Back INS Viraat (R22) Czech Viraat German Viraat Estonian آی‌ان‌اس ویرات (آر۲۲) Persian INS Viraat Finnish भारतीय नौसेना पोत विराट Hindi INS Viraat Italian ヴィラート (空母) Japanese ಐ.ಎನ್.ಎಸ್ ವಿರಾಟ್ (ಆರ್೨೨) Kannada INS 비라트 Korean

INS Viraat

INS Viraat (R22) in 2002
India
NameViraat
AcquiredMay 1987
Recommissioned12 May 1987[1]
Decommissioned6 March 2017
Out of service23 July 2016
RefitApril 1986, July 1999, Mid-2003-November 2004, August 2008-November 2009, November 2012-July 2013
HomeportMumbai, Maharashtra
IdentificationPennant number: R22
MottoJalameva Yasya, Balameva Tasya (Sanskrit: "He who rules over the seas is all powerful")
Nickname(s)Grand Old Lady[2]
FateScrapped at Alang, 2021.
United Kingdom
NameHMS Hermes (R12)
Ordered1943
BuilderVickers-Armstrong
Laid down21 June 1944
Launched16 February 1953
Commissioned25 November 1959
Decommissioned1984
Stricken1985
HomeportHMNB Portsmouth
IdentificationPennant number: R12
FateSold to India in 1986
General characteristics
Class and typeCentaur-class light aircraft carrier
Displacement
  • 23,900 tons standard
  • 28,700 tons full load
Length226.5 m (743 ft)
Beam48.78 m (160.0 ft)
Draught8.8 m (29 ft)
Propulsion2 × Parsons geared steam turbines; 4 boilers with 400 psi, 76,000 shp (57,000 kW)
Speed28 knots (52 km/h)
Range6,500 mi (10,500 km) at 14 knots (26 km/h)
Complement
  • Maximum 2,100;
  • 1,207 ship's crew,
  • 143 air crew
Sensors and
processing systems
  • 1 × BEL/Signaal RAWL 02 air radar
  • 1 × RAWS 08 air/surface radar
  • 2 × BEL Rashmi navigation radars
  • 1 × EL/M-2221 STGR fire control radar
  • 1 × Plessey Type 904 radar
  • 1 × FT 13-S/M Tacan system
  • Sonar:
  • 1 × Graseby Type 184M hull-mounted sonar
Electronic warfare
& decoys
  • 1 × BEL Ajanta ESM
  • Decoy:
  • 2 × Knebworth Corvus chaff launchers
Armament
Aircraft carried

INS Viraat (Sanskrit: Virāṭa meaning Giant) was a Centaur-class light aircraft carrier of the Indian Navy. INS Viraat was the flagship of the Indian Navy until INS Vikramaditya was commissioned in 2013. The ship was completed and commissioned in 1959 as the Royal Navy's HMS Hermes, and decommissioned in 1984. She was sold to India in 1987. INS Viraat was commissioned into the Indian Navy on 12 May 1987,[1] and served for almost 30 years.

In February 2015, the Navy stated that Viraat would be decommissioned the following year.[3] The last British-built ship serving with the Indian Navy, she was the oldest aircraft carrier in service in the world. On 23 July 2016, Viraat sailed for the last time under her own power from Mumbai to Kochi, where she was dry-docked and prepared for decommissioning.[4] She was towed out of Kochi on 23 October, returning to Mumbai on 28 October, where she was laid up.[5] Viraat was formally decommissioned on 6 March 2017.[6] After the failure of plans to convert her into a hotel and museum, she was sold for scrap and planned to be broken up beginning in September 2020, but the scrapping was stayed by the Supreme Court of India[7] after 40% of the body had already been scrapped.[8]

  1. ^ a b "Surface Ships". Indian Navy. Archived from the original on 4 October 2014. Retrieved 23 August 2014.
  2. ^ "INS Viraat sails to Kochi for repairs, dry-docking". The Economic Times. 24 July 2016. Archived from the original on 27 July 2016. Retrieved 24 July 2016.
  3. ^ Anandan, S (12 February 2015). "INS Viraat to be decommissioned in 2016". The Hindu. Archived from the original on 13 July 2015. Retrieved 13 February 2015.
  4. ^ Cite error: The named reference last_journey was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  5. ^ Cite error: The named reference decommissioned_January was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  6. ^ "INS Viraat bows out of service". The Hindu. Archived from the original on 28 August 2017. Retrieved 8 March 2017.
  7. ^ "INS Viraat's Dismantling Kept On Hold, Supreme Court Notice To Owner". NDTV.com. Retrieved 23 June 2021.
  8. ^ "INS Viraat now private property: SC". thehindu.com. Retrieved 27 June 2021.

Developed by StudentB