INS Vikramaditya: India's Largest Aircraft Carrier - TheIndianHawk.com

Mandeep Singh Sajwan

INS Vikramaditya Top View
INS Vikramaditya is the largest aircraft carrier in India

INS Vikramaditya is a modernized Kiev-class aircraft carrier and the Indian Navy's flagship. It entered service in 2013 and is translated from Hindi as Valour (Vikram) of the Sun (Aditya).


The carrier was initially named Baku and commissioned in 1987, operated with the Soviet Navy and then the Russian Navy (as Admiral Gorshkov) before being decommissioned in 1996.


After years of talks, India paid $2.35 billion for the aircraft carrier on January 20, 2004. In July 2013, the ship passed its sea and aviation trials September 2013.


The INS Vikramaditya was commissioned on November 16, 2013, in Severodvinsk, Russia. The then Indian Prime Minister formally entered INS Vikramaditya into the Indian Navy on June 14, 2014, and dedicated her to the country.


INS Vikramaditya has a length of 284 meters (930 feet), a displacement of 45,000 tons, and 22 decks.


The MiG-29K carrier-borne fighters, ten Kamakov Ka-31 AWEC helicopters, and the anti-submarine Ka-28 are all aboard this beast.


Our very own INS Vikrant is now completing sea testing and is slated to enter service in May-August 2022, with aircraft trials starting in mid-2023.



About INS Vikramaditya

The Indian Navy's most significant short take-off but assisted recovery (STOBAR) aircraft carrier and warship, the INS Vikramaditya, was converted from the Russian Navy's decommissioned Admiral Gorshkov VTOL missile cruiser carrier.


New engine systems, hull sections, sensors, and the flight deck were installed when the vessel was rebuilt. In May 2014, it went into service with a full complement of MiG-29 aircraft.

INS Vikramaditya Side View Image




More than 30 long-range multi-role fighters with anti-ship missiles, air-to-air missiles, guided bombs, and rockets may be carried aboard the vessel. MiG 29K / MiG 29K / MiG 29K / MiG 29K / MiG 29K / MIG 29.


INS Vikramaditya History

The carrier, initially called Baku and was launched in the early 1980s, served the Soviet Navy from 1987 until 1991.


However, the vessel's value in the East European bloc did not continue beyond the early 1990s due to the breakup of the Soviet Socialist Republic. Operating the ship on a post-Cold War budget proved prohibitively expensive.


After four years in the Russian Navy as an Admiral Gorshkov-class carrier, the vessel was decommissioned in 1996. Since then, India's government has been talking with Russia to buy Admiral Gorshkov.


In addition, in 2004, India and Russia reached a significant naval agreement that included the aircraft carrier becoming part of the Indian Navy.


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