Indigenous Aircraft Carrier:
The Indigenous Aircraft Carrier (IAC) 1, which will be called INS Vikrant once it enters service with the Indian Navy, began another set of sea trials.
- INS Vikrant is the largest and most complex warship to be built in India.
About Aircraft Carrier:
- An aircraft carrier is “a large ship that carries military aircraft and has a long, flat surface where they take off and land.”
- These floating air bases are equipped with a full-length flight deck capable of carrying, arming, deploying and recovering aircraft.
- They act as command and control of a naval fleet in times of war and peace.
- A carrier battle group consists of an aircraft carrier and its escorts, together making the group.
- During World War II, the Imperial Japanese Navy was the first to assemble a large number of carriers into a single task force known as Kido Butai.
- This task force was used during the Pearl Harbour Attack.
Aircraft Carrier in India:
- INS Vikrant (decommissioned): Beginning with INS Vikrant which served India from 1961 to 1997.
- India acquired the Vikrant from the United Kingdom in 1961, and the carrier played a stellar role in the 1971 war with Pakistan that led to the birth of Bangladesh.
- In 2014, INS Vikrant, was broken down in Mumbai.
- INS Viraat (decommissioned): INS Vikrant was followed by the Centaur-class carrier HMS (Her Majesty’s Ship) Hermes, which was rechristened in India as INS Viraat and served in the Indian Navy from 1987 to 2016.
- INS Vikramaditya: It is the Indian Navy’s largest aircraft carrier and warship converted from the Russian Navy’s decommissioned Admiral Gorshkov/Baku.
- INS Vikramaditya is a modified Kiev-class aircraft carrier that was commissioned into service in November 2013.
- INS Vikrant: In order to commemorate the legacy of INS Vikrant (decommissioned), the First IAC will be named as INS Vikrant.
- It is built at Cochin Shipyard Limited.
- It is currently undergoing sea trials and is likely to be commissioned in 2023.
- Its construction propelled India into a select group of countries having capabilities to build state-of-the-art aircraft carriers.
- Operational Modalities: According to the Indian Navy, the warship will operate MiG-29K fighter jets, Kamov-31 helicopters, MH-60R multi-role helicopters and the indigenously manufactured Advanced Light Helicopters (ALH).
