The naval command announced that by the end of 2010 the technical design of the new aircraft carrier will be ready.
The issue of the prospects for the creation of full-fledged aircraft carrier forces remains one of the most important in terms of discussing the main directions of the naval development of the domestic Navy in the medium and long term. The future Russian aircraft carriers are not just a tribute to fashion or a topic for an interesting and heated discussion. Aircraft carrier forces are a vital attribute, without which the Russian Navy, by and large, will never truly return to the World Ocean.
"BASICS" DEMAND
It is noteworthy that this year exactly 10 years have passed since the day when the President of the Russian Federation was approved a kind of, as it is fashionable to say today, a "road map" in the field of naval development of our state - "Fundamentals of the policy of the Russian Federation in the field of military -marine activities for the period up to 2010”. It was in this document that, in fact, for the first time openly, clearly and clearly proclaimed the need for the presence of aircraft carrier-class ships in the combat strength of the Russian Navy. So, in the section “Measures to implement the priority directions of the policy of the Russian Federation in the field of naval activities”, the issue of “maintaining combat readiness and improving naval equipment and weapons, including … the construction of … surface ships, incl. aircraft carriers with increased combat capabilities, equipped with … effective aviation systems for various purposes."
However, the lack of funds even for the construction of much smaller corvettes, frigates and non-nuclear submarines for a long time did not allow either the command of the Russian Navy or the domestic defense industry to approach with due diligence the issue of designing and building aircraft carriers, as well as organizing aircraft carrier formations and developing tactics of their application in general. On the other hand, the understanding that we need aircraft carriers - if not openly, then on the sidelines - was expressed by the majority of the top command staff of the Russian Navy. They even discussed the possibility of launching a separate federal target program, which provided for comprehensive work on the creation of aircraft carrier formations in the domestic fleet, however, in reality it never appeared.
The situation changed relatively recently - when, having risen in the wake of multibillion-dollar export revenues, the Russian government began pouring very significant sums into the Armed Forces and the domestic defense-industrial complex. Ultimately, in May 2007, on the basis of the St. Petersburg 1st Central Research Institute of the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation, under the direct supervision of the then Commander-in-Chief of the Russian Navy, Admiral of the Fleet Vladimir Masorin, a meeting of the heads of the institutions of the scientific complex of the Russian Navy was held, within the framework of which the necessity and possibility of building aircraft carriers in the country was discussed. … At the meeting, in particular, it was emphasized that the presence of an aircraft carrier in the national fleet is "a necessity fully justified from a theoretical, scientific and practical point of view."
And a month later, Vladimir Masorin said that on the basis of a deep, comprehensive and thorough study of the issue of promising areas of naval development, an unambiguous conclusion was made about the need to enter into the combat composition of the Russian Navy aircraft carriers of a new type - up to six ships within the next 20-30 years …
“Now we are developing the appearance of the future aircraft carrier with the active participation of science and industry. However, it is already clear that this will be a nuclear aircraft carrier with a displacement of about 50 thousand tons, - said Fleet Admiral Masorin. - We assume that about 30 aircraft - airplanes and helicopters - will be based on it. We will not build the communities that are being built by the US Navy, with the basing of up to 100-130 aircraft and helicopters."
Soon, however, Vladimir Masorin was dismissed - "by age", his place was taken by Admiral Vladimir Vysotsky, and talk about aircraft carriers for some time was in the shadow of the "grandiose" program for the purchase of four Mistral-class command ships, pulling a couple of billion euros.
The aircraft carrier theme again "returned to the audience" in February 2010, when within the framework of the conference dedicated to the 100th anniversary of the Soviet Union Fleet Admiral Sergei Gorshkov, questions were raised about the prospects for the development of the aircraft carrier forces of the Russian Navy. After the conference, the Commander-in-Chief of the Navy, Admiral Vladimir Vysotsky, announced that, according to the developed and approved plan, by the end of 2010, the Nevskoe Design Bureau, the developer of all Soviet aircraft-carrying ships, should submit a technical design of the future aircraft carrier - with the main tactical and technical elements.
Encouraging statements, which, however, hide under themselves a whole gamut of issues and still unresolved problems, on which the success of "the entire operation" will depend, some of the most important of which are:
- the choice of the scheme of the aircraft carrier itself;
- determination of the composition of the ship's air group;
- creation of an appropriate basing system for new ships and organization of the training process for carrier-based aviation pilots.
RETURN TO THE JUMP?
Today in the world there are three classic schemes of ships of the "aircraft carrier" class:
- CTOL (Conventional Take-Off and Landing), or, as they have recently become more often called by foreign naval theorists, CATOBAR (Catapult Assisted Take Off But Arrested Recovery);
- STOBAR (Short Take-Off But Arrested Landing);
- STOVL (Short Take-Off and Vertical Landing).
