INS Vikramaditya (Adm Gorshkov) aircraft carrier

[jakojako777]

Kashtan

Kashtan

 

[bhramos]

an old aricle about Gorshkov

NEW DELHI, JANUARY 19:
India and Russia will hold discussions on the leasing of an Akula-class nuclear submarine as well as Tupolev long-range strategic bombers and sign an agreement for the acquisition of Admiral Gorshkov during the three-day visit of Russian Defence Minister Sergei Ivanov.

On his arrival today, Ivanov said Russia was keen on joint production of ‘‘futuristic weapons systems’’ with India. According to him, Russia is ‘‘ready even for involvement of third parties’’.

It is understood while the Indian Navy has been keen on two Akula-class submarines, the Russians have indicated they will be able to supply just one. This had been conveyed to the Indian delegation during the visit of Prime Minister A.B. Vajpayee. With the decks cleared for Gorshkov, India is set to hold talks on the Akula and the Tu-22m strategic bomber, said sources.



The leasing of the Akula-class submarines comes more than a decade after the first Charlie-I class nuclear submarine which was also leased from Russia in the late 1980s. India acquired the submarine on lease to give shape to its plans for building an indigenous nuclear submarine, known as the Advanced Technology Project.

With delays in the programme, the Indian Navy is keen to take on the Akula-class which is considered one of the most advanced submarines.

Meanwhile, an agreement comprising 20 contracts for acquiring the 44,000-tonne Admiral Gorshkov is likely to be signed during the visit. According to Defence Ministry officials, the deal will include a complete refit of the carrier along with 28 MiG-29K and six Kamov helicopters.

Ivanov also assured that adequate infrastructure for supply of spares and contractual obligations would be created to meet India’s needs.

hope its not a repost.

 

[Sridhar]

Saturday, January 9, 2010

*Flash* : MoD/Navy Trying To Rope In PM To Commission Black Panthers, In Mid-Feb !!

The Indian Navy and MoD are still deciding the dates of commissioning 303 'Black Panthers'--the Goa-based MiG-29K Squadron and are mulling over anything between February 18-20, 2010, though the last date slightly clashes with Defexpo-2010.

Looks like the Indian Navy, after having the PM for the launch of INS Arihant last year, have made it mandatory to have him for every commissioning, and are trying to rope him for 303 also. There's still time for it to be decided, depending on the availability of the PM.


Chindits: *Flash* : MoD/Navy Trying To Rope In PM To Commission Black Panthers, In Mid-Feb !!

 

[Sridhar]

Govt approval to Gorshkov final price awaited: Navy

BY : PTI
With the completion of protracted talks between India and Russia to fix the cost of Admiral Gorshkov aircraft carrier, the Navy today said it was waiting for the government’s approval to the final price.
“I cannot speak anything about the final pricing till the government’s approval is announced,” Navy Chief Admiral Nirmal Verma told reporters here.
“But, yes, for any of these major induction programmes, we have a price negotiation committee, which has done its job and a mutually agreed price has been arrived at,” he said after a visit to the NCC’s Republic Day Parade Camp.
During Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s visit to Moscow last month, the two countries finalised the price for the repair and refit work on the aircraft carrier that was bought by India in 2004 and rechristened INS Vikramaditya.


Govt approval to Gorshkov final price awaited: Navy idrw.org

 

[RPK]

Chindits: *Flash*:Gorshkov Finally Has a Price Tag: CCS Set To Clear Vikramaditya At 2.25, Govt Revises Delivery Date As 2012 !

The Government has finally put a price tag to the long over-due and controversial Admiral Gorshkov, INS Vikramaditya, deal after prolonged negotiations for over two months with Moscow and has agreed at 2.25 billion US dollars, to be cleared by the Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS) in February 2010.

The contract negotiation committee, headed by Vice Admiral Ganesh Mahadevan, Indian Navy's Chief of Material, also laid down a revised delivery date of the 45,000 ton aircraft carrier as 2012. It may be noted that the deal for the additional 29 MiG-29K fighter aircraft for the Navy was held up last year over the aircraft carrier's price, but in December 2009 the CCS cleared the deal for the naval fighter jets.

 

[wild goose]

Gorshkov-Vikramaditya: Aerial Complement


Many of Gorshkov’s key modifications are aircraft-related, including the new arrester gear and ski jump. New boilers and wiring are the other major components. The timelines and cost figures for delivery of the ship do not include the aircraft, however, which are bought separately.

