India unveiled its first domestically built aircraft carrier on Friday as it is expanding shipbuilding capabilities to counter China’s growing influence in the Indo-Pacific region.
The INS Vikrant, whose name is a Sanskrit word for “brave”it is India’s second operational aircraft carrier, joining the INS Vikramaditya, a Soviet-era model bought from Russia in 2004 to defend the Indian Ocean and Bay of Bengal.
The new 262-meter aircraft carrier was designed by the Indian navy and built at the Cochin shipyard in southern India. The inauguration was led by the Prime Minister, Narendra Modi, as part of the celebrations for 75 years of independence from British rule.
Modi stressed the importance of India now being one of the few nations capable of building an aircraft carrier.
“It is a historic day and a historic milestone.Modi said. “It’s an example of the government’s effort to make India’s defense industry self-sufficient,” he said.
INS Vikrant can carry a crew of about 1,600 and operate a fleet of 30 aircraft, including fighter jets and helicopters, the Navy said.
More than 75% of India’s new aircraft carrier components are produced domesticallyaccording to the Indian Defense Ministry.
The 47,400-tonne warship will be fully operational by the end of 2023, after undergoing landing tests with the Russian-made MiG-29K fighter jet.
India plans to equip the carrier with more than two dozen new fighter jets, including France’s Dassault Rafale-M and Boeing’s F/A-18 Block III Super Hornet.
In recent years, China has expanded its presence in the Indian Ocean and Western Pacific.
In August, a Chinese ship boarded a Chinese-built port in Sri Lanka, despite security concerns raised by New Delhi. Beijing said she was just a research ship, but analysts said she was a dual-purpose spy ship.
In response to concerns about China’s growing assertiveness, the Indian Navy last year dispatched four warships to Southeast Asia, the South China Sea and the Indo-Pacific for military exercises with the “Quad” group of Indian nations, which also includes the United States. United States, Japan and Australia.
Modi said on Friday that security concerns in the Indo-Pacific and Indian Ocean region had long been overlooked.
Today, this area is a high priority for the defense of our country. We are working at all levels, with an increase in the budget and the capacity of the Navy,” he said.
The Chinese People’s Liberation Army Navy has embarked on a modernization program over the past decade, with the goal of becoming a force capable of operating globally, rather than just staying close to the coast of mainland China.
China’s Navy has about 355 ships, including submarines, according to the US Department of Defense, which estimates the force will grow to 420 ships by 2025 and 460 ships by 2030.
In June, China unveiled its third aircraft carrier, which is believed to be equipped with an electromagnetic system, like the one the United States uses on its new aircraft carriers.
India’s fleet now includes two aircraft carriers, 10 destroyers, 12 frigates and 20 corvettesdepending on your army.
India’s oldest aircraft carrier, INS Vikramaditya, was built in the Soviet Union in 1987. India bought it in 2004 for the equivalent of €2.35 billion.
Source: Observadora
