INS Vikramaditya (Adm Gorshkov) aircraft carrier

[Soumya1989]

First photo of aircraft carrier INS Vikramaditya on operational deployment. Taken in the Arabian Sea this month
Photo credit: Shiv Aroor

 

[archie]

Where are the Planes on this ship?

 

[dealwithit]

lower deck....

 

[Sea Eagle]

"IN pilots and air controllers have been certified and all aspects of operating the MiG-29K fighters from the carrier deck, including night landings, have been accomplished," an IN spokesman told IHS Jane's

Vikramaditya is not fitted with close-in weapon systems but IN officials said that by 2017 it will be armed with the Rafael-Israel Aerospace Industries Barak 8 air-defence missile system, which has a 6-70 km strike range and is being jointly developed with India's Defence Research and Development Organisation.

The carrier's air wing will eventually comprise 16 MiG-29Ks, including four twin-seat KUB trainer variants, alongside six airborne early warning and control (AEW&C) Kamov Ka-31 and Kamov Ka-28 anti-submarine warfare (ASW) helicopters.

Indian Navy chief: Vikramaditya deployed with MiG-29s embarked - IHS Jane's 360

 

[Sea Eagle]

"Yes, the formal induction of INS Vikramaditya has been delayed. But, the aircraft carrier is now capable of its full deployment. Fighter aircraft such as MiG 29 have embarked and being flown by Indian naval pilots. So far, we have trained 10 MiG 29 naval pilots, who have been trained to operate from INS Vikramaditya,"said an officer.

The ship has a total of 22 decks. With over 1,600 personnel on board, Vikramaditya is literally a'Floating City'.

INS Vikramaditya awaits induction | Latest News & Updates at Daily News & Analysis

 

[bhramos]

Where are the Planes on this ship?

lower deck....

the basic thing for any Fighter or Naval planes join its carrier in mid-sea, but not from the port... as exit the carrier before it reaches its port... generally seaports doesnt have any airplane repair facualty... as far as this i have seen in US Carrier deployment videos on Discovery and other channels, hope this is same here...

 

[Sea Eagle]

Russian naval doctrine saw the 45,000t Admiral Gorshkov as a missile cruiser, with a complement of aircraft. India wants a full-fledged aircraft carrier. Getting there requires extensive modifications.
The cruiser-carrier's guns, anti-shipping and air defense missile launchers on the front deck are being removed. In their place, India wants a full runway and ski jump, a deck that has been widened in numerous places, and a bigger and stronger rear aircraft elevator.
Core ship systems are also slated for modernization. The boilers are being changed out to run on diesel fuel, for instance, and communications will be improved. One nasty surprise was that most of the ship's old wiring had to be replaced. Adding more reliable, higher capacity wiring will help make Gorshkov a fully modern ship, but it has been very labor intensive and expensive.
INS Vikramaditya's weakness will be defensive. An official Indian CAG report says that INS Vikramadirya will have no aerial defenses until 2017. When it does, those weapons will need to integrate with the Russian LESORUB-E combat system, which means that weapon installation won't take place until the carrier's initial refit.
The Navy would like to field the
Barak-8/ MR-SAM missile for medium-long range defense, but integration could be challenging. They also want a close-in weapon system or 2, and intend to hold a competition rather than adopting the gun/missile
Kashtan CIWS system carried by Russia's own Admiral Kuznetsov carrier, or the lower-end 30mm
AK-630.

Anti-submarine defenses are equally concerning. The Indian Navy only has 10 Ka-28s, and only 4 of those are operational. That deficit, plus a Sea King fleet that is small, old, and needs improvements, makes anti-submarine defense a big concern. Failure to add a modern towed sonar to its surface combatant ships juts makes things worse. This area will have to be improved if India intends to field a viable carrier fleet, but attempts to buy modern helicopters or towed sonars have been stalled for years.
Gorshkov-Vikramaditya.

