Navy pushes for third carrier, a 65,000-tonne warship Centre is yet to give its approval :-THE TRIBUNE

As the euphoria over the commissioning of the indigenous aircraft carrier INS Vikrant ebbs, the time may be right to announce another aircraft carrier, taking their number to three in the naval fleet. Besides the new INS Vikrant, the 44,500-tonne carrier INS Vikramaditya procured from Russia is already in service.

Any delay in re-employing the hard-earned skill of making a carrier could be a missed opportunity. Navy Vice Chief Vice Admiral SN Ghormade, at a press conference last week, said: “The Navy’s plan has catered for a third aircraft carrier.” An indigenous ecosystem has been created by building the Vikrant. The stage is now well set to take the next step forward to indigenously build the next aircraft carrier to ensure the expertise gained is utilised to the maximum, Admiral Ghormade had said.

After having built the Vikrant – the biggest warship made by India ever — Madhu Nair, Chairman and Managing Director of Cochin Shipyard Limited, told The Tribune the “build time” for the next carrier could be cut down significantly.