiness of the Federation Council and the Pacific Fleet, their total number must be at least three - two active, and one in repair.

As it appears from the materials of the 19 April 2019 tender documentation of the Rosatom state corporation that got into the media, in 2021 it is planned to recycle the Admiral Ushakov (former Kirov, factory number 800) of Project 1144 and Admiral Lazarev " (the former " Frunze " , factory number 801) of the project 11442. It is planned to allocate 400 million rubles for the disposal of the first, and 350 million rubles for the second.

Reports circulating in the West in the late 1970s that the class [known at the time as the Sovietsky Soyuz class] was intended to consist of 12 units ultimately proved incorrect. Hull numbers were not permanently assigned, and at various times the following hull numbers were seen: 028, 050, 059, 065, 080, 180, 181, 183, 190 and 750.

In December 2011 it was reported that the Russian Defense Ministry was planning to refit the Admiral Nakhimov, Admiral Lazarev and Admiral Ushakov missile cruisers by 2020 in a major boost for the Russian Navy's combat strength. The Admiral Ushakov, which has been docked at the Zvezdochka shipyard in Severodvinsk, has not been determined. Russia built four Kirov class nuclear-powered cruisers in 1974-1998. One of them, the Pyotr Veliky, is still in active service as the flagship of the Northern Fleet.

Kirov (ex-Admiral Ushakov, ex-Kirov)

At the end of 1997 only the Admiral Nakhimov remained operational.

The Admiral Ushakov, which had been inoperable since 1989-1990, was stricken in October 1998 to provide material for a refit of the other active unit of the Kirov class, the Admiral Nakhimov. However, on 14 January 1999 the Russian Duma voted the Admiral Ushakov be repaired and restored to service, using funding allocated for other construction and repair projects. In September 1999 the Russian Northern Fleet's Admiral Ushakov cruiser was sent from Severomorsk to Severodvinsk to undergo modernisation. The ship's nuclear powerplant will be replaced. Besides, the cruiser wil be armed with the latest weapons and fitted with most advanced navigation equipment. The money for the upgrade was provided by the Russian regions. As of 1999, over 10 million roubles have already been allocated of the total of 100 million roubles needed for the Admiral Ushakov upgrade.

The Admiral Ushakov was reportedly written off in 2001 and eventually decommissioned in 2002. In October 2003 it was reported that Zvezdochka shipyard's Director Nikolai Kalistratov stated that Norway will allocate $40m for dismantling the atomic cruiser Admiral Ushakov. $12 million more will be required to upgrade the place where the used nuclear fuel is spent. In June 2004 the cruiser's name was transferred to destroyer Besstrashny based in Severomorsk, so the former navy flagship Admiral Ushakov carried only number 090 on its bow at the moment.

In December 2011 it was reported that the Russian Defense Ministry was planning to refit the Admiral Nakhimov, Admiral Lazarev and Admiral Ushakov missile cruisers by 2020

Director of the "Zvezdochka" ship repair center Sergey Marichev said in an interview with TASS 25 July 2018 [The head of "Stars": "teach" to work together the new system, "Admiral Kuznetsov"]: "There are no decisions on "Kirov" yet. This issue is in the joint competence of the Ministry of Defense and Rosatom. The situation has been frozen for many years, despite the obvious need to dispose of the ship. According to its technical condition, figuratively speaking, it has already passed the point of no return. "Kirov" occupies 260 meters of the embankment, in which the enterprise badly needs, and inhibits the reconstruction of hydraulic structures. We simply have nowhere to rearrange orders and boats from the reconstructed sections. Yes, and the special quay, where the "Kirov" is moored, should also be reconstructed.

"Unfortunately, "Kirov" had moved to the rank of "real estate" in the literal sense of the word. The ship is not mobile, and its hull will have to be disposed of right where it is moored. Technical solutions for its disposal are developed based on this sad feature. We will have to use special pontoons that support the hull of the ship afloat. From the point of view of radiation safety, the ship does not pose a threat, spent fuel from its reactors was unloaded in 2016, but the hull dissection would be quite a troublesome affair."

