According to information published by the Indian MoD on February 6, 2023, the HAL Tejas fighter jet successfully first lands on the aircraft carrier INS Vikrant.
Follow Navy Recognition on Google News at this link
Indian HAL Tejas fighter jet on the aircraft carrier INS Vikrant. (Picture source: Indian MoD)
INS Vikrant is an aircraft carrier constructed by Cochin Shipyard Limited (CSL) in Kerala for the Indian Navy. She is the first aircraft carrier built in India.
Work on the carrier's design started in 1999 and was launched in 2013, with its commissioning ceremony taking place in September 2022. The total cost of the project was around ₹23,000 crore (US$2.9 billion).
The ship had sailed for its maiden Sea Trials on 04 Aug 21. Since then, she has undergone sea sorties for trials of Main Propulsion, Power Generation equipment, Fire Fighting systems, Aviation Facility Complex equipment, etc.
The INS Vikrant is 262 meters long and 62 meters wide and has a displacement of around 45,000 tonnes. She has a STOBAR configuration and can carry up to 36 aircraft, including 26 fixed-wing combat aircraft and a mix of Dhruv, Sikorsky MH-60R, and Kamov Ka-31 helicopters.
The ship is powered by four General Electric LM2500+ gas turbines and its combat management system was developed by Tata Advanced Systems. She can reach a top speed of 30 knots (56 km/h; 35 mph).
The ship is equipped with a variety of sensors and processing systems, including the Elta EL/M-2248 MF-STAR AESA multifunction radar and the Selex RAN-40L 3D L-Band Air Surveillance Radar.
The Indigenous aircraft carrier INS Vikrant is armed with a 32-cell VLS Barak 8 SAM system, 4 Otobreda 76 mm dual-purpose cannons, and 4 AK-630 CIWS.
