Refitted Aircraft Carrier to Leave for India November 30 – Deputy Premier

A Russian-built aircraft carrier refitted for the Indian Navy will finally leave for India on November 30, Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Rogozin said Monday, following an overhaul that is years late, and cost over twice the original budgeted price.

The carrier Vikramaditya, which is now five years past its original 2008 delivery date, was supposed to have been handed over to India in December 2012 after the contract was renegotiated, but had to undergo additional repairs after last year’s sea trials revealed that the vessel's boilers were not fully functional due to problems with their insulation.

“The problems revealed during sea trials last year have been fixed,” Rogozin, who oversees Russia’s defense and space industries, said at a meeting with Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev.

“The ship is ready a month ahead of the handover ceremony and will leave our territorial waters on November 30,” Rogozin said.

Russian arms exports monopoly Rosoboronexport said in September that the Vikramaditya will be handed over to India on November 15 and was expected arrive at the Indian naval base at the port of Mumbai by February.

 

The warship, previously known as the Admiral Gorshkov, is a Project 1143.4 or modified Kiev class aircraft carrier commissioned by the Soviet Navy in 1987 and decommissioned in 1996 after cuts to the Russian Navy fleet.

The refit of the ship has lurched from one crisis to another since India and Russia signed a $947 million deal in 2004 for its purchase and refit according to the Times of India. Delivery has been delayed three times, pushing up the cost of refurbishing the vessel to $2.3 billion, sparking acrimony between Moscow and New Delhi over the contract.

The Indian Navy has already taken delivery of some of the carrier's MiG-29K naval fighter aircraft, that were completed before their parent ship was ready for sea.

INS Vikramaditya, India's second aircraft carrier, out at sea again

The INS Vikramaditya, India's second aircraft carrier, is out at sea again. By this time tomorrow, the 45,550-ton vessel built at the Sevmash shipyard in Severodvinsk, north Russia, will be sailing through the Barents Sea.

Over the next two months at least, the ship will be put through stringent testing in the Barents Sea and the White sea. "If all goes well, the Indian tri-colour will be flying atop the INS Vikramaditya this November, after which it will start its journey to India," a senior Navy officer told NDTV.

The INS Vikramaditya, formerly known as Admiral Gorskhov, was to have joined the Indian Navy last year. However, the insulation tiles of its boilers cracked during full power trials, which entail pushing the ship to maximum speed at sea and then testing all systems for accuracy and endurance. 

The fire-brick lining - made of special ceramic to help maintain optimum temperature in the boilers - on the inside of the insulation had come off. A senior official told NDTV that the entire insulation was ripped off and a new one has been installed.

A 500-member Indian Navy team, which was training on-board the Admiral Gorshkov then had spotted the problem with the warship's boilers, especially when the vessel hit top speed of about 30 knots (around 55 kmph).

The repairs delayed delivery of the ship by a year. "Tests carried out in the dry docks have also been successful," the official said.

India and Russia had signed a $2.3-billion (Rs. 14,000 crore approximately at present valuation) contract for refitting the aircraft carrier, which served in the erstwhile Soviet Navy. The first contract was signed in 2004, when no other country was ready to sell such technology to India.

During the sea trails now, all systems of the ship, including its sensor and weapon and propulsion system will be tested and full power trails will be conducted again. A contingent of Indian Navy officials are on board to oversee and inspect the trials.

Indian Navy eyes high-tech options for future aircraft carriers

The Indian Navy — one of just nine navies that operate aircraft carriers — is thinking high-tech in planning its second indigenous aircraft carrier, INS Vishal. The admirals are deciding whether INS Vishal, still only a concept, should launch aircraft from its deck using a technology so advanced that it is not yet in service anywhere: the Electro-Magnetic Aircraft Launch System (EMALS).

Getting a fully loaded combat aircraft airborne off a short, 200-metre-long deck is a key challenge in aircraft carrier operations. The INS Viraat, currently India’s only aircraft carrier, uses Short Take Off and Vertical Landing (STOVL) since its Harrier “jump-jets” take off and land almost like helicopters. INS Vikramaditya, which Russia will deliver this year, uses Short Take Off But Arrested Recovery (STOBAR). The Vikramaditya’s MiG-29K fighters will fly off an inclined ramp called a “ski-jump”; and land with the help of arrester wires laid across the deck, which snag on a hook on the fighter’s tail, literally dragging it to a halt. This system will also be used on the first indigenous aircraft carrier, INS Vikrant, which Cochin Shipyard plans to deliver by 2017.

