A few months ago China displayed its Carrier Battle Group (CBG) the Laioning aircraft carrier (built around Ukraine’s Varyag) and very soon India commissioned its latest aircraft carrier the INS Vikramaditya, a 40,000 ton 284 metres long and 60 mt high aircraft carrier. In an apparent show of strength and China blue water weakness the INS Vikramaditya was accompanied from Sevmash shipyeard in Northern Russia to Karwar by INS Trikand, a Talwar class frigate, INS Delhi destroyer, and INS Deepak, the rest of the Western Fleet later joined the cavalcade, which included the smaller aircraft carrier INS Viraat, two Delhi class destroyers, three Trishul class stealth frigates, a Godavari class frigate and other several offshore vessels.
The Chinese CBG was literally obliterated by the impressive show of force by the Indian Navy consisting of several warships from the Western fleet and a few VSTOL Harrier jets escorting the new carrier as well to its new homeport. It also showed that India was way ahead of China when it came to undertaking missions over long distances.
Vikramaditya is a Kiev class carrier named Baku of Soviet vintage, in 1996, it was decommisioned and the Indian Navy purchased the vessel after a protracted and cantankerous negotiations process at an overall cost of around US $2.3 million. The ship can accommodate 30 Mig-29K fighter jets (already procured after extensive testing on the refurbished platform before the ship was trasferred to Indian ownership). The new carrier will be later joined by India’s first indigenous aircraft carrier, the INS Vikrant, which is expected to be commissioned by 2017.
