PM Modi to be chief guest at commissioning of 'Made in India' IAC Vikrant on Sept 2

New Delhi, Aug 25: In a major development, the country's first indigenous aircraft carrier (IAC) Vikrant will be commissioned into the Navy as INS Vikrant, on Friday, September 2nd and Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be the chief guest of the event that will take place in Kochi, Kerala.

 

 

 

Being the most expensive piece of military hardware in India's arsenal, the IAC Vikrant will be formally inducted into the Indian Navy, at an event at the Cochin Shipyard Limited, the state-run shipyard in the Southern state of Kerala, where the vessel was built.

 

 

The commissioning of the Vikrant marks a significant milestone for India, as the country will henceforth be able to defend its 7500-km-long coastline with two operational aircraft carriers - INS Vikramaditya(of Russian origin) and the Indigenously designed and built Vikrant. With this, India will join the group of seven countries— USA, UK, France, Russia, Italy and China have niche capabilities of design and building of an Aircraft Carrier.

 

Though the IAC Vikrant would require more than a year following its commissioning to be fully operational, it's crucial systems and sub-systems have been tested during multiple phases of sea trials. But the IAC will become fully combat-ready after the MiG-29K supersonic fighter jets complete crucial flight trials from her sprawling deck, and she is equipped with all her high-tech weapons like the Israeli-origin 80-km range Barak-8 surface-to-air missile systems, by around mid-2023.

However, Vice Admiral SN Ghormade, said, "We designed the Vikrant for operating the MiG-29K but we would be ultimately deploying the indigenous TEDBF fighter aircraft for which we are working with DRDO. For the interim, we are looking at Rafale and F-18 aircraft and trials have been carried out".

 

The Indigenous design and construction of Aircraft Carrier by Indian Navy and Cochin Shipyard Ltd is a shining example in the Nation’s quest for ‘AatmaNirbhar Bharat’ and ‘Make in India Initiative’ with more than 76% indigenous content. This has led to growth in indigenous design and construction capabilities, besides development of large number of ancillary industries.

 

 

The ship has over 2,300 compartments providing employment opportunities for over 2,000 CSL personnel and about 12,000 employees in ancillary industries. It is 262 m long, 62 m at the widest part and depth of 30 m minus the superstructure. There are 14 decks in all, including five in the superstructure.

 

It has been formally delivered to the Indian Navy by Cochin Shipyard Ltd following extensive user acceptance trials in last month.The maiden sea trials of IAC were successfully completed in August, 2021. This was followed by second and third phases of Sea Trials in October 2021 and January 2022 respectively. During these three phases of Sea Trials, endurance testing of propulsion machinery, electrical & electronic suites, deck machinery, lifesaving appliances, ship’s Navigation and Communication systems was undertaken.