Putin is throwing £14 BILLION at building the ‘world’s biggest aircraft carrier’ to compete with Trump’s Navy
The craft, which will have a carrier deck the size of three football fields, could be ready by 2030
RUSSIA is building one of the biggest aircraft carriers in the world with reported plans for the vessel challenging the US’ powerhouse fleet.
The Shtorm aircraft is rumoured to be able to carry up to 90 combat aircraft, with the mammoth carrier’s deck expected to be the size of three football fields.
The potential size of the aircraft carrier, which could cost up to £13.6bn to build, will compete directly with the US’ Nimitz-class ships, which are some of the biggest in the world.
Just one that it will compete with is the USS Theodore Roosevelt, which displaces 97,000 tonnes and, reaching lengths of 332.8m, is able to carry more than 60 aircraft while the USS Carl Vinson can carry more than 6,000 crew members on its 333m long vessel.
But Vladimir Putin’s proposed carrier, known as Project 23E000E, could be able to carry up to 90 combat aircraft, according to models.
Its armaments are unknown, with reporting that it will be protected by surrounding vessels, including destroyers, cruisers and submarines.
While little detail has been released, it could be ready as early as 2030.
It will replace Russia’s current carrier, with the Admiral Kuznetsoz carrier having been launched in 1985.
The ageing craft can only carry 30 aircraft and is steam powered – a contrast to Shtorm’s nuclear-powered engines.
It comes after it was revealed that Russia’s armed forces are building up to launch a major military campaign, with one expert saying that the country had “completely modernised” its force.
The Royal Navy was this month tailing Russian warships for the third time in just six months as Putin’s ships raced through the North Sea towards the Straits of Dover.
An expert recently said that Moscow’s military might is made up of rusting Soviet hardware and the West have little to fear from them.
Analyst Alex Kokcharov says that while Putin’s military has been extensively upgraded since 2008 – when Russian forces suffered embarrassing losses in its war with Georgia – many elements remain outdated and are so-called ‘Soviet inheritance’ from the 1970s and 1980s.
“A lot of money was spent on military upgrades and exercises in certain sections, but these changes have not been across the board,” said Mr Kokcharov, a country risk analyst at IHS.
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