Project 1144 heavy nuclear missile cruiser "Kirov" (photo)

2024 Author: Howard Calhoun | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 10:16

The idea of creating large ocean-going vessels, the role of which would be powered by a nuclear reactor, pursued scientists and engineers almost from the moment the first experiments in the field of atom splitting appeared. Of course, the military dreamed of this most of all: an unlimited range and a huge autonomous navigation time - what else is needed for happiness? In general, this is how the Kirov cruiser appeared in the USSR.

Prerequisites for creation

In 1961, the US Navy received an unexpected addition - the nuclear-powered cruiser Long Beach. This forced scientists to start hasty research in the field of creating domestic surface nuclear-powered ships. Naturally, such work could not be started immediately, and therefore the project officially started only in 1964. During this time, all the necessary theoretical data were obtained. The main task was formulated simply - the creation of a large ocean-going ship of the first rank, capable of operating for a long time both autonomously and as part of large groups, supporting and covering them.

Of course, "simple" was only on paper, sohow engineers immediately had to face a huge number of difficulties. So it is the cruiser "Kirov" that can rightfully be considered the real crown of engineering military thought of that period. 1144 (project) was able to demonstrate to the whole world the true capabilities of the USSR. Ships of this class are still highly respected in the West.

Primary terms of reference

Initially, the terms of reference involved the creation of a large anti-submarine ship, the displacement of which would not exceed eight thousand tons. B. Kupensky, who had previously successfully created a lot of anti-submarine ships (such as Komsomolets Ukrainy), was immediately appointed the main curator of the project. From the Navy, the captain of the second rank A. Savin was appointed as an observer.

Difficulties and overcoming them

Commander-in-Chief of the Navy S. Gorshkov immediately fell in love with this project and constantly inquired about the progress of work on it. But the creation of a unique ship took a long time and was difficult, as the designers had to solve many problems on the go. In particular, almost from the first months of research, it became clear that the displacement would have to be increased, since the steam-conducting installation of a bypass reactor simply did not fit into the originally proposed hull design. If the engineers were given the go-ahead for this project, then the Kirov nuclear cruiser would be three times larger than it is now, and the ship is already rather big!

As a result, the project grew to completely indecent sizes, there was simply no place for missiles and other weaponsremained. The solution was logical, but difficult: to design a new installation specifically designed for long-range warships. Difficulties were added by Gorshkov's categorical requirement for the mandatory presence of a power plant running on diesel or other fossil fuels. However, everyone agreed with this immediately and unanimously: the Kirov 1144 cruiser is not a pleasure boat, we always had problems with the base of such vessels (after all, this is not the USA with its colossal reserves of convenient coast), and the experience of operating such installations was small.

Armed Disputes

From the very beginning, it became clear that the cruiser "Kirov" would be able to perform all the tasks assigned to it only if it was structurally based on simply phenomenal combat stability. Simply put, the ability to repel various types of aggression in all possible conditions. American successes in the creation of aviation immediately drew attention to themselves: these aircraft would certainly become the main threat to the ship. I had to introduce a huge amount of anti-aircraft weapons into the design, which would allow creating a deep, layered missile defense system.

Strange as it may seem, but anti-ship missiles were not included in the project right away. The fact is that the USSR simply did not have enough experience in their creation and application. Even the ships we had in those years did not carry serious weapons of this class, which sharply reduced their combat effectiveness in the event of a possible conflict with America. And there things withthe situation with anti-ship missiles was much better: they had already begun to massively equip all suitable warships. Thus, it became clear that the future cruiser "Kirov" should become a multifunctional heavy missile cruiser, TAKR.

Completion of design

In 1973, the design was completely completed, and the next year the ship was already laid down. Since then, the cruiser "Kirov" has been leading its history, in 1992 it was renamed "Admiral Ushakov". As you might guess, the construction was slow and not very uniform, since nothing like this had been built before. In 1977, it was launched, and for two more years it was completed in a "floating" mode. Only in 1980, he passed all the tests and was solemnly transferred to the Northern Fleet. In 1984, the construction of the Frunze (Admiral Lazarev) was completed, four years later the Kalinin (Admiral Nakhimov) appeared. Well, "Yuri Andropov", aka "Peter the Great", could be handed over to the fleet only in 1998.

The uniqueness of the domestic project

Our cruisers of this class in the world definitely have no analogues: the closest American version, the Virginia, is 2.5 times smaller in displacement. The "Long Beach" mentioned above is generally less than one and a half times. In addition, these cruisers have received maximum unification with land-based weapons, which theoretically allows replenishing ammunition at almost any base that has coastal defense systems. However, this is especially noticeable in the example of the second and subsequent ships, sinceat Kirov, these technologies have not yet been sufficiently tested.

