INS Vikramaditya Completes Engine Tests Successfully

The INS Vikramaditya has successfully passed engine tests during the first stage of final sea trials in the White Sea, shipbuilder Sevmash said Tuesday.

The carrier “showed excellent performance while being tested at various speeds,” a Sevmash spokesman said.

The ship, which is well past its original 2008 delivery, was supposed to have been handed over to the Indian Navy last year but initial sea trials found that the ship’s boilers were not fully functional.

The source of the problem, which reduced the ship's maximum speed, was due to use of low-grade Chinese-made firebricks in the boiler insulation instead of asbestos, Russian shipbuilders said.

The boiler problems were fixed by Russian shipbuilders in February, Sevmash said.

The Vikramaditya will now sail to the Barents Sea, where the ship will undertake working-up procedures including aircraft deck operations. Several MiG-29K fighters and two helicopters will be used in the flight trials, according to Ria Novosti.

A report on the results of the final trials must be given to the Indians on October 15, the Sevmash official said.

The refit of the ship has lurched from one crisis to another since India and Russia signed a $947 million deal in 2005 for its purchase and refit. Delivery has already been delayed three times, pushing up the cost of refurbishing the vessel to $2.3 billion, the report added.