But INS Vishal, which will follow the Vikrant, might employ a third technique that India has never used -— Catapult Assisted Take Off But Arrested Recovery, or CATOBAR. Perfected by the US Navy since World War II, this has a steam-driven piston system along the flight deck “catapulting” the aircraft to 200 kilometres per hour, fast enough to get airborne. With greater steam pressure, significantly heavier aircraft can be launched. US Navy carriers launch the E-2D Hawkeye, a lumbering Airborne Early Warning (AEW) aircraft that scans airspace over hundreds of kilometres.

EMALS, the new-generation catapult that the Indian Navy is evaluating, uses a powerful electro-magnetic field instead of steam. Developed by General Atomics, America’s largest privately held defence contractor, EMALS has been chosen by the US Department of Defence for its new-generation aircraft carriers. The first EMALS-equipped carrier, the USS Gerald R Ford, will enter service by 2016. In Delhi Last Thursday, General Atomics briefed thirty Indian Navy captains and admirals on EMALS. Scott Forney III, the senior General Atomics official who conducted the briefing, told Business Standard that tight US controls over this guarded technology required special permission from Washington for sharing technical details of EMALS with India.

Senior Indian naval planners tell Business Standard that INS Vikrant, India’s next 40,000 tonne aircraft carrier, will use STOBAR to operate its complement of MiG-29K and Tejas light fighters. But Vikrant’s successor, the 65,000 tonne INS Vishal, could well be a CATOBAR carrier that launches larger and more diverse aircraft.

“While current fighters like the MiG-29K can operate with STOBAR systems, our options will increase with CATOBAR. We could operate heavier fighters, AEW aircraft and, crucially, UCAVs (unmanned combat air vehicles). A UCAV would require a CATOBAR system for launch,” says one admiral.

The navy is closely following UCAV development in India and abroad. On May 14, the X-47B UCAV that Northrop Grumman is developing for the US Navy became the first UCAV to be catapulted off an aircraft carrier, the USS George HW Bush.

Naval planners believe that, with INS Vishal likely to enter service in the early 2020s, they should plan on operating UCAVs from that carrier, as well as an AEW aircraft, and medium and light fighters.

“We could greatly expand our mission envelope with UCAVs, using the pilotless aircraft for high risk reconnaissance and SEAD (suppression of enemy air defences). Mid-air refueling would let us keep UCAVs on mission for 24-36 hours continuously, since pilot fatigue would not be a factor,” says a naval planner.

General Atomics has emphasized the EMALS’ ability to launch multiple aircraft. It has told the navy that EMALS causes less wear and tear on carrier-launched aircraft since electric power can be delivered more accurately than steam. It also launches aircraft quicker; requires less personnel to operate; and its high acceleration allows launches in still conditions, when STOBAR aircraft carriers must sail at 20-30 knots to generate “wind-over-deck,” needed to create the lift required for take off.

“We have completed 134 test launches across five classes of aircraft, including the F-35C Joint Strike Fighter; the F/A-18E Super Hornet; the C-2A Greyhound (delivery aircraft); the T-45 Goshawk trainer; and the E-2D Advanced Hawkeye,” Forney briefed the navy.

While the navy is impressed by the EMALS’ capabilities, there is apprehension that buying it may prove difficult. It would be a “single-vendor” procurement of a system that is untested in operational service, making it hard to validate General Atomics’ claim of being cheaper in the long term. But industry watchers point out that cutting-edge equipment like EMALS is what New Delhi wants from US-India defense relations. “The EMALS enhances India’s strategic capability. If New Delhi deems this a priority for collaboration, the US might well sanction the release of this technology,” says Manohar Thyagaraj, of the Observer Research Foundation.

INS Vikramaditya undergoes repairs before final sea trials

The aircraft carrier INS Vikramaditya, to be delivered to the Indian navy in December, has been put in a dry dock at a Russian shipyard for "cosmetic" repairs ahead of final sea trials.

"The work is underway to repaint the hull under the waterline," Sergey Novoselov, head of defence export projects at Russia's Sevmash shipyard, said.

In addition, much of the interiors has yet to be completed, the official was quoted as saying by Ria Novosti. 

