A record displacement of 25 thousand tons, a nuclear power plant, the most powerful missile and artillery weapons - exactly 30 years ago, on April 29, 1989, the last of the four Orlan project heavy nuclear cruisers was launched. Today, the Russian Navy has two such ships. For what purposes they were built and what awaits this project in the future.
Atomic giants
The idea of creating an atomic surface fleet originated in the USSR in the mid-1950s. It was assumed that the Navy will receive an 8000-ton cruiser with almost unlimited cruising range. However, the rapid development of the US nuclear submarine fleet adjusted the plans of the Soviet command. To combat the numerous submarines carrying cruise and ballistic nuclear missiles, whole anti-submarine formations were formed. An even larger ship was required to effectively protect them. The industry was instructed to build a cruiser with a displacement of 25 thousand tons, which could carry on board all types of naval weapons - missile, anti-aircraft, anti-submarine and artillery. The project was assigned the code 1144 "Orlan".
The first of four in a series of heavy nuclear cruisers TARKR "Kirov" (since 1992 - "Admiral Ushakov") was laid down in 1973 at the facilities of the Northern Design Bureau. The Kirov had no direct analogs and became the largest non-aeronautical ship in the world. The Americans also had nuclear-powered surface ships, but much more modest in size - for example, the displacement of cruisers of the Virginia class is only 11 thousand tons.
Cruiser Peter the Great.
The second "Orlan" TARKR "Frunze" (since 1992 - "Admiral Lazarev") entered service in December 1980, the third - TARKR "Kalinin" (since 1992 - "Admiral Nakhimov") - in 1988. The construction and transfer of the last ship of the Peter the Great series to the fleet took more than ten years. It was laid down in 1986, and the ship entered sea trials in the Far North in 1996. It was transferred to the Navy only in 1998. The delays were caused by the collapse of the USSR, a change in the priorities of the country's leadership and a catastrophic lack of funding.
Heavy nuclear missile cruiser Admiral Nakhimov.
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Floating arsenal
Orlan's main striking argument is two dozen nuclear or conventional supersonic Granit cruise missiles. Each missile weighs seven tons and is capable of throwing a high-explosive charge weighing 750 kilograms or a 500 kiloton nuclear warhead for 600 kilometers. The main purpose of the "Granite" is to destroy the enemy aircraft carrier strike groups. However, coastal targets can also be fired upon.
The S-300F "Fort" anti-aircraft complex with a hundred anti-aircraft missiles is responsible for the air. Ready to simultaneously fire on six aerial targets and accompany twelve. The basis of the second echelon of air defense is the Dagger system with an ammunition capacity of 128 missiles. Destroys missiles that managed to break through the coverage area of the "Fort".
At the third, closest, line of defense there are six Kortik anti-aircraft artillery systems, a universal twinned 130-mm cannon and eight six-barreled 30-mm submachine guns with a rate of fire of six thousand rounds per minute. For enemy submarines - two anti-submarine systems "Waterfall". There is no such powerful weapon on any cruiser in the world. To operate and maintain the ship's systems, it requires a crew comparable in size to the population of a small town - 1,100 officers, warrant officers and sailors.
Naval strategists
According to ex-commander of the Northern Fleet Vyacheslav Popov, who knows Peter the Great firsthand, ships of this class are extremely necessary for the Russian Navy. “The main purpose is to destroy naval targets,” the admiral explained to RIA Novosti. - At the same time, very powerful air defense. In a battle order, the cruiser plays the role of an air defense support ship. And a nuclear power plant expands the possibilities, in fact, to infinity. In addition to missile weapons, there is a very powerful anti-submarine, anti-torpedo and anti-mine defense. This is such a versatile ship that it is almost impossible to get close to it and destroy it. Many times I went to sea on it and saw how effectively the air defense system works, how supersonic missiles are shot down."
Such ships, Popov added, are of great political importance. “The Navy, unlike other branches of the Armed Forces, is capable of performing tasks in peacetime without violating borders, international rules and treaties,” the admiral said. - In general, the World Ocean is neutral, with the exception of small strips of territorial waters and economic zones. Our ships are ready to demonstrate their flag and their presence anywhere in the World Ocean. A cruiser, destroyer or frigate can enter almost any port in the world. It is hardly possible to imagine a visit of friendship, for example, of the Kantemirovskaya tank division or some kind of guards motorized rifle division. And the fleet goes anywhere in the world and is of colossal importance as an instrument of Russia's foreign policy."
Today, the Russian Navy has two Orlans. "Peter the Great", the flagship of the Northern Fleet, successfully fulfills the tasks of combat service. "Admiral Nakhimov" is undergoing deep modernization and repairs, which, according to the plans of the Ministry of Defense, will be completed by 2021. Another ship TAVRK "Admiral Lazarev" is mothballed. Russian and foreign media have already reported that in the course of modernization, the Orlans can be armed with the latest Zircon hypersonic missiles, Onyx and Caliber missile systems.
Nikolay Protopopov