Russia Wants An Aircraft Carrier

Admiral Kuznetsov aircraft carrier. PH2 Paul A. Vise / Wikicommons

Alexander Korolkov, Russia Beyond The Headlines: Russia renews talk of aircraft carrier

Comments by Russian admiral along with the current geopolitical situation could finally prove the catalyst for the construction of Russia’s first floating airfield.

Deputy Commander of the Russian Navy Admiral Igor Kasatonov recently announced that Russia would build its first aircraft carrier – although construction will begin only after 2025. This is not the first time a senior Russian military official has proposed the construction of an aircraft carrier, however, and there is some question about whether this project will actually come to fruition.

Historically, the Russian Navy has served as an auxiliary tool for the country’s powerful army. The advent of nuclear submarines in the second half of the 20th century gave the navy a strategic deterrence function, however, which grew over time.

Update: Russia Wants an Aircraft Supercarrier, But Can It Build One? -- Matthew Bodner, Moscow Times

WNU Editor:  I have been hearing talk of a new Russian aircraft carrier for years .... my prediction .... they will still be talking about it 10 years from now.

Is Russia Building A Giant New Aircraft Carrier?

Russian Aircraft Carrier “Kuznetsov,” January 1996. WIKIMEDIA/Commons

David Axe, Reuters: No, Russia isn’t building a giant new aircraft carrier

The Kremlin is preparing blueprints for a huge new aircraft carrier, Russian media reported in early February, to replace its navy’s current flattop, the relatively small and aged Admiral Kuznetsov.

Moscow’s new carrier, however, is likely to remain a paper concept. A quarter-century after the Soviet Union’s collapse, Russia lacks the money, expertise and industrial capacity to build aircraft carriers.

WNU Editor: David Axe's analysis is spot on.

Is The Russian Navy On The Verge Of Collapse?

David Axe, War Is Boring: The Russian Navy Is on the Verge of Collapse

Big ships age out and Moscow can’t replace them

WNU Editor: The Soviet/Russian navy has always been on the bottom of the priority list for the Kremlin when it came to spending money on the military. What has not helped the situation is the decline and moth-balling of Russia's military industrial base .... shipyards included .... so even if the money is allocated to rebuild the Russian navy .... it lacks the infrastructure and facilities to make it happen. The focus will instead be on submarines and coastal vessels as well as developing weapons platforms that can knock-up surface fleets like U.S. aircraft carrier strike groups.

Update: For an enlarged image of the above graph go here.

Is The Russian Navy A Threat?

Russian warships open fire during a presentation during Navy Day celebrations off the coast of the far eastern city of Vladivostok July 29, 2007. Russia's navy will start sorties in the Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean as part of a drive to boost Russia's military presence on the world's oceans, Defence Minister Anatoly Serdyukov said on Wednesday. Credit: Reuters/Yuri Maltsev

Should West Be Worried By Russia Naval Moves? -- James Kraska, Special to CNN

Just as Russian ground forces have moved into Ukraine, in recent weeks Russian air and naval forces have conducted a handful of high-visibility deployments throughout the oceans and airspace of the global commons. Should the West be worried?

Generally, these operations comply with the international “rules of the road” at sea and in the air, and are in compliance with international law. All nations are entitled to freedom of navigation and overflight in the global commons. Thus, the deployments should be seen as great power theater, rather than as a violation of international law. Yet they also dispel any doubt that we now live in a tri-polar world, with a revanchist Russia and China bent on upending the U.S.-led global order in Europe and Asia, respectively.

Read more ....

My Comment: Russia has been spending an enormous amount of money to rebuild and modernize its navy .... but it still has a long way to go to reach a level that will even come close to matching what the U.S. and the West presently have.