 Special attention will be dedicated to the cabins for the commanding officers of the vessel, which will be refitted with better DEX-O-TEX fireproof flooring, new wall panels, more comfortable furniture and sophisticated audio and video equipment.

The Vikramaditya is scheduled to begin sea trials in the White Sea in July. The warship will continue the trials in the Barents Sea in August-September to be delivered to India in early December.

The warship, previously known as the Admiral Gorshkov, is a Project 1143.4 or modified Kiev class aircraft carrier commissioned by the Soviet navy in 1987 and decommissioned in 1996 as it was too expensive to operate on a post-Soviet budget.

India and Russia signed the USD 947 million deal in 2004 for the purchase of the carrier, but the original 2008 delivery deadline has already been delayed twice, pushing up the cost of refurbishing the ship to USD 2.3 billion.

India has already started taking delivery of MiG-29K naval fighter aircraft for the Vikramaditya

India - Navy hit by another sex scandal, Antony orders probe

The Navy has been hit by yet another alleged sex scandal as the wife of a senior officer has charged her husband with forcing her to get "sexually involved" with his colleagues, prompting Defence Minister AK Antony to order a probe.

The case has come up on a day when the Defence Minister asked the top brass of the Navy in its Commanders' conference to take sternest possible action against officers involved in such deeds.

 "The Defence Minister was very helpful and has told us that he has ordered a departmental inquiry into the charges made by me and my parents against my husband," the woman complainant said here after meeting Antony.

She alleged that her husband, who is a Lieutenant Commander (equivalent to a Major in Army) posted at the Naval Ship Repair Yard (NSRY) in Karwar, "forced me to get sexually involved with his colleagues and consume alcohol."

The woman, who says she has shifted to her maternal home after this episode, has accused her husband of physical and mental torture.

An MBA, she got married in February last year to the officer. 

he woman alleged that her husband had threatened that if she disclosed about his deeds to anyone, "he would put up my nude pictures on internet to spoil my image socially".

She said her husband is working on an important assignment related to Navy's Admiral Gorshkov aircraft carrier under construction at a shipyard in Russia and is about to be posted there soon.

In a complaint sent to the Defence Minister on April 30, she had demanded departmental disciplinary action against him.

The officer could not be reached for his comments.

In the recent past, several cases of sexual misconduct have come up against Navy officers including one where the wife of another Lt Cdr in Kochi filed an FIR against her husband and colleagues alleging that she was being forced into wife swapping by her husband. 

In that case also, the Navy officials in headquarters here had attempted to dismiss the case as that of marital discord but Defence Minister Antony took steps to ensure an inquiry into the matter which is underway.

A couple of other officers were also dismissed recently for sending lewd messages to several women using multiple SIM cards and mobiles numbers and having illicit affairs with the wife of a brother officer.

The Navy was left red-faced when pictures of one of its very senior officers of the rank of Commodore (equivalent to Brigadier in Army) surfaced in a compromising position with a Russian woman.

The Defence Minister ordered sacking of the officer, who was overseeing the construction of INS Vikramaditya in Russia at a time when India and Russia were discussing the demands by the latter for an increased price of the warship.

Indigenous aircraft carrier to be launched in August

Indian Navy's indigenously-built aircraft carrier would be launched on August 12 this year, while INS Vikramaditya (purchased from Russia) will arrive before the end of 2013, Union Defence Minister A K Antony said here today.

"INS Vikramaditya is going to be a reality, as promised the ship would be delivered before the end of this year," Antony told reporters after the commissioning of fighter aircraft MiG29K into Navy at INS Hansa here.

"While on one side Vikramaditya is coming this year, on August 12 we are going to launch indigenous aircraft carrier at Cochin," he said, without elaborating further.

Asserting that the country was giving a thrust to modernisation of defence forces, Antony said, "Navy modernisation is one area where we are going fast-paced now.

"Almost all the navies of important countries want close cooperation with the Indian Navy," he said, adding that "Indian Navy is well-prepared, most modern and (one of) the most capable navies of the world.

"(Over) Last many years, there has been well-planned induction wherein we are replacing old platforms and adding new ones," he said.

India to commission its first supersonic naval fighter squadron of MiG-29K jets

India on Saturday will commission its first-ever squadron of naval supersonic fighters, the MiG-29K "air superiority" jets, which will eventually operate from the decks of aircraft carrier INS Vikramaditya ( Admiral Gorshkov) as well as the indigenous aircraft carrier (IAC).

