Fire damage on Russia’s Admiral Kuznetsov equal to aircraft carrier’s current value
The damage caused by the fire on the Russian aircraft carrier “Admiral Kuznetsov” is effectively equivalent to the current value of the ship, at 95 billion rubles (around $1.52 billion), writes Kommersant, citing a source in the headquarters of Russia’s Northern Fleet.
“The damage caused by the fire that broke out has been provisionally estimated at 95 billion rubles. However, it’s not just a case of damage to the structures of the aircraft carrier, there is also repair equipment that was affected, and military and civilian specialists who are out of service due to injuries,” said Kommersant’s source.
The current value of a ship of its class with such a long service life, factoring in the wear on the hull but excluding weapons, is 110 billion rubles (around $1.76 billion). “The announced figure greatly outraged the naval command,” the source noted.
According to him, it is not yet clear what will be done with the aircraft carrier. “Most likely, the Kuznetsov will still be restored, but more due to its legendariness than to its combat capability,” the source emphasized.
Kommersant reported previously that the fire on the aircraft carrier was caused by welding slag coming into contact with an oily rag discarded in the hold, from which the fire spread to power cables.
The open fire was only completely eliminated one day later.
As a result of the fire, one person was killed and 12 were injured, one severely and 11 moderately. The fate of one crew member remains unknown.
The fire on the Admiral Kuznetsov, Russia’s only aircraft carrier, which has been undergoing repairs at the 35th ship repair yard since 2018, started on Wednesday morning. The Zvezdochka ship repair yard said that the fire began in the hold in the primary power room during operations involving fire.
On board at the time were civilian specialists and crew members responsible for overseeing the repairs.