Aircraft Carrier
Admiral Kuznetsov
The Admiral Kuznetsov is Russia’s only aircraft carrier, formally a heavy aircraft-carrying cruiser, built at the Black Sea Shipyard in Nikolayev and commissioned in 1990. It has been under repair since 2018 and is not operational as of October 2026.
Russia|Black Sea Shipyard (Nikolayev)Overview
The Admiral Kuznetsov (Project 1143.5) was launched in 1985 and commissioned in 1990, joining the Northern Fleet in 1991. It is a STOBAR design with a ski-jump bow and arrestor wires for Su-33 and MiG-29K fighters. The ship is about 305 m long and displaces up to 59,100 t, with steam turbines of 200,000 shp giving 29 knots. Armament includes 12 P-700 Granit missiles, and the air wing is roughly 40 aircraft.
Its only combat deployment was off Syria from October 2016 to January 2017, when a MiG-29KR and an Su-33 were lost in arrestor-cable accidents. In October 2018 the floating dock PD-50 sank with the carrier inside, damaging the ship, and a fire at the shipyard in December 2019 killed two people. It has been under repair and modernisation at Zvezdochka since 2018, with a return date shifted repeatedly, reportedly to 2027–2028. It has not been sunk, and rumours of its sinking are false.
Key Specifications
Variants
The Admiral Kuznetsov is the Project 1143.5 carrier commissioned in 1990 with Su-33 and MiG-29K fighters.
The post-refit Admiral Kuznetsov describes the ship’s planned return from long repairs at Zvezdochka, with the date repeatedly postponed.
Project 1143.5 is the design designation of the heavy aircraft-carrying cruiser class.
Operators
RussiaFrequently Asked Questions
Is the Admiral Kuznetsov still in service?
The Admiral Kuznetsov is not operational as of October 2026. It has been under repair and modernisation at Zvezdochka since 2018, with a return date reportedly moved to 2027–2028. It has not been sunk.
How big is the Admiral Kuznetsov?
The Admiral Kuznetsov is about 305 m long and displaces up to 59,100 t at full load. It reaches 29 knots using steam turbines of 200,000 shp and carries an air wing of about 40 aircraft.
Was the Admiral Kuznetsov sunk?
No, the Admiral Kuznetsov has not been sunk. Reports of its sinking are rumours. The ship has been under repair since 2018, and it was damaged in 2018 when the PD-50 floating dock sank.
What aircraft does the Admiral Kuznetsov carry?
The Admiral Kuznetsov carries Su-33 and MiG-29K fighters and Ka-27 and Ka-52K helicopters. As a STOBAR carrier, it launches aircraft from a ski-jump and recovers them with arrestor wires.
Admiral Kuznetsov vs Liaoning: which is better?
The Admiral Kuznetsov is the larger ship, displacing 59,100 t, but it is under repair and not operational. China’s Liaoning is a rebuilt sister design, also STOBAR, and is in active service.
Why is the Admiral Kuznetsov so unreliable?
The Admiral Kuznetsov has suffered from a poor record, including two aircraft losses in the 2016–2017 Syria deployment, the 2018 sinking of its dock and a 2019 shipyard fire. These accidents have damaged the ship’s reputation.