The removal of the Gorshkov's forward missiles, addition of the ski ramp, and other modifications will improve the ship's air complement, but the nature of its original design means that INS Vikramaditya will still fall short of comparably-sized western counterparts. Carriage ranges given for the refitted Vikramaditya seem to converge around 16-24 fighters and 10 compact Ka-28/31 helicopters.
In contrast, the 43,000t FNS Charles de Gaulle nuclear-powered aircraft carrier is about the same size, with a 40-plane complement that leans heavily to fighter jets.

MiG's design was reportedly selected over the larger and more-capable SU-33 naval fighter for several reasons. One is that India already operates a large fleet of MiG-29s, and has been improving its ability to maintain them in country. Another reason is that India also wants to operate naval fighters from its locally-built 37,500t – 40,000t "Project-71 Air Defence Ship" (Vikrant Class) STOBAR carriers. The SU-33s wouldn't be an ideal choice for a carrier that size, Britain hadn't yet put its Harrier feet up for sale, and India's own Tejas Naval fighter project remained a high-risk option. That left the MiG-29K as India's only rational choice, and Russia followed with an order to equip their own carrier.

May 7/14: Navy chief Admiral Robin Dhowan says that:
"The navy has inducted aircraft carrier INS Vikramaditya which is now operationally deployed with MiG 29K aircraft embarked and being flown by Indian naval pilots"¦"
Looks like India has made real progress since the 1st all-Indian flight (q.v. Feb 7/14), and reports also indicate that the carrier has taken part in a recent war game with India's Western Navy. INS Vikramaditya will remain India's core carrier option for some time, as Vikrant isn't expected to be ready until the end of 2018.

March 31/14: ASW weakness.Not only will India's carrier sail without onboard air defenses, it and its escorts can't field an effective set of anti-submarine helicopters.
"The Navy is today being asked to make do with four Ka28 helicopters that have the technology of mid-80s for training pilots, doing ASW roles against modern submarines for the five Rajput Class destroyers as well as the aircraft carrier Vikramaditya," said a source.
The other 6 Ka-28s have been mothballed for spares, while a mid-life upgrade that would restore the 10 to flying condition and give them modern sensors has been trying to get underway since 2008.

Bids were finally opened in 2012, and a combination of Russia's Kamov and Italy's Finmeccanica won the INR 20 billion project. Contracts are set, and both the Cabinet Committee of Security and India's CBI investigators cleared the deal. Defence Minister Antony's office has been sitting on that for over a month, however, while playing extreme hardball with Agusta Westland over the VVIP helicopter deal.
Meanwhile, the Sea King fleet has problems of its own, and a proposal to buy up to 16 modern naval helicopters from foreign sources remains stalled.

INS Vikramaditya: India's New Carrier

 

[bhramos]

Kamov Ka-25 on INS Vikramaditya, India.

 

[bhramos]

may not posted before

 

[cobra commando]

Crucial discussions on
extending Russian support to
INS Vikramaditya

The Indian government has proposed that Russia continue to extend support to maintain the INS Vikramaditya even after the one-year warranty period expires on November 16 this year. A Russian delegation headed by Sevmash General Director Mikhail Budnichenko was in Mumbai and Karwar last month to take discussions forward and to inspect progress made by the Russian warranty team embedded with the 44,500-ton aircraft carrier now on operational deployment in the Indian Ocean. The Russian team discussed the modalities of a warranty extension and the possibility of the Russian team staying longer at Karwar to ensure a smoother transition into full operational status. The Indian Navy has begun the process to identify and confirm armaments for the Vikramaditya, which sailed from Severodvinsk to India without any air defence weapons. Director General of Naval Projects (Mumbai) Vice Admiral Ashok Subhedar presented the visting Sevmash delegation with a list of work that had been completed by the Russian team, including completely re-laying the aircraft deck and other jobs by the paint- insultation and and assembly teams. Navy chief Admiral RK Dhowan recently revealed that the INS Vikramaditya was successfully on operational deployment. It has separately been confirmed that the navy's MiG-29Ks have begun operating on the ship deck successfully too with a first landing by an Indian pilot taking place on Feb 7.
Crucial discussions on extending Russian support to INS Vikramaditya - SP's MAI

