SEVEROMORSK. Dec 9 (Interfax-AVN) - The journey by a squadron of the Northern Fleet (NF) warships, led by the heavy aircraft carrier Admiral Kuznetsov, to the Atlantic region and the Mediterranean Sea is being very closely watched by the intelligence agencies of NATO countries.
"Sailors are prepared to the fact that contacts with NATO's surface forces and overflights are and will be regular," 1st rank Captain Igor Babenko, chief of the NF Information and Public Relations Service, told Interfax.
The NF ships began their long-distance sea journey on December 5. The group consists of the Admiral Kuznetsov aircraft carrier, the Admiral Levchenko anti-submarine warfare ship and two support vessels, Sergei Osipov and Nikolai Chiker.
Prior to starting their journey the carrier battle group's crews completed a full course of basic training: after the coastal part was finished, the ships held several sea tests to check their technical preparedness for a long journey, Babenko said.
"After an overhaul inspection of the technical and crews' preparedness to operations at sea, the fleet's commission has permitted a trip to the Atlantic region," he said.
The NF Commander, Vice Admiral Nikolai Maximov, "noted that thorough preparations, which were held by all managing bodies of the Northern Fleet over the past few months, suggest that the carrier battle group's personnel is ready for the mission," Babenko said.
Currently, the ships are heading to the northeast of the Atlantic region and are performing daily ship drills and training, Babenko said. The focus is on improving interoperability of the ships' combat personnel.
The journey by the Northern Fleet's carrier battle group to the northeast of the Atlantic region and the Mediterranean Sea is part of the Russian Navy combat training plan. Its goal is to ensure naval presence in the strategically important parts of the World's Oceans.
Russian Navy flagship Admiral Kuznetsov has demonstrated full technical readiness to perform the tasks the cruise, a spokesperson for the Zvyozdochka Ship Repair Center in Severodvinsk told Interfax.
On December 2, the cruiser departed from the Center's Murmansk branch SRZ-35, where it had spent seven months for routine repairs.
"The aircraft carrying cruiser returned to active service with a renewed main propulsion system. Repairs have been performed on its boiler and air conditioning systems and the mechanisms for transporting aircraft to the flight deck. Many cable connections were replaced, some of the cruiser's armaments have been restored," the spokesperson said.