LNS Hafez Al-Assad

LNS Hafez al-Assad (Arabic: حافظ الأسد) (ex-Admiral Lazarev) is the Kirov-class Battlecruiser serving as the flagship of the Levant Arab Navy. She formerly served in the Soviet and later Russian Navy until she was laid up. The ship is based in Latakia Naval Base.

Construction and design
She was laid down on 27 July 1978 at Baltiysky Naval Shipyard, Leningrad, launched on 26 May 1981, and commissioned on 31 October 1984 as Frunze.

Career
In December 1984 she joined the Soviet Navy's Pacific Fleet. The following summer she visited Luanda, Aden, and Vietnam.

In 1999 the cruiser was taken out of service and prepared for scrapping as no money was available for its overhaul. In 2004–2005 the cruiser's nuclear fuel was unloaded. As of 2009 it was reported that the ship was moored near Vladivostok, in conservation status. The Russian Navy planned to modernise the ship and return it to active service, provided that the necessary funds were found.

Eventually, Russia decided to scrap and recycle the Admiral Ushakov in 2021 but sale of the battlecruiser to the Levant Arab Navy was signed and paid along with modernisation and crew training.

Namesake
The original name, Frunze came from Bolshevik leader and General, Mikhail Frunze. With the dissolution of the Soviet Union, Frunze was renamed to Admiral Lazarev, after 19th Century Russian commander and explorer Mikhail Lazarev.

The third and current name comes from former Syrian Arab Republic President Hafez al-Assad. As the most prominent Arab leader of the region, President Zev Derwish chose the name to honour his legacy. "Unity, Freedom, Socialism" is the ship's motto.

Armaments
LNS Hafez al-Assad 's main weapons are 20 P-700 Granit (SS-N-19 Shipwreck) missiles mounted in deck, designed to engage large surface targets. Air defense is provided by six octuple S-300F launchers with 96 missiles and a pair of Osa-MA batteries with 20 missiles each, plus S-300FM missiles, making it capable of ballistic missile defence. The 3K95 Kinzhal surface-to-air missile (SAM) systems is installed. The Kinzhal installation is in fact mounted further forward of the old SS-N-14 mounting, in the structure directly behind the blast shield for the bow mounted RBU ASW rocket launcher. Hafez al-Assad has six 30 mm (1.18 in) AK-630 close-in weapon systems, and two Kashtan air-defence systems.

Other weapons are the automatic 130 mm (5 in) AK-130 gun system, 10 21-inch (533 mm) torpedo/missile tubes (capable of firing SS-N-15 ASW missiles on later ships) and Udav-1 with 40 anti-submarine rockets, two sextuple RBU-1000 launchers and a RBU-6000 launcher.

Emblem
The Emblem of LNS Hafez al-Assad is a hexagon made in Islamic geometry, and within a pair of zulfikar, a shield with the flag of the Syrian Arab Republic and a lion. The zulfikar is a common symbol for the Alawite Muslims, an off-shoot the Assad family are members of. The shield of the Syrian Arab Republic denotes the late-President's country. The lion is taken directly from "Assad", "Lion" in Arabic.

Sister ships

 * Admiral Nakhimov - Flagship of the Baltic Fleet, Imperial Russian Navy. Also Kirov-class. Ex-Kalinin.
 * Pyotr Velikiy - Flagship of the Northern Fleet, Imperial Russian Navy. Also Kirov-class.

Comparable role

 * AUS Azeroth - Flagship of the Azerothian Union Navy. Unity-class super carrier.
 * DDV-192 Ibuki - De-facto flagship of the Japan Maritime Self-Defence Force. Izumo-class helicopter destroyer modified into light carrier.
 * HMAS Australia - Flagship of the Royal Australian Navy. Hawke-class super carrier.
 * HMNZS Huia - Flagship of the Royal New Zealand Navy. Hawke-class super carrier.
 * HMS Queen Elizabeth - Flagship of the Royal Navy. Queen Elizabeth-class aircraft carrier.
 * IIS Shah - Flagship of the Imperial Iranian Navy. Modified Ulyanovsk-class super carrier.
 * INS Zion - Flagship of the Israeli Navy. Slava-class cruiser. Ex-Ukrayina/Komsomolets/Admiral Flota Lobov.
 * Yamato Takeru - Flagship of the Genji Imperial Navy Earth Fleet.
 * DRS Xeres - Flagship of the Democratic Republic Navy. Kressy Class Battleship
 * DRS Benjamin Vandenmark - Vandenmark Class Cruiser.