The construction of a new aircraft carrier in Russia will take at least 10 years. This class of ship is unlikely to appear before 2030-2035, Valery Polovinkin, scientific director of the Krylov State Scientific Research Center, said.
Russian Navy Aircraft Carrier Admiral Kuznetsov. Picture via Reddit
"The manufacturing capability of Russian plants make it possible to meet any assigned target. But I believe that its construction, if conditions are favorable, will take 10 years at least," the scientist said.
He believes that it is "impermissible" for the Russian Navy to have a small aircraft carrier because then it will be able to carry out only private missions and it will not have reconnaissance planes, aerial picket aircraft, target designation aircraft or assault aviation.
"At the same time, I do not agree that Russian aircraft carriers should necessarily have the same displacement as U.S. ships - 100, 000 tons and more. A gas turbine version of the Queen Elizabeth aircraft carrier of the British Royal Navy has displacement of about 60,000 tons and has all the necessary aircraft in its arsenal," Polovinkin went on to say.
According to him, advanced Russian aircraft carriers will be able to compensate for their relatively small displacement by introducing radical changes to their hull.
The Russian Ministry of Industry and Trade has warned that the construction of advanced surface ships for offshore maritime zones could be postponed until 2035 due to underfunding if the Russian economy develops according to a pessimistic scenario.
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