Summary and Key Points: Steve Balestrieri reports the Kirov-class nuclear battlecruiser Admiral Nakhimov, laid down in Leningrad in 1983 as Kalinin and sidelined since 1999, has returned to Severomorsk after a refit begun in 2014, with service due by the end of 2026. The Project 1144.2M ship carries 176 VLS cells for Kalibr, Oniks and Zircon missiles plus S-400 interceptors, Paket-NK and Otvet anti-submarine systems and three Ka-27 helicopters, and should replace Pyotr Velikiy as the Northern Fleet flagship.
Russian Navy Nuclear Battlecruiser Kirov-Class Admiral Nakhimov Returns To Homeport After 29 Years
The Russian Navy’s Kirov-class nuclear-powered missile cruiser Admiral Nakhimov has returned to its home port of Severomorsk after 29 years out of service for refurbishment, with the vessel reportedly completing its sea trials.
The Nakhimov was re-floated on July 25, 2025, then set sail under its own power for the first time in 28 years in August 2025, beginning the final phase of its sea trials in early June. It is slated to return to naval duty by the end of 2026.
The cruiser’s return to Severomorsk marks one of the most significant milestones in Russian naval modernization and follows what many consider the most complex warship refit in the country’s history.
A Brand New Warship With 176 Missiles
Many naval analysts believe that, because of the major modifications made during its nearly 30-year absence, the ship is, in essence, a brand-new warship. The Russian Navy’s Kirov-class nuclear-powered battlecruiser will rejoin the fleet for the first time since 1999.
The Admiral Nakhimov was designed long ago to hunt and destroy American aircraft carrier strike groups at the height of the Cold War.
Kirov-Class Russian Navy Creative Commons Image
Kirov-Class Nuclear Russian Cruiser Creative Commons Photo
Kirov-Class Battlecrusier. Creative Commons Image.
It was commissioned in 1988 and served 11 years before entering dry dock for upgrades that lasted until 2025.
The Kirov battlecruisers use the CONAS (Combined Nuclear and Steam) propulsion system. Two conventional boilers serve as a backup to the nuclear reactor in the event of reactor failure. Both components can drive two geared steam turbines, generating 120,000 hp (89 MW) at two prop shafts. The ship could reach 31 knots.
Its missile systems were removed and replaced, giving it the world’s largest arsenal of long-range surface-to-air and cruise missiles, with 176 vertical launch cells.
80 missiles are intended for strike missions, while the other 96 are allocated for S-400 surface-to-air defenses.
Anti-Submarine Warfare Improvements
The Admiral Nakhimov’s anti-submarine capabilities were also largely upgraded, as the battlecruiser is now armed with the new Paket-NK anti-torpedo and anti-submarine system and the Otvet anti-submarine missile.
The warship can carry up to three Ka-27 helicopters, giving it the capability to hunt submarines at considerable range, which is significantly important in the Northern Fleet’s patrol areas, where NATO submarine activity is very high.
However, Russia’s radars and data links lag far behind those of US and Chinese units in sophistication.
Its radar cross-section is enormous, making it a much bigger target and easier to track at longer ranges.
The Huge Battlecruiser Admiral Nakhimov
The 827-foot-long Admiral Nakhimov is the third nuclear-powered guided-missile cruiser in the Russian Navy’s four-ship Kirov class, and only three remain after the Russian Navy scrapped its sister ship, Admiral Lazarev, in 2021.
The Admiral Nakhimov was laid down in Leningrad in 1983 and launched in 1986 as Kalinin.
The warship is part of the Project 1144.2 Orlan class, known in Russia as the Kirov class and codenamed by NATO. In its current modernized form, the battlecruiser has the revised designation Project 1144.2M.
In 2006, the Russian Government decided to modernize the cruiser with upgraded weaponry and other equipment and return it to operational status. However, work began only in 2014 and has been continuously delayed.
The delays have been constant, with the Navy issuing proclamations, but the timelines have not been met.
In December 2024, TASS reported that the ship had begun factory sea trials. Reports say the reactors are back online.
The US Navy didn’t have anything as big as the Kirov-class ships. It left a gap in large surface-warfare ships.
The Missile Arsenal Is Large And Varied
The Admiral Nakhimov is heavily armed with a mix of Kalibr, Oniks, and Zircon missiles and features a new firing system. The 3M22 Zircon (Tsirkon) is a Russian hypersonic cruise missile, primarily anti-ship, known for its extreme speed (up to Mach 9) and maneuverability, which drastically reduce target reaction times.
It is launched from naval vessels or submarines, and recent tests have also shown ground-launch capability.
It uses a scramjet engine for sustained hypersonic flight and is designed to challenge advanced air defenses, such as the Aegis system, with claimed ranges up to 1,000 km and recent use in Ukraine for combat trials.
Only Aircraft Carriers Are Larger Than Kirov-Class Battlecruisers
The ships are enormous – only aircraft carriers are bigger than these cruisers.
The ship’s S-400 long-range surface-to-air missile cells are supported by 30N6 and associated fire-control radars to track and engage threats at extended ranges.
At the heart of Admiral Nakhimov’s modernization was the plan to install 176 vertical launch tubes, giving it more than any other surface combatant or submarine in the world.
This number far outclasses anything in comparison. China’s Type 55 ‘super destroyer’ has 112 vertical launch system cells. A Flight III Arleigh Burke-class destroyer has 96 cells, while a Ticonderoga-class cruiser has 122 cells. The U.S. Navy’s Zumwalt-class stealth destroyers currently have 80 cells.
A Solitary Battlecruiser Is A Big Target
According to the Barents Observer, the big battlecruiser is expected to operate primarily in the Barents Sea, the Norwegian Sea, and the Arctic, where one of the Northern Fleet’s core missions is to protect the “bastion” for Russia’s ballistic missile submarines.
Admiral Nakhimov is expected to replace her sister ship, the Pyotr Velikiy, as the flagship of Russia’s Northern Fleet. Pyotr Velikiy has been in port at a pier in Severomorsk since the fall of 2022 and is expected to be decommissioned and scrapped.
The Admiral Nakhimov is certainly a heavily armed and powerful ship. But it is also a big target. As a solitary battlecruiser without escort ships, it cannot easily track moving naval targets at long ranges without external maritime patrol aircraft, satellites, or cooperative network nodes, limiting the effective use of its long-range Zircon and Oniks missiles.
She can’t stay at sea constantly. Russian maintenance facilities are in worse shape than American ones.
It remains to be seen how effective the ship will be. Despite its impressive armament, it is still a Cold War relic.
The National Interest pointed out that the ship has “limited air defense horizons against sea-skimming threats, relying on potentially jammed satellite reconnaissance for beyond-visual-range (BVR) capabilities. They also lack sufficient countermeasures against emerging technologies, such as artificial intelligence-driven drone swarms.”
With the threat of long-range drones and the high-profile loss of other large Russian surface combatants, risking this singular, multi-billion-dollar ship in highly contested zones remains a major strategic dilemma given its huge size and questionable radar.
The Russians plan to return the ship to service by year’s end.
About the Author: Stephen Balestrieri
Steve Balestrieri is a National Security Columnist. He served as a US Army Special Forces NCO and Warrant Officer. In addition to writing on defense, he covers the NFL for PatsFans.com and is a member of the Pro Football Writers of America (PFWA). His work was regularly featured in many military publications,
