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Vikramaditya arrives in Severodvinsk for repairing

Besides the malfunctions of the boilers, the sea trials of the Vikramaditya aircraft carrier identified other problems

ARKHANGELSK, September 23 (Itar-Tass) — The Vikramaditya aircraft carrier (formerly the Admiral Gorshkov) came under its own steam to berth of Sevmash military shipyard in Severodvinsk for troubleshooting found during full-scale trials at sea, the plant’s press service told Itar-Tass on Sunday.

According to head of the United Shipbuilding Corporation /USC/ Andrei Dyachkov, besides the malfunctions of the boilers, the sea trials of the Vikramaditya aircraft carrier identified other problems.

"Clearly, the boilers - is the biggest trouble in terms of a failure of technology. Besides, there are still a number of mechanisms that are out of service, including those supplied by the NATO countries, Dyachkov said. “They are three chillers, a nitrogen generator and some equipment."

"Those suppliers were offered by the Indian side," Dyachkov added.

"Due to the malfunctions identified in the course of the sea trials, we have shifted to timing to transfer the carrier by nine months. According to our calculations, the estimated duration of the repairing works will be from five to seven months," Dyachkov said. "We have purchased all the necessary materials, have ordered bricks, have chosen specialists for daily work at the four boilers. According to our calculations, we plan to complete this work in May of 2013," he added.

The sea trials of The Vikramaditya started on June 8 of the current year. Thus, the trial programme made 108 days out of the pre-planned 120. Earlier, Russia planned to transfer the Vikramaditya to India’s Navy on December 4, 2012.

Under a package inter-government agreement signed in New Delhi in January 2004 the hull of the Russian aircraft-carrying cruiser The Admiral Gorshkov was handed over to India free of charge, on the condition it would undergo upgrade at Sevmash and be equipped with aircraft of Russian manufacture. Russia is to train an Indian crew for the aircraft carrier (1,500 men) and create an infrastructure for the ship’s operation in the Indian Ocean. India says it will pay 2.33 billion dollars for the Russian aircraft carrier.

The Admiral Gorshkov (formerly The Baku) entered service as a ship of the Northern Fleet in 1987. After repairs and re-equipment the ship’s displacement reached 45 tonnes, maximum length 283.5 meters and maximum width, 59.8 meters. The ship is a base for 30 aircraft, including MiG-29K fighter jets and helicopters. Its crew numbers 1,924.