The original carrier’s complement was 12 Yak-38 Forger V/STOL fighters, 12 Ka-28 helicopters, and 2 Ka-31 airborne early warning helicopters. The removal of the Gorshkov’s forward missiles, addition of the ski ramp, and other modifications will improve the ship’s air complement somewhat.

The nature of its original design, however, means that INS Vikramaditya will still fall short of comparably-sized western counterparts like the 43,000t FNS Charles de Gaulle nuclear-powered aircraft carrier, with its 40-plane complement that leans heavily to fighter jets. For instance, the Gorshkov would be large enough to operate full naval AWACS aircraft, but it lacks a launch catapult. If rumors prove true and India does indeed buy E-2C+/E-2D Hawkeyes, they would be likely to operate from shore.

Carriage ranges given for the refitted Vikramaditya seem to average 12-16 fighters and 4-16 of the compact Ka-28/31 helicopters; diagrams seem to suggest total stowage space for a “footprint” of no more than 15-16 MiG-29Ks, with each Kamov helicopter sporting a comparative footprint of about 0.4, and about 5-6 open footprint spots on deck.

A related $740 million contract for 16 MiG-29K (12 MiG-29K, 4 two-seat MiG-29KUB) aircraft plus training and maintenance was confirmed on Dec 22/04, with an option for another 30 MiG-29Ks by 2015. They would be operated in STOBAR (Short Take-Off via the ski ramp, But Assisted Recovery via arresting wires) mode. The MiG-29K was reportedly selected over the larger and more-capable navalized SU-33, because India also hopes to operate them from smaller “Project-71” indigenous carriers.

In addition to its fighters, the Gorshkov-Vikramaditya’s complement will include Kamov Ka-31 AEW and/or Ka-28 multi-role helicopters, along with a complement of torpedo tubes, and a CIWS gatling gun for close in defense after 201


INS Vikramaditya: Waiting for Gorshkov…

 

[enlightened1]

Russia, India to sign addendum on Admiral Gorshkov deal​

http://www.dnaindia.com/india/report_russia-india-to-sign-addendum-on-admiral-gorshkov-deal_1337947​

http://www.dnaindia.com/india/report_russia-india-to-sign-addendum-on-admiral-gorshkov-deal_1337947http://www.dnaindia.com/india/report_russia-india-to-sign-addendum-on-admiral-gorshkov-deal_1337947

Moscow: Ending their haggling, India and Russia have finalised a "mutually acceptable" price for Admiral Gorshkov aircraft carrier, its exporter has said, claiming that the Indian navy would practically get a "totally new, state-of-the-art" ship that is seaworthy for 30 years.

Russia and India are currently working on an addendum to the contract on the building of the vessel, said Anatoly Isaikin, head of the Rosoboronexport arms exporting company.

"The negotiations are over, and a mutually acceptable solution for Russia and India has been found. The cost has grown, but the vessel's building time schedule has not been extended," Isaikin was quoted as saying by Itar-Tass.

"Now the cost problems have been removed, and the ship will be completed on schedule," Isaikin said.

He said the new document will fix the timeframe and cost of the work. However, he declined to say when the document will be signed by the two sides.

Isaikin said that now these agreements should be fixed in the addendum to the contract.

India had bought the warship in 2004 for US$ 974 million, but Russian shipyard Sevmash hiked the price twice since 2007 and currently demands an additional US$ 2.9 billion.

Describing refurbishing of Gorshkov as very complicated, Isaikin said his firm will deliver totally new, sophisticated warship to India which will be renamed as INS Viraat.

As "we have taken only the body of the aircraft carrier, and its equipment will be totally new, state-of-the-art, this means that practically a new ship will be built."

Isaikin acknowledged that "there has been a delay in the talks about the cost that has grown."

Though both sides were haggling over the final price of the aircraft carrier, the Sevmash shipyard in Severodvinsk continued to build the aircraft carrier, the report said.

Experts said earlier that the ship would be ready in 2012.

The Admiral Gorshkov, renamed INS Vikramaditya, is to replace INS Viraat carrier that is currently operational but is now 50 years old.

After modernisation, the Gorshkov is expected to be seaworthy for 30 years, the report said.

