INS Vikrant begins third phase of trials amid hopes of significantly improving the situation

Amid the pandemic despair, pictures of INS Vikrant, India’s first indigenous aircraft carrier, striding the high seas as she begins the third phase of trials, is just what the doctor ordered to revive the spirit. It will go through complex manoeuvres in various conditions. It has already established its credentials about propulsion and basic navigational operations as well as machinery and flight trials. Subject to successful completion of the trials, it will be commissioned by this August. Till now, INS Vikramaditya is the country’s only operational aircraft carrier. That improves the situation a lot for the Indian Navy because even if one goes for maintenance work, the other will be functional. Vikrant’s commissioning comes at the right time when India feels its maritime operational capabilities have to increase because of the growing Chinese naval presence in the Indian Ocean Region (IOR). The carrier also gives a boost to domestic manufacturing while reducing costs and increasing the navy’s capacity to acquire more vessels than ever before. The navy is currently locally building around 50 warships, including survey vessels, frigates, diesel-electric submarines and nuclear-powered ballistic missile submarines. In terms of the navy’s long-term capabilities, however, Vikrant’s commissioning revives afresh the military debate: Does India need a third aircraft carrier? The navy wants the third carrier. China is on the verge of commissioning its third carrier while a fourth one is on the drawing board. The force development programmes of India and China revolve around carriers.

The navy has plans for a third IAC Vikrant-class carrier but former Chief of Defence Staff, the late General Bipin Rawat, had said last year that India should prioritise submarines over a third carrier. The navy’s acquisition programme has to be based on its assessment of growing risk in the Indian Ocean Region. It requires maritime assets to tailor its sea control or sea denial policies. Submarines are an effective tool for the latter. However, the navy has its logic that favours carriers. It is simply that shore-based naval operations are limited by range. The IOR practically covers a vast expanse, the entire Indian Ocean, from the Strait of Hormuz to Reunion Island, from East Africa to Australia, and from Lombok Strait to Malacca Strait. Strike aircraft operating from the mainland cannot effectively cover the vast region entirely. That is where the aircraft carriers come into play. Two, carrier groups coupled with nuclear submarines are required to maintain 24x7 operational readiness given the increasing Chinese entry into the IOR. China is developing maritime outposts in the region, commissioning long-range vessels to protect its sea lanes of communication and launching joint exercises with Pakistan. Three, given the evolving geopolitics of IOR, safeguarding maritime interests will mean developing Carrier Battle Groups to project power and be able to have room for manoeuvre in the vast IOR area of operations. Aircraft carriers become central, even inevitable, in such a situation.