INS ''Aditya'' (A59) is an
replenishment and
repair ship
A repair ship is a naval auxiliary ship designed to provide maintenance support to warships. Repair ships provide similar services to destroyer, submarine and seaplane tenders or depot ships, but may offer a broader range of repair capability incl ...
in service with the
Indian Navy
The Indian Navy (IN) (ISO 15919, ISO: ) is the Navy, maritime and Amphibious warfare, amphibious branch of the Indian Armed Forces. The President of India is the Supreme Commander of the Indian Navy. The Chief of the Naval Staff (India), Chief ...
. The ship was
launched on 15 November 1993 and
commissioned on 3 April 2000.
''Aditya'' is a fully air-conditioned and lengthened version of the original , but with a multipurpose workshop and with four replenishment at sea (RAS) stations alongside. The ship was built at
Garden Reach Shipbuilders and Engineers
Garden Reach Shipbuilders & Engineers Ltd, abbreviated as GRSE, is one of India's leading Defense industry, defence shipyards, located in Kolkata. It builds and repairs merchant shipping, commercial and warship, naval vessels. GRSE also expor ...
(GRSE). Building progress was very slow and the ship was plagued by
propulsion
Propulsion is the generation of force by any combination of pushing or pulling to modify the translational motion of an object, which is typically a rigid body (or an articulated rigid body) but may also concern a fluid. The term is derived from ...
problems, during her
sea trial
A sea trial or trial trip is the testing phase of a watercraft (including boats, ships, and submarines). It is also referred to as a "shakedown cruise" by many naval personnel. It is usually the last phase of construction and takes place on op ...
s in September 1999.
Description
The ship has a cargo capacity of water, ammunition and stores and diesel and aviation kerosene. The ship can carry 12,000 tons of liquid cargo, comprising LSHSD,
aviation kerosene, distilled and fresh water and 5,000 tons of solid cargo. The ship features a Hallapa deck and Canadian Hepburn RAS equipment. ''Aditya'' is also equipped with a 2-ton heavy jackstay and a 20-ton crane. It can replenish four warships and one rotor aircraft simultaneously and was designed to be able to serve as command and control platform. It can refuel at the maximum rate of 600 tonnes per hour.
''Aditya'' was initially armed with light and medium machine guns. The self-defence capability was added by installing new close-in weapons like anti-aircraft and anti-missile guns and missiles. Even though it is smaller than , it has more advanced capabilities. It carries a helicopter as compared to only a helicopter deck of ''Jyoti''.
Service history
In 2010, ''Aditya'', along with three other warships of the navy - , and , were deployed to South Africa and took part in the 2nd IBSAMAR, the joint
military exercise
A military exercise, training exercise, maneuver (manoeuvre), or war game is the employment of military resources in Military education and training, training for military operations. Military exercises are conducted to explore the effects of ...
of the navies of India, Brazil, and South Africa. A total of 11 warships took part in the exercise, which was conducted off the coast of
Durban
Durban ( ; , from meaning "bay, lagoon") is the third-most populous city in South Africa, after Johannesburg and Cape Town, and the largest city in the Provinces of South Africa, province of KwaZulu-Natal.
Situated on the east coast of South ...
from 13 to 27 September.
In mid-July 2024, ''Aditya'' and conducted an exercise with
United States Navy
The United States Navy (USN) is the naval warfare, maritime military branch, service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is the world's most powerful navy with the largest Displacement (ship), displacement, at 4.5 millio ...
's
Carrier Strike Group 9
Carrier Strike Group 9 (CSG-9 or CARSTRKGRU 9) is a U.S. Navy carrier strike group. Commander Carrier Strike Group 9 (COMCARSTRKGRU 9 or CCSG 9) is responsible for unit-level training, integrated training, and material readiness for the ships an ...
centred on along with
Carrier Air Wing 11 and in the Indian Ocean.
Gallery
See also
*
*
References
''Aditya'' class at Bharat-Rakshak– Retrieved on 2009-04-19
{{DEFAULTSORT:Aditya (A59)
Aditya-class replenishment and repair ships
Ships built in India
1993 ships