Defence minister AK Antony will do the honours at the ceremony at the naval airbase INS Hansa in Goa, which will also mark the diamond jubilee celebrations of the fleet's "air arm" of the force. While celebrations are certainly in order, it also underlines the lack of long-term strategic planning and timely decision-making in the country.

The MiG-29Ks — the first 16 of the 45 fighters ordered from Russia for over $2 billion will constitute the INSAS 303 "Black Panthers" squadron — began arriving in India a couple of years ago but the 44,570-tonne Gorshkov will be ready for delivery only by end-2013 after being refurbished in Russia for $2.33 billion.

Similarly, the 40,000-tonne IAC being built at Cochin Shipyard will not be handed over to the Navy anytime before 2018, derailing the force's long-standing ambition to operate two full-fledged carrier battle groups (CBGs) by 2015. The 65,000-tonne IAC-II, in turn, remains merely on the drawing board as of now.

As earlier reported by TOI, India's only solitary carrier, the 54-year-old INS Viraat, is currently out of action while undergoing yet another life-extension refit. Moreover, it has only 11 Sea Harrier jump-jets left to operate from its deck, with no replacement of the fighters possible.

All this when the recent Pentagon report on China's growing military might holds Beijing is pursuing a robust carrier building programme after inducting its first carrier, the, the 65,000-tonne Liaoning, in September last year. "China is likely to build multiple aircraft carriers over the next decade," it said.

China, of course, will take some years to master the highly-complex art of operating its J-15 fighters from a moving airfield on the high seas and then transforming the entire package into a potent offensive weapons platform. India, in contrast, has been in the business of operating "flattops" for five decades now, commissioning as it did its first carrier INS Vikrant with SeaHawk jets way back in 1961.

It has long been realized that CBGs prowling on the high seas project power like nothing else on the globe. It's no wonder that as part of its impending pivot towards Asia-Pacific, the US plans to deploy at least six of its 11 CBGs — each American carrier is over 94,000 tonne and capable of handling 80-90 fighters — in the region. Asia-Pacific has emerged as the new strategic theatre for rivalry between US and China, with India too jostling for space with the latter in the Indian Ocean region.

However, India will be able to deploy two potent CBGs only after 2018 when INS Vikramaditya and IAC are able to operate together. This, however, does not detract from the sheer capabilities of the MiG-29Ks. With mid-air refuelling and an extended combat radius of operations as well as BVR (beyond visual range) and guided anti-ship missiles, MiG-29Ks will provide a "four-fold capability jump" over the Sea Harriers, say officers.

The MiG-29Ks, with a range of 1,300km and a service ceiling of 58,000-feet, are capable of STOBAR (short takeoff but arrested recovery) operations. They are armed with R-73 and RVV-AE guided air-to-air missiles, Kh-35E anti-ship missiles, KAB 500KR/OD TV guided bombs and S-8KOM rockets.

INS Vikramaditya poised to meet latest deadline

The INS Vikramaditya has undergone a complex operation at Russia’s Sevmash shipyard ahead of the final stage of trials and delivery to the Indian Navy later this year. 

With 10 weeks still left until July 3, 2013, when the final sea trials are due to begin, tug boats carefully manoeuvred the giant ship to a drainable pool. There the Vikramaditya will once again be put on a frame. Once the water has been drained, engineers will inspect the hull of the ship and all its outboard parts and components.

According to the head of the commissioning team, Igor Leonov, all the procedures in the dry dock - which are compulsory for a ship after repairs - will take two months. So far, the project remains strictly on the latest schedule.The April 25 deadline for putting the ship in the dock has been met, Leonov said.

Ekaterina Pilikina, spokeswoman for the Sevmash shipyard, gave the media details of the elaborate operation. The main complication was that there were only a few centimetres to spare between the hull of the enormous ship and the sluice gate. To make matters worse, the team worked in strong winds and had only an hour at the peak of the high tide to complete their task.

The operation was observed by senior Sevmash executives; the head of the White Sea naval base, Vladimir Vorobyev; the captain of the Indian crew of the Vikramaditya, Suraj Berry and the head of the Indian observation team, Kudaravalli Srinivas. Both Indian representatives were impressed with what they saw.

