INS Vikramaditya (R23)

INS Vikramaditya (R23) (Sanskrit: विक्रमादित्य, Vikramāditya) is the name of an aircraft carrier set to enter service with the Indian Navy in 2013. It has been converted from the former Soviet aircraft carrier Admiral Gorshkov. The ship has been renamed in honour of Vikramaditya, a legendary 1st century BC emperor of Ujjain, India, famed for his wisdom, valour and magnanimity. The Vikramaditya was originally the modified Kiev-class aircraft carrier Baku built in 1978–1982 at Black Sea Shipyard, Mykolaiv, Ukraine. The ship is presently being extensively refitted at the Sevmash shipyard in Severodvinsk, Arkhangelsk Oblast, Russia.

In March 2013, the Vikramaditya was formally commissioned into the Indian Navy and its first deployment occurred in May that same year. In September, the Vikramaditya was involved in launching air strikes on Pakistan.

Specifications

 * Type: Aircraft Carrier
 * Service Period: 2013-
 * Characteristics:
 * Length: 932 feet (284.07 meters)
 * Beam: 200 feet (60.96 meters)
 * Draft: 33 feet (10.06 meters)
 * Displacement: 45,400 tons
 * Crew: 1,680
 * Installed Power: 6 turbo alternators and 6 diesel alternators which generate 18 MWe
 * Propulsion: 8 turbopressurized boilers, 4 shafts, 4 geared steam turbines, 180,000 hp
 * Range: 13,500 miles (21,726.1 km) at 18 knots (33.34 km/hr)
 * Speed: 32 knots (59.27 km/hr)
 * Sensor Suite:
 * Long range Air Surveillance Radars
 * LESORUB-E
 * Resistor-E radar complex
 * CCS MK.2 communication complex
 * Link II tactical data system
 * Armament:
 * AK-630 CIWS
 * Barak 8 LRSAM
 * Aircraft Carried: 40 aircraft including Mikoyan MiG-29K, HAL Tejas, Yakovlev Yak-141, Kamov Ka-28 ASW Helicopters, and Kamov Ka-31 AEW Helicopters
 * Aviation Facilities: Two acre flight deck, 14.3º ski-jump ramp, 3 x 30m wide arrester gears and three restraining gears