The Admiral Gorshkov was a modified Kiev class aircraft carrier of the Russian navy, originally named Baku. In 2004, it was sold to India for conversion into a Short Take-Off But Arrested Recovery configuration (STOBAR) carrier to be named INS Vikramaditya.

The ship was laid down in 1978 at Nikolayev South in Ukraine, launched in 1982, and commissioned in 1987. The delay in commissioning was largely caused by software bugs in the new command and control system.

The ship was renamed Admiral Gorshkov after the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, as the city of Baku was now in independent Azerbaijan.

On January 20, 2004, Russia agreed to sell the Admiral Gorshkov to India, though payment details are still being worked out. As of 2009, Russia is upgrading the ship by stripping all the weaponry from its foredeck to make way for a STOBAR configuration, with a ski-jump on the bow.

 

[Sridhar]

Russia, India to sign addendum on Adm Gorshkov contract

16 February 2010


Russia and India will sign an addendum to the original contract to upgrade the Admiral Gorshkov aircraft carrier, a top official of the Russian ministry of defence said Monday.

Adm Gorshkov/INS Vikramaditya model"The document will be signed in February-March this year," deputy service director Alexander Fomin said.
Moscow and New Delhi have settled a long running dispute over the final cost of the project to upgrade the aircraft carrier. The original $1.5-billion contract, signed in 2004, was considered to be inadequate by Russia as it had grossly underestimated the scale of the work involved and even as commodity and service costs shot up in the period 2007-08.
It then demanded an additional $1.4 billion to complete the upgrade project which was turned down by India. It is being given to understand that both India and Russia may have compromised on a final figure of $2.3 billion.
The original $1.5-billion 2004 contract included delivery of MiG-29K Fulcrum carrier-based fighters.
The work on the aircraft carrier was to be completed in 2008, but is now headed for completion only sometime in 2012

http://www.domainb.com/defence/sea/indian_navy/20100216_adm_gorshkov.html

 

[Sridhar]

Russian roulette



http://www.ezinemart.com/force/15022010/pdf/page5.pdf

http://www.ezinemart.com/force/15022010/pdf/page7.pdf

 

[sob]

Sridhar, thanks for posting this article. It is indeed frustrating that even after the debacle of the Gorshkov case we still have have not learned our lessons. It is high time the bureaucrats are advised to stick their noses out of the defense deals.

 

[plugwater]

Admiral Gorshkov deal to be finalised

NEW DELHI: The long-pending deal to finalise the price tag on aircraft carrier INS Vikramaditya (Admiral Gorshkov) could soon be taken up by the government as the Defence Ministry prepares to take the case to the Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS).

With Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin scheduled to visit India early this month, the Defence Ministry has forwarded relevant papers for clearance by the Finance Ministry.

“Once the Finance Ministry gives the go-ahead, we will place the issue before the Cabinet Committee on Security,” Defence Ministry officials told The Hindu.

Defence Minister A.K. Antony had recently said that his Ministry would not take proposals to the CCS that were not backed by the Finance Ministry.

That the Centre had finalised a price was announced last year during Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s visit to Russia, but the negotiations concluded towards the end of December 2009.

The contract negotiation committee gave its final verdict on the acquisition of the aircraft carrier, which is currently undergoing repairs and refit at the Sevmash shipyard in Russia. The initial agreement of $974 million went up to $1.5 billion to include 16 MiG-29K aircraft for the carrier. The Russians increased the demand from $2.2 billion to $2.9 billion, even as the Comptroller and Auditor-General made critical observations regarding the deal.
Sea trials cost

One of the reasons for price escalation was the cost of sea trials, which, according to the report, was originally contracted at $27 million but shot up to $522 million. The trials themselves are expected to take approximately 35 months against the planned 19 months.

According to sources in the Navy, the cost of sea trials was not a factor during the erstwhile Soviet Russia days, but with the increasing commercial nature of the deal, these costs added up. The sources also denied reports that the duration of the trials could be reduced to slash cost.

As per the revised master schedule submitted by the Russian side, the harbour trials are scheduled to commence by March next year and will be followed by sea and aviation trials. The delivery of the ship is scheduled for December 2012.

The first of the four MiG-29K aircraft were inducted into the Navy on February 19 at Goa. In the absence of the carrier, the Navy has built a ski-jump facility on the shore to enable its pilots carry out practice sorties.

