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The Indian Navy has added a jewel to its fleet, INS Vikrant. The aircraft carrier is indigenously constructed by Cochin Shipyard Limited (CSL). It is the first aircraft carrier to be built in our country. As a tribute to India’s first aircraft carrier, it is named ‘Vikrant’. In Sanskrit, the name Vikrant means “courageous”. The motto of the ship is “Jayema Saṁ Yudhi Spr̥dhaḥ” (I defeat those who fight against me).From INS Vikrant, up to 26 MiG-29K fighter jets, 4 Kamov Ka-31 helicopters, 2 HAL Dhruv NUH utility helicopters, and 4 MH-60R multi-role helicopters can fly. It is 262 metres long and has a top speed of 28 knots. Vikrant has a 2,300 compartment manned by 1700 seamen.It has two football field-sized flight decks, a hospital complex, cabins for women officers, and eight kilometres of corridors. It also has eight generators capable of lighting up a city of 2 million people.
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In this handout picture provided by the Indian Navy, INS Vikrant, India’s first indigenously-built aircraft carrier, sails for sea trials from Kochi, India, Thursday, Aug. 25, 2022. India on Friday commissioned its first home-built aircraft carrier in its quest to match an aggressive China with a much larger naval fleet. The INS Vikrant (Powerful), the new 262-meter (860-foot) carrier designed by the Indian navy and built at the Cochin shipyard in southern India, was launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi as part of the country’s commemoration of 75 years of independence from British rule. (Indian Navy via AP)
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People watch the INS Vikrant leave for trials in the Arabian Sea in Kochi, India, July 2, 2022. India on Friday, Sept. 2, commissioned its first home-built aircraft carrier in its quest to match an aggressive China with a much larger naval fleet. (AP Photo)
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Kochi: In this undated file photo, the Indigenous Aircraft Carrier (IAC) Vikrant sails in the sea. IAC Vikrant will be commissioned by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sept. 2. (PTI Photo)
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Kochi: In this undated file photo, an MIG-29K aircraft of the Indian Navy on the flight deck of the Indigenous Aircraft Carrier (IAC) Vikrant. IAC Vikrant will be commissioned by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sept. 2. (PTI Photo)
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Kochi: In this undated file photo, a helicopter of the Indian Navy takes off from the flight deck of the Indigenous Aircraft Carrier (IAC) Vikrant. IAC Vikrant will be commissioned by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sept. 2. (PTI Photo)
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Kochi: Family members of Indian Navy personnel pose for photos with a Kamov-31 helicopter parked at the flight deck of the newly-commissioned indigenous aircraft carrier, INS Vikrant, at Cochin Shipyard Limited in Kochi, Friday, Sept. 2, 2022.(PTI Photo)