Summary and Key Points: Russia’s sole aircraft carrier, Admiral Kuznetsov, symbolizes national pride but struggles operationally due to maintenance issues, accidents, and outdated technology.
-Commissioned in 1991, it uniquely combines missile cruiser capabilities with aircraft carrier functions, reflecting Soviet naval doctrine.
-However, financial constraints and deferred maintenance have plagued its service life, evident in its limited deployment during the Syrian conflict, aircraft losses, and frequent accidents, including fires and dockyard mishaps.
-Its future remains uncertain, with scarce resources redirected to Ukraine.
-While significant militarily limited, the Admiral Kuznetsov continues serving as a symbol of Russian naval ambition, increasingly valuable as a political rather than operational asset.
Inside Admiral Kuznetsov: Why Russia’s Only Aircraft Carrier Keeps Failing
Russia is part of an exclusive world club — one of the few countries that operates an aircraft carrier. That should be an asset to Moscow, though it is anything but. Their one carrier, the Admiral Kuznetsov, is highly problematic and offers Russia just a shadow of the capabilities of other countries.
The Admiral Kuznetsov is the only aircraft carrier in the Russian Navy today — and, in theory, a point of national pride and power projection. It was commissioned in 1991, around the end of the Cold War and the subsequent collapse of the USSR.
In contrast to most Western aircraft carriers, Admiral Kuznetsov’s offensive weaponry is substantial, and features P-700 Granit cruise missiles, making the carrier in effect an amalgamation of missile cruiser and aircraft carrier.
This design consideration was in line with Soviet naval doctrine, which, unlike the United States, did not seek global power projection but rather the ability to engage and destroy the American and NATO ally navies.
However, the end of Cold War hostilities put the kibosh on Soviet and then Russian military planning. As in the United States and elsewhere in the West, the collapse of the Soviet Union resulted in a tightening of defense budgets.
Russia’s aspirations for a blue water navy met the financial reality of shrinking defense budgets and a shift to coastal defense and conventional deterrence.
The Admiral Kuznetsov resultantly saw little service in the 90s and 00s, instead spending great periods of time at port rather than out at sea. Routine maintenance was also likely extensively deferred.
Accidents, Power Projection, and Limitations
Admiral Kuznetsov did, however, see some service in the Middle East during the 2010s as part of Russia’s deployment to Syria in support of former leader Bashar Al-Assad’s regime there. But despite the deployment, the Admiral Kuznetsov revealed several deficiencies and losses.
Issues with the carrier’s arresting gear resulted in the damage and loss of several Russian aircraft and underscored the problems with maintenance unaddressed in the post-Cold War years.
In addition, the Admiral Kuznetsov has dealt with several other accidents that have served to reduce the carrier’s operational usefulness to the Russian Navy.
A floating dry dock sank while the Admiral Kuznetsov was at port for repairs in 2018.
During that incident, a massive crane plunged downward onto the carrier’s flight deck, damaging the ship significantly.
In 2022, during routine maintenance, a fire broke out and, though contained, ended in a pair of fatalities and injuries. But in addition to these accidents, the ship also suffered during what should be normal operations: the conventionally-powered carrier has sustained ridicule for billowing smoke while underway at sea.
In sum, the experience of the Russian Navy in the course of their operations with the Admiral Kuznetsov underscores the challenges to operating and maintaining such a massive ship. It is also a potent illustration of the difficulties of the Russian Navy.
Admiral Kuznetsov: Future Deployments?
What, then, is the future of the Admiral Kuznetsov?
It is a question without a clear answer. Following the withdrawal of Russian naval assets from Syria after the ouster of Syrian strongman Al-Assad from Damascus and the evident difficulty with which Russia operates the carrier, Admiral Kuznetsov’s future is uncertain.
However, given the prioritization of the Russian war machine for Ukraine and sustaining their grinding land campaign there, it is unlikely that financial or material resources would be freed up for the benefit of the carrier.
Regardless, the Admiral Kuznetsov does allow Russia access to the exclusive club of nations who boast aircraft carriers in their navies — despite the Admiral Kuznetsov’s limited capabilities.
As time goes on, the carrier’s role may increasingly be of greater utility to national pride than to naval warfare.
About the Author: Caleb Larson
Caleb Larson is an American multiformat journalist based in Berlin, Germany. His work covers the intersection of conflict and society, focusing on American foreign policy and European security. He has reported from Germany, Russia, and the United States. Most recently, he covered the war in Ukraine, reporting extensively on the war’s shifting battle lines from Donbas and writing on the war’s civilian and humanitarian toll. Previously, he worked as a Defense Reporter for POLITICO Europe. You can follow his latest work on X.
