by Tbilisi. Finally, on 4 October 1990, it was renamed Admiral Flota Sovetskogo Soyuza N.G. Kuznetsov, referred to in short as Admiral Kuznetsov. The ship was 71% complete by mid-1989. In November 1989 it undertook its first aircraft operations. After the 1991 Soviet coup d'état attempt and the independence of Ukraine, Ukrainian president Leonid Kravchuk sent a telegram to the ship's commander Viktor Yarygin, declaring that Admiral Kuznetsov was Ukrainian property, and that the ship should remain in Sevastopol until the Ukrainian government made a decision on its fate. Deputy commander of the Northern Fleet Yuri Ustimenko urgently arrived from the Arctic to pre-empt the Ukrainian government and gave the order for Admiral Kuznetsov to sail to Vidyayevo so the ship could remain in the Soviet fleet. In December 1991, it sailed from the Black Sea to join the Northern Fleet. 1995–1996 deployment From 23 December 1995 through 22 March 1996 Admiral Kuznetsov made its first 90-day Mediterranean deployment with 13 Su-33, 2 Su-25 UTG, and 11 helicopters aboard. The deployment of the Russian Navy's flagship was undertaken to mark the 300th anniversary of the establishment of the Russian Navy in October 1696. The deployment was to allow the carrier, which was accompanied by a frigate, destroyer and oiler, to adapt to the Mediterranean climate and to perform continuous flight operations until 21:00 each day, as the Barents Sea only receives about one hour of sunlight during this time of year. During that period the carrier lay at anchor off the port of Tartus, Syria. Its aircraft often made flights close to the Israeli shore line and were escorted by Israeli F-16s. During the deployment, a severe water shortage occurred due to evaporators breaking down. 1997–1998 overhaul The ship was immobilized in a Northern Fleet shipyard at the end of 1997 after repairs had been halted due to a lack of funding. The overhaul was finally completed in July 1998, and the ship returned to active service in the Northern fleet on 3 November 1998. 2000–2006 Admiral Kuznetsov remained in port for two years before preparing for another Mediterranean deployment scheduled for the winter of 2000–2001. This deployment was canceled due to the explosion and sinking of the nuclear-powered submarine . Admiral Kuznetsov participated in the Kursk rescue and salvage operations in late 2000. Plans for further operations were postponed or cancelled. In late 2003 and early 2004, Admiral Kuznetsov