⚡🇷🇺 Russia’s Admiral Nakhimov, a heavy nuclear-powered missile cruiser, has put to sea for trials for the first time since 1999, marking its first return to open-water testing in more than 25 years.

The Kirov-class warship has been under repair and deep modernization since 2012-2013, meaning the current trials come after more than a decade of overhaul work and decades after the cruiser last operated at sea.

The modernization is expected to turn the Admiral Nakhimov into a major missile platform, equipped to carry Zircon hypersonic missiles alongside Oniks and Kalibr cruise missiles.

The cruiser will conduct trials in the White and Barents Seas before formally rejoining Russia’s Northern Fleet, with its return to service expected no earlier than 2027.

@medmannews