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| India-Pakistan |
| Lashkar plot to strike INS Viraat |
| 2008-12-30 |
| KOCHI: The security around the Cochin Shipyard has been beefed up to the highest levels after US intelligence alerted Indian agencies about fidayeen threat on the country's lone aircraft carrier INS Viraat currently undergoing major repairs here. Top sources told The New Indian Express that a plot to attack Viraat using a helicopter was unearthed after internet transaction between Lashkar top brass was intercepted by technological intelligence unit of the US Government. Constant monitoring of emails and internet usage of LeT's technology chief Zarar Shah showed that he was studying the Viraat in detail. "Same type of study was done about the Taj and other South Mumbai targets before the attack was launched. So this information is being viewed very seriously,'' the sources said. Zarar Shah also did extensive study of the helicopter charter services in India, especially those in South India. "The inference points at the possibility of using a helicopter to launch a suicide attack to cripple Viraat. Lashkar has done extensive study on both the aspects. The US intercepts clearly confirm that Lashkar's interest in Viraat is more than a casual curiosity,'' the sources pointed out. The information was passed onto Indian agencies along with other sensitive data transferred post-Mumbai terror strikes. And by the time the input was handed over to the Navy, Viraat had already left for Kochi for its repairs. The Navy, however, had spread an elaborate security blanket around the CSL by the time Viraat berthed in the first week of December. "There is a security protocol assigned to a sensitive target like Viraat. We've initiated the procedures. The level was a notch higher this time given the existing tension,'' top sources said. The Navy has deployed its marine personnel also to guard against any intrusion from the water front. The CISF has also intensified its patrolling along the Kochi backwaters. The high level of security will remain till Viraat completes her repairs and leaves Kochi. Sources said it may take up to five months for the extensive repair works to be complete. |
| Posted by:john frum |
| #13 The IMS (Indian Museum Ship) Vikrant is anchored off the Gateway of India and daily trips to see it are arranged from the Gateway of India by motor launches and the prices are Rs100 for the launch ride as well as the visit!!! But if you want to take pictures then there is an extra charge of Rs35 for still cameras and Rs100 for video cameras!!! Timings are from 9:00 am to 5:30 pm. The latest addition is a new gallery depicting the role of the aircraft carrier INS Vikrant during the 1971 war. Museum is not open to public during the monsoon season due to the choppy seas!!! |
| Posted by: john frum 2008-12-30 19:59 |
| #12 Ummmmmmm...maybe. Mumbai- The state government’s plan to set up a national maritime museum in INS Vikrant — the vessel which is currently docked on the shores of Mumbai — has been put on hold for the time being, as the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), which had earlier agreed to construct roads leading to the vessel in the middle of the sea, has backed out of the project. The civic body, instead of constructing the road as part of its responsibility, will now pay Rs 10 crore to the Navy. INS Vikrant, which was India’s only carrier for over twenty years, was later put out of service because of poor condition. It was formally decommissioned in 1997 and is now preserved as a museum. INS Vikrant is the only World War II-era British-built aircraft carrier to be preserved. Tourists, however, cannot go to the vessel, as there are no approach roads and the vessel is anchored in sea. The state government had sponsored a project for setting up a museum in the war ship and throwing it open for civilians. The project involved participation by various government organisations, including Port Trust, MMRDA and BMC. In 2004, the civic administration decided to provide the basic civic amenities for the museum instead