According to TASS report, on December 22, local time, Russia's only aircraft carrier "Kuznetsov" caught fire again, but there were no casualties and 20 people on the ship have been evacuated.
For now, the fire has been put out. The "Kuznetsov" aircraft carrier is being repaired at the Zvezda Shipyard in Murmansk.
This is not the first time that the ill-fated aircraft carrier "Kuznetsov" has encountered an accident.
As the only seedling of the Russian aircraft carrier, the aircraft carrier began maintenance work in 2017. A fire broke out in December 2019, resulting in at least 1 death and 12 injuries; In October 2018, a floating dock sank accident occurred. A crane smashed through the deck, leaving a large hole with a diameter of about 5 meters on the spot, causing a total of 52 damage to the hull. In 2002, 2003, 2005, and 2006, the aircraft carrier encountered large and small fires and accidents.
Therefore, the "Kuznetsov" was also nicknamed "the worst aircraft carrier" by the media.
However, Russia really cannot give up this aircraft carrier, because building a new aircraft carrier is almost a fantasy for Russia's current national strength.
In April 2021, Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu visited the Russian Navy’s Northern Fleet and urged to speed up the maintenance of the Kuznetsov. At that time, Russia claimed that the "Kuznetsov" would regain its combat effectiveness between 2022 and 2023.
But then the conflict between Russia and Ukraine broke out. In June this year, Russia stated that the "Kuznetsov" aircraft carrier would return to the Russian Navy's combat order in 2024.
Unexpectedly, at the end of 2022, the Kuznetsov encountered another fire. This will undoubtedly delay the ship's maintenance progress, and the aircraft carrier may not even be able to return to the Russian Navy by 2025.
The construction of the "Kuznetsov" started in 1983, which has been forty years ago. When it was delivered, it happened to coincide with the disintegration of the Soviet Union. Fortunately, the ship was basically completed at that time, so Russia took over the aircraft carrier from the Soviet Union without spending much effort.
However, "If virtue is not matched, there will be consequences" . It is true that Russia has obtained this aircraft carrier that integrates high-end Soviet technology, but the aircraft carrier requires a huge military industrial chain and sufficient funds for continuous upgrade and maintenance to extend its service life.
It is obvious that Russia does not have enough strength to maintain the combat effectiveness of its aircraft carrier, and its symbolic deterrence significance exceeds its actual combat significance. Now Russia's GDP is almost the same as that of Guangdong Province in China, and China's GDP per capita has completely surpassed Russia.
The total amount of military expenditure that such an economic strength can provide can be imagined. In this way, Russia has to allocate a large amount of funds from its small military expenditure to maintain its nuclear arsenal. After all, nuclear weapons are Russia's last trump card to maintain strategic deterrence.
Then, the maintenance funds available for the "Kuznetsov" must be very little. Even the Russian Ministry of Defense once questioned whether it was necessary to continue repairing this old ship.
In fact, even if Russia provides sufficient maintenance funds for the "Kuznetsov", the outside world is very doubtful whether Russia still has enough technology to repair the ship.
The development of science and technology is not linear and may go backwards. For example, the European Middle Ages were more ignorant than the ancient Greek and Roman periods, so there was the so-called "Renaissance".
The same is true in Russia. Not to mention progress, many technologies have not even reached the level before the collapse of the Soviet Union. Sometimes a little technological progress is achieved by finding information that was lost after the collapse of the Soviet Union. This is jokingly called "archaeological scientific research" by the outside world.
In 2020, the Russian Kuznetsov Company accidentally discovered some "lost" technical data of Soviet-era aeroengines, and then began to mass-produce this type of engine again.
The situation of the "Kuznetsov", which uses a lot of Soviet technology, is probably similar.
So, we can see such a magical scene: In the past few years, whenever the "Kuznetsov" is about to return to the Russian combat order, some "small fires" and "minor accidents" will occur on the ship, pushing back the date of delivery to the Navy.
In this way, the Russian military, government, and maintenance companies can all find a way out, and they can finally explain themselves to the Russian people.
What's more, the Russian Navy's proud guided missile cruiser " Moskva " was sunk by the Ukrainian army in the Russia-Ukraine conflict this year, which has severely frustrated the Russian Navy's pride. If the "Kuznetsov" is repaired on time, it is very likely to be involved in the ongoing Russia-Ukraine conflict. A huge symbolic ship like
is bound to become a key target of attack by the Ukrainian army. Once it is sunk or suffers irreversible damage, the morale of the Russian army will inevitably suffer a greater blow.
