Visakhapatnam: Indigenously built aircraft carrier INS Vikrant (R11) made its grand debut at Eastern Naval Command in Visakhapatnam on Wednesday to participate in the MILAN-24.
"Grihapravesh to her eventual homeport under the ENC! Welcome Home Majestic Vikrant!! ,’’ commented Eastern Naval Command official on Wednesday. INS Vikrant will be based in Visakhapatnam once the berth is constructed.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi commissioned INS Vikrant on 2 September 2022 in a grand ceremony at Cochin Shipyard. Earlier, INS Vikrant was delivered to the Indian Navy on 28 July 2022.
This vessel is the fourth aircraft carrier and first to be built in India. It was constructed in Cochin Shipyard Limited, Kochi.
The namesake Vikrant is a tribute to India's first aircraft carrier INS Vikrant (1961). Vikrant means "courageous" in Sanskrit. Work on the ship's design began in 1999. The keel was laid in 2009. The carrier was floated out of dry dock in December 2011 and launched in August 2013. Basin trials were completed in December 2020 and sea trials started in August 2021. The total cost of the project is approximately Rs 23,000 crore (equivalent to ₹260 billion or US$3.2 billion in 2023) at the time of first sea trials.
Vikrant's air group can consist of up to 26 Rafale M fighters and four Kamov Ka-31 helicopters. It is 262 metres (860 ft) in length, with a top speed of 28 knots (52 km/h; 32 mph) and endurance of 7,500 nautical miles (13,900 km; 8,600 miles). The ship has 2,300 compartments manned by 1,700 seamen. It has a hospital complex, cabins for female officers, eight kilometres of corridors and eight generators capable of lighting up a city of 2 million people.
