India's first indigenous aircraft carrier INS Vikrant began its inaugural four-day sea testing on Monday, marking a significant step forward for India's defence sector and the Indian Navy's combat capability. INS Vikrant, also known as Indigenous Aircraft Carrier 1 (IAC-1), is India's first home-made aircraft carrier. Interestingly, the IAC-1 is named after India's first aircraft carrier INS Vikrant which the Indian Navy had acquired from the United Kingdom (UK) in 1961. INS Vikrant had played a crucial role in 1971 war with Pakistan. It was decommissioned in 1997. The presence of an aircraft carrier is seen as a critical force multiplier in war scenariors. As the major ship of a carrier strike/battle group, an aircraft carrier usually takes the lead. The carrier is generally guarded in the group by destroyers, missile cruisers, frigates, submarines, and supply ships because it is a valuable and occasionally vulnerable target. Here're 10 interesting facts about INS Vikrant - India's first indigenous Aircraft Carrier:
1.The Indian Navy's Directorate of Naval Design (DND) developed IAC-1, which has been being built at Cochin Shipyard Limited (CSL), a public sector shipyard under the Ministry of Shipping. Currently, Only five or six countries are capable of producing an aircraft carrier.
2. On Wednesday, the Indigenous Aircraft Carrier (IAC) 1, which will be known as INS Vikrant when it enters service with the Indian Navy in approximately a year, began sea trials – one of the final stages of testing.
3 . IAC-1 reportedly comprises of 23,000 tonnes of steel, 2,500 kilometres of electric cables, 150 kilometres of pipelines, and 2,000 valves, as well as a variety of completed goods such as rigid hull boats, galley equipment, airconditioning and refrigeration systems, and steering gear, hence informing that more than 76% of the material and equipment on board IAC-1 is indigenous.
4. About 2,000 Indians from more than 50 firms were reportedly directly employed on board IAC-1 every day. The project also gave employment to 40,000 people indirectly. Also the total project cost of approximately Rs 23,000 crore has been reinvested in the Indian economy.
5.Soon to be inducted in the country’s defence arsenal, MH-60R Seahawk multirole helicopter built by the American aerospace and defence company Lockheed Martin, as well as the Advanced Light Helicopter (ALH) of Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd. will also be operated by Vikrant.
6. Once getting commissioned, Vikrant will become Indian Navy’s second aircraft carrier after INS Vikramaditya, which is currently India’s sole aircraft carrier which was commissioned in 2013 as the Soviet-Russian Admiral Gorshkov.
7.The new 40,000-ton warship is equivalent to India's current carrier, the INS Vikramaditya, which is a 44,500-tonne vessel, and is capable of carrying up to 34 aircraft, including fighter planes and helicopters. With its capacity to project Air Power across vast distances, the battleship will be an incomparable military tool.
8.The IAC-1 will be one of the most powerful sea-based assets, operating Russian-made MiG-29K fighter planes and Kamov-31 Air Early Warning Helicopters, both of which are already in service aboard the Vikramaditya.
9.Earlier aircraft carriers in India were either built by the British or the Russians. INS Vikrant , from which the new aircraft carrier has derived its name as a way to pay homage to its predecessor, and INS Viraat were previously the British-built HMS Hercules and HMS Hermes before being commissioned into the Navy in 1961 and 1987, respectively.
10.By successfully completing the IAC-1, India has shown its ability and self-sufficiency in creating one of the world's most advanced and complicated battleships.