Therefore, "Kuznetsov" can only continue to stay in the dock .
In stark contrast to its fate is the sister ship of the "Kuznetsov" - "Varyag" . The technical code name of the "Kuznetsov" is 1143.5, and the technical code name of the "Varyag" is 1143.6. " Varyag " was later transformed and became China's " Liaoning ship " .
The "Varyag" was not as close to completion as the "Kuznetsov". It was only about 68% built. When it first arrived in China, the power system and instrument valves were dismantled by the Ukrainian side. China has completely independently rebuilt the power system and replaced important parts. Therefore, the ship has excellent power, and its overall combat effectiveness is not comparable to that of the "Kuznetsov".
Now, compared to the "Kuznetsov" that is "shy" and unwilling to see people, China's "Liaoning" steals the show .
Foreign media reported that the "Liaoning" aircraft carrier fleet conducted actual combat training in the western Pacific this year. The Japanese Self-Defense Force observed that eight Chinese naval vessels, including an aircraft carrier, passed through the Okinawa Islands in southern Japan and took off and landed ship-based helicopters in the East China Sea .
The Associated Press pointed out that the mission highlighted the growing role of the Chinese navy as Beijing attempts to replace the United States as the most important military power in Asia.
On December 28, the Integrated Staff and Supervision Department of the Japanese Ministry of Defense released news that the "Liaoning" continued to operate in the Pacific Ocean and headed south to the west of the US-controlled Guam from the 23rd to the 25th.
At present, the Chinese military already has the "Liaoning Ship", "Shandong Ship" and "Fujian Ship". From the first aircraft carrier to the first domestically produced aircraft carrier, China's progress has shocked the United States and the West. Russia also has complicated feelings about Chinese aircraft carrier "dropping dumplings". On the one hand, it recognizes the huge power gap between China and Russia, and on the other hand, it has to worry about the current situation of its own aircraft carrier.
Many Russian netizens even believe that the Russian government should buy back the Chinese "Liaoning", which is far more practical than repairing the "Kuznetsov". The idea of is not new this year. Before the conflict between Russia and Ukraine broke out, Russian media seriously discussed the feasibility of this solution..
Admittedly, from a Russian perspective, such an idea has a certain degree of rationality. First of all, if the "Kuznetsov" continues to be repaired for a long time, Russia only has an aircraft carrier in name, and is actually the laughing stock of those Western countries;
Secondly, the "Liaoning" is a remodeled "Varyag" after all, and is still essentially a Soviet-made weapon. Russia can save a lot of trouble in maintenance;
Finally, China also has a more advanced aircraft carrier. Once the "Liaoning" is retired, it is better to be a "favor" to Russia.
However, Russian netizens need to be clear that this is unlikely to happen at present.
Although the "Liaoning Ship" came from the "Varyag", it was just an empty shell at the time. It was China that really brought it back to life. This was also China's first aircraft carrier. The significance is not ordinary .
Moreover, an aircraft carrier is not an ordinary military equipment. It requires a large number of personnel and long-term running-in of weapon systems. It requires outfitting, debugging, sea trials, etc. It takes about four years to form combat effectiveness. The international struggle situation China is currently facing is not optimistic, and the situation in the Taiwan Strait can even be said to be "serious."
The current juncture is a critical period for the Chinese Navy to improve its combat effectiveness, and it is absolutely impossible to damage its combat effectiveness.
Although China has the world's largest navy in terms of the number of ships , the United States maintains an advantage in the number of aircraft carriers and nuclear submarines as well as the number of bases and allies it has in the South China Sea . The challenges facing the Chinese Navy are not insignificant.
However, China does not give any support to Russian . As the saying goes, it is better to teach a man to fish than to teach him to fish. According to the "International Ship Network" report, the PD-100 giant floating dock with a load capacity of 100,000 tons built by China for Russia has recently arrived in Russia. After the delivery of the
PD-100 dock, Russia will resume its shipbuilding capabilities, and the efficiency of new ship construction and old ship maintenance will inevitably be greatly improved. In this way, the possibility of repair of the "Kuznetsov" and other ships is much improved.
From the experience of the "Kuznetsov", we can see that only a powerful country can truly own an aircraft carrier .
Strong national defense needs to be supported by a strong economy. The bitterness of Russia being controlled by others is right in front of us.
We must cheer up. The tragedies of the Soviet Union and Russia must not be repeated in China.
