The "Vikrant" ended the fourth sea trial, and the printed home -produced mother service was full of expectations!

[Global Times special reporter Chenyang Global Times reporter Ma Jun] The Indian Navy's first domestic aircraft carrier "Vikrant" returned to the mother port in Kachin after the fourth sea test on the 10th local time. The Indian Stan Times said on the 10th that it will complete all delivery preparations and will officially serve on August 15. "At that time, India will become the sixth country that can build aircraft carriers after the United States, Britain, Russia, France and China."

Difficult development road

The report said that the construction of the "Vikrant" aircraft carrier began in 2009. It is already the fourth aircraft carrier owned by the Indian Navy -the first aircraft carrier of the Indian Navy is the British used aircraft carrier that is also named "Vikrant". It joined the Indian Navy in 1961 and retired in 1997; The two "Verate" aircraft carriers also came from Britain and retired in 2016. Today, the Indian Navy only in the "Super Kings" aircraft carrier introduced from Russia in 2013.

In fact, the development of the "Vikrant" is not smooth. In 1999, the then Indian Minister of Defense George Fernandez approved the construction of India's first domestic aircraft carrier. The Indian domestic aircraft carrier, which was originally known as the "Blue Sky Guardian", was designed with a displacement of 37,500 tons. It was prepared to form a three -carrier formation with two other second -hand aircraft carriers to ensure that the Indian aircraft carrier battle group at any time was guaranteed. "

According to India's initial plan, it should have been launched in 2010 and served in 2011. However, due to the repeated changes in the plan, insufficient technical reserves, and the supply of key shipbuilding raw materials, the construction progress of the Victor has repeatedly delayed. Since the laid keel in 2009, it has been engaged in the launching ceremony three times. When the "Vikrant" was tested in the port in 2020, the "Verate" aircraft carrier who was originally prepared to partner with it had retired, and India's long -awaited triple aircraft carrier formation has never taken shape.

The Indian newspaper Trust said on the 10th that the "Vikrant" went to sea on August 4 last year to start the first sea trial. At that time, it mainly tested the navigation performance of the hull, the main promotion system, the power generation and power distribution performance, and other auxiliary equipment. In the second sea test in October last year, the "Vikrant" conducted test content such as high -speed navigation. In January this year, the Indian aircraft carrier conducted a third sea test.

It is reported that the "Vikrant" went to sea for the fourth sea test in early July and comprehensively tested most of the equipment and systems on the ship, including the take -off and landing test equipped with India's domestic advanced light helicopter (ALH). Judging from the photos released by the Indian Navy, the aircraft carrier also carried the MiG-29K carrier-based fighter to test the adaptive test of the hangar and deck; the AK630M speed gun on the ship also launched a real shot.

The overall strength cannot be underestimated

According to the Indian media, the "Vikrant" is about 40,000 tons, 262 meters in length, 60 meters wide, and a maximum speed of 28 knots. It has a 14 -story deck with 2,300 compartments, which can accommodate 1700 crew members, including the cabin specifically prepared for female officers.

About 76%of the "Vikrant" is produced by India, including the main hulls, navigation communication systems and key weapons. In terms of combat capabilities, the "Victor" uses the "skating take-off/blocking landing" mode of typical Russian aircraft carriers. Early warning helicopters, US-made MH-60R multi-purpose helicopters and domestic AlH helicopters.

An anonymous military expert told the Global Times reporter on the 11th that although the construction process of the "Victor" encountered twists and turns, from the perspective of its main performance indicators, it was still quite distinctive and the overall strength could not be underestimated. As far as the key carrier -based aircraft's capacity of the carrier is concerned, the "Victor" is far more than the light aircraft carrier converted from Japan's "Izumo" class helicopter destroyer regardless of the tonnage or the number of carrier -based aircraft. In particular, the latter does not have a matching carrier -based early warning aircraft or early warning helicopter, which makes its air surveillance capacity extremely limited. It can only fight under the cover of the Japanese Kishi Air Force or supplement as a US aircraft carrier.

The Indian Navy is ambitious

The Indian side is full of expectations for the service of the "Vikrant". Former Indian Navy Commander Allen Placash believes that after the "Victor" is in service, India will have two aircraft carriers to deploy in western and eastern coastal in western India, marking the significant improvement of India's maritime capabilities. Essence

The Indian newspaper Trust also said that people familiar with the matter revealed that the Indian Navy is choosing a new carrier -based fighter for the Victor. It is said that due to the frequent faults of the MiG-29K fighter with the Indian aircraft carrier, the proper rate is low, and the Indian Navy intends to purchase a new carrier-based aircraft for replacement. At present, the French aviation giant Dasau's "gusts M" and the Boeing Boeing's F/A-18E/F "Super Hornets" are all included in the candidate list. Since the beginning of this year, these two fighters have conducted combat capabilities at Gua's Indian Navy base. The Indian Navy is about to release a detailed report on their performance to determine the final procurement object. In addition, Indiastan Airlines is developing the "TEDBF", which may eventually become the standard on Indian aircraft carriers. There are also speculations that as the US-India relations continue to approach, the possibility of providing F-35B stealth fighters to India will further enhance the combat capabilities of Indian aircraft carriers. At the same time, the Indian Navy is still preparing to build the follow -up model of the Victor. According to the latest plan, the new aircraft carrier will use nuclear power with a maximum displacement of 65,000 tons. It is said that the United States is also interested in providing related equipment such as projectiles.