By 2019, the cutting up of a heavy nuclear missile cruiser project 1144 standing on the embankment of the CS Zvezdochkathis can cost as little as 400 million rubles. This amount was announced in the media after studying Rosatom's bid.

As of 2020, recycling was to really begin in the next two to three years. The project was proposed by Severodvinsk NIPTB Onega. This organization works on ships and submarines of the Navy, not only during repair and modernization, but also creates projects for the disposal of nuclear ships. Disposal of Kirov is not such a simple project. Firstly, there is no dock in which disposal work can be carried out. Given the experience of cutting the "Urals" it is necessary. The reconnaissance ship had not yet been disposed of by 2020. The entire superstructure was cut from it, the reactor and adjacent rooms were dismantled, but the hull itself is still on the water. For Kirov, this is unacceptable, since the ship does not need a ship hull - it takes up a lot of space where other repaired orders can stand. Therefore, an option was being developed for cutting it afloat into two or even three parts, followed by cutting them in the bulk tank of the enterprise.

The reasons why Kirov was not used for modernization are simple. Although his hull is good and armored, but due to an experimental superstructure made of aluminum-magnesium alloy, the repair would be very expensive. And most of the systems and equipment installed on it are not serial production items, unlike the following ships of the project. The very idea of ??repairing Admiral Nakhimov is more political. "Peter the Great" has been under repair since his birth. He was docked, something was shamanizing on him, but this is not suitable for the concept of "repair".

Admiral Lazarev (ex-Frunze)

TARKR "Admiral Lazarev" Pre. 11442 was built at the Baltic Shipyard in Leningrad and transferred to the Navy on 10/30/1984 ( 30 years ago) under the name "Frunze". Flag raised 02/02/1985 (Day of the ship). 08.21-12.11.1985 together with the destroyer "Prudent" made the inter-fleet transfer to the Pacific Fleet. Renamed on 05/27/1992. In the period 1995-1996, because of an accident not related to the GEM, the reactors were shut down (emergency protection worked), but despite this, as of mid- 1997, the cruiser was operational. At the end of 1997 the Admiral Lazarev was said to be slated for disposal because of insufficient funding for needed repairs. In 1999, Lazarev was withdrawn from the fleet's combat strength to the 2nd category reserve, and later mothballed.

At that time, it seemed, the ship was signed a death sentence: there was no money for repairs, so in Moscow it was decided to prepare the nuclear cruiser for disposal. To do this, he was put in a sludge in the Abrek Bay of Strelok Bay near the village of Shkotovo. But even in those Russian political twilight at the top there were people who decided to fight for TARKR.

The cruiser was stationed at the 7th pier in Fokino (Bay of Abrek, Strelok Bay). As of 2004 the ship remained in reserve near Vladivostok at Strelok Bay. In 2004-2005 at the Zvezda Shipyard in Bolshoy Kamen nuclear fuel was unloaded from the ship (operation No. 1). The armament was gradually dismantled, and what is sometimes written in the press should be treated with the utmost skepticism.

According to the testimony of the Far East, now "Admiral Lazarev" was not a sight for the faint of heart. All life support systems and weapons plundered. All that contained non-ferrous metal, torn the most barbaric way. The picture of general chaos and devastation is complemented by traces of the fire that broke out on the cruiser on December 6, 2002. To extinguish the fire about four hours.

In December 2011 it was reported that the Russian Defense Ministry was planning to refit the Admiral Nakhimov, Admiral Lazarev and Admiral Ushakov missile cruisers by 2020. In 2014 the Admiral Lazarev (until 1992 the Frunze), the preserved heavy nuclear missile cruiser (TARKR), which had been retired from the Russian Navy back in 1999 and has since been preserved, underwent a dock repair at the 30th ship repair plant, for the first time in almost two decades.

The 30th Ship Repair Plant is located not far from Fokino - in the village of Danube in Chazhma Bay Strelok Bay, and its floating dock PD-41 with a lifting capacity of 80,000 tons is one of the two largest floats of the Russian shipbuilding industry (the second one is PD-50 in the 82nd SRZ in Roslyakovo, ZATO Severomorsk). On December 17, 2014, a message was received on the completion of the dock repair, which "was carried out to ensure the unsinkability of the ship, which was located at the mooring wall for a long time.

