Soldier On
The Royal Navy is facing its greatest challenge from Russian submarines and warships for more than 25 years, the First Sea Lord has told his sailors. Adml Sir Philip Jones said the Navy was dealing with the highest level of activity from Vladimir Putin’s fleet since the end of the Cold War, even as it … Read more
‘Ulyanovsk’ Would Have Been the Soviets’ Supercarrier: Russia scrapped the ship in the ’90s Had she ever sailed, the Soviet supercarrier Ulyanovsk would have been a naval behemoth more than 1,000 feet long, with an 85,000-ton displacement and enough storage to carry an air group of up to 70 fixed and rotary wing aircraft. With a nuclear-powered … Read more
The Russian Navy’s airborne arsenal is to receive a major boost in the form of both drones and combat aircraft, a top commander has revealed. A variety of ship-based unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) are currently being developed for the Russian Navy’s naval aviation division, Major General Igor Kozhin said on Monday. “One of the prospective … Read more
As Russian cyber activities in the United States and military intervention in Syria dominate headlines, the Russian bear has pursued a steady march forward much closer to Canada, in the Arctic. Russia moved ahead with several steps in its Arctic strategy in 2016, refurbishing military bases, constructing new airfields and building outports. A key element … Read more
A Russian aircraft carrier who reportedly destroyed over 1,000 targets in Syria is set to head to Britain. Following a ceasefire deal between the Syrian government and opposition groups on 29 December, Moscow has agreed to scale back its military operations in the country. The Russian armed forces’ chief of staff, Valery Gerasimov, said the … Read more
Two aging Russian Navy battlecruisers will be outfitted with the anti-ship version of the world’s first hypersonic missile, the 3K-22, which carries Zircon (or Tsirkon) 3M22 hypersonic warheads. This hypersonic missile will also arm Russian ballistic missile submarines. With a claimed speed of Mach 5 or 6,200 km/h, the 3K-22 has a range of 450 … Read more
Two of Russia’s most advanced nuclear submarines will be launched in 2017, despite ballooning program costs and delays, according to a report by a Russian state news agency. Vice Adm. Viktor Bursuk, deputy commander of the Russian navy, said last week that the ballistic-missile-carrying, Borei-class Prince Vladimir and the Yasen-M attack boat Kazan “will be … Read more
The combat potential of the Russian armed forces increased by 14 percent in 2016, Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu reported to President Vladimir Putin during the end-of-the year defense meeting on Dec. 22, explaining that this improved performance had helped maintain the country’s defense capabilities at an appropriate level. In turn, Putin noted that “still … Read more
“In 2017, we’ll accept three submarines and two frigates,” the commander told journalists at an enlarged board meeting of the Russian Defense Ministry in Moscow. The commander said two of these submarines had the names Krasnodar and Stary Oskol. “New ships are arriving for the Fleet. This year, we have accepted about 30 ships and … Read more
A famous Russian submarine design bureau is working on a drone that imitates submarines. The drone, tentatively named “Surrogat,” could be a useful decoy in baiting a trap…or escaping one. The Rubin Design Bureau of St. Petersberg, designer of Cold War Soviet missile submarines including the enormous Typhoon class, is working on this drone for … Read more
The Indian Navy and the Russian Navy will hold their sixth INDRA joint naval exercise from Dec. 14 to 21 at the Bay of Bengal off the southeastern city of Visakhapatnam, headquarters of the Indian Navy’s Eastern Naval Command, its most powerful naval command. The main goal of the ongoing INDRA exercises is to boost … Read more
If the U.S. won’t fight terrorists in Syria, it should stop getting in the way, said Maj. Gen. Igor Konashenkov, a spokesman for the Russian Defense Ministry. Konashenkov was responding to the U.S. State Department’s calls to other countries to deny port access to Russian oil tankers heading to Syria. “If Washington cannot or does not want … Read more
The embarrassing crash of one of just four new MiG-29KR multi-role naval fighters deployed aboard the Admiral Kuznetsov earlier this month is being blamed on a series of events that occurred on the Russian carrier’s deck and the doomed jet’s loss of all engine power that followed. According to USNI News who quotes russian media statements, a … Read more
The Russian aviation in Syria is currently engaged only in missions in the provinces of Idlib and Homs to prevent militants of the Islamic State group from crossing into Syria from Iraq, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said. “Our aviation and the aviation of Syria work only in the provinces of Idlib and Homs in … Read more