According to a report on the U.S. Navy's identification website on January 30, Russia's next-generation aircraft carrier may be developed from the Soviet Union's unfinished Project 11437, the Ulyanovsk nuclear-powered aircraft carrier.
11437 Project Ulyanovsk nuclear-powered aircraft carrier imaginary image
Two sources in the Russian shipbuilding industry recently told TASS news agency Information about the construction of Russia's new aircraft carrier and the technology transfer of Project 11437, the deadline for the design of technical documents In 2023. The new aircraft carrier is designed by the Nevskoe Design Bureau.
's solution using Project 11437 will simplify and speed up the development of new aircraft carriers. Of course, it is impossible to build entirely from old blueprints, since electronics, radio, nuclear engineering and other fields of science and technology have made great progress in the past 30 years. However, the laws of fluid mechanics and warship theory, the strength and durability of materials remain unchanged. The durability and performance of steel and coil used in shipbuilding has not changed much either.
Existing data shows that the displacement of this new aircraft carrier will be between 65,000 and 70,000 tons. The standard displacement of the project 11437 warship fits this range. If the modifications required for the new aircraft carrier remain close to the project 11437 and do not require an increase in size due to compact modern equipment, the original theoretical blueprints and durability calculations and other studies will remain unchanged.
In addition to the superstructure, the design will focus on internal compartments, changing longitudinal and transverse bulkheads, placing new equipment inside the house, laying pipes and cables.
Russian President Putin visited a scale model of the 11430E project in January 2020
Nevskoe Design Bureau was most affected by the collapse of the Soviet Union. Russia continues to build nuclear submarines and diesel-electric submarines, but it is unable to build large warships with a displacement of more than 5,000 tons. The Nevskoe Bureau is responsible for the design of large warships. Except for technical overhaul of the aircraft carrier of Project 11435 and endless upgrade support for the landing ship of Project 11711, the bureau has not signed any new contracts. It must survive by trading arms with foreign countries. This resulted in the design bureau's workforce being reduced from 780 to 370 people.
Indian Navy Aircraft Carrier INS Vikramaditya
Collaboration with India has helped the Nevskoe Design Bureau retain its capabilities and train young senior professionals. The modernization of the Indian Navy’s Project 11434 aircraft carrier can be described as a “new warship in an old hull.” In fact, the new ski-jump takeoff deck also changed the hull. The agency's young staff resumed cooperation in building the aircraft carrier INS Vikramaditya for the Indian Navy. The Nevskoe Design Bureau has also designed ground simulators for the Indian Navy's aircraft and developed a complete set of technical means for the Indian-made Vikrant aircraft carrier.
However, the biggest risk in Russia’s new aircraft carrier project lies with the Nevskoe Design Bureau. There are rumors that the Nevskoe Design Bureau is on the verge of bankruptcy. However, from the current point of view, Russia's new aircraft carrier project will still proceed.
(Author: Wei Pang, copyrighted work. Reprinting without permission is prohibited)