“Admiral Lazarev” would also be good to modernize. But where? In Severodvinsk, at the famous Zvezdochka Ship Repair Center, whose specialists already acquire the necessary skills at Admiral Nakhimov? At Severodvinsk, there simply will not be a place for him. The real trouble would be how to get the "Admiral Lazarev", long immobilized in the Pacific, to Severodvinsk. There are only two ways. The first is around almost all of Asia, all of Africa, and then all of Europe across the Indian, Atlantic and Arctic oceans. Possibly it could go out through the Bering Strait and accompanied by icebreakers along the Northern Sea Route. But Russia's Far Eastern Zvezda shipyard with no limits on the tonnage of civilian maritime vessels and warships can be used for work on the cruiser. Since 2009 this ship-repair complex has been intensively modernized. The global project envisages that in a few years even supertankers with a displacement of up to 350,000 tons (that is 12 times more than Admiral Lazarev) will begin to descend from the stocks of Zvezda. Nevertheless, the supertanker and the atomic cruiser are two different things. Docks are not the biggest problem. The main thing is to dismantle the old and install new weapons, electronics. For this special engineering equipment and people are needed.

On 21 August 2020 it was announced that the repair work on one of the largest nuclear cruisers in the world - "Admiral Lazarev" - was stopped. And the problem was just a lack of funds. TASS also reported that even despite the cessation of repair work, the disposal of the ship's parts does not make sense yet. The hull and many other parts were in perfect condition.

The heavy nuclear missile cruiser "Admiral Lazarev" of project 1144, code "Orlan" of the Pacific Fleet (Pacific Fleet) was delivered to a shipyard in the Primorsky Territory for disposal, a source in the military-industrial complex told TASS on 01 May 2021. “The day before, the cruiser was delivered for recycling to the 30th shipyard in the Danube village,” he said. The cruiser waited a long time for a decision on her future fate. Two options were considered - either modernization following the example of "Admiral Nakhimov", or disposal. Experts were inclined in favor of the first option, since the cruiser hull was in good condition.

Admiral Nakhimov (ex-Kalinin)

"Admiral Nakhimov" Project 1144 "Orlan," was named "Kalinin" until 1992. It was founded May 17, 1983 at the Baltic Shipyard. The ship was launched on 25 April 1986. December 30, 1988, he joined the combat strength of the Russian Navy. April 22, 1992 it was renamed "Admiral Nakhimov".

In April 2001 Russia Navy Commander-in-Chief, Adm Vladimir Kuroyedov stated that the Kirov-class battle cruiser Admiral Nakhimov, which had been laid up since 1999 at Severodvinsk, will be re-commissioned by the Russian Navy.

As of early 2004 the Admiral Nakhimov was undergoing repairs at Sevmash. These focused predominately on the critical zones of its reactor, the electronics system, and its missile systems. Its overhaul was due to be completed in 2007.

On the 11 May 2008 the crew of the heavy nuclear missile carrier "Admiral Nakhimov" had two reasons for festive formation on deck: Victory Day and the ship's birthday. Deputy Governor of Arkhangelsk region Mikhail Sitkin, chiefs from Murmansk region came to congratulate military sailors with 19-years anniversary of the ship. Such meetings take place every year. Traditionally guests awarded distinguished sailors, wished crew good health and to return in sea for cruiser. From 1999 "Admiral Nakhimov" has stood near a Sevmash berth. In spite of such a long period of inactivity, the cruiser was kept in good condition by the enterprise'ss services and crew. According to commissioning manager Boris Gulin, at that time the repair schedule is being updated. During 2008 shipbuilders were preparing for "discharge of reactor active zone" - that is the removal of the ship's reactor's core and replacement with a fresh core. Such a refueling operation could require several years to complete, suggesting that the Admiral Nakhimov was unlikely to return to active service prior to 2010.