In the first case, the takeoff of the aircraft is provided with the help of a catapult, and the landing is carried out on an aerofinisher. The main operators of such aircraft carriers are the US and French navies, on which four (USA) or two (France) steam catapults of the C-13 type are installed, capable of 2.5 seconds. accelerate the aircraft with a takeoff weight of up to 35 tons to a speed of almost 300 km / h. The Brazilian "Sao Paulo", the former French "Foch" belongs to the same type.
In the second case, STOBAR, aircraft take off with a shortened take-off run using a bow springboard (or vertically), while landing is also performed on an aerofinisher. Striking representatives of this type of aircraft carriers are the Russian TAVKR "Admiral of the Fleet of the Soviet Union Kuznetsov", the aircraft carrier Vikramaditya, which is being modernized in Russia for the Indian Navy, and the aircraft carrier "Shi Lan" (the former Soviet TAVKR "Varyag"), which is being prepared for entry into the PLA Navy. …
The third type of aircraft carriers, STOVL, is generally similar to the STOBAR type, but in this case the landing is performed vertically, and not on aerofinishers. Such ships include the British Invincible, the Spanish Prince of Asturias, the Italian Cavour and Garibaldi, the Thai Chakri Narubet, and others. The project of the British aircraft carrier Queen Elizabeth, which is theoretically an aircraft carrier of the STOVL type, is also interesting. the project provides for the installation of a catapult and an aerial control device on it, which actually turns it into a "real" aircraft carrier, such as CATOBAR.
WHAT AIRCRAFT CARRIER DOES THE RUSSIAN Navy NEED?
It seems that our fleet, or rather, the country, in the foreseeable future is unlikely to need a classic CATOBAR aircraft carrier of the size of the American nuclear giants. Of course, a "real" aircraft carrier is not only a high combat potential of the fleet, but also the country's prestige, but - we should honestly admit to ourselves - we will not be able to design, build and operate such a ship even in the long term. No, we can try, spend huge amounts of money on it - but no matter how much we have to "tighten the belt" too much in this case. At the same time, of course, the Nevskoye PKB can "get out of the archive" design documents for the nuclear-powered Ulyanovsk, which had the classic CATOBAR scheme, but will our, as experts say, "highly degraded technologically" shipyards build it? And, most importantly, how much will it cost the budget?
On the other hand, the Russian Navy, of course, does not need a specialized one - anti-submarine or the like - but a multipurpose aircraft carrier, on which a ship air wing (air group) of different composition will be based and which will be able to effectively solve such tasks as:
- destruction of formations of surface ships, convoys and landing detachments of the enemy;
- search and destruction of submarines of various classes;
- destruction of enemy coastal objects on the coast and in the depths of the territory;
- the conquest and retention of air superiority in the combat area;
- provision of air support in the process of deploying their own ship groupings and submarines, as well as the actions of amphibious assault forces and ground forces in coastal areas;
- blockade of certain sea areas and straits.
For the Russian Navy, there is another specific task of aircraft carrier groups - multifunctional (and not just aviation) cover of the deployment areas and / or combat patrols of its strategic missile submarines, which are located in close proximity to their coast (the seas of the Arctic Ocean and the coastal seas of the Pacific Ocean)), which is impossible without carrier groups. In particular, the former Commander-in-Chief of the Navy, Admiral of the Fleet Masorin, and the current Commander-in-Chief of the Navy, Admiral Vysotsky, spoke about this. reduced to zero already on the second day, because the main enemy of boats is aviation."
All of the above is fully consistent with an aircraft carrier, for takeoff from which aircraft pilots will use a bow springboard, which looks more attractive and because, in particular, firstly, our fleet already has many years of experience in operating a ship of this type (Kuznetsov) and organizing the process of combat training for deck pilots using such a take-off scheme; secondly, there is a positive experience in the design of aircraft carriers of this type; thirdly, the shipbuilders of Sevmash are gaining experience in creating, albeit not from scratch, an aircraft carrier of the STOBAR (Vikramaditya) type, and, finally, fourthly, the development and manufacture of an ejection device, and then its “implementation” to the ship will lead to an inevitable delay in the entire program, and after that there will also be inevitable difficulties with the training and retraining of pilots.
It is interesting that in 2007, during the International Maritime Defense Show at the joint stand of the Severodvinsk PO Sevmash and the Nevsky Design Bureau, a huge poster with the picture depicted was shown, as it was claimed, "one of the options" of a promising Russian aircraft carrier, which was indirectly confirmed by the adjacent words: "Advanced design and construction of an aircraft carrier." Although, of course, a drawing is only a drawing, it is quite possible - just the result of the artist's imagination (after all, American tanks and airplanes are placed, for example, on advertisements of Russian arms exhibitions), or deliberate "misinformation of a potential enemy."Nevertheless, judging by the picture, the future Russian "lord of the oceans" is an aircraft carrier of the STOBAR type, without strike weapons, with a fairly compact island superstructure - without chimneys, which suggests that the ship has a nuclear power plant. On the other hand, at the end of July this year. Admiral Vladimir Vysotsky said that the Nevskoe Design Bureau “won the work on the project, but failed. Therefore, today the project is being done by several organizations, including Nevskoye PKB, Severnoye PKB."
