1982–1991: construction and dispute of ownership Admiral Flota Sovetskogo Soyuza Kuznetsov, constructed at Chernomorskiy Shipyard, also known as
Nikolayev South Shipyard, in
Nikolayev within the
Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic (SSR) was
launched in 1985, and became fully operational in 1995. An official ceremony marking the start of construction took place on 1 September 1982; in fact she was
laid down in 1983. The vessel was first named
Riga, then the name was changed to
Leonid Brezhnev, this was followed by
Tbilisi. Finally, on 4 October 1990, In December 1991, she sailed from the Black Sea to join the Northern Fleet.
1995–1996 deployment From 23 December 1995 through 22 March 1996
Admiral Kuznetsov made her first 90-day Mediterranean deployment with 13 Su-33, 2 Su-25 UTG, and 11 helicopters aboard. The deployment of the
Russian navy's
flagship was undertaken to mark the 300th anniversary of the establishment of the Russian navy in October 1996. The deployment was to allow the carrier, which was accompanied by a
frigate,
destroyer and
oiler, to adapt to the Mediterranean climate and to perform continuous flight operations until 21:00 each day, as the
Barents Sea only receives about one hour of sunlight during that time of year. During that period the carrier lay at anchor off the port of
Tartus, Syria. Her aircraft often made flights close to the Israeli shore line and were escorted by Israeli
F-16s.
2000–2006 inside the hangar bay, October 2008. Behind is the
Kamov Ka-27 helicopter.
Admiral Kuznetsov remained in port for two years before preparing for another Mediterranean deployment scheduled for the winter of 2000–2001. This deployment was canceled due to the
explosion and sinking of the nuclear-powered submarine .
Admiral Kuznetsov participated in the
Kursk rescue and salvage operations in late 2000. Plans for further operations were postponed or cancelled. In late 2003 and early 2004,
Admiral Kuznetsov went to sea for inspection and
sea trials. In October 2004, the ship participated in a fleet exercise of the Russian Navy in the Atlantic Ocean. During a September 2005 exercise, a Su-33 accidentally fell from the carrier into the Atlantic Ocean. On 27 September 2006, it was announced that
Admiral Kuznetsov would return to service in the Northern Fleet by the year's end, following another modernization to correct some technical issues. Admiral
Vladimir Masorin, Commander-in-Chief of the Russian Navy, also stated that Su-33 fighters assigned to her would return after undergoing their own maintenance and refits.
2007–2008 deployment From 5 December 2007 through 3 February 2008
Admiral Kuznetsov made her second Mediterranean deployment. Su-33 fighters and Kamov helicopters were launched from
Admiral Kuznetsov while within international waters; Norwegian helicopter services to the rigs were halted due to the collision risk with the Russian aircraft.
Admiral Kuznetsov later participated in an exercise on the Mediterranean Sea, together with 11 other Russian surface ships and 47 aircraft, performing three tactical training missions using live and simulated air and surface missile launches.
Admiral Kuznetsov and her escorts returned to
Severomorsk on 3 February 2008. Following maintenance, she returned to sea on 11 October 2008 for the
Stability 2008 strategic exercises held in the Barents Sea. On 12 October 2008,
Russian President Dmitry Medvedev visited the ship during the exercise.
2008–2009 deployment From 5 December 2008 through 2 March 2009,
Admiral Kuznetsov made her third Mediterranean deployment. On 7 January 2009, a small fire broke out onboard
Admiral Kuznetsov while anchored off Turkey. The fire, caused by a short circuit, led to the death of one crew member by
carbon monoxide poisoning. On 16 February 2009, she was involved in
a large oil spill, along with other Russian naval vessels, while refuelling off the south coast of Ireland. On 2 March 2009,
Admiral Kuznetsov returned to Severomorsk, and in September 2010, she left dry dock after scheduled repairs and preparations for a training mission in the Barents Sea, later that month.
2011–2012 deployment The Russian Main Navy Staff announced that
Admiral Kuznetsov would begin a deployment to the Atlantic and Mediterranean in December 2011. In November 2011, it was announced that
Admiral Kuznetsov would lead a squadron to
Russia's naval facility in Tartus. A Russian naval spokesman announced via the
Izvestia daily that "The call of the Russian ships in Tartus should not be seen as a gesture towards
what is going on in Syria... This was planned already in 2010 when there were no such events there" noting that
Admiral Kuznetsov would also be making port calls in
Beirut,
Genoa and
Cyprus. On 29 November 2011, Army General
Nikolay Makarov,
Chief of the Russian General Staff, said that Russian ships in the Mediterranean were due to exercises rather than events in Syria, and noted that
Admiral Kuznetsovs size does not allow her to moor in Tartus. On 6 December 2011,
Admiral Kuznetsov and her escort ships departed the Northern Fleet home base in Severomorsk for a Mediterranean deployment to exercise with ships from the Russian Baltic and Black Sea Fleets. On 12 December 2011,
Admiral Kuznetsov and her escorts, were spotted northeast of
Orkney off the coast of northern Scotland, the first such time she had deployed near the UK. shadowed the group for a week; due to severe weather, the group took shelter in international waters in the
Moray Firth, some from the UK coast.
