INS Vikrant: How Indian Navy's Carrier Reshapes Power In The Indian Ocean
Published on: Feb. 3, 2026, 2:08 p.m. | Source: Times Now
INS Vikrant is India’s first indigenously designed, built and commissioned aircraft carrier — a landmark achievement in the nation’s defence and shipbuilding history. Commissioned in September 2022, the 45,000-tonne warship built by Cochin Shipyard and designed by the Indian Navy’s Warship Design Bureau, is now fully operational with the Western Fleet and capable of carrying a diverse air wing, including MiG-29K fighters, helicopters and naval combat aircraft. It has completed extensive operational validation exercises and showcased India’s maritime reach in the Indian Ocean and beyond, underscoring the country’s growing blue-water naval capabilities and strategic self-reliance.
