INS Vikrant
Ship
INS Vikrant
⚓ ShipIndia's first domestically built aircraft carrier, commissioned in 2022.
INS Vikrant (IAC-1) is India's first domestically designed and built aircraft carrier — a historic milestone in India's naval and industrial capability. Commissioned on 2 September 2022 by Prime Minister Narendra Modi at Cochin Shipyard Limited (CSL), Kerala, she is the most complex warship ever built in India.
The name "Vikrant" means "Courageous" in Sanskrit and pays tribute to India's first aircraft carrier, the original INS Vikrant (1961). The ship's motto is "जयेम सम् युधि स्पृधः" — "I defeat those who dare to challenge me."
Vikrant contains approximately 2,200 compartments and was constructed using over 75,000 tonnes of steel, of which 70% was specially developed domestically (DMR grade steel by SAIL). Over 76% of the carrier's content is indigenous — a landmark for India's "Make in India" defence programme.
Timeline
| Milestone | Date |
|---|---|
| Design commenced | 1999 |
| Keel laid | February 2009 |
| Floated out of dry dock | December 2011 |
| Launched | 12 August 2013 |
| Basin trials completed | December 2020 |
| First sea trials | August 2021 |
| Commissioned | 2 September 2022 |
| Aircraft flight trials | 2023 |
Air Wing
The carrier uses a STOBAR (Short Take-Off But Arrested Recovery) system with a 14° ski-jump ramp for launching aircraft. She can embark up to 36 aircraft:
- ▸26 fixed-wing fighters — MiG-29K / Tejas Mk1A / future CATOBAR aircraft
- ▸Kamov Ka-31 AEW helicopters (airborne early warning)
- ▸MH-60R Seahawk multi-role naval helicopters
- ▸Dhruv Advanced Light Helicopters
General Characteristics
| Specification | Value |
|---|---|
| Type | Aircraft carrier (STOBAR) |
| Builder | Cochin Shipyard Limited, Kerala |
| Commissioned | 2 September 2022 |
| Displacement | 45,000 tonnes (full load) |
| Length | 262.5 m (861 ft) |
| Beam (flight deck) | 62 m (203 ft) |
| Height | 59 m (194 ft) |
| Draught | 8.4 m (28 ft) |
| Speed | 28 knots (52 km/h) |
| Range | 7,500 nautical miles |
| Complement | ~1,600 (including air wing and women officers) |
| Cost | ₹23,000 crore (~US$3.1 billion) |
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