 

[abhi_the _gr8_maratha]

MIG-29K does Hard landing on INS Vikramaditya suffers Minor Damage | idrw.org

 

[Warhawk]

Anti-submarine defenses are equally concerning. The Indian Navy only has 10 Ka-28s, and only 4 of those are operational. That deficit, plus a Sea King fleet that is small, old, and needs improvements, makes anti-submarine defense a big concern.

So atleast now can we see some Dhruv's with Mihir sonars being inducted into the navy for ASW roles..

 

[SajeevJino]

So atleast now can we see some Dhruv's with Mihir sonars being inducted into the navy for ASW roles..

I think the Navy soon announce a order to acquire Maritime Helicopter Tender something like the foreigners have Sea Hawk and NH 90 in Similar role


The Thread

http://defenceforumindia.com/forum/indian-navy/27932-multi-role-helicopters-mrh-inducted-into-indian-navy.html

 

[Kaalapani]

I think the Navy soon announce a order to acquire Maritime Helicopter Tender something like the foreigners have Sea Hawk and NH 90 in Similar role

I dont think we need any more phorefmall in helicopters.

 

[Kunal Biswas]

Its possible, @Twinblade perhaps have much greater information ..

So atleast now can we see some Dhruv's with Mihir sonars being inducted into the navy for ASW roles..

 

[mahesh]

India's MiG 29K naval combat aircraft suffers damage on INS Vikramaditya

India's MiG 29K naval combat aircraft suffers damage on INS Vikramaditya | Latest News & Updates at Daily News & Analysis

 

[Warhawk]

I think the Navy soon announce a order to acquire Maritime Helicopter Tender something like the foreigners have Sea Hawk and NH 90 in Similar role


The Thread

http://defenceforumindia.com/forum/indian-navy/27932-multi-role-helicopters-mrh-inducted-into-indian-navy.html

Some Dhruv can inducted in mean time. How can you accept just four helicopters to serve seven vessels and add to that some placed at Western Fleet and Eastern Fleet ?

New Kolkata class are coming this month and they too need ASW helicopters.

About the MRH, some reports say that IN would be using Mihir dunked sonars on them too. So they can deploy the Mihir on ALH and get the feedback from navy guys and develop it into a better system. This would also help in development of other variant of Mihir too

 

[SajeevJino]

Some Dhruv can inducted in mean time. How can you accept just four helicopters to serve seven vessels and add to that some placed at Western Fleet and Eastern Fleet ?

New Kolkata class are coming this month and they too need ASW helicopters.

About the MRH, some reports say that IN would be using Mihir dunked sonars on them too. So they can deploy the Mihir on ALH and get the feedback from navy guys and develop it into a better system. This would also help in development of other variant of Mihir too

I don't think that we only Looking for some 4 only ..I think More than 20 Such Helicopters are Planned ..

also we can use the Naval Dhurv for ASW Platform and It can do some more things ..Basically our Newer Destroyer can Accommodate 2 Helicopters

 

[abhi_the _gr8_maratha]

more specific , we should induct some Rudras. I read somewhere that navy was pleased with its ASW capabilities.
.
and indian ASW is not lacking but recovering . Many modern ships are ASW , and not to forget p8i poseidon

 

[Sea Eagle]

more specific , we should induct some Rudras. I read somewhere that navy was pleased with its ASW capabilities.
.
and indian ASW is not lacking but recovering . Many modern ships are ASW , and not to forget p8i poseidon

The discussion is about shipborne ASW platforms.BTW how can the Rudra solve the ASW problem ?

And the P-8s won't always be airborne to help hunting down subs.