Novorossijsk, A Kiev class ship designed as a combination of a cruiser and a carrier designed to carry V/STOL aircraft such as Yak-41M and Yak-36P (Yak-141) .

January 15, 2009, (Sawf News) - Russian expertise in building aircraft carriers, never proven, is becoming increasingly suspect because of the delay and price escalation in the refurbishment of Admiral Gorshkov.

I continue to be very skeptical about the Admiral Gorshkov / INS Vikramaditya deal, not just because of the over 100% price escalation but because of what the price escalation represents -the ineptness of the Russian shipbuilding industry!

Unlike UK, France and the USA, which have been great sea faring nations since centuries, Russian shipbuilding traditions focused on coastal waters till the country started to emerge as a super power after the Second World War.

It isn't surprising that Russian Naval ships and submarines, including those in service with the Indian Navy, have been plagued by limited range and short lives.

The only real aircraft carrier to have served with the Russian Navy, Admiral Kuznetzov, was built at Nikolayev South Shipyard in Ukraine.

The only real aircraft carrier to have served with the Russian Navy, Admiral Kuznetzov, was built at Nikolayev South Shipyard in Ukraine. Following the breakup of the Soviet Union, the Russians struggled for years to get the ship sea worthy. Launched in 1985, it eventually became fully operational in 1995. However, even today, it does not carry the full complement of aircraft it was designed to carry.

Like the Kuznetzov, INS Vikramaditya, was built at Nikolayev South in Ukraine, not in Russia.

INS Vikramaditya is basically a Kiev class ship - a combination of a cruiser and a carrier designed to carry V/STOL aircraft such as Yak-41M and Yak-36P (Yak-141) .

The foredeck of Kiev class ships was taken up with the heavy missile armament. While ordering it, India asked for the foredeck to be cleared of all armament and fitted with a ski jump.

The after thought change in the design of the ship would have posed a challenge to the original builders of the ship. However, since Kiev and Moscow don't see eye-to-eye these days, India had to place its rework order on Russia.

The refurbishment of Admiral Gorshkov and the redesign of its deck is being undertaken by the Sevmash shipyard in Russia, which has no prior carrier building experience.

So is it surprising that the project is going south?

An article on the future of carrier based aviation in Russia on the RIA Novosti website makes interesting reading.

The author advocates that Russia build more aircraft carriers but wonders if it has the ability to do so without foreign assistance!

"Seeing the plodding way in which Admiral Gorshkov is being upgraded for India, Russian shipbuilders are unlikely to do without foreign assistance, and the Russian naval commander-in-chief's interest in French shipbuilding is understandable," writes the author.

Is it possible that Russian shipyards are acquiring the expertise to build aircraft carriers at the cost of India?

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