Minsk is an
aircraft carrierAn aircraft carrier is a warship designed with a primary mission of deploying and recovering aircraft, acting as a seagoing airbase. Aircraft carriers thus allow a naval force to project air power great distances without having to depend on local bases for staging aircraft operations...
that served the
Soviet NavyThe Soviet Navy was the naval part of the Soviet Armed Forces. Often referred to as the Red Fleet, the Soviet Navy would have been instrumental in any perceived Warsaw Pact role in an all-out war with NATO when it would have to stop the naval convoys bringing reinforcements over the Atlantic to...
, and later the
Russian NavyThe Russian Navy or VMF is the naval arm of the Russian Armed Forces. The international designation of Russian naval vessels is RFS—"Russian Federation Ship"....
, from 1978 to 1994. She was the second
KievThe Kiev class carriers were the first class of fixed-wing aircraft carriers built in the Soviet Union....
-class vessel to be built.
History
Minsk was laid down in 1972, launched on 30 September 1975, completed on 27 September 1978, and decommissioned on 30 June 1993.
Minsk operated in the Pacific Fleet. She had to be retired as a result of a major accident which could only be repaired at Chernomorksi's facility, located in the newly-independent
UkraineUkraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It is bordered by Russia to the east; Belarus to the north; Poland, Slovakia, and Hungary to the west; Romania and Moldova to the southwest; and the Black Sea and Sea of Azov to the south. The city of Kiev is both the capital and the largest city of...
. In 1995 she was sold to a
South KoreaSouth Korea, officially the Republic of Korea and often simply referred to as Korea, is a country in East Asia, located on the southern half of the Korean Peninsula. It is neighbored by China to the west, Japan to the east, and North Korea to the north. Its capital is Seoul, the second largest...
n businessman, and later resold to
ShenzhenShenzhen is a city of sub-provincial administrative status in southern China's Guangdong province, situated immediately north of Hong Kong...
Minsk Aircraft Carrier Industry Co. Ltd., a
ChineseThe People's Republic of China , commonly known as China, is the largest country in East Asia and the most populous in the world with over 1.3 billion people, approximately one-fifth of the world's population...
company. Until 2006, when the company went bankrupt,
Minsk was part of a military theme park in
ShatoujiaoShatoujiao is an area located in the Yantian Qu of Shenzhen Special Economic Zone in China, Located on the border of the mainland China and Hong Kong. Shatoujiao is a bustling metropolis in comparison to Sha Tau Kok in the Hong Kong , due to the development of special economic zone...
(沙头角) district,
ShenzhenShenzhen is a city of sub-provincial administrative status in southern China's Guangdong province, situated immediately north of Hong Kong...
called
Minsk WorldMinsk World is a military theme park located in Dapeng Bay, Shatoujiao, Shenzhen, China. It includes the huge former Soviet aircraft carrier Minsk, redesigned as a tourist attraction. The theme park opened on May 10, 2000...
. The aircraft carrier was put up for auction on 22 March 2006. No bids at the starting price of 128 million
RMBThe renminbi is the currency of the People's Republic of China , whose principal unit is the yuan , subdivided into 10 jiao , each of 10 fen . The renminbi is issued by the People's Bank of China, the monetary authority of the PRC. The ISO 4217 abbreviation is CNY, although it is also commonly...
(approx. 16 million U.S. dollars) were received, so the carrier was withdrawn from sale. On 31 May 2006, the Soviet aircraft carrier was finally auctioned off in
ShenzhenShenzhen is a city of sub-provincial administrative status in southern China's Guangdong province, situated immediately north of Hong Kong...
for 128 million RMB to CITIC Shenzhen, the current operator.
External links