India Outlines New Carrier Ambitions
Neelam Mathews May 7 2015 The U.S. has offered the Electromagnetic Aircraft Launch System (EMALS) to India, for its second indigenous aircraft carrier. (Photo: General Atomics) The Indian Navy will present a report on the configuration options for the second indigenous Indian aircraft carrier ( IAC -2) to the Ministry of Defense next month. At a recent seminar on the country’s naval aviation, it became clear that the vessel will likely be in the 65,000-ton class. It could be equipped exclusively with American aircraft or with a combination that might include the naval version of the French Rafale fighter. “The fighters must be transformational. We must decide on the aircraft first, and this choice must determine the design of the carrier and its deck,” said an official. “ We must plan for the future blue water navy that will be dependent on air power,” said former Chief of Naval Staff Arun Prakash. “A focus is required…new hardware is important [or] it ...