Srinivas said this was the second time he saw such an operation. The first was back in 2008, when the ship was being taken out of the drainable pool after repairs. “Now Sevmash specialists have once again demonstrated their professionalism,” the Indian representative said. “They have coped very well with their task.”

The chief executive of the shipyard, Mikhail Budnichenko, expressed confidence that all the remaining work in the dock “will be done well and on schedule.” Sergey Novoselov, head of defence export projects at Sevmash, explained the nature of that work: “In accordance with the contract, we must inspect the state of the hull, the propeller-rudder system, and the sea valves. We will also restore the paintwork below the waterline, if necessary.”

Novoselov added that most of the problems identified during the sea trials have already been fixed. 

The ongoing refurbishment of the main boilers involves specialists of the companies which designed and manufactured them. The refurbishment is scheduled for completion in May. All the interim results of the project are inspected by the Indian customer and by the Russian MoD

Before the Vikramaditya can take to the sea once again, the Sevmash quality assurance specialists will be asked to present their findings on 435 separate items covering almost the entire ship, including tens of thousands of individual parts and components. In addition, much of the interior finish has yet to be completed.

 “There are more than 2,500 compartments in the ship,” Novoselov says. “That includes combat stations, bays, cabins, engine and boiler rooms, power plant compartments, and a 120 metre-long hangar, which is about the same length as a football pitch. We must paint all these compartments, install the hardware, properly insulate all the piping and frame elements, and present the whole thing for the customer's inspection. In addition to the engineers setting up the main equipment, we also have painters, joiners, fitters, insulation technicians and other specialists working on the Vikramaditya.”

In the autumn of 2012, the Vikramaditya was forced to return to Sevmash, where it had previously been repaired and refitted, to replace the fire-resistant insulation of the boilers, which began to deteriorate during trials in the Barents Sea. This and several other problems with the hardware had forced Russia to postpone the delivery of the Vikramaditya to the Indian Navy, which was previously scheduled for 2012.

The new delivery deadline is November 2013. Eight boilers must be refurbished before the end of May if that deadline is to be met. The ship is scheduled to take to the sea once again on July 3, so there will be a month left to test all the boilers of the main power plant, including operation at the maximum load. The next stage of the trials, which involves the planes and helicopters based on the Vikramaditya, is scheduled for August 3.

In mid-October the ship will return to Sevmash, where specialists will spend another month preparing it for the voyage to India.

Trials schedule: Every day counts

Sergey Novoselov, Head of defence export projects at Sevmash

“On July 2013 the aircraft carrier will begin sea trials in the White Sea; we will spend a month testing all the boilers of the main power plant under various loads. The next stage of the trials will commence on August 3 in the Barents Sea, and end on September 30. It will involve the planes and helicopters based on the carrier; the aim is to test the operation of the entire carrier-aircraft complex. 

One of the critical parts of the trials is aircraft landings on the deck of the Vikramaditya during night-time. These flights will begin in late August or early September, once the midnight sun period north of the Polar Circle is over.

 Then the ship is scheduled to return to Sevmash in early October to begin preparations for the voyage to India. November 15 is the deadline for the aircraft to be delivered to the customer and (for the ship to) set sail for its new home in India. Incidentally, we are planning a shorter route for that journey, via the Suez Canal rather than around Africa. In accordance with the terms of the contract, Sevmash engineers will perform repairs and maintenance during the initial 12-month warranty period, and then provide their services for another 20 years once the warranty has expired."

Ready to induct MiG squadron in may, India awaits carrier

The Admiral Gorshkov warship will be put on trial on Barents Sea between May and July and commissioned by Sevmash shipyard on White Sea in November 2013.

Government sources said the 2012 “boiler furnace brickwork” problem, encountered in seven of the eight boilers, had been rectified and the Naval Headquarters believes that the ship — modification and refitting of which would cost around $2.3 billion — will be on India’s western seaboard by November-December this year.

With India’s sole aircraft carrier — the 54-year-old INS Viraat — undergoing an overhaul and scheduled to join active duty by mid-2013, there is urgency in the acquisition of Vikramaditya as the Chinese PLA Navy will put its aircraft carrier Liaoning on high sea trial this year.

Acquired as junk named Varyag from Ukraine, Liaoning— refurbished at the Dalian shipyard — is expected to acquire combat capability within two years.

