INS VIKRANT (Syllabus: GS Paper 3 – Security/Sci & Tech)

Context: The Defence Procurement Board (DPB) recently deliberated on the Indian Navy's proposal for acquiring a second Vikrant-like aircraft carrier, with a displacement of 45,000 tonnes and an estimated cost of approximately ₹40,000 crore.

Features

• Length: 262 metres in length, exceeding that of two football fields and is 62 metres wide. Around 20 aircraft can be parked in the hangar.
• Speed:  28 knots (more than 50 mph) and a cruising speed of 18 knots with an endurance of about 7,500 nautical miles.
• Built by: Cochin Shipyard Ltd.

o The IAC was commissioned in 2022 making it the most potent sea-based asset. 

INS Vikrant

• The INS Vikrant, the 44,000-tonne indigenous aircraft carrier (IAC), is the first to be designed and constructed in India.
• After its induction, the warship will be a key component of the Indian Navy’s push to establish itself as a “blue water” force, one with the ability to project its power on distant seas.