ARKHANGELSK, September 29. /TASS/. The Russian Northern Fleet’s cruiser Marshal Ustinov, which is undergoing repairs and modernization at the Zvyozdochka defense shipyard in Severodvinsk, northwest Russia, will be armed with a new missile system and will be back in service again in 2016, the enterprise’s general director Nikolay Kalistratov said Tuesday.
"It has been decided to equip the vessel with a new [missile] system. The ship will be handed to Russia’s navy, as envisioned by the contract, in 2016," Kalistratov said.
The Marshal Ustinov arrived at Zvyozdochka in June 2011 for scheduled repairs. In November 2012 it was lifted from water and mounted at a staple base. Work to repair the drainage, dewatering, fire safety and other systems of the vessel were held in the dock.
In June 2013, the cruiser was floated and modernization work continued afloat. Earlier it was reported that the cruiser will be handed to the navy after upgrade in 2015.
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The Marshal Ustinov missile cruiser was laid down at the Nikolayev shipyard in 1978. It was made part of the Northern Fleet in 1986. In 1994-1997 it underwent upgrade at St. Petersburg’s Severnaya Verf shipyard.
The Marshal Ustinov is a missile cruiser of Project 1164 Atlant. It has a displacement of 11,380 tons, is 186 meters long and 20.8 meters wide. It can travel at a speed up to 34 knots (some 63 kmph) to distances of about 8,000 miles, and has a crew of 510 people.
It main armament is 16 launching facilities of P-500 Bazalt supersonic anti-ship cruise missiles capable of carrying nuclear warheads. Russia’s Navy has three such missile cruisers: the Moskva in the Black Sea Fleet, the Varyag in the Pacific Fleet and the Marshal Ustinov in the Northern Fleet.