Popular Mechanics:
Russia’s Ministry of Defence posted a New Years video of the Northern Fleet conducting a live fire exercise. The video shows the ships of the fleet firing all manner of weapons while at sea, from huge anti-ship missiles to rapid fire deck guns.
The video starts off with a fly-by of Russia’s only aircraft carrier, the Admiral Kuznetsov, followed by a quick cut to the launch of a SA-N-9 Kinzhal medium range surface to air missile. The carrier is also featured at the 0:25 mark, when it launches point defense missiles and fires the dual 30-millimeter Gatling guns of the Kashtan close-in weapons system. Kuznetsov’s Kashtans would attempt to stop any anti-ship missiles or aircraft homing on the big ship that make it through the carrier’s escort screen.
Another great series of shots is of the battlecruiser Pyotr Velikiy launching P-700 Granit anti-ship missiles. Pyotr Velikiy is one of only two battlecruisers in existence, a gigantic 24,500 ton ship dedicated to anti-surface warfare. The flagship of the Northern Fleet, Velikiy is equipped with 20 Granit missiles, a 30-foot-long supersonic anti-ship missile armed with a 1,500 pound warhead.