During Mr. Putin’s visit, the other defence deals on the anvil include an additional 29 MiG-29K aircraft, further agreements on the Fifth Generation Fighter Aircraft being developed jointly by both countries, and work on the Multi Role Transport Aircraft.

http://www.hindu.com/2010/03/02/stories/2010030260411100.htm

 

[Yusuf]

I hope all the committees act pretty quickly otherwise by the time the merry go round of going from one committee to the other, the Russians might start demanding another billion!!

 

[Anshu Attri]

http://www.ndtv.com/news/india/cabinet-clears-234-billion-ins-gorshkov-deal-with-russia-17509.php

Cabinet clears $2.34 billion INS Gorshkov deal with Russia

The Cabinet panel on security met over the controversial aircraft carrier Gorshkov deal with Russia on Wednesday and cleared an additional payment of $2.34 billiion for the aircraft carrier, rechristened INS Vikramaditya.

The deal comes on the eve of Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin's two-day visit to India beginning Thursday. During the visit, the two sided are likely to sign defence deals worth US $4 billion.

The Gorshkov carrier is scheduled to be delivered by 2013.

The Vikramaditya is currently undergoing repairs and refit at the Sevmash shipyard in Russia.

 

[Rahul Singh]

Someone has said true "transition sucks most from you". This is exactly what is happening, with INS Vikramaditya we are buying last foreign made aircraft carrier and look how much it had costed $2.4 billion and 5 year void which directly means, Mig-29ks will exhaust 3-4 years of their total life on tarmac instead of carrier resulting in pilots loosing their expertise. I think this 5 year void will cost us no less than $3 billion plus strategic disadvantage which is price less.

 

[mayfair]

Ah, the price one needs to pay for geopolitics! $2.34 billion for a crocked ship really bites. That £2 billion we've reportedly offered to UK for one of their Queen Elizabeth class carriers looks more and more attractive each passing day.

 

[Armand2REP]

$2.4 billion for a ship whose steel will be 37 years old upon delivery. Not only is the thing an ancient relic, the launch configuration gives it a crappy sortie generation. The delivery date is so long the fighters will be halfway in need of a mid-life refit. It isn't like IN won't fly the MiG-29Ks until it gets there. Has anyone even thought about how you are going to get spares for this thing? There are no other ships of this class in existance except as Chinese casinos and the fabs are long gone. It will be a maintenance nightmare. You will be lucky if it doesn't spend half its life in dry dock. The Russians can hardly maintain Admiral K who spends 9 months out of every year in port. This is just a bad deal all the way around.

 

[Sridhar]

A peep into Vikramaditya

BY: THE HINDU
Now that a final price tag of $2.33 billion has been fixed on aircraft carrier INS Vikramaditya (Admiral Gorshkov) going against the proverbial caution, perhaps it is time to look the ‘gift’ horse in the mouth.
While arriving at the figure, the Indian Navy asserts that there has been no compromise, including on the much-required sea trials that will be conducted for 20-24 months before the aircraft carrier is handed over by December 2012.
“There will be no compromise, and all trials that are necessary will be conducted,” Chief of the Naval Staff Admiral Nirmal Verma told The Hindu. The remarks assumes significance following the observations by the Comptroller and Auditor-General that sea trials were a major factor in the substantial increase in the cost.
Navy officials maintain that the aircraft carrier will be good for the next three to four decades. Its hull remains good with value additions done to modify the cruiser class to meet the force requirement. At the time of induction, it will be equivalent to the best among the contemporary carriers.
Some of the features built into the contract are replacement of the entire length of cables/wiring running into thousands of kilometres; delivering infrastructure machinery for repair and maintenance support in Indian docks; training of personnel from Indian docks and personnel on board the carrier; spare parts for 10 years from the time the carrier is to be handed; repair and technical detail documents for maintenance; and pilot training/trials.
Comparing INS Vikramaditya with other carriers, the officials said a 27,000-tonne Cavour class Italian vessel cost $2.2 billion, while 65,000-tonne CVF class vessel (HMS Queen Elizabeth being built in U.K.) cost $4.2 billion.
It took an three additional and 13 supplementary contracts for the final price to be fixed ahead of the rescheduled delivery of the 45,000-tonne Vikramaditya, bringing the curtains down on the negotiations over the price, which was increased from $1.5 billion to $2.2 billion, with the final demand touching $2.9 billion.
New Delhi has so far released more than $600 million.






http://idrw.org/?p=964

 

[plugwater]

Navy officer in Gorshkov deal faces sex-scandal inquiry

New Delhi: The embarrassed Indian Navy has ordered a high-level inquiry against a senior officer associated with the Rs11,000 crore Admiral Gorshkov aircraft carrier deal after "objectionable" photographs of him and a Russian woman reached it.