In 2011, the then Prime Minister Vladimir Putin , having specially arrived in the city, signed a contract for the modernization of this TARKR at a cost to the Ministry of Defense at least $ 1.5 billion. In December 2011 it was reported that the overhaul of mothballed Admiral Nakhimov nuclear-powered cruiser will start after 2012 with the focus on refitting the ship with advanced weaponry and electronics, the Sevmash shipyard said. The Admiral Nakhimov (former Kalinin) Kirov class cruiser was commissioned in 1988 and mothballed in 1999. It has been docked at the Sevmash shipyard in the city of Severodvinsk in northern Russia, undergoing repairs since 2005.

“During the talks with the Russian Defense Ministry, we have concluded that it would be senseless to continue the repairs without determining the final variant of the modernization, so the repair work has been suspended [until after 2012],” Sevmash General Director Andrei Dyachkov said on Friday in an exclusive interview with RIA Novosti.

The main changes during the overhaul will be applied to cruiser’s armaments as the SS-N-19 Shipwreck missiles – the ship’s current main weaponry – have become outdated. The SS-N-19s will be replaced with P-800 Yakhont (SS-N-26) anti-ship cruise missiles. The cruiser will also receive advanced air defense missile systems based on the land-based S-400 Triumf, and new point-defense systems.

On 27 November 2014 the Navy handed the heavy Atomic missile cruiser (VAN) "Admiral Nakhimov" to the Sevmash shipyard in Severodvinsk for repairs and modernization. The repair and modernization "Admiral Nakhimov", which is scheduled to last until the year 2019, wil completely replace the life-support system, will change the rocket and artillery armament, and update the radio equipment and telecommunications terminal equipment. According to the developer, the modernized nuclear Cruiser "Admiral Nakhimov" will last another 30-40 years.

In the course of modernizing the Russian Project 949 Antei nuclear submarines and the Project 1144 Orlan heavy nuclear missile cruisers, the Russian Navy is planning that instead of the 24 "old" Granit missile complexes, each missile silo will be installed with three Yakhont containers. As a result the ships' ordnance payload will be augmented from 24 to 72 new supersonic winged missiles.

Russia's Admiral Nakhimov nuclear-powered battle cruiser will return to service after being upgraded by 2018, the Russian Navy's Shipbuilding Department's deputy head said 30 May 2015. Earlier reports suggested that Russia may finish the modernization of the warship by the end of 2019. The reconstruction works include the upgrade of the life support systems, missile systems and artillery weapons, as well as electronic weapons systems. The life of the battlecruiser will be extended for at least another 35 years following the repairs.

Shipyard "Sevmash" in Severodvinsk is scheduled for completion by 2020 of repairs and deep modernization of the heavy nuclear missile cruiser (TARKR) "Admiral Nakhimov". This was reported 13 January 2017 by Igor Dygalo, a representative of the Department of Information and Mass Communications of the Russian Federation Ministry of Defence for the Navy. "In accordance with the plan of the factory makes replacement and upgrade the ship's life support systems, electronic weapons, the ship's energy systems, - the report said -. The plan provides for the modernization of the replacement complexes of missile and artillery weapons TARKR" Admiral Nakhimov ". "As a result of the modernization of heavy nuclear missile cruiser" Admiral Nakhimov "will have a completely new tactical and technical characteristics, and significantly enhance the potential of the surface forces of the Russian Navy," - said Dygalo. In the spring of 2013 he was awarded a government contract to repair and modernize the ship, which has been put into dry dock in the autumn of 2014.

In 2019 it was reported that the cruiser “Admiral Nakhimov” is transformed in the course of deep modernization at Sevmash. In 2020 it is planned to launch it.

Petr Velikiy

The much-delayed Petr Velikiy, which arrived in the Northern Fleet in November 1996 for acceptance trials, was finally commissioned on 18 April 1998, but in the Northern Fleet rather than in the originally planned Pacific Fleet. However, he was subsequently laid up at Severomorsk awaiting completion and repairs.

