The nucleus of Indigenous Aircraft Carrier (IAC), India’s first ship being built using the modular construction (block-building) method, is ready. The engine and diesel generator rooms and two of the 21 blocks of the 40,000-tonne vessel, designed by the navy’s directorate of naval design, have been completed.
The 260-metre-long and 60-metre-broad gas turbine ship will be powered by four American GE LM 2500 aviation engines which generate 80 MW, enough to attain speed in excess of 28 knots.
It will be able to carry 30 aircraft and is supposed to be ready by 2013.
India needs to counter Chinese weapons and tactics that will allow the Chinese to strike into the Bay of Bengal without getting near the Indian Ocean. The IAC will be a prime target for Chinese long-range bombers and anti-ship ballistic missiles based in China itself.
