Soviet aircraft carrier Kiev

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Career
The aircraft carrier at Tianjin Binhai aircraft carrier theme park on May 1, 2004
Builder:	Chernomorskiy yard, Nikolayev
Laid down:	July 21, 1970
Launched:	26 December 1972
Commissioned:	28 December 1975
Decommissioned:	30 June 1993
Fate:	Sold to a Chinese company, 1996, theme park in Tianjin since 1 May 2004
General characteristics
Displacement:	42,000 tons full load
Length:	273.1 m overall
Beam:	31.0 m
Draught:	8.2 m
Propulsion:	4 shaft geared steam turbines, 140,000 shp
Speed:	32 knots
Endurance:	13500 miles at 18 kt
Armament:	4 × twin SS-N-12 Sandbox SSM launchers (8 missiles), 2 × twin SA-N-3 Shtorm SAM launchers (72 missiles), 2 × twin SA-N-4 Gecko SAM launchers (40 missiles), 2 × twin 76 mm guns, 8 × AK-630 30 mm CIWS, 10 × 533 mm torpedo tubes, 1 × twin SUW-N-1 ASW rocket launcher (16 nuclear-tipped rockets), 2 × RBU-6000 anti-submarine rocket launchers
Aircraft carried:	12 Yak-38M fighter aircraft 20 Kamov Ka-25 or Kamov Ka-27 helicopters

The heavy aircraft carrying cruiser^[1] Kiev served the Soviet and Russian navies from 1975 to 1993. It was built from 1970 till 1975 at Chernomorski factory in Nikolayev and was the first ship of its class (Project 1143 Krechyet (Gyrfalcon) or Kiev class)

The Kiev was laid down on July 21, 1970 and launched on 26 December 1972. She was completed and commissioned on 28 December 1975, but officially entered service only in February 1977, after completing all trials. In 1976 she was moved from the Black Sea to her destination Severomorsk, as a part of the Northern Fleet. From 1977 till 1987, Kiev undertook 10 practice voyages to the Atlantic and Mediterranean Sea. In March 1979 she undertook manoeuvres with her sistership Minsk on the Mediterranean. In October 1981 she was a flagship in great manoeuvres Zapad-81 on the Baltic Sea. From December 1982 to November 1984 she underwent an overhaul and modernization in Nikolayev. From 1985, a practice of STOL of Yak-38s instead of VTOL was introduced, allowing to increase aircraft payload and range, and a replacement of Kamov Ka-25 helicopters with Kamov Ka-27 started. In 1985 Kiev went back to the Northern Fleet. From 1987 she mainly stayed in Severomorsk. In December 1989 she was moved to a reserve. After a disintegration of the USSR, the ship was taken by Russia. Due to low military budget and worsening ship's condition, she was retired on 30 June 1993. As the building yard was located in the newly independent Ukraine, she could not be serviced.

In 1996 she was sold to a Chinese company, and has been part of the military theme park in Tianjin since 1 May 2004.

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[edit] Notes and references

^ Due to restrictions imposed by Turkey preventing aircraft carriers travelling through the Bosporus, all Soviet and Russian aircraft carriers are named as aircraft carrying cruisers. However, in the case of Kiev, this accurately reflects the ship's mission and weapons fit.