Admiral Gorshkov in 1995
Originally named Baku, the ship was the fourth Project 1143 Kiev Class aircraft-carrying missile cruiser. Laid down in 1978 and commissioned in 1987, the ship was renamed Admiral Gorshkov after the collapse of the Soviet Union. In 1994 she suffered a serious boiler room explosion, which required a year of repairs. The ship was laid up in 1996 for budgetary reasons, and offered for sale.
After several years of negotiations, the ship was purchased by India in January 2004. In a deal worth $1.5 billion USD, India gets the ship (reconstructed to their specifications), 16 MiG-29K 'Fulcrum' fighters, 2 MiG-29KUB 'Fulcrum' trainers, 6 Kamov Ka-31 'Helix' ASW/ reconnaissance helicopters, torpedo tubes, pilot training, simulators, and a supply of spare parts.
Under refit and conversion at Sevmas
After training on the MiG-29s in Russia, Indian pilots are undergoing advanced carrier takeoff and landing training at the US Navy's Pensacola facility.
India is performing mid-life upgrades to their remaining 22 Sea Harriers. They have lost 6 in accidents over the last 20 years, and the UK offered to sell 8 replacements when the Royal Navy retired its last Sea Harrier squadron in Oct 2006. However, after inspecting the planes, India decided it would cost too much to upgrade them and passed on the offer.
India is expected to acquire a total of 40-50 Mig-29s, and a number of either BAe Hawk or Boeing/BAe Goshawk trainers.
This is what the ship will look like when
she is completed. Note new flight deck and
removal of missiles
India has also started construction of a domestically-produced aircraft carrier. While the keel has not yet been laid, steel cutting began in 2005. The project immediately fell behind schedule, as the Russian company contracted to provide the high grade steel could not fill the order. But work has recently resumed using steel from the Steel Authority of India Limited, making this a truly domestic project. The ship should be laid down at Coshin Shipyard sometime in October or November 2006, and the ship is scheduled to be commissioned in 2012. Designed with a lot of help from the Italian firm Fincanteri, the ship shows a resemblance to the Italian Andrea Doria. A second unit of the class should follow about 6 years after the first, and a third sometime after that.