of just giving out money. Accordingly, it took the responsibility of constructing roads to reach the vessel. There are two ways to reach the INS Vikrant: from Shahid Bhagat Singh Road to Dumaniya Road through BEST depot and another from Dr Moos Road, which can be reached to BMC’s Colaba pumping station but the stretch till the vessel has to be reclaimed. The civic officials, however, recently started claiming that only 300 metres of land belongs to BMC while the remaining 1.3 km is in the Navy and state government’s possession, and hence, construction of roads was not possible for them. “We haven’t received the permission from the ministry of environment for reclaiming the sea portion and filling it to make way for road. Also, another stretch near Flower Garden, from which a road has to be paved from Shahid Bhagat Singh Marg, is not in BMC’s acquisition,” said a senior official of the Roads department of the BMC. “It was therefore decided not to construct the roads instead give the money,” he added. The BMC will soon sign a Memorandum of Understanding with the Director General (Naval Project) on the issue. The proposal placed with the standing committee for handing over the money amounting to Rs 10 crore is expected to be discussed on Wednesday. |
| Posted by: tu3031 2008-12-30 19:18 |
| #11 INS Viraat at wikipedia |
| Posted by: Atomic Conspiracy 2008-12-30 19:14 |
| #10 The Vikrant, India's first carrier, is now a Museum in Mumbai photo |
| Posted by: john frum 2008-12-30 19:07 |
| #9 Viraat is the former HMS Hermes, flagship of the Falklands force in 1982. The ship has a convoluted history, started during World War 2, suspended incomplete, then resumed in the mid-50s with the latest carrier features such as angled flight deck and steam catapults. She was finished in 1959 and converted to V/STOL only in the 70s. In her C/TOL days, she operated aircraft as large as the Buccaneer strike aircraft (max gross 62000 lbs), which must have been quite a handful on a ship this size. |
| Posted by: Atomic Conspiracy 2008-12-30 18:42 |
| #8 Ima take Iwo Jima in 15 rounds, no nooks, hands free, spitting okay. |
| Posted by: .5MT 2008-12-30 14:21 |
| #7 The tale of the tape... Viraat: Displacement: 23,900 tons (standard) 28,700 tons (full loaded) Length: 226.5 m (745 ft) Beam: 48.78 m (90 ft) Draught: 8.8 m Propulsion: 2 x Parsons geared steam turbines with 76,000 shp 4 x boilers with 400 psi Speed: 28 knots (52 km/h) Range: 6,500 miles at 14 knots (26 km/h) Nimitz: Displacement: Approximately 97,000 short tons (88,000 t) full load Length: Overall: 1,092 feet (332.8 m) Waterline: 1,040 feet (317.0 m) Beam: Overall: 252 ft (76.8 m) Waterline: 134 ft (40.8 m) Draft: Maximum navigational: 37 ft (11.3 m) Limit: 41 ft (12.5 m) Propulsion: 2 × Westinghouse A4W nuclear reactors 4 × steam turbines 4 × shafts 260,000 shp (194 MW) Speed: 30+ knots (56+ km/h) Range: Essentially unlimited Iwo Jima: Displacement: 40,530 long tons (41,180 t) full load Length: 844 ft (257 m) Beam: 110 ft (34 m) Draft: 30 ft (9.1 m) Propulsion: Geared Steam Turbines Speed: 22 knots (25 mph, 41 km/h) |
| Posted by: tu3031 2008-12-30 14:11 |
| #6 Here is another... Viraat is to the right of the Nimitz photo |
| Posted by: john frum 2008-12-30 13:54 |
| #5 photo USS Nimitz and INS Viraat conducting a joint exercise in the Arabian Sea during Exercise Malabar 2005 |
| Posted by: john frum 2008-12-30 13:51 |
| #4 Thanks, John! Pics are when she was still in the Royal Navy. Wonder what the Indians want to change or "repair". Would LOVE to see a shot with the Viraat and the Nimitz together, just for comparison. I think the Iwo Jima is actually bigger. |
| Posted by: Old Patriot 2008-12-30 13:39 |
| #3 I'm thinking "deploying a suicide squad" in addition to an explosives-laden helo. |
| Posted by: Pappy 2008-12-30 12:57 |
| #2 Hope it was gonna be a goddam big helicopter, because I figure they'd just sweep up what was left and touch up the paintjob. |
| Posted by: tu3031 2008-12-30 12:08 |
| #1 photo 1 photo 2 |
| Posted by: john frum 2008-12-30 12:06 |
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