- 14 hours ago ... Its history of embarrassing breakdowns may see an anticipated mission ... Russia sends...
- 10 hours ago ... Russia's accident-prone aircraft carrier is set to be put to the test — if it gets...
- 2 days ago ... Russian Aircraft Carrier Deploying to Syria in Response to US Naval Build Up. The US sends...
Russia sends its only aircraft carrier to Syria in response to US naval build-up, Turkish shoot-down
SYRIA: Activists Report Syrian Forces Launch Offensive on Darayya Despite Ceasefire July 07
RUSSIA’S accident-prone aircraft carrier is set to be put to the test — if it gets there. Its history of embarrassing breakdowns may see an anticipated mission to Syria backfire.The aircraft carrier is the largest leftover of the Soviet era’s Cold War still active in the Russian navy. Now Russian government news agency Tass has declared the warship will be sent into the Mediterranean to conduct air strikes against insurgents and Islamic State in Syria between October and January.It would be the first time a Russian aircraft carrier has ever engaged in combat.But Moscow has also given itself some wiggle-room if the troubled 55,000-ton warship can’t put to sea or launch attacks: the government news agency quotes just one ‘anonymous’ source for the report.Late last year Moscow sent the anti-aircraft cruiser Moskova to the northern borders of Syria after one of Russia’s combat jets was shot down for violating Turkish air space. Moscow has also repeatedly voiced its concerns at a recent build-up of US naval forces in the Mediterranean - including two nuclear-powered aircraft carriers - as part of its ongoing operations against Islamic State.The waterways and airspace in the eastern Mediterranean is about to get crowded.A Mig-29K multi-role fighter is positioned for a run towards Admiral Kuznetsov’s ski-ramp. Picture: TASSSource:SuppliedCOMBAT CAPABILITIESThe Admiral Kuznetsov carries far fewer aircraft than its US counterparts. About 15 in total. But the ship was designed with a different purpose in mind — to carry a large number of long-range anti-ship missiles while providing air cover for its fleet.Times have changed since the Cold War, and now the idea of power-projection through forward deployed strike fighters is much more appealing.But Kuznetsov does not have the catapults necessary to launch heavily laden aircraft into the air. Instead it relies on a simple bow-ramp to provide a small slingshot effect.As a result it may be used to deploy a handful of lightly armed Su-33 air superiority and Su-25 attack aircraft in conjunction with its usual Mig-29K multi-role strike fighters to supplement Russian forces already on the ground in Syria.Military analysts have noted the Russian carrier has unusually been conducting flight training while its home port of Seromorsk in the Barents Sea was darkened by the long polar night.The Kuznetsov was the only large aircraft carrier to enter Russian service. Its incomplete sister ship, the Varyag, was sold to China as a floating casino. It later reappeared as China’s first operational aircraft carrier, Liaoning, and has since seen service in disputed waters including the South China Sea.Constant companions ... A tugboat loiters close to Admiral Kuznetsov while off the coast of Cyprus in 2014. The ship is prone to frequent breakdowns. Picture: AFPSource:AFPMOBILE DISASTER AREAThe ship spent three months in a floating dry-dock near the port city of Murmansk from August last year in an attempt to remediate these ongoing problems.It’s currently undergoing shipbuilders trials in the Barents Sea to ensure its repairs have been effective.The Tass story notes that, after its deployment to Syria, the ship is scheduled to return for more modernisation and maintenance work in Severodvinsk.The conventionally-powered Admiral Kuznetsov was launched in 1985 at the height of the cold war. Despite having a slew of technical problems since then, it has never been extensively modernised.Poorly designed and defective high-pressure steam turbine engines and boilers have been at the heart of the problem. Serious engine breakdowns are a regular event, resulting in the permanent assignment of an accompanying tugboat whener the carrier goes to sea.In one such incident in 2012, Kuznetsov broke-down off the coast of France while in heavy weather.A short circuit in the ship’s electrics caused a serious fire in 2009, killing one crew member.Just a month later, its at-sea refuelling system ruptured causing a huge oil slick off the coast of Ireland.When the ship entered the Mediterranean in 2013 for a series of exercises, the US navy said it had its own ships follow the carrier closely in case of an emergency: “The Kuznetsov might sink”, a source reportedly said.Kuznetsov at sea with its full outfit of fighter jets and helicopters. Picture: Russian Ministry of DefenceSource:Supplied
Thursday, July 7, 2016
Russia sends its only aircraft carrier to Syria in response to US
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