India's First Indigenous Aircraft Carrier Launched

India's first indigenous aircraft carrier (IAC), INS Vikrant has launched today.

Being built at Cochin Shipyard Limited, INS Vikrant will be equipped with modern weapons systems including long range surface-to-air missiles (LR SAM) and close-in weapons system (CIWS) and is believed to be a centerfold for Indian Navy in coming years.

The aircraft carrier will be re-docked for erecting the island superstructure (for flight control systems) above its flight deck and the remaining underwater work.

The carrier will have indigenous Light Combat Aircraft (LCA), MiG-29K combat jets and a range of helicopters deployed on it.  

Major outfitting work is expected to be completed by 2016 followed by the extensive sea trials. The carrier is expected to be delivered to the Indian Navy by the end of 2018.

INS Vikrant will be 260 metres in length and 60 metres in breadth and can attain speeds in excess of 28 knots (56 kilometres per hour), said Commodore Saibal Sen, additional principal director, Naval Design.

"There will be about 2,500 km of power cabling and 1,000 km of other cabling and it will have power generation capacity of 24 MW which must be the peak power load of Cochin city," Commodore Sen said in an interview to IANS.

He added that carrier can deploy over 30 aircraft and helicopters.

CSL chairman Commodore K. Subramaniam said that several innovations have gone into making the warship, including special grade high tensile steel and pontoons to provide additional float at the time of launch.

"IAC is a big step towards self-reliance. Only a handful of countries operate such vessels and only a few who can build them," Commodore Subramaniam said.

India will become the fifth country after the U.S., Russia, Britain and France to have the capacity to design and build aircraft carriers of 40,000 tonnes and above.

The aircraft carrier's long take-off strip will be 206 metres and short take-off will be 145 metres. It will have a crew of about 1,560 personnel.

The Indian Navy plans to have three aircraft carriers, one each for the seas along the eastern and western coasts and one for requirements of maintenance, an Indian Navy official said.

The Aircraft carrier Vikramaditya (Admiral Gorshkov) is expected to be delivered to the Indian Navy by the end of this year.