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Indian aircraft carrier set for induction in 2014
Two years behind schedule, the indigenous aircraft carrier (IAC) is expected to be delivered to the Navy by 2014. Under construction at Cochin Shipyard Ltd (CSL), the first part of the aircraft carrier will be ready in 2010 after which the giant ship will float.Subsequently, the warship would be taken to another dock where the remaining part of the work would be completed over the next four years, naval sources said. Once completed, India will only be the fourth country after the US, Russia and France to indigenously design and construct an aircraft carrier of 40,000 tonnes class. While the 14-storied IACs initial tonnage was 37,500 tonnes, it had been upwardly revised to 40,000 tonnes in the updated design. From bow to stern, the ships overall length is 260 mt and it will have a maximum speed of 28 knots. The formal keel-laying function marking the beginning of ship assembly will take place on Saturday in the presence of Defence Minister A K Antony and Navy chief Admiral Sureesh Kumar. The carrier will have a mixture of 30 aircraft MiG-29K and naval version of LCA as well as Ka-31 helicopters. However, the naval LCA is still on the drawing board and will take years before it can be accommodated on board IAC. Since a carrier has a life of 50 years, foreseeable changes in aviation are taken into account. The requirements for naval LCA like a longer runway were considered while designing the IAC, said a navy officer. Specialised steel for the carrier is being supplied by the Steel Authority of India Ltd. Seventy per cent of the design was carried out by engineers at the Naval Design Bureau. The navy also sought consultations from Italian firm Fincantieri and Russian war ship builders. Russian expertise was sought in the aviation space as the on-board fighters are Russian planes, said a navy officer. A bitter and acrimonious debate between the navy and CSL in the past had led to a five-year delay in the project. However, the navy has provided Rs 200 crore to the CSL to augment the shipyards infrastructure, including bringing in heavy cranes. Posted by: john frum 2009-02-24 |
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