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Acceptance trials of aircraft carrier Admiral Gorshkov to begin in Russia today
NEW DELHI: Final acceptance trials of aircraft carrier Admiral Gorshkov, renamed INS Vikramadatiya, is set to begin in Russia on Thursday, even as the Indian Navy begins preparations near Goa in the hope that the much-delayed carrier would join service by year-end.
According to sources, the final acceptance trials lasting almost three months would begin on Thursday, and if all goes according to plan then the Indian Navy would take the ship under its command in another five months from now.
The ship was originally slated to be handed over to the Navy in 2008, but it has been plagued by many delays and almost doubling of its cost. However, Navy sources said they are now hopeful that their biggest ship would be operational under Indian command by the year-end.
INS Vikramaditya, which has been refitted at the Sevmash shipyard in northern Russia, is under the operational command of Russians, though over 700 Indian Navy personnel, the crew for the carrier, are on board, learning operational details and getting accustomed to the ship.
To oversee the final acceptance trials the Indian Navy has sent a team of few dozen specialists, sources said.
Russian news agency RIA Novosti quoted Igor Sevastyanov, deputy head of Russia's state arms exporter Rosoboronexport, as saying, "The warship departed for sea trials early on Wednesday in line with the schedule."
Navy sources said there are over 1,000 major parameter checks and other standards to be met during the trials that would last about three months. "If we are satisfied then we will give our approval to prepare the ship for handing over to us. That final preparation would take another two months," sources said.
The entire project, for the induction of the 45,400-tonne carrier, has been plagued by severe delays and cost overrun. The original contract was signed in 2004 for $974 million, but it had to be hiked to $2.35 billion after the two sides negotiated for more than three years over the Russian demand. In the meanwhile, the delivery dates have been postponed several times.
Even as the carrier was delayed, India started taking delivery of MIG-29K, the fighters to be stationed on the ship. Now, these fighters are operating on shore in Goa. In May, the first squadron of MIG-29K, INAS 303 Black Panthers, was commissioned into the Navy.
Navy sources also said that they have begun preparations at Karwar, the new naval base near Goa, for the berthing of INS Vikramaditya. To prepare the base for the magnitude of the logistics of handling such a huge ship, Navy has already moved INS Viraat, its only surviving carrier, to Karwar. Viraat would be operating off Karwar in order to develop and prepare the base for receiving the mammoth carrier.
Link - Acceptance trials of aircraft carrier Admiral Gorshkov to begin in Russia today - The Times of India
NEW DELHI: Final acceptance trials of aircraft carrier Admiral Gorshkov, renamed INS Vikramadatiya, is set to begin in Russia on Thursday, even as the Indian Navy begins preparations near Goa in the hope that the much-delayed carrier would join service by year-end.
According to sources, the final acceptance trials lasting almost three months would begin on Thursday, and if all goes according to plan then the Indian Navy would take the ship under its command in another five months from now.
The ship was originally slated to be handed over to the Navy in 2008, but it has been plagued by many delays and almost doubling of its cost. However, Navy sources said they are now hopeful that their biggest ship would be operational under Indian command by the year-end.
INS Vikramaditya, which has been refitted at the Sevmash shipyard in northern Russia, is under the operational command of Russians, though over 700 Indian Navy personnel, the crew for the carrier, are on board, learning operational details and getting accustomed to the ship.
To oversee the final acceptance trials the Indian Navy has sent a team of few dozen specialists, sources said.
Russian news agency RIA Novosti quoted Igor Sevastyanov, deputy head of Russia's state arms exporter Rosoboronexport, as saying, "The warship departed for sea trials early on Wednesday in line with the schedule."
Navy sources said there are over 1,000 major parameter checks and other standards to be met during the trials that would last about three months. "If we are satisfied then we will give our approval to prepare the ship for handing over to us. That final preparation would take another two months," sources said.
The entire project, for the induction of the 45,400-tonne carrier, has been plagued by severe delays and cost overrun. The original contract was signed in 2004 for $974 million, but it had to be hiked to $2.35 billion after the two sides negotiated for more than three years over the Russian demand. In the meanwhile, the delivery dates have been postponed several times.
Even as the carrier was delayed, India started taking delivery of MIG-29K, the fighters to be stationed on the ship. Now, these fighters are operating on shore in Goa. In May, the first squadron of MIG-29K, INAS 303 Black Panthers, was commissioned into the Navy.
Navy sources also said that they have begun preparations at Karwar, the new naval base near Goa, for the berthing of INS Vikramaditya. To prepare the base for the magnitude of the logistics of handling such a huge ship, Navy has already moved INS Viraat, its only surviving carrier, to Karwar. Viraat would be operating off Karwar in order to develop and prepare the base for receiving the mammoth carrier.
Link - Acceptance trials of aircraft carrier Admiral Gorshkov to begin in Russia today - The Times of India
