Indian Navy to retire INS Virat by 2018

[Gabbar]

Indian Navy to retire INS Virat by 2018 ​

Indian Navy will retire INS Virat by 2018, its only aircraft carrier. The carrier will be decommissioned after the induction of INS Vikramaditya. and Indian indigenous carrier IAC.

The Russian-built Gorshkov, now refurbished and renamed INS Vikramaditya and the indigenous Indigenous Aircraft Carrier (IAC) are expected to be inducted by 2017.

INS Virat has gone some major refits and upgrades and Indian Navy is confident of operating it till 2018.

INS Vikramaditya is expected to join the Navy by the end of 2013.
It is not just the age of INS Virat that matters. The aircraft carrier has handful of Sea Harriers to operate and if the crashes or damages occur, the carrier might just end up like a training ship. Operating a carrier requires special skills and it may be lost in case of lack of aircrafts.

Indian Navy is creating a shore based simulator for MiG-29K aircrafts in preparation of induction of INS Vikramaditya.

 

[silentinksoldier]

i am not in favour of this...i mean..agreed the ship is too old, but frankly, it packs a punch..we need to aquire new aircraft for it...we need to keep it combat worthy. perhaps as more of a littoral group

 

[SR 71 Blackbird]

I think viraat must be decommissioned to give way for IAC 3

 

[GUNS-N- ROSES]

well i am sure some of us will be too emotional on de-commissioning of virat. but fact of the matter is, the carrier is becoming increasingly difficult to maintain. with frequent unserviceabilities the maintenance and operational cost is increasing day by day. hence it is advisable to retire it wen we have vikramaditya and our own indegenous carrier.

 

[ArjunaTheWarrior]

Old man needs sm rest now ...Virat served the country well ...

 

[Lord Of Gondor]

Indian Navy to retire INS Virat by 2018 ​

Indian Navy will retire INS Virat by 2018, its only aircraft carrier. The carrier will be decommissioned after the induction of INS Vikramaditya. and Indian indigenous carrier IAC.

The Russian-built Gorshkov, now refurbished and renamed INS Vikramaditya and the indigenous Indigenous Aircraft Carrier (IAC) are expected to be inducted by 2017.

INS Virat has gone some major refits and upgrades and Indian Navy is confident of operating it till 2018.

INS Vikramaditya is expected to join the Navy by the end of 2013.
It is not just the age of INS Virat that matters. The aircraft carrier has handful of Sea Harriers to operate and if the crashes or damages occur, the carrier might just end up like a training ship. Operating a carrier requires special skills and it may be lost in case of lack of aircrafts.

Indian Navy is creating a shore based simulator for MiG-29K aircrafts in preparation of induction of INS Vikramaditya.

Induction in 2017????I assume that something's not right here??!!!The Sea trials of the Vikramaaditya is scheduled to be completed for mid 2012(?) besides,the article has contradicted itself.

 

[Roybot]

Induction in 2017????I assume that something's not right here??!!!The Sea trials of the Vikramaaditya is scheduled to be completed for mid 2012(?) besides,the article has contradicted itself.

I think what the inept journo was trying to say was that,"both the Vikramaditya and IAC 1 would have been inducted by 2017" ready for service. Vikramaditya will be in the IN by end of 2013 as mentioned later in the article.

 

[Lord Of Gondor]

I think what the inept journo was trying to say was that,"both the Vikramaditya and IAC 1 would have been inducted by 2017" ready for service. Vikramaditya will be in the IN by end of 2013 as mentioned later in the article.

WTF??!!If the IAC is inducted by 2017 then IAC-2 will be inducted by 2030???The completion of the IAC is scheduled for 2012-13 so then probably two years for the completion of the Trials so induction should be around 2015 or has the build been delayed???Damn!these guys need to respect deadlines!!!

 

[Whiplash]

WTF??!!If the IAC is inducted by 2017 then IAC-2 will be inducted by 2030???The completion of the IAC is scheduled for 2012-13 so then probably two years for the completion of the Trials so induction should be around 2015 or has the build been delayed???Damn!these guys need to respect deadlines!!!

