Russian naval aviation in crisis: Fleet dwindles and training lags

Russian naval aviation – though it formally still exists – has practically been annihilated. The only aircraft carrier has been under repair for years, and the unique NITKA airfield, significant on a global scale, is at a base being attacked by Ukrainians.

The only Russian aircraft carrier, Admiral Kuznetsov, hasn’t been out to sea in years. The repair work that started in the previous decade has been a series of disasters: the ship has caught fire twice, and the only dry dock capable of accommodating such a large vessel (Kuznetsov is 306 metres long) was severely damaged in an accident.

All of this has caused years of delays, and the state of the only Russian aircraft carrier was so poor that decommissioning and scrapping the vessel were considered.

However, the view that Admiral Kuznetsov – as a symbol of the Russian Navy – must be rebuilt and returned to service prevailed. The current schedule envisions the ship returning to service by the end of 2024.

Even if Admiral Kuznetsov finally leaves the repair yard, the Russians will face a new, serious problem: its air fleet doesn't exist. Although they still retain some naval aircraft, over the past years, they have led to the annihilation of their painstakingly built carrier-based aviation.

It primarily comprises two aircraft types – Su-33 and MiG-29K/KUB. Despite their similar appearances, these aircraft significantly differ from their land-based counterparts. Due to the specifics of carrier landings, they need, among other things, stronger landing gear and a retractable hook to catch the arresting wires – cables stretched across the flight deck.

This solution shortened the landing run from a few hundred to a few dozen metres. Though the aircraft carrier makes landing easier for pilots by positioning itself against the wind and speeding up considerably, in practice, the crew and the aircraft must withstand deceleration from over 200 km/h in about 2 seconds. In the case of carrier-based aircraft, this necessitates structural changes.

No one knows how many operational naval aircraft Russian aviation currently has. At the beginning of last year, there were only 17 Su-33 and 22 MiG-29K/KUB (and no more than 10 Su-25 UTG attack aircraft).

One might assume that these numbers are shrinking over time – new carrier-based aircraft are not being built, and operational use means the number of functional machines can only decrease.

The problem also lies with the personnel, as Russian pilots have not landed on an aircraft carrier for seven years. Back in the USSR days in Crimea, at the Saki airbase in 1982, a special NITKA airfield was launched. One of its elements was a huge platform built into the runway, placed on actuators.

These allowed the ground runway to move, simulating the movements of an aircraft carrier deck caused by waves in controlled conditions. A takeoff ramp, equivalent to the foredeck fragment of the flight deck, was also built on land. Thanks to this, Soviet and later Russian pilots could train carrier takeoffs and landings on land.

This capability ended with the Russian attack on Ukraine. The Saki airbase became a target of Ukrainian attacks, and the NITKA airfield – even if its mechanisms remain operational – is not suitable for safe use anymore.

As a result, since 2021 (the last official information about training dates back to that time), Russian naval pilots have not had the chance to maintain the habits and skills associated with carrier operations.

A desperate attempt to recreate former capabilities may be the recently announced idea to revive the 1980s project and build a new vertical/short takeoff and landing aircraft in Russia based on the Yak-141 project.

As recently as 2019, the Russians announced training for the 100th Shipborne Fighter Aviation Regiment, which grouped MiG-29K/KUB aircraft. Even then, analysts noticed that Russian communications focused on training in Arctic conditions but completely omitted the issue of the aircraft carrier.

The fate of carrier aviation, stationed far north in the Severomorsk-3 base, quickly became clear. Both the 100th and the 279th Shipborne Fighter Aviation Regiments (with Su-33 aircraft) began serving the Northern Fleet as land-based units designated for defending the northern trade route. In practice – even though they use naval versions of the aircraft – they ceased to count as naval aviation.

Despite this – according to Ukrainian sources – the Russians are preparing for Admiral Kuznetsov's return to service. It represents a significant challenge, as such a large ship requires a trained crew of at least 1,500 sailors. The Russians will have to assemble, recreate, and train this crew, which – combined with the need to recreate carrier aviation – will take them several more years.