Power plant

But the main "highlight" is a truly unique nuclear power plant. There are two of them, power - 70,000 l / s. The engines are powered by turbines, which, on a standby power plant, receive energy from diesel plants. Full speed - up to 30 knots, on standby engines - at least 14. The engineers managed to reduce the size of the crew by half (compared to the Oktyabrskaya Revolutsiya battleship). It consists of 655 people. Of these, 105 have an officer's rank, 130 are midshipmen, the rest falls on the rank and file. By the way, the heavy cruiser "Kirov" (like other ships of this series) is still a desirable place of service for sailors. The reason for this is simple - comfort.

The ship has comfortable wardrooms, many single cabins for officers and midshipmen, spacious and comfortable quarters for enlisted personnel. The equipment of the local medical office can be the envy of an average city hospital, and in the gym you can easily maintain an excellent physical shape due to a considerable selection of exercise equipment. Is it worth mentioning the on-board sauna with a swimming pool and several spacious showers? Perhaps, until that time, the comfort of this class was available only to submariners and aircraft carrier crews.

Missile weapons and armor

The main weapon is the Granit long-range missile complex. They are completely autonomous, have a complex approach to the target, are protected from possible settinginterference. The ship's missile silos are armored, so that even in direct combat with the enemy, the risk of damage to them is minimal. And further. Like other vessels of Project 1144, the heavy nuclear cruiser "Kirov" is unique in having good armor.

No, during the Second World War, it was not something out of the ordinary, but with the beginning of the missile era, warships lost their armor. In principle, Soviet engineers would hardly have returned to their "origins", but the situation was special: a nuclear cruiser, and even with a stock of serious missile weapons on board! It was impossible to allow some banal blow or other impact to disable the ship.

Because of this, the main armored belt that protects the vessel from stern to bow is 100 mm thick. Missile silos, diesel fuel reserves, a reactor, a command center, a helicopter hangar are separately protected.

Characteristics of other weapons

We decided not to get too carried away with the air defense system, leaving the well-proven systems. The main artillery armament is a pair of 100-mm automatic mounts with radar detection of potential targets. It must be remembered that the project 1144 cruiser "Kirov" was the first and last ship on which these weapons were installed. After him, they began to mount 130-mm artillery twin automatic installations. Eight six-barreled automatic cannons are used as a means of self-defense.

Starting with Nakhimov, self-defense artillery and missile systems were combined, making the ship's missile defense muchmore reliable. The target is also detected by radar, but not only artillery, but also missile weapons are aimed at it. We can assume that the Kirov nuclear cruiser has a two-level anti-aircraft protection, while on the other ships of the series it has a three-level one.

ASW weapons

The polynomial multifunctional sonar system is responsible for detecting enemy submarines. The compartment for its towed external antenna is mounted in the stern of the ship. There is also a torpedo launcher "Metel" (which was replaced by "Waterfall" on other ships of the series). Note that the Kirov missile cruiser is to some extent protected much weaker than its descendants. This is easily explained: all of them (theoretically) no longer belong to the 1144 project, but to the 11441 series, which implies significant modernization and replacement of updated equipment and weapons right during construction. Again, only "Peter the Great" fully meets this requirement.

Subsequent ships have already been equipped with universal missile and bomb systems, which significantly increased the combat stability of these ships. These installations can be used both for firing rockets and torpedoes. Unfortunately, the Kirov cruiser (a photo of the ship is in the article) is not so well protected, but it is far from defenseless either.

Other means to combat enemy submarines

The set of tools for combating potential enemy submarines is complemented by RBU missile and bomb systems (RBU-6000, RBU-1200, RBU-12000"Boa"). Unlike previous weapons, they are designed not to attack, but to repel enemy torpedo salvos. Starting with the third cruiser of the series, the effectiveness of these systems has been significantly increased by installing the latest examples of anti-submarine weapons on them. In addition, the ship has a helicopter hangar, which can simultaneously accommodate up to three anti-submarine helicopters.

The Kirov nuclear missile cruiser can carry: Ka-27, Ka-27PS, Ka-31 and Ka-39. It should be noted that they can be used not only in anti-submarine, but also in rescue and search options, which significantly increases the number of scenarios for the effective use of these ships. For their accommodation and maintenance, there is not only an armored helicopter hangar, but also separate tanks with a supply of fuel and an ammunition depot. This significantly increases the safety of helicopters.

In closing

In recent years, all remaining Project 1144 cruisers have been equipped with modern electronic warfare equipment, on-board electronics have been replaced with new models that are distinguished by enhanced functionality and increased reliability. "Last" - because the Kirov itself was sent for recycling in 1999 … due to lack of funds for repairs.

Thus, the nuclear cruiser "Project Kirov" 1144 incorporated all the advanced achievements of Soviet engineering. There is no doubt that this type of TARK is the best in the entire class and is still very relevant in the seas of the Worldocean.