Firstly stop criticizing them for things you don't have knowledge about. An aircraft carrier is not a friggin FAC
Secondly, who told you IAC 2 will START construction only after IAC 1 is complete? The navy chief has stated we will have 3 carrier battle groups in the near future. So its not gonna be 2030 don't worry.

 

[truthseeker2010]

Navy to operate Viraat aircraft carrier for another decade

NEW DELHI: The navy is planning to operate its lone aircraft carrier INS Viraat , which has already completed 50 years of service, for another decade, a top official said here Wednesday.

Assistant Chief of Naval Staff (Foreign Cooperation and Intelligence) Rear Admiral Anil Kumar Chawla said that INS Viraat, which celebrated its golden jubilee year in 2009, will be operated till 2020.

However, he said this will be possible only if its ageing Sea Harrier fighter aircraft fleet is available for ship-borne operations.

Viraat, a Centaur class aircraft carrier of British origin, had served for 28 years from 1959 as HMS Hermes in the Royal British Navy before it was transferred to India in 1987.

In the Indian Navy, Viraat has completed nearly 23 years of its operational life and is one of the oldest aircraft carriers in naval operation at present.

Its fighter aircraft complement is the British-origin Sea Harrier, about 30 of which were inducted into the Indian Navy in 1983. The navy has lost about 20 of these aircraft in crashes over the years and about 10 are left in service now.

Interestingly, the navy's Republic Day parade tableau this year will feature the Viraat and the naval air wing's new acquisition, the Russian-made MiG-29K carrier-borne fighter jets, Chawla said.

India is also building an Indigenous Aircraft Carrier (IAC) at the Cochin Shipyard, which is expected to be launched in the waters later this year or early next year. "From launch to get the IAC operational, it could take about four to five years," he said.

The navy plans to have the IAC, to be called INS Vikrant, ready for operations by 2014-15, Chawla said, adding that the naval variant of the indigenous Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) would be the fighter jet for the 40,000-tonne IAC.

With India also scheduled to get delivery of the Admiral Gorshkov aircraft carrier from Russia by late 2012 or early 2013, the navy is hoping to operate two aircraft carriers by the middle of this decade.

Karwar naval facility in Karnataka is expected to be the home base for Admiral Gorshkov, which was purchased by India in 2004 and rechristened INS Vikramaditya.

The refit of Gorshkov, for which India agreed to pay $2.34 billion in 2009 instead of the earlier agreed price of $1.5-billion, is in progress at the Sevmash shipyard in Russia.

India has bought 16 MiG-2Ks for Gorshkov and the first lot of the fighter jets has been delivered. These fighter jets are at present operating out of Goa. There are plans for buying 29 more of these aircraft for the navy soon.

The Republic Day parade tableau will also feature photographs of HMS Trincomalee, the oldest ship afloat in the world as of today. Tricomalee was built at the Bombay Dockyard in 1817 and is celebrating its 275th anniversary this year.

 

[unicorn148]

The construction of second will start this year and will speed up after the first IAC will be launched

 

[unicorn148]

IF it will be till 2018 then India will have 3 carriers at a time

 

[Capt.Popeye]

IF it will be till 2018 then India will have 3 carriers at a time

My view on the future life of INS Viraat.
Likely scenario: INS Viraat will get recycled in to a helicopter carrier and as an adjunct to the Amphibious Sea-Lift ships i.e. 'Jalashwa' analogues and LSTs. In that role, the air-wing will include AEW, ASW and VERTREP choppers. Who knows, maybe a navalised version of the Chinook! And/or the SeaKing/replacement for SeaKing.

 

[alphaxindia]

We should keep INS Viraat for training, after 2018.

 

[d14gtc]

Need to give it rest as served for long 50years.... Matter off fact is will only give a way for new added punch for depleting navy fleet with fresh breath of fresh blood.This Huge Fortress served the nation even beyond its limits n life.Just now need to give her a tremendous farewell.... but cheerup guys still 7-8 years stay with us