Whether the "loose moral conduct" of Commodore Sukhjinder
Singh influenced the performance of his official duties will be probed by an officer of the rank of vice-admiral, a navy spokesperson said.

The seriousness of the issue is underlined by the fact that it was believed to have been discussed during a meeting between defence minister AK Antony and navy chief Admiral Nirmal Verma today.

"Navy has received information about a senior naval officer Singh who has been involved in an act of loose moral conduct. The navy has instituted an inquiry to establish whether this had any influence on the performance of his official duties," the spokesperson said.

Naval sources said the inquiry, ordered a couple of weeks ago, will try to find out if the official's proximity to the woman had any impact on the Gorshkov deal.

A source said the photographs were sent by Indian intelligence officers to the navy.

In Russia from 2005 to 2007, Singh was in charge of the Admiral Gorshkov project and was supervising the re-fitting and technical requirements of the warship as warship productionsuperintendent.

On his return from Russia, the officer remained associated with the programme as he was appointed principal director (aircraft carrier project) looking after the project from Delhi.

Recently, India signed a fresh deal worth US $2.33 billion with Russia for procuring the warship, which was originally bought for US $974 million in 2004, after Moscow increased the price almost three-fold for refurbishing the aircraft carrier.

Singh, now with the directorate general of quality assurance, was also part of the cost negotiation committee set up last year to resolve the price issue.

Naval officers said the involvement of the officer so far seemed to be at a personal level only but added that the truth would be out soon as the inquiry was expected to be completed in a couple of days.

The source added that soon after the issue came up, it wasbrought to the notice of Antony and other top defence ministryofficials.

On the fate of the officer, the navy source said the possibility of his being sacked from service is not ruled out. The action may be taken on the grounds of involvement in acts "unbecoming of an
officer of his rank and stature".

http://www.dnaindia.com/india/report_navy-officer-in-gorshkov-deal-faces-sex-scandal-inquiry_1370624

 

[nandu]

Money spent on Gorshkov akin to price of similar warships

A file photo of Admiral Gorshkov.

Government said the USD 1,783 million to be spent for refurbishing and repairing the Admiral Gorshkov aircraft carrier "compares well" with the price of similar warships built in other countries.

"The repair and refurbishing cost of about USD 1,783 million (USD 1.78 billion) of the ship compares well with the cost of other aircraft carriers of similar capabilities being built elsewhere in the world," Defence Minister A K Antony said in written reply to a Rajya Sabha query Friday.

India and Russia recently signed a fresh deal worth USD 2.33 billion dollars for the Gorshkov, which was originally to be procured at a cost of USD 974 millions under a 2004 agreement.

Pointing out the reasons behind procuring the Russian-built aircraft carrier, he said," requirement of two operational aircraft carriers for the Navy has been considered essential to perform its mandated tasks. Further, aircraft carriers are not easily available."

Antony added, after taking these aspects into consideration, the induction of the aircraft carrier was finalised to enhance the combat capability of the Navy.

Meanwhile, answering another query, the Minister said in last four years only one accident had taken place during the aerial display of defence aerobatic teams.

A Kiran Mk II aircraft of the Navy had crashed on March 3 this year at Hyderabad at an air show. While two defence services personnel died in the accident, two civilians were injured.

http://www.brahmand.com/news/Money-...n-to-price-of-similar-warships/3722/1/12.html

 

[Sridhar]

Monday, April 26, 2010

*Flash* : Vikramaditya To Get Commissioned On Dec 4, 2012, In Russia !!

New Delhi seems to have told Moscow, in no uncertain terms, that on Navy Day in 2012--Dec 4, 2012, Admiral Gorshkov would officially become INS Vikramaditya, senior naval sources told Chindits today. It would take a month approximately after that for the aircraft carrier to reach India.

http://chhindits.blogspot.com/2010/04/flash-vikramaditya-to-get-commissioned.html