Sam no Varunah: Indian Navy to induct INS Vikrant in its fleet on Sept 2

He will also unveil a new naval ensign that would shake off the colonial vestiges, and reflect the rich Indian heritage, according to the Prime Minister’s Office.

Pics | t p sooraj,Graphics | devan thiruvazhiyode

KOCHI: September 2, 2022, will be written in golden letters in the annals of history. Prime Minister Narendra Modi will induct INS Vikrant, India’s first indigenous aircraft carrier built by Cochin Shipyard into the Indian Navy at 9.30 am.

He will also unveil a new naval ensign that would shake off the colonial vestiges, and reflect the rich Indian heritage, according to the Prime Minister’s Office. With the commissioning of Vikrant, India will have two aircraft carriers. The other Russian-built one, INS Vikramaditya, was commissioned in 2013.

It is a matter of pride that India will join the select group of nations having the capability to indigenously design and build an aircraft carrier. This, Navy officers say, will be a real testimony to the government’s Make in India thrust.

Notably, Vikrant has 76 per cent indigenous components. The project involved major Indian industrial houses as well as over 100 MSMEs. It is set to be a memorable day for the Cochin Shipyard, as 2,000 employees of the public sector unit, most of them Keralites, worked day and night for a decade to bring the nation’s dream of an indigenous aircraft carrier to fruition.

It’s the Indian Navy’s motto, invoking the lord of the Oceans to be “auspicious upon us”. What better day to seek auspiciousness? Here’s a quick scan of India’s first indigenous aircraft carrier set for commissioning today as INS Vikrant

A pic clicked during Vikrant’s sea trials (Photo | Indian Navy)

Nation’s pride, Kerala’s honour

INS Vikrant is named after its illustrious predecessor which played a vital role in the 1971 Indo-Pak war.

Design: Indian Navy’s Warship Design Bureau

Cost: Rs 20,000 cr

4 Floors

Capacity: 1,750 personnel

Compartments: 2,300

Medical complex

16 beds, 2 operation theatres, ICU, labs, CT scanner, X-Ray machines, dental department, isolation ward, telemedicine unit, and physiotherapy clinic.

Air power

• Capable of operating 30 aircraft
• Flight deck: Parking for 6 helicopters and 12 fighter jets
• 270 lights for night landing
• Aircraft: MiG-29K fighter jets, Kamov-31 choppers, MH-60R multi-role helicopters, and indigenously manufactured Advanced Light Helicopters and Light Combat Aircraft.
• State-of-the-art Short Take-Off But Arrested Recovery (STOBAR). Equipped with a ski-jump for launching aircraft, and a set of three ‘arrester wires’ for their recovery.

Indigenous content - 76%

• About 76% of the project, including 23,000 tonnes of steel, 2,500km of electric cables, and 150km of pipes
• Warship-grade steel produced through a partnership between Navy, DRDO and Steel Authority of India
• Overall, about 500 Indian firms and 100 MSMEs were engaged in the project
• Employment opportunities: 2,000 Cochin Shipyard personnel and about 13,000 employees in ancillary industries

Old dream comes true

1989: India announces plan to replace the ageing British-built aircraft carriers with two new 28,000-tonne ‘air defence ships’

1991-’93: Economic crisis torpedoes plan to start construction of first indigenous air defence ship at Cochin Shipyard Limited (CSL)

1999: Then defence minister George Fernandes revives the project, calls for a state-of-the-art carrier

2001: CSL final graphic design

2003: Vajpayee government gives green signal

2006: Project Indigenous Aircraft Carrier (IAC-I) readies for takeoff

2008: Cochin Shipyard starts preparation work

February 28, 2009: Then defence minister A K Antony lays the keel for IAC-I

2010: Planned launch faces hiccups due to displacement issues in the building bay

December 29, 2011: With a displacement of over 14,000 tonnes, the completed hull of the carrier enters the water from the dry dock

2013-’14: Plans to commission the ship in 2014 get derailed due to technical issues

August 2021: Extensive “user acceptance trials” begin -- putting to test the hull, main propulsion, auxiliary equipment, aviation facilities, weapons & sensors and manoeuvring capabilities

July 28, 2022: Cochin Shipyard delivers IAC-I to the Indian Navy