The Stalingrad-class battlecruiser, also known as Project 82 (), was a Soviet battlecruiser design from 1941. It was a smaller and less-expensive counterpart to the s of 1939. The original role was for a light, fast ship intended to break up attacks by British fast-cruiser forces that might attempt bombardment of Russia's northern ports. In keeping with the battlecruiser design concept, they would have been able to outgun any ship with similar speed, or outrun anything more heavily armed. Design work had just started when the German invasion of the Soviet Union opened and the design was put on hold. The design was reimagined in 1944, intended to operate along with the s and proposed aircraft carriers to make up powerful task forces able to challenge the American fleet. In this role it would need to be a more powerful ship than the original design, taking over for the now-cancelled Kronstadts. They were intended to fend off enemy attacks and protect the carriers when bad weather prevented flying. A series of four were ordered, and Stalingrad finally began construction in 1951. Supported primarily by Joseph Stalin and opposed by a considerable part of the naval staff, the project came to an abrupt end with Stalin's death in 1953. By this time second and third examples were under construction and abandoned on the slipway, while a fourth was never started. The partially completed Stalingrad ended as a target ship for testing anti-ship missiles, before being broken up around 1962. Background and genesis The roots of the Project 82-class began back in May 1941 when the Main Naval Staff approved tactical requirements (, OTZ) for a medium-sized cruiser between the light cruisers of the and classes, and the Kronshtadts. It was intended to fulfill the following roles: Engage enemy cruisers armed with guns Destroy enemy light cruisers Support its own light cruisers Lay minefields Suppress the enemy's medium-caliber coast defense batteries and support landing operations Conduct operations against the enemy's maritime lines of communication To accomplish these missions, the Navy desired a ship of or smaller, armed with eight 203 mm and twelve guns, a dozen anti-aircraft (AA) guns and one triple torpedo mount. It was to be armored to withstand 203 mm shells with a speed not less than , a range of at and able to carry four seaplanes launched by two catapults. Three preliminary designs were proposed in response,