What You Need to Know: The Kirov-class battlecruiser, a Soviet-era nuclear-powered warship, was once designed to rival U.S. Navy carriers and assert Soviet naval dominance. With advanced radar systems ...

Why You Need to Know: The Kirov-class nuclear-powered guided-missile battlecruisers, built for the Soviet and later Russian Navy, are the largest and heaviest surface combatants currently in operation ...

The Russian Navy isn't exactly the biggest and baddest around — the country only has one aircraft carrier, and it's not functional, after all. Since the country invaded Ukraine in 2022, its Black Sea ...

Kirov-Class Battlecruisers: Soviet Ambition, Russian Reality The Kirov-class—known in Russia as Project 1144 Orlan—emerged from a very specific late–Cold War vision. Soviet naval strategists sought ...

Critics argue the Kirov class is a relic. Still, its upgrades—particularly the S-400 enhancements—suggest otherwise, blending Soviet scale with 21st century technology. The Admiral Nakhimov, a ...