On 23 March 2004 Russia's navy chief reportedly said that the nuclear-powered "Peter the Great" missile cruiser was in such dire condition that it could "explode at any moment" - only to backtrack on his statement a few hours later. Admiral Vladimir Kuroyedov said the massive cruiser had been badly maintained and added that "it's especially dangerous because it has a nuclear reactor". Just three hours later, however, Kuroyedov retracted his ominous statement, saying he had been misunderstood by the media. "There is no threat whatsoever to the ship's nuclear safety," he said in a statement. "The ship's nuclear safety is fully guaranteed in line with existing norms." He added that some flaws in maintaining the cruiser's living quarters would be fixed within three weeks, after which the ship would become fully combat-ready.

The Petr Veliki cruiser docked for repair at Roslyakovo starting on 19 April 2004. The ship repairers cleaned and painted the submerged part of the ship, repaired the armature, and examined the steering system. The floating dock PD-50, where the Admiral Kuznetsov had been repaired, was prepared for the flagship of the navy. By July 2004 the flagship of the Northern Fleet, fresh from repairs, began carrying out missions in what was called "first-line" readiness in the second half of August 2004.

Following repairs to the Admiral Kuznetsov, the Pyotr Veliki accompanied the aircraft carrier and participated in the most ambitious naval exercise performed by the Russian Navy to date. The task force consisted of these two ships, the cruiser Marshal Ustinov, the destroyer Admiral Ushakov, a tanker and two support ships. The group arrived at an area approximately 20 nautical miles off Iceland on 05 October 2004 and returned home on 01 November 2004.

As of 2015 the "Peter the Great" upgrade was expected in the 2018-2021 timeframe. Developers expect that after the cruiser will last another 30-40 years.

Modernization of heavy nuclear missile cruiser "Peter the Great" will start on the "Sevmash" after the modernization works on the same type of his cruiser "Nakhimov". This is the radio "Russian news service," said the head of the Russian Navy ship captain Vladimir Trapichnikov. "The plans are not just there, they are implemented. Today, we are on the" Sevmash "was held jointly with the designer (" Northern PKB ") and by the builder would conduct modernization work of the heavy cruiser" Nakhimov "with the term of the end of May 2018," - he said. "And then the same modernization work to improve the characteristics of weapons, radio systems, electronic warfare systems will take our cruiser" Peter the Great "- said the officer.

In February 2016 there were reports that Russia’s nuclear-powered guided-missile cruiser Pyotr Velikiy (Peter the Great) was to be armed with hypersonic cruise missiles by 2022. Ultra-secret Zircon missiles are rumored to be passing final tests before being considered for introduction. “[GM heavy cruiser] Pyotr Velikiy will go into dry dock in the third quarter or in late 2019. General overhaul and ordnance alterations are planned to be completed by late 2022,” a source in Russia’s shipbuilding industry informed TASS 24 February 2016.

The source also confirmed that a prototype of the Zircon hypersonic cruise missile is undergoing government flight development tests. Once the tests are confirmed successful, the missile is going to be presented for state approval. Another source told TASS that the heavy cruiser is going to be refitted with the brand-new multipurpose 3S-14 vertical launch systems. Reportedly, each of the 10 3S-14s in production right now has eight missile containers that can house three types of anti-ship missiles: Zircon, Onyx or Kalibr.

Heavy nuclear missile cruiser "Peter the Great", the flagship of the Northern Fleet, went to sea for the first time in two years. This was reported in the press-service fleet 16 May 2016. "This is the first exit in the sea missile cruiser after the restoration of the technical readiness of the ship's crew." Peter the Great "has fulfilled all the tasks set of basic training, held a readiness check of weapons and equipment of the ship to the actions of the sea", - said the press service.

Kuznetzov

Budget cuts at the end of the Cold War led to discontinuing the construction of a fifth unit of the Kirov class. The construction of a series of nuclear-powered missile cruisers of Project 1144 was completed with the fourth in the series, "Peter the Great" (formerly "Yuri Andropov"). On the stocks was the fifth (last in series) - "Admiral Kuznetsov" (previously "Maxim Gorky"), which had improved armament of ships. They embodied all the latest achievements of Soviet science and technology.