What will come of this will be shown in the coming months, although the very approach of the Russian Navy command to the question of determining the appearance of a promising aircraft carrier and its design is alarming. Thus, Admiral Vysotsky said: “The displacement has not yet been determined. I told the designers that it was necessary to build a ship for specific tasks. If they can put it in a matchbox, then please. If it turns out the same as that of the Americans with a displacement of more than 100 thousand tons, then justify. In general, I try to get away from the characteristics. At the same time, however, the Commander-in-Chief expects the appearance by the end of this year. TECHNICAL design of the ship.
However, until now, technical design was carried out in the design bureau on the basis of a technical (or tactical and technical) task, which clearly stated: the purpose of the warship, a set of weapons and equipment, the type of power plant, displacement, speed, cruising range, autonomy, etc. fleet can expect a technical project from the designers, without giving them any of the above, limiting themselves only to general phrases ?! Yes, with such a "contrive for me to get something that cannot be" neither Nevskoe, nor Severnoye, nor Zelenodolsk PKB will cope - no one will cope. As a result, the conclusion suggests itself: the command of the Navy will reasonably “be dissatisfied and reject” the work of the PKB and, citing their incompetence, will decide “to buy weapons abroad”.
Is it possible that we are not talking about a technical project, but about a technical proposal, which is being prepared by the developers even before the conceptual design? But then it should be said, although in this case there can be no question that the lead aircraft carrier, as Vladimir Vysotsky said, may be ready by 2020.
In general, there are more questions here so far than answers …
AVIATION GROUP
Another important issue is the choice of the composition of the air group of future Russian aircraft carriers. Based on the tasks considered above, which may be assigned to them, the following types of aircraft will need to be included in the naval air group:
- multifunctional fighters, capable not only of securing air superiority, but also successfully fighting enemy surface ships, as well as delivering powerful missile and bomb strikes against its coastal targets;
- airplanes or helicopters of the radar patrol, allowing to "move" the boundaries of the radar field from the core of the aircraft carrier group and capable of issuing target designation data to the missile weapon systems, which are armed with the ships of the combat escort of the aircraft carrier;
- PLO planes or helicopters;
- multipurpose (transport and search and rescue) helicopters;
- aircraft or helicopters REP (these functions can be assigned to other aircraft of the air group);
- combat training aircraft serving for training pilots of naval aviation and capable of being used as light fighters and attack aircraft.
From the aircraft available today in Russia, suitable for ship-based, "registration" on the deck of promising domestic aircraft carriers can be obtained:
- Su-33 fighters, which, however, need radical modernization to ensure the multifunctionality of their combat use - for example, they are not capable of using high-precision air-to-surface weapons today; in addition, their serial production has been discontinued (at KnAAPO, even the equipment has been disassembled), and the service life in terms of resource is not unlimited, and / or the MiG-29K / KUB fighters are the most modern and versatile ship-based aircraft today;
- various ship-based helicopters - radar patrol Ka-31, transport and combat Ka-29, search and rescue Ka-27PS and anti-submarine Ka-27 (all of them would also benefit from modernization - at least in terms of equipping with more modern avionics); it is possible to place Ka-52 attack helicopters on an aircraft carrier - they will be indispensable in the provision of air support during amphibious assault operations.
At the same time, the favorite for registration on board a promising aircraft carrier is, of course, the MiG-29K / KUB, the bulk of the development work for which has already been successfully completed - at the expense of an Indian customer. Among the important advantages of the MiG-29K / KUB are the increased reliability of units, systems and assemblies, a 2, 5 times lower cost of a flight hour compared to previous modifications of the MiG-29, a more than 2-fold increase in flight life, a larger fuel supply and availability refueling systems in the air, improved performance in takeoff and landing modes - due to the modification of the airframe, the use of a modern digital control system and new more powerful engines, an increased combat load of a very wide range, as well as the presence of a modern avionics complex with great modernization potential.
In addition, one should take into account the widespread prevalence of aircraft of the MiG-29 family in the domestic Air Force, which, due to a sufficiently high standardization, will provide significant advantages in terms of ensuring the operation and training of flight and technical personnel.
It should be especially noted that representatives of the command of the Russian Navy spoke about the preference of the MiG-29K / KUB as the main fighter of the naval air group of a promising aircraft carrier three years ago. More recently, information has been leaked to the media that the Ministry of Defense is planning to purchase a batch of 26 MiG-29K fighters for the Navy by the end of 2011, but, as a number of experts noted, the whole issue "rested" on the cost of the contract.