As a first step towards formally acquiring Vikramaditya, 16 aircraft of Russian MiG-29 K fighters will be commissioned into the Indian Navy in Goa on May 11.

While this squadron of multi-role fighters will be christened 303 squadron, the navy will acquire another 29 aircraft for its second squadron.

The new aircraft carrier will be based at Karwar in Karnataka under the Western Naval Command and will give India the much needed long legs in the Indian Ocean region.

“The delivery of INS Vikramaditya figured in summit meeting between Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Russian President Vladimir Putin in Delhi on December 24, 2012. We hope that high sea aviation and speed trials of INS Vikramaditya would be smooth,” said a defence ministry official.

With the first squadron of carrier-based fly-by-wire MiG-29 K fighters to be formally inducted into the navy next month, India is now keeping its fingers crossed on Russia delivering the 45,000-tonne INS Vikramaditya aircraft carrier by 2013 end, after a delay of over five years.

Russia to hand over INS Vikramaditya to India in November

Russia will hand over the much-delayed INS Vikramaditya aircraft carrier to India in November, giving the country's navy a strategic advantage in the Indian Ocean region. The Vikramaditya aircraft carrier is to be handed over to the Indian Navy in November, 2013, head of the Russian Federal Service for Military-Technical Cooperation, Alexander Fomin, said on Thursday. 

"The ship is to be put in a dock in April, go on sea trials in June and July and be officially handed over some time in November," he was quoted by the Itar-Tass news agency as saying. 

 The Vikramaditya was originally built as the Soviet Project 1143.4 class aircraft carrier Admiral Gorshkov. 

The Vikramaditya, which is already years past its original 2008 delivery date, was supposed to have been handed over on December 4, 2012, but sea trials in September revealed the ship's boilers were not fully functional. The Vikramaditya then returned to the shipyard to fix the problems that were detected during the sea trials. 

The ship demonstrated excellent seaworthiness, speed of 27.9 knots (about 52 kilometres per hour) and manoeuvrability during the three-month sea trials. The ship sailed for more than 12,000 miles, with 517 flights performed from its deck by aircraft and helicopters. 

Russia's Northern Fleet aviation was involved in the sea trials, aircraft and helicopters flew around and over the ship in order to check its radar, air defence, communication and control systems. 

Under a package inter-governmental agreement signed in New Delhi in January 2004, the body of the Admiral Gorshkov was transferred to India for free, subject to its upgrading at Sevmash, a Russian shipbuilding company, and armament with Russian aircraft. 

Russia will also train the Indian crew of about 1,500 and create an infrastructure for the ship in the Indian Ocean. 

The overall cost of the contract was estimated at USD 1.5 billion, of which about 974 million were intended for the conversion of the ship into a full-scale aircraft carrier. 

The Admiral Gorshkov was built in Nikolayev under the name of Baku and put to service in the Northern Fleet in 1987.

Vikramaditya aircraft carrier to leave harbor after boilers repaired in early July

The Indian aircraft carrier, the Vikramaditya (formerly Admiral Gorshkov), being upgraded by the Sevmash shipyard in Severodvinsk, will resume at-sea trials in early July 2013, a spokesman for the Russian Navy's Main Staff told Interfax-AVN on Tuesday.

 

"Under the new timeframe, the Vikramaditya will leave the harbor on July 3. The at-sea trials plan will be fully implemented, despite the previous results," he said.

But before the sea trials the ship will spend two months at the Sevmash dock, where its underwater part will be examined between early May and late June.

Part of the crew will go ashore to their winter apartments in about ten days, and only several dozen crewmembers under Captain First Rank Igor Ryabko's and his Indian colleague Suraj Berry's command, will stay, alongside Sevmash specialists and observation officers, he said.

"After the boiler facility's sealing is replaced in February the crew will gather together to begin preparations for at-sea trials," the spokesman said.

He said steam boilers malfunctioned when the aircraft carrier was undergoing sea trials, which necessitated adjustments in the delivery schedule.

United Shipbuilding Corporation President Andrei Dyachkov told the media on October 30 in St. Petersburg that the work on the Vikramaditya would have been finished in October 2013 and the ship will be handed over to the Indian customer before the end of 2013.

