Russia’s only aircraft carrier Admiral Kuznetsov faces decommissioning

Russia's only aircraft carrier, Admiral Kuznetsov, is likely to be decommissioned after a protracted overhaul, said VTB Bank head Andrey Kostin during Vladimir Putin’s visit to Severodvinsk on July 24.

The question about the vessel’s fate was posed to Kostin by Kommersant newspaper correspondent Andrey Kolesnikov, who was travelling with the presidential press pool. He asked what would happen to the carrier, noting that “it seems like it’s already being dismantled.”

“It’s under our jurisdiction, yes. We believe it no longer makes sense to repair it. It’s over 40 years old, and extremely expensive to maintain… I think the issue will be resolved either through sale or disposal,” Kostin replied.

The aircraft-carrying cruiser Admiral Kuznetsov was laid down at the Black Sea Shipyard in 1982 and commissioned in 1991. It served as part of the Northern Fleet and, being Russia’s only aircraft carrier, was considered the flagship of the Russian Navy.

In 2018, the Russian Ministry of Defence and the United Shipbuilding Corporation (USC) signed a contract with a ship repair yard in Murmansk for the overhaul of the Admiral Kuznetsov. According to sources in the military-industrial sector cited by TASS, the cost of the repair was estimated at 20 billion rubles. At that time, the Ministry of Defence planned for the modernisation of Admiral Kuznetsov to be completed in 2020, with the carrier returning to the fleet in 2021.

In October 2018, the floating dry dock PD-50 at the Murmansk ship repair yard sank while Admiral Kuznetsov was exiting the dock. During the incident, two tower cranes fell, one of which landed on the carrier’s deck. In December 2019, a fire broke out on the cruiser, which was still in the dry dock; the cause was later identified as sparks from welding. Two people died and more than ten were injured. Another fire occurred three years later, in December 2022 (the cruiser was still under repair). The Ministry of Emergency Situations reported “localised smoke,” with no casualties.

In early July 2025, the newspaper Izvestia, citing a source, reported that the Ministry of Defence might abandon the restoration of the Admiral Kuznetsov. According to the newspaper’s interlocutors, repair and modernisation work on the cruiser was halted some time ago, and the Navy command, along with US,C are deciding whether it is advisable to continue the project.

By Vugar Khalilov