Indian Navy to get Vikramaditya in mid-November 2013
The Indian Navy will soon get its second aircraft carrier, 45,000-tonne Vikramaditya as the warship has successfully completed all aviation trials in the White Sea. Formerly Admiral Gorshkov which has been renamed INS Vikramaditya, the ship has been undergoing refitting and refurbishment at the Sevmash shipyard in the Russian city of Severodvinsk. It is likely to be delivered to the Indian Navy in mid-November. Currently, the Navy operates INS Viraat. India’s first indigenous aircraft carrier, Vikrant, is being built by the Cochin Shipyard, and it is likely to be ready for commissioning in 2017-18.
Salient features of INS Vikramaditya:
- Russian aircraft carrier which was originally commissioned in 1986 and decommissioned in as she was too expensive to operate on a post-Cold War budget.
- It has been purchased by India at a final price of $2.35 billion.
- Achieved its top speed of 32 knots
- MiG-29K fighter jets successfully completed take-offs and landings on its deck.
- 284-metre-long and 60-metre-high, can easily carry 30 fighter jets and helicopters, is fitted with latest communication systems, protective coating, a telephone exchange, pumps, hygiene and galley equipment, lifts and many more facilities.
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Month: Current Affairs - September, 2013