Admiral Kuznetsov then sailed around the top of Scotland and into the Atlantic past western Ireland, where she conducted flight operations with her Sukhoi Su-33 'Flanker' jets and Kamov Ka-27 helicopters in international airspace. On 8 January 2012,
Admiral Kuznetsov anchored near shore outside Tartus while other ships from her escort entered the port to use the leased Russian naval support facility to replenish their supplies, after which all ships continued their deployment on 9 January. In February 2012,
Admiral Kuznetsov returned to her home base of Severomorsk, having lost propulsion during the return voyage in the
Bay of Biscay. The tugboat took the vessel in tow and aided
Admiral Kuznetsovs return.
2013–2014 deployment On 1 June 2013, it was announced that the ship would return to the Mediterranean by the end of the year, and on 17 December,
Admiral Kuznetsov departed her home base for the Mediterranean. On 1 January 2014,
Admiral Kuznetsov celebrated New Year's Day while at anchor in international waters of the Moray Firth off northeast Scotland. The anchorage allowed replenishment of ship's supplies and respite for the crew from stormy weather off the southwest coast of Norway. She then proceeded to the Mediterranean Sea, docking in Cyprus on 28 February. In May 2014, the ship and her task group: the
Kirov-class nuclear-powered cruiser Petr Velikiy; tankers
Sergey Osipov,
Kama and
Dubna; the ocean-going tug
Altay and the
Minsk (part of the Black Sea Fleet), passed the UK while sailing for home. Despite financial and technical problems, resulting in limited operations for the ship, it was expected that
Admiral Kuznetsov would remain in active service until at least 2030.
2016–2017 deployment Admiral Kuznetsov set sail on 15 October 2016 from Severomorsk for the Mediterranean, accompanied by seven other vessels of the Russian Navy including the nuclear-powered battlecruiser
Pyotr Velikiy and two s. The carrier was accompanied by an ocean-going
tugboat as a precaution due to potential propulsion failure. The
carrier air wing included six to eight Sukhoi Su-33 fighters, four
MiG-29KR/KUBR multi-role aircraft,
Ka-52K "Katran" navalised attack helicopters,
Ka-31R "Helix" AEW&C helicopters and Ka-27PS "Helix-D" search and rescue helicopters. All the Su-33 aircraft had been upgraded with the Gefest
SVP-24 bombsights for
free-fall bombs, giving them a limited ground-attack capability. In the largest Russian military deployment since the
Cold War, the
carrier battle group sailed through the
English Channel on
21 October. The
Royal Navy responded to this test by sending two of its own ships to escort the Russian warships. On 26 October 2016 the ship was reported to have passed through the
Strait of Gibraltar and refuelled at sea off North Africa the following day. On 3 November 2016 the carrier battle group paused off the east coast of
Crete. On 14 November 2016 a MiG-29K crashed into the sea after taking off from the carrier. The pilot ejected safely from the plane and was rescued by helicopter. The plane had run out of fuel waiting to land while the crew was attempting to repair a broken
arresting cable. The carrier commander could have diverted the aircraft to land at a nearby airbase, but hesitated in the hope that the arresting gear would be repaired in time. On 15 November 2016 — as part of a
large-scale engagement —
Admiral Kuznetsov launched Su-33 strikes against the positions of terrorist groups
Islamic State and
Al-Nusra in the
provinces of Idlib and
Homs in Syria. This was the first time the aircraft carrier had ever participated in combat operations. The
Russian Defence Ministry later reported that at least 30 militants had been killed as a result of those strikes, including three field commanders, among them Abul Baha al-Asfari, leader of Al-Nusra reserve forces in the provinces of Homs and
Aleppo. Al-Asfari had also planned and led several insurgent attacks on the city of Aleppo. The Su-33s reportedly used
precision-guided munitions. On 3 December 2016 an Su-33 crashed into the sea after attempting to land on the carrier. The pilot was safely recovered by a search and rescue helicopter. Later it was revealed that the arresting gear mechanism had failed to hold the aircraft, and was damaged in the attempt. Following this second incident, the air wing was transferred to shore at
Khmeimim Air Base near
Latakia to continue military operations while the carrier's arresting gear issues were addressed. In early January 2017 it was announced that
Admiral Kuznetsov and her battlegroup would be ceasing operations in Syria and returning to Russia as part of a scaling back of Russian involvement in the conflict. During her deployment off Syria, aircraft from
Admiral Kuznetsov carried out 420 combat missions, hitting 1,252 hostile targets. On 11 January 2017,
Admiral Kuznetsov was conducting live-fire training exercises in the Mediterranean off the coast of
Libya. The Russian defence ministry announced that on 11 January,
Admiral Kuznetsov was visited by Libya's military leader
Khalifa Haftar, who had a video conference with Russian defence minister
Sergey Shoygu while on board. On 20 January
Admiral Kuznetsov was sighted passing west through the Strait of Gibraltar and six days later, she was escorted back along the English Channel by three
Eurofighter Typhoons of the
Royal Air Force and the
Type 23 frigate . It arrived back in Severomorsk on 9 February. On 23 February 2017 President
Vladimir Putin said that the ship's deployment to the Mediterranean had been his personal initiative.
