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India Needs a Third Aircraft Carrier
Context:
The Indian Navy’s long-held demand for a third aircraft carrier is moving towards realisation.
More on News:
- Cochin Shipyard Limited (CSL) is set to start construction of an add-on Vikrant-class platform weighing around 40,000 tonnes.
- Building the Indigenous Aircraft Carrier-2 (IAC-2), with upgrades and more local content than IAC-1 Vikrant also aims to maintain CSL’s carrier-building expertise.
- The Indian Navy aims to avoid the costly lapse in submarine-building expertise experienced by Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders (MDL) between 1995 and 2005.
India needs a third aircraft carrier for several reasons:
- Operational Needs: It aims for operational readiness, ensuring one carrier for each seaboard and another in reserve.
- This is essential to meet the navy’s requirement for comprehensive maritime security and operational flexibility.
- Strategic Balance: Supplementing existing INS Vikramaditya (Russian) and INS Vikrant (Indigenous) will bolster Indian Navy’s strategic capabilities.
- This would enhance India’s maritime power projection and ensure a balanced naval presence across its seaboards.
- Future Capabilities: IAC-2 will integrate technological advancements for a more potent and modern platform than its predecessors.
- It is vital in the face of evolving maritime threats and technological advancements by adversaries
Concerns and Counterarguments
- Building a new aircraft carrier is extremely expensive, with costs estimated around $5-6 billion.
- Critics suggest allocating funds to other vital naval assets like submarines, corvettes, and destroyers, which are lacking.
- Recent advances in cruise missile technology and Anti-Access/Area Denial (A2/AD) strategies by China and Pakistan pose threats to carrier operations.
- The efficacy of a new carrier in such an environment is a point of contention.
- Some military strategists advocate for a ‘sea denial’ strategy using submarines rather than a ‘sea control’ approach with carrier battle groups.
- Submarines are seen as more cost-effective and less vulnerable to A2/AD threats.
- The Indian Navy faces financial constraints that have forced it to revise its goals and reduce its demand for various warships and aircraft.
- These fiscal limitations also affect the Navy’s ability to pursue a balanced and comprehensive force structure.
- The Indian Air Force (IAF) and Indian Army compete for a share of the defence budget, which is already stretched thin.
- IAF veterans argue that aircraft carriers are a costly indulgence.
- Instead, advanced fighter aircraft like SEPECAT Jaguar and Sukhoi Su-30MKI are more cost-effective and secure means of projecting air power.
Conclusion
- Despite cost and strategic debates, decision to build a third aircraft carrier shows the Indian Navy’s commitment to maintaining maritime capabilities and readiness.
- Balancing this with the need to address other critical naval and military requirements will be essential for a holistic and sustainable defence strategy.
