The Admiral Kuznetsov, the Russian Navy’s only aircraft carrier currently at the 35th Naval Repair Facility in Murmansk, is in such a deplorable condition that it cannot move under its own power and is so rusted that it is suffering from severe seepage, they say Ukrainian special services.

In order to continue the repair works, it was recently decided to transfer the ship from the dry dock in which it is located to one of the docks of the ship repair plants, reports the Main Intelligence Directorate of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine.

But already at the preparatory stage of moving the ship, it became clear that the aircraft carrier is not capable of moving under its own power. Therefore, the move was attempted with the help of several tugs. And this turned out to be impossible due to the critical state of the ship’s hull.

What divers discovered when the shipyard wanted to move it to another dock

Ship repair specialists warned that the condition of “Admiral Kuznetsov” in principle does not allow to leave it on the water, if this is done, there is a high probability that it will turn over on its side and sink.

During the inspection of the ship’s hull, the diving teams found that the metal structures under the third deck were exposed to significant corrosion. The passages are filled with muddy water from silt, which makes it impossible to see the interior of the ship in detail.

Officials of 35 ship repair plants and the fleet directorate are trying to shift responsibility for the current condition of “Admiral Kuznetsov”. At the moment, they cannot even determine who exactly made the decision to move the ship.

The fleet command imposed fines of one and a half billion rubles (equivalent to $21,400) on the management of the shipyard for non-compliance with repair deadlines and non-fulfillment of the contract.

For its part, the company’s management published a letter in which it notes that it is not to blame for the ship being in such a deplorable state. According to the source, the military representative at the construction site, who managed the works, will most likely be charged.

According to the available information, there is not even an approximate deadline for the completion of the repair of the aircraft carrier “Admiral Kuznetsov” and its return to service.

The history of “Admiral Kuznetsov” is full of incidents

It will be recalled that in December a fire broke out on board the old “Admiral Kuznetsov” again.

Russia’s only aircraft carrier and the flagship of its fleet has been in the process of repair and modernization for more than 5 years, entering service with the country’s Navy in 1991, after work on it began 9 years earlier.

The aircraft carrier was overhauled in 2017 after two months of combat off the coast of Syria. In 2018, when leaving the shipyard in Roslyakovo, it began to sink, but was saved by the crew.

The fire a few weeks ago was not the only one in the history of the only Russian aircraft carrier. In January 2009, a small fire broke out while anchored in Turkish waters, resulting in the death of a sailor.

In October 2018, the Admiral Kuznetsov was damaged when Russia’s largest floating dry dock, the PD-50, sank, causing one of its 70-tonne cranes to fall onto the ship’s deck, causing a massive breach.

More than a year later, in December 2019, a severe fire broke out on board the aircraft carrier “Admiral Kuznetsov” during its repair. As a result of the fire and smoke inhalation, two people died and fourteen were injured.