The China Defence News portal 81.cn on May 24 published an article about the upcoming
launch of India’s indigenously built aircraft carrier, INS Vikrant. The author Hong She said
"India is actively promoting the construction of domestic aircraft carriers. Suffering from the
backwardness of its own industrial system, India's road to developing a domestic aircraft carrier
can be described as twists and turns. In 1979, the Indian Navy began to carry out pre-research
work on the domestic aircraft carrier, and in 1989 proposed its own construction plan. The
program was scrapped due to cost overruns until it was revived in 1999 with the "Blue Sky
Guardian" aircraft carrier program. In 2004, the Indian Navy renamed the Blue Sky Guardian
INS Vikrant in honour of India's first aircraft carrier. In 2005, the "Vikrant" started construction at the Cochin Shipyard, with a design displacement of 40,000 tons". The author added "Due to
the lack of experience in aircraft carrier construction at the Cochin Shipyard, the construction
of the "Vikrant" aircraft carrier was far behind schedule, and a series of accidents occurred
during the period. In May 2015, the "Vikrant" aircraft carrier was officially launched, but the
outfitting project was still slow until it finally entered the sea trial stage in August 2021. Since
then, the "Vikrant" aircraft carrier has conducted two more sea trials, during which the carrierbased aircraft on-board simulation test has been completed. According to the plan, the aircraft
carrier will be officially commissioned in August this year, and then will carry out carrierbased aircraft running-in training." The author went on to say “The second is to boost the
implementation of India’s ‘two oceans’ strategy. At present, India’s only aircraft carrier
‘Vikramaditya’ is deployed in the western waters of India. After the INS Vikrant aircraft carrier
is commissioned, it will strengthen the control of the waters east of India and promote India’s
‘Eastward Strategy’ implementation, thereby expanding India’s influence in Southeast Asia
and the Asia Pacific”
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