On July 10 of this year, TASS reported that the Nevsky Design Bureau, which is part of the United Shipbuilding Corporation (USC), showed a model of the promising aircraft carrier of Project 11430E "Manatee". The presentation took place within the framework of the St. Petersburg International Maritime Defense Show.
Estimated characteristics are known. According to the stand of the Nevsky Bureau itself, the displacement of the aircraft carrier will be 80-90 thousand tons, and the maximum length will be 350 meters. Autonomy will be about 120 days, full speed - about 30 knots. The aircraft carrier's crew is 2,800 people, the air group will include 800 people. The service life of the ship will be over 50 years.
The aircraft carrier will receive a springboard, two electromagnetic catapults and four air arrestors. The total number of aircraft that will be based on board will exceed fifty: now they are talking about 60 aircraft and helicopters, but this figure may change. However, as many other alleged characteristics may change as the ship is developed. It is important to note that it is planned to place airborne radio detection and guidance systems in the ship's air group. A significant plus to combat capabilities, especially against the background of "Admiral Kuznetsov".
Concept issues
Despite possible changes, the overall concept is generally clear. The ship will be smaller than the newest American aircraft carrier of the Gerald R. Ford class, which has a displacement of approximately 100,000 tons. However, it is significantly larger than the Admiral Kuznetsov heavy aircraft carrier and the only French aircraft carrier currently in service, the Charles de Gaulle. Its displacement is "modest" 42,000 tons, and the aviation group includes up to 40 aircraft and helicopters in total. The newest British aircraft carrier "Queen Elizabeth" type carries about the same amount, but do not forget that, unlike the "Kuznetsov" and "Charles de Gaulle", the newest stealth fighters of the fifth generation F-35B are based on board. Despite the very limited combat radius, this is a strong argument in any naval "dispute".
The official description of the "Manatee" is very restrained and could fit the description of any aircraft carrier in general. "The aircraft carrier" Manatee "is intended to support the basing and combat use of an air group, including shipborne aircraft (LAC) of various types, capable of using weapons and weapons against air, sea (submarine and surface) forces, as well as ground forces and ground targets of the enemy in the ocean, sea and coastal zones, as well as to ensure the combat stability of the naval groupings of the Navy and to cover the amphibious assault forces and their landing forces from strikes and attacks of the enemy's air attack,”the presentation says.
So what exactly might a new ship be like? Strange as it may seem, one can give one concrete clear answer to this question - a direct analogue of the Ulyanovsk heavy aircraft-carrying cruiser, which was dismantled on the stocks in 1992. And which was to become the first "real" Soviet aircraft carrier. Recall that the new ship of Project 1143.7 was supposed to receive what the previous Soviet aircraft carrying ships lacked: the launch catapult. They wanted to equip it with two steam catapults "Mayak", which would allow, for example, to lift AWACS aircraft. And the total number of Su-33 fighters at Ulyanovsk was supposed to be 60 units. Approximately as much as the American "Nimitz" carried: in his case, however, it was the more versatile F-14 and F-18.
Of course, "Manatee" and "Ulyanovsk" are not exactly the same thing. Over the past years, technologies have not stood still: this concerns, first of all, electronics. But the relationship between the ships is visible to the naked eye.
Battle of Russian aircraft carriers
It is worth recalling that back in July 2013, a large-scale model of the Russian aircraft carrier "Storm" was demonstrated to specialists in a closed mode within the framework of the naval show in St. Petersburg for the first time, work on which began at the Krylov State Research Center. The length of the ship should be 330 meters, width - 40 m, and displacement - up to 100 thousand tons. An important difference between the "Storm" and the "Manatee" is the scheme with two deck superstructures similar to what we see on the new British aircraft carriers. This decision is not entirely clear, as it complicates the operation of aircraft and, in general, makes the project more complex and expensive.
The Storm air group looks more impressive than that of the Manatee: up to 90 aircraft versus 60. In general, the situation with her is very strange and mysterious. For an older project, they did not regret making models of the fifth generation Su-57 fighter: it was assumed that someday a deck version of the Russian "five" could appear. But in the case of the project 11430E "Manatee" they limited themselves to the models of the Su-33 and MiG-29K fighters. This is despite the fact that the Su-33 is no longer produced, and the machines in operation are living out their life. In a word, the Soviet legacy here also made itself felt, which further strengthened the connection with Ulyanovsk.
However, ordinary lovers of marine technology can be grateful that they were at least shown this. According to the "glorious" tradition of the post-Soviet military-industrial complex, everything could be limited to a couple of avaricious statements by officials and reports of the leading media about "having no analogues in the world."
On the whole, "Manatee" can be viewed as the defense industry's response to new realities. When a country has to count money with trebled strength and the implementation of new military "super projects" should not be expected. That is, the aircraft carrier of Project 11430E has become a kind of stripped-down "Storm": in fact, a return to the Soviet traditions of shipbuilding. In this sense, perhaps, he has a better chance of at least some implementation than earlier projects. To put it even more simply, in the future the fleet may receive a kind of "Kuznetsov 2.0". Not the most powerful aircraft carrier, but also not a strange unknown what, but a completely combat-ready ship, which can be confidently attributed to a certain class.
The very need for an aircraft carrier for a major power with access to the sea is quite obvious. Since in the current reality, without air cover, any, even the most powerful warship, is simply a large and convenient target. Including for carrier-based aircraft of a potential enemy.