The contract to refit the Russian heavy aircraft carrier Admiral Gorshkov for the Indian Navy was signed in 2004. The funding included $974 million to restore and upgrade the ship, and $530 million to deliver 16 MiG-29K fighter jets and Kamov Ka-31 and Ka-27 anti-submarine helicopters.

The Vikramaditya was to be handed over to the customer back in 2008. The deadline was rescheduled due to a large amount of work planned. The price of the deal increased, too. The project is now estimated at $2.3 billion, according to unofficial sources.

Russia Copes With The Vikramaditya Disaster

Although India has been buying Russian weapons for over half a century, the latest problem with poorly built engines in the new carrier INS Vikramaditya is destroying what little faith the Indians still have in Russian manufacturing quality. It's not just Vikramaditya engines, but also unreliable engines in the Su-30 and poorly built electronics in the T-90 tank and other Russian warships India has purchased. The Russians have tried to improve the quality of their weapons and support, but a shortage of qualified people to make it happen has made improvements hard to come by. Even the Russian weapons the Russian military buys suffer from these problems, which are largely caused by the free market conditions that have existed in Russia since the communist government collapsed in 1991. More qualified people prefer better paying and more interesting jobs in non-military industries. The Russian government has been unable to come up with a fix for this situation, which is causing problems with rebuilding their own military, as well has holding onto export customers.

A growing number of Indians want more Western weapons. These are more expensive, but you get what you pay for and the Western stuff tends to be combat proven and highly respected by users in many nations. The Russian stuff tends to be used by losers.

The Russian shipyard managers admit that the Vikramaditya engine problem was not the quality of the Chinese firebricks used to insulate engine components from the intense heat of the steam boilers. The problem was discovered when seven of eight steam boilers in the carrier power plant failed during recent high-speed trials. The Russians initially blamed India for this, as the Indians refused to allow the Russians to use asbestos to insulate nearby engine components from the intense heat generated by the steam boilers. Instead the Russians had to use firebrick which some engineers claimed would not be adequate. But after Russian ship yard engineers examined the engines they concluded it was poor workmanship and supervision, not poor design or poor materials that was at the cause of the problem. The ship yard promises to fix the faulty work within five months, and not tear the engine room apart or have to open the hull to do it. To be on the safe side Russia is now telling India that the Vikramaditya will be delivered in about a year. The ship yard managers and workers know that if they screw this up, there is going to be a lot less new business from India.

Aside from the engine failure (a major problem) the months of sea trials off the north coast (Barents Sea) of Russia did not reveal any other major problems. In all other respects the ship appears to be in working order. The engine safety system, for example, detected the overheating and shot down the engines before any damage could be done. Other safety systems on the ship also worked well and the Russians pointed out that there were problems with some Western equipment the Indians insisted on using. Most importantly, two months ago the carrier experienced its first landing by a MiG-29. Any other equipment problems noted during the sea trials will be fixed while the engine insulation system is rebuilt.

The Vikramaditya was originally the Russian Gorshkov, which served in the Russian Navy from 1987 to 1995, but was then withdrawn from service because the navy could not afford to keep the carrier operational. Gorshkov was put up for sale in 1996 and in 2005. India agreed to buy the Gorshkov if a few changes could be made. India paid over $2 billion to refurbish the Gorshkov and turn it into the Vikramaditya.

Some of the Indian crew has been working with the Vikramaditya for over a year, learning about all the ship's systems, and over 400 of them were aboard during the sea trials. But now all but 40 of these will return to India while the repairs take place. The best part of that is not having to spend another Winter in Russia.

India was supposed to take possession of the Vikramaditya by late 2012, but that was delayed until early 2013, and is now delayed until late 2013. This project is now five years behind schedule and $1.5 billion over the original budget. It is a major cause of ill-will between Russia and India and has now worsened relations between China and Russia.

Russia Copes With The Vikramaditya Disaster

Although India has been buying Russian weapons for over half a century, the latest problem with poorly built engines in the new carrier INS Vikramaditya is destroying what little faith the Indians still have in Russian manufacturing quality. It's not just Vikramaditya engines, but also unreliable engines in the Su-30 and poorly built electronics in the T-90 tank and other Russian warships India has purchased. The Russians have tried to improve the quality of their weapons and support, but a shortage of qualified people to make it happen has made improvements hard to come by. Even the Russian weapons the Russian military buys suffer from these problems, which are largely caused by the free market conditions that have existed in Russia since the communist government collapsed in 1991. More qualified people prefer better paying and more interesting jobs in non-military industries. The Russian government has been unable to come up with a fix for this situation, which is causing problems with rebuilding their own military, as well has holding onto export customers.