However, the normal operation of an aircraft carrier group still cannot be organized without the presence of an AWACS aircraft in the naval air group - namely an aircraft, and not a "temporary surrogate" in the form of a Ka-31 RLDN helicopter, capable of "closing" the near zone, but unable to become "eyes and ears”of the aircraft carrier group commander at a great distance from the order. A specialized aircraft REB (EW) is also needed. At one time, on the basis of the Su-27KUB, it was planned to create a number of specialized shipborne aircraft, including RLDN, REP, etc., but this program does not exist today. Just as there is actually no project of the Yak-44 AWACS aircraft, work on which was discontinued in the early 1990s, and one of the layouts of which can be seen in a well-known private museum of technology in the Moscow region. So for now, you will probably have to rely only on the Ka-31 helicopter complex of the radar patrol.
YESKY THREAD
Another key issue of the "aircraft carrier theme" is related to the creation of an appropriate basing system for aircraft carrier forces and the organization of an effective training system for carrier pilots. There is no need to say much about the need to create a basing system for aircraft carrier forces before the first aircraft carrier of a new type is put into operation - it is enough to remember that due to its complete absence, Kiev constantly stood on the roadstead of Severomorsk, “beating out” the resource of mechanisms and equipment its GEM. In addition, it is necessary to provide in advance and mooring lines for the ships of the combat escort of aircraft carriers. We also need modern coastal airfields with all the necessary infrastructure to accommodate the aircraft and helicopters of the air group during the inter-voyage period or while the ship is at the dock.
Finally, the most "sore point" of the national "aircraft carrier idea" today is the training of pilots of carrier-based aviation and specialists of the engineering and aviation service. The naval aviation of the Russian Navy does not have its own educational institution for the training of technical specialists - they have to be taken from the Air Force. But this is still half the trouble - we still have nowhere to teach deck pilots: and before a young pilot sits on the deck and takes off from it, he needs to be prepared for this not only with a notebook and on a simulator (if there is one), but also, as they say, live. The training of deck-ships on the Crimean simulator NITKA (Ground Test Aviation Training Complex), which remained at the disposal of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine, as the events of the last three years have shown, is not only too expensive a pleasure, but not always feasible even after making an advance payment and is entirely dependent on political sentiments in Kiev. As a result, the Russian Ministry of Defense made a logical decision on the need to create a similar simulator in Russia. For this, the base of the former Naval Aviation School in Yeisk, Krasnodar Territory, was chosen, which makes it possible to create not just a simulator for deck ships, but also a whole multidisciplinary center for combat use for training pilots of various types of aircraft that are in service with the naval aviation of the Russian Navy.
The cost of the construction of the complex in Yeisk, announced today by the command of the Russian Navy, is about 24 billion rubles, of which 8 billion have already been practically used in the first stage of construction - it provides for the construction of a take-off and landing block with a complex of airfield support, housing for military personnel and personnel complex, as well as social infrastructure facilities. The commissioning of the first stage is scheduled for 2011 - by that time Proletarskiy Zavod had undertaken to supply equipment for the aerofinisher complex. And only after the successful completion of the first stage of construction, the construction of the facilities of the test block of the complex in Yeisk will begin.
At the same time, an additional, albeit indirect, confirmation of the fact that a promising Russian aircraft carrier will have a bow springboard, and not a catapult, can also be the nature of the "Yeisk THREAD" being built - it includes only a simulator of the flight deck of an aircraft carrier, with a springboard and an air guard. and no catapults. On the other hand, no one bothers to put a steam catapult in the second stage - only can Proletarskiy Zavod be able to produce it? There is no one else in Russia.
INSTEAD OF AN AFTERWORD
One day, addressing the welcoming speech to the crew of the nuclear-powered aircraft carrier Dwight D. Eisenhower, the then Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff of the US Armed Forces, General John Shalikashvili, said: "I feel calm every time when I ask the operational officer" Where is the nearest aircraft carrier? " he can answer: "He is just in the same place!". For the interests of the United States, this means everything."
These words, spoken about, as we said a couple of decades ago, "weapons of imperialist aggression" do not require any additional comment. But for many years the dream of the legendary naval people's commissar and minister Nikolai Kuznetsov, and many other admirals and shipbuilding engineers, remained unfulfilled in our country. The legendary pilot-pilot, Hero of Russia, Major General Timur Apakidze, who untimely passed away, even once said that “the country has been going painfully for a long time to create aircraft carriers, without which the Navy simply loses its meaning in our time”.
And today we can already firmly say: the presence of an aircraft carrier-class ship in the Russian fleet is a necessity fully justified from the theoretical, scientific and practical points of view.