2017–present: overhaul Admiral Kuznetsov started an overhaul and modernization program in the first quarter of 2017 to extend her service life by 25 years. The ship was to undergo modernization at the 35th Ship Repair Plant in
Murmansk between 2018 and 2021, upgrading the ship's power plant and electronics systems. On 30 October 2018, the ship was damaged when Russia's biggest floating drydock, , sank, causing one of its 70-ton cranes to crash onto the ship's flight deck, leaving behind a hole. One person was reported missing and four were injured as the drydock sank in
Kola Bay. The ship was in the process of being removed from the dock when the incident occurred and was towed to a nearby yard after the incident. The fallen crane was removed by the end of 2018. In late May 2019, repair work of the aircraft carrier was underway. That same month, it was also announced that two
graving docks in Murmansk would be merged and enlarged to accommodate the ship, the work taking a year and a half. In December 2019, a major fire broke out on board the ship as work continued on the ship's refit. In June 2021, Vladimir Korolev, Vice President of the
United Shipbuilding Corporation announced that the overhaul and upgrade of
Admiral Kuznetsov was expected to be completed by the first half of 2023. The avionics, flight deck with the ski jump, electric equipment, and the power plant were expected to be replaced as part of this process. The carrier would also receive a new fully domestic takeoff and landing control system, with the onboard airpower remaining the same. Due to the lack of a large enough drydock, a new drydock was being constructed in Murmansk. In November 2021 it was reported that "bad weather" had caused significant delays to repair work which might push back the completion of the refit by more than one year. The ship was finally dry-docked on 20 May 2022. By 27 July 2022, the drydock had been drained, allowing repairs on the aircraft carrier to commence. On 15 August 2022, the head of the United Shipbuilding Corporation confirmed that
Admiral Kuznetsov would be handed over to the Russian Navy in the first quarter of 2024, and that the ship is expected to remain in service for at least another 25 years. On 22 December 2022, as the ship was being prepared to leave drydock, another fire occurred. The fire was extinguished, and no casualties were reported. The aircraft carrier was removed from the drydock on 21 February 2023, although it was initially reported that the operation had been suspended due to heavy fog. Prior to the December 2022 fire the overhaul of the carrier was projected to last into 2024. In September 2024, an
OSINT analysis revealed that
Admiral Kuznetsovs crew of approximately 1,500 sailors were reassigned to the
Russian Army for
combat duty in Ukraine. This fueled speculation that there is no plan to make
Admiral Kuznetsov seaworthy again. As of July 2025, it was reported that repair and modernization work on the carrier had been suspended and that Russian Defence Ministry is considering scrapping the vessel due to the ship's age and condition and the mounting cost of its overhaul. The same month,
UK Defence Journal reported public comments by Admiral
Sergei Avakyants, former head of Russia's Pacific Fleet, suggesting institutional support for the decision to retire the carrier. He described classic aircraft carriers as expensive and inefficient in modern conflict scenarios, arguing that unmanned systems and robotic platforms are the future. Russian media outlet www1.ru reported in January 2026 that Admiral Kuznetsov may be repaired once the PD-50 floating dock is repaired. On Febrary,2026,Ecuadrian News reported decommission the aircraft carrier Admiral Kuznetsov due to high cost for repaired. ==Gallery==