A growing number of Indians want more Western weapons. These are more expensive, but you get what you pay for and the Western stuff tends to be combat proven and highly respected by users in many nations. The Russian stuff tends to be used by losers.

 The Russian shipyard managers admit that the Vikramaditya engine problem was not the quality of the Chinese firebricks used to insulate engine components from the intense heat of the steam boilers. The problem was discovered when seven of eight steam boilers in the carrier power plant failed during recent high-speed trials. The Russians initially blamed India for this, as the Indians refused to allow the Russians to use asbestos to insulate nearby engine components from the intense heat generated by the steam boilers. Instead the Russians had to use firebrick which some engineers claimed would not be adequate. But after Russian ship yard engineers examined the engines they concluded it was poor workmanship and supervision, not poor design or poor materials that was at the cause of the problem. The ship yard promises to fix the faulty work within five months, and not tear the engine room apart or have to open the hull to do it. To be on the safe side Russia is now telling India that the Vikramaditya will be delivered in about a year. The ship yard managers and workers know that if they screw this up, there is going to be a lot less new business from India.

 Aside from the engine failure (a major problem) the months of sea trials off the north coast (Barents Sea) of Russia did not reveal any other major problems. In all other respects the ship appears to be in working order. The engine safety system, for example, detected the overheating and shot down the engines before any damage could be done. Other safety systems on the ship also worked well and the Russians pointed out that there were problems with some Western equipment the Indians insisted on using. Most importantly, two months ago the carrier experienced its first landing by a MiG-29. Any other equipment problems noted during the sea trials will be fixed while the engine insulation system is rebuilt.

The Vikramaditya was originally the Russian Gorshkov, which served in the Russian Navy from 1987 to 1995, but was then withdrawn from service because the navy could not afford to keep the carrier operational. Gorshkov was put up for sale in 1996 and in 2005. India agreed to buy the Gorshkov if a few changes could be made. India paid over $2 billion to refurbish the Gorshkov and turn it into the Vikramaditya.

Some of the Indian crew has been working with the Vikramaditya for over a year, learning about all the ship's systems, and over 400 of them were aboard during the sea trials. But now all but 40 of these will return to India while the repairs take place. The best part of that is not having to spend another Winter in Russia.

India was supposed to take possession of the Vikramaditya by late 2012, but that was delayed until early 2013, and is now delayed until late 2013. This project is now five years behind schedule and $1.5 billion over the original budget. It is a major cause of ill-will between Russia and India and has now worsened relations between China and Russia.

Russian defence minister confirms one-year delay in delivery of Admiral Gorshkov

Russian Defence Minister Anatoly Serdyukov on Wednesday confirmed a delay of one year in the delivery of aircraft carrier Admiral Gorshkov to India.

Amidst reports of imposition of a penalty for the delay, Serdyukov arrived in the national capital earlier in the day for defence minister-level talks.

The minister's confirmation to the projection of one-year delay comes as a big setback for the Indian Navy , which was hoping to commission Gorshkov before December this year.

Earlier, India had on Tuesday warned that it could impose a penalty of up to five per cent of the total deal worth over $2.3 billion for the delay in handing over of the aircraft carrier. A senior defence ministry official put the likely amount of penalty at Rs.600 crore.

A final decision in this regard, however, was likely to be taken after Serdyukov's meeting with his Indian counterpart A.K. Antony.

Russian diplomatic sources questioned as to how India could impose such a penalty when they had not done so in the case of delivery of Scorpene submarines, whose delivery schedule has also slipped by over three years.

The first of the six Scorpene submarine contracted from France was supposed to be delivered in 2012, but now it is scheduled for induction into the navy only by December 2015.

At the meeting, India was expected to raise the issue of delay in delivery of Gorshkov. The delivery schedule of the already much-delayed 45,000-tonne warship slipped further after it encountered engine malfunctions during sea trials in Russia.

The ship, rechristened INS Vikramaditya, was scheduled for commissioning into Indian Navy by December 4, but Russian media reports have suggested that it would now be delivered only in October 2013. The carrier was originally scheduled to join the navy in 2008.