Key Points and Summary – After being docked for over two decades, Russia’s Kirov-class nuclear-powered battlecruiser, the Admiral Nakhimov, is finally set to return to sea following a massive, billion-dollar refit.
-The enormous Cold War-era warship has been upgraded with a new arsenal, including Russia’s much-hyped Zircon hypersonic missiles.
Russian Navy Kirov-class Battlecruiser. Image Credit: Creative Commons.
-However, its return is plagued by continuous delays and skepticism.
-Despite its size, the Nakhimov is an obsolete holdover, not a modern warship, and its aging nuclear reactors are on their last legs, doing little to realize Putin’s dream of a true blue-water navy.
Russian Battlecruiser Kirov-Class Admiral Nakhimov Returning To Sea
The Russian Navy, after more than a decade of refurbishing, has refloated the Admiral Nakhimov, of its Kirov class, which cost the Russian Navy over $1 billion.
The refit didn’t take place until 2013 due to the economic crisis after the collapse of the Soviet Union, and the poor to non-existent maintenance of naval vessels.
The Russian Navy’s Kirov-class nuclear-powered battlecruiser, the Admiral Nakhimov, was being refitted and is now reportedly undergoing trials to return to sea duty.
The Nakhimov has been given massive upgrades for more than two decades and is finally undergoing sea trials after a massive upgrade in weapons and protective measures.
If the ship passes the sea trials, it will rejoin the fleet for the first time since 1999.
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 was capable of 31 knots.
Russian state-run media states that the 28,000-ton battlecruiser’s two nuclear reactors are now online, and claims that the warship should go back to sea for trials sometime this summer. However, the warship’s return to service has been delayed multiple times in the past.
The Battlecruiser Admiral Nakhimov
The 827-foot-long Admiral Nakhimov is the third nuclear-powered guided-missile cruiser in the Russian Navy’s four-strong Kirov-class, only three of which remain following the scrapping of sister ship Admiral Lazarev in 2021.
Commissioned in 1988 as the Kalinin, the Nakhimov was renamed in 1992 and saw service with the Soviet and then Russian Navies in the decade that followed until she was docked at local shipyard Sevmash in 1999, remaining there ever since with occasional reports of repairs being undertaken.
In 2006, the Russian Government decided to modernize the cruiser with upgraded weaponry and other equipment and return it to operational status. However, the actual works commenced only in 2013 and have been continuously delayed.
The delays have been constant, despite proclamations by the Navy, and the timelines have not been met. In December 2024, TASS reported that the ship had begun factory sea trials. Now, the reports are that the reactors are back online.
The US Navy didn’t have anything as big as the Kirov-class ships. There was a gap in large surface warfare ships. During the Cold War, there was always a lot of talk about “gaps” (See Dr. Strangelove).
Kirov-Class to Return to the Black Sea?
The Kirov-Class Admiral Nakhimov is heavily armed with a mix of Kalibr, Oniks, and Zircon missiles with a new firing system. The Zircon is a hypersonic missile that the Russians claim will travel eight times the speed of sound (Mach-8.0).
That would make it the fastest missile in the world. But as always, a heavy dose of salt is required when one hears about Russian claims.
The ships are enormous – only aircraft carriers are bigger than these cruisers – and the well-known S-300 air defense system makes them distinctive.
The S-300F maritime variant is a ship-based version of the S-300P land-fired system, and its integration into a battlecruiser gives the Russian Navy an air- and ballistic-missile defense capability it otherwise lacks.
Would Putin risk the Admiral Nakhimov in the Black Sea after the sinking of the Moskva? It is doubtful that the Russian Navy could risk another embarrassment like that.
I wrote some time ago that I believe the Nakhimov will end up in the Arctic Fleet, protecting Russia’s northern borders, as Dr. Brent Eastwood had noted in a recent analysis.
If Putin were to send any of his battlecruisers into the Black Sea, they’d be sitting ducks for Ukraine’s missiles, S-300s or not, Zircon missiles or not.
Putin wants a return of a blue water Navy, but the Navy doesn’t have the surface power to bring it. The Nakhimov’s nuclear reactors are on their last legs and have little useful life left before they have to be replaced.
The Kirov-Class Admiral Nakhimov isn’t a modern warship but a Cold War holdover; along with Russia’s non-existent aircraft carrier, this isn’t going to help return to a blue-water Navy.
About the Author: Steve 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.
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