Fórum Defesa Brasil

Fair well, Ochakov.

Thus, on the 21st of September, the hull of the BPK Ochakov was towed to the dock for preparations for towing to the breakers. And so ends the epoch of a great raid on the treasury for the Black Sea Fleet, started by Admiral Kasatonov. Using his position, this bad man (and on this I insist that Kasatonov is a bad man) sent the BPK Azov to the breakers in the 90s, which was in much better condition and, most importantly, functioned!!, which was very uncharacteristic for the 90s. The decommissioning of the Azov allowed Kasatonov to allocate money for the repair of the Ochakov which should have become a "miracle-ship" with all new armament. She didn't and all the money was looted. And the Azov, the only BPK with a modern long range naval SAM, was cut into razor blades...And now Ochakov has been launched down the same path...wicked isn't too strong a term...

VLADIVOSTOK, November 18 (RIA Novosti) - The Russian Navy will commission the Nerpa nuclear submarine, on which 20 people recently died, rather than sell or lease it to India, the chief of the General Staff told a Russian daily on Tuesday. On November 8, while the submarine was undergoing sea trials in the Sea of Japan, a crew member is believed to have entered the wrong data into the temperature sensor, which caused the fire safety system to release Freon gas into the living quarters.
"The sum of $650-780 million, which Rosoboronexport and the Amur Shipbuilding Plant had negotiated over a long period of time with the Indian Ministry of Defense, will now be found in Russia, either within the state weapons procurement program or somewhere else," the Rossiiskaya Gazeta quoted General of the Army Nikolai Makarov as saying.
The construction of the Akula II class Nerpa nuclear attack submarine started in 1991, but was suspended for over a decade due to a lack of funding.
Indian media have reported on various occasions that the construction of the submarine was partially financed by the Indian government. India has reportedly paid $650 million for a 10-year lease of the 12,000-ton submarine.
The submarine's reactor was not affected by the accident, which took place in the nose of the submarine, and radiation levels on board remained normal.
The Navy earlier said the sea trials of the submarine would continue after the investigation into the recent tragedy and certain technical adjustments in the fire safety system.
Nerpa will reportedly join other seven Akula class submarines in Russia's Pacific Fleet.
Akula II class vessels are considered the quietest and deadliest of all Russian nuclear-powered attack submarines

Russian Navy to receive Severodvinsk nuclear submarine in 2010

SEVERODVINSK, November 19 (RIA Novosti) - A new nuclear-powered attack submarine will be delivered to the Russian Navy in 2010, a Russian shipyard said on Wednesday.

Severodvinsk is the first Project 855 Yasen (Graney) series of the Severodvinsk class nuclear submarines, combining the ability to launch a variety of long-range cruise missiles (up to 3,100 miles) with nuclear warheads, and effectively engage hostile submarines and surface warships.

"There are no problems with the construction of the submarine, and financing is underway. The vessel will be delivered to the Navy in 2010," said Nikolai Kalistratov, general director of the Sevmash shipyard in northern Russia.

Work on the Severodvinsk started in 1992, and the vessel had been scheduled to be commissioned before 1998. However, the construction was significantly delayed for financial reasons, and work had been suspended until 2001.

In 2003 Sevmash reportedly received extra funding to accelerate the completion of the Severodvinsk. Since then, the construction cost of the submarine had to be adjusted, and in 2008 financing totaled 4 billion rubles ($146 mln).

Kalistratov said that the remaining part of the construction is the fitting of electronics on board the submarine.

"It normally takes a long time to build the first vessel in the series," he said.

Russia's Navy commander, Adm. Vladimir Vysotsky, said in July that the construction of new-generation nuclear-powered ballistic missile and attack submarines is a top priority for the Russian Navy's development.

Under the Russian State Armaments Program for 2007-2015, the Navy will receive several dozen surface ships and submarines, including five Project 955 Borey nuclear-powered strategic ballistic missile submarines equipped with new Bulava ballistic missiles, two Project 885 Yasen nuclear-powered multipurpose submarines, six Project 677 Lada diesel-electric submarines, three Project 22350 frigates and five Project 20380 corvettes.

Moscow Considering Purchase of Admiral Gorshkov Carrier


(Source: Forecast International; issued November 17, 2008)



MOSCOW --- The latest development in the saga that has been the modernization of the Admiral Gorshkov for the Indian Navy, Russian naval and defense industry officials have indicated that Russia may acquire the vessel if India is unwilling to provide the $2 billion needed to finance the extensive retrofit.

On November 13, Deputy General-Director of Sevmash (Severodvinsk Machine Building Enterprise) Sergey Novoselov told RIA Novosti new agency that, "On the market, the price of an aircraft carrier like that varies from three to four billion dollars. The renovations being done at the moment at Sevmash are worth 60-70 per cent of the cost of a new aircraft carrier. That's an approximate sum of up to two billion dollars. Of course, that figure needs refining."

"We are essentially constructing a new aircraft carrier at the open assembly berth of Sevmash. In the last two years, work has only proceeded thanks to internal loans. The construction of any vessel, especially one like this, needs constant and uninterrupted financing," he added, as quoted in the report.

When the contract for the Admiral Gorshkov was signed by Russia and India in 2004, the cost of modernizing the aircraft carrier was agreed at $617 million dollars, Novoselov said, adding that there was no-one to blame for the difference that has formed between the initial and current prices.

"If India won't pay the money, we will keep the aircraft carrier ourselves. It will be very useful to us, because the situation in the world is complicated. Vessels like that are needed to patrol the waters of the Atlantic and the Mediterranean," noted a Russian defense industry official.

In such a scenario, Russia would have to compensate India for the money it has already spent on modernizing the vessel. "That's about 400 million dollars," the source said, as quoted in the RIA Novosti report.