China gets the Varyag for peanuts while the Gorshkov remains a money pit

VPK quotes a Chinese blog that the ex-Soviet almost carrier Varyag is going to be commissioned into the People's Liberation Army Navy as a training carrier, giving the People's Liberation Army a People's Liberation Army Naval Airforce with fixed wing capability: 

 VPK:

According to the Chinese source blog.sina.com, the leadership of the Chinese Navy confirmed press reports of accepting the Ukrainian aircraft carrier "Varyag" into the fleet as a training carrier.

The carrier is the ideal training platform for carrier pilots since it can go to sea and pitch and roll. Rolling can't be simulated on land training bases. The carrier will also be a test platform for self-defense systems. Besides that, the experience with the Varyag  will give the Chinese the opportunity to choose a power plant for an indigenously built carrier. According to unconfirmed sources, testing of a carrier based version of the J-10 has already begun. A series of escort ships like the "Chinese Aegis" Type 054 destroyers and other vessels are already building.

It's highly unlikely that the Varyag will be a fully capable combat aircraft carrier since the carrier was built in 1988 and has been in the water almost 20 years. Carriers in the US Navy have a 50 year service life, so the Varyag wont be in the Chinese order of battle for very long.

China originally bought the Varyag for $20 million without an engine or a rudder. A Chinese entrepeneuer wanted to turn it into a floating casino in the fascinating, but shady, enclave of Macau.

Perhaps the Indians should have waited a bit and bought the Gorshkov for scrap, instead of approving $2.35 Billion to renovate a 25 year old hull. I wonder how many dachas, Hummers and condos in Dubai were bought with the skim off all the money the Indians have poured into that pit?

Don't Call it a Comeback

Just a quick post, because I can't resist, via The Pilot's Blog, a good 11 minute video on the Gorshkov being refloated back in December. Note the detail of the guts of the arresting gear around minute five. And around minute ten, the head of Sevmash says that the experience with re-habbing the Gorshkov combined with the existing capability with regards to handling nuclear propulsion makes the yard the natural choice for building a future Russian nuclear carrier. I may have more on that in a later post. Some of you may also be interested in the footage from the carrier aviation base in Saki, Ukraine.

The Indians Should Have Checked Carrierfax Before Buying

The Sevmash Public Affairs Officer Mikhail Starozhilov announced that the Indian Navy aircraft carrier, which is being overhauled in the Severodvinsk shipyard, will be launched in December.
The former Russian heavy aircraft carrying cruiser Admiral Gorshkov has been in the floodable basin used as a dry dock since the end of 2005. The 45,000 ton, 283m long, 51m wide hull was repaired in that dock. "The launch of a ship of that displacement is the first in the history of the new Russia", Starozhilov said. The process of filling the basin and the removal of the cruiser will take around 10 days. After that the ship will be moved to the Sevmash construction wharf.

According to the intergovernmental memorandum of understanding signed in New Dehli in 2004, the hull of the Admiral Gorshkov was transfered to India for free with the condition that it would be modernized at Sevmash and equipped with a Russian air group. Russia would also train the Indian crew of around 1,500 sailors and would create the infrastructure for basing the ship and the airgroup in the Indian Ocean. The original contract was valued at about 1.5 billion dollars. About half of that was intended to convert the ship into a full aircraft carrier and that work was planned to be completed in 2008. However the contract was extended and the Russian side insisted on increasing the cost of the work on modernizing the ship significantly. According to experts, an additional billion dollars is needed. The Indian and Russian governments are holding negotiations on this issue.

Before and Almost After

Admiral Gorshkov, 2005:



Vikramaditya, Oct 2008:



Many, many, many more photos here.

Via Lenivship.

The Specs Remain the Same: MiG It Is for Gorshkov

A rep for FGUP "Sevmash" told Interfax that they "...haven't received any changes in the technical specificaions for the Gorshkov" and that the ship "remains designated to fly the MiG-29K. As far as we know, the Indians, in addition to our aircraft, plan on flying the British Sea Harrier vertical take off and landing aircraft also."

There were rumors that the Indians would purchase American F-18 Super Hornets.

"Even if there is a similar initiative ongoing in the Indian Navy, its doubtful that its connected with the "Gorshkov". American aircraft use a catapult assisted takeoff which our ships don't have: we use a ski-ramp and planes with a short take off and landing capability - the MiG-29K."

The spokesman suggested that the Indians are possibly considering the possiblity of buying American planes for their first indigenously built carrier which is being constructed at their own shipyard in Cochin.

Earlier the Chief of Staff of the Indian Navy Admiral Surish Mehta announced that delivery of the carrier based MiG-29K interceptors intended for the Indian-purchased "Admiral Gorshkov" will begin in May 2008.

He emphasized that the contract has been executed with a slight delay. The contract, which was signed in January, 2004 for $700 million, calls for delivery of 16 carrier-borne MiG-29K/KUB interceptors (12 combat versions and four combat trainers) as well as the unique equipment and training for the aircrews and service personnel, including simulators and ground- and sea-based interactive training systems. There is also an option for further delivery of 30 aircraft in the period up to the year 2015.

First Look

Indians Come to Severodvinsk to Inspect Work on Gorshkov

According to a "Sevmash" press release, a delegation headed by the chief of the purchasing and production directorate of the unified headquarters of the Indian Navy, Vice-Admiral Dilip Deshpande is leading a delegation on a planned ten-day trip to meet with the group of Indian observers and the leadership of FGUP "Sevmash" in Severodvinsk on the progress on the aircraft carrier formerly known as "Gorshkov", now the "Vikramadit'ya". According to the Russians, "It is planned at the negotiations to agree with the Indian side about additional and unacccounted for repair work, equipment conversion and ship testing."

I'm sure the Indians are thrilled about that "additional and unaccounted for work"...


Active Phase of Bold Monarch-2008 Starts Monday

The goals of Bold Monarch-2008, which runs from 23 May to 07 June off of Norway, are to test the joint rescue equipment of the Russian and NATO navies and also exercise cooperative action during rescue operations.

"In the course of the active phase from 26 May to 05 June, with a one day pause, the participants will practice elements of crew rescue from stricken submarines. It is planned to carry out a series of medical support exercises using hyperbaric chambers and television guided underwater equipment on the pause day..."

The Northern Fleet Rescue Ship "Georgiy Titov" and other NATO and NATO partner ships and observers are participating.

An AS-34 Russian underwater rescue device will mate with a NATO submarine for the first time ever during these exercises in the presence of NATO observers on board the submarine.

Also, it is planned that Russian pararescuers will work with their counterparts from Great Britain, Italy and Ukraine for the first time.

Command and control over the NATO submarine will be exercised for the first time by a Russian officer on board the "Titov" using underwater communications channels.


Pacific Fleet Flagship "Varyag" Returns to Action After Long Break

A spokesman for the Pacific Fleet announced that the Slava-class Project 1164 Pacific Ocean Fleet Flagshp and so-called "carrier killer" (roll eyes here) "Varyag" Is carrying out a series of artillery firings on land, surface and air targets. The surface to air missile system will fire on an airborne target as well.

This is the first time at open sea for the "Varyag" as well as the first weapons firing since overhaul. The Pacific Fleet flagship underwent a successful two phase sea trial and is now again in active service. Now in the new year the crew under the command of Captain First Rank Edward Moskalenko awaits deployment and participation in various exercises.