India, Russia to continue negotiations on aircraft carrier

October 14th, 2009 MUMBAI - Civil Aviation Minister Praful Patel Wednesday said it would be difficult for Air India, the national carrier which incurred losses of Rs.7,200 crore last fiscal, to survive without reduction in costs and exploring new avenues to generate resources. Talking tough to the staff unions and the Air India management, Patel also warned that the ongoing austerity and cost-cutting measures would continue, but did not indicate till when.

October 9th, 2009 NEW DELHI - The roadblocks in finalising the price tag for the refurbishment of the aircraft carrier Admiral Gorshkov are likely to be discussed during Defence Minister A.K. Antony's three-day visit to Russia next week.

September 30th, 2009 MOSCOW - Russia's MiG aircraft maker said it has successfully tested four MiG-29 jets due to be delivered to India. "During the tests Sep 28-29, the MiG-29K and MiG-29KUB fighters conducted several take offs and landings on the deck of the (Admiral Kuznetsov) aircraft carrier in the Barents Sea," the company said Tuesday.

September 3rd, 2009 MOSCOW - A new deal between India and Russia on the funds for the refit of aircraft carrier Admiral Gorshkov will be signed in mid-October, the head of the state technology corporation said Thursday. "An additional agreement will be signed," Sergei Chemezov, head of Rostekhnologii, told a news conference in Moscow.

August 16th, 2009 NEW DELHI - India has cleared an installment of $122 million to Russia to ensure that the modification work on aircraft carrier Gorshkov, also known as Vikramaditya, continues till a settlement on the final price is reached. The payment was sanctioned earlier this month by the government following demands by Rosoboronexport, the sole Russian agency designated for importing or exporting defence equipment, according to India Strategic defence magazine.

July 30th, 2009 NEW DELHI - Indian Navy Thursday contested an audit report on the exorbitant pricing and low capability of a Russian aircraft carrier it has purchased, saying that the deal had been concluded in all seriousness. You tell me, if one can get me an aircraft carrier for less than $2 billion I will sign a cheque right here, Indian Navy chief Admiral Sureesh Mehta retorted when asked to comment on a report of the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) report questioning the purchase of the Admiral Gorshkov.

July 29th, 2009 NEW DELHI - India and Russia are yet to conclude negotiations on the substantial increase in price that Moscow has demanded for the aircraft carrier Admiral Gorshkov, and the criticism expressed over the ship's viability will be kept in mind before signing the final contract, parliament was informed Wednesday. Russia has demanded a substantial increase.

July 29th, 2009 NEW DELHI - Defence Minister A.K. Antony on Wednesday informed Parliament that India and Russia are yet to conclude negotiations on the price that Moscow has demanded for the aircraft carrier Admiral Gorshkov, and the criticism expressed over the ship's viability will be kept in mind before signing the final contract.

July 24th, 2009 NEW DELHI - The Comptroller and Auditor General has heavily criticized the government and Navy over the Admiral Gorshkov deal saying that the aging Russian aircraft carrier will not be able to address India's security needs due to the delay in its delivery. According to the CAG report, induction of Russia's damaged aircraft carrier, now rechristened INS Vikramaditya, would cost the Navy more than a new ship.

July 15th, 2009 NEW DELHI - India and Russia will reach a final agreement on the cost of overhauling the Admiral Gorshkov aircraft carrier by the end of this month, the Russia envoy here said Wednesday. Both sides are coming to terms on the price and the date for commissioning for the Indian Navy.

July 13th, 2009 NEW DELHI - A 30-member Russian team is in India to resolve tangle over cost escalation and fix the final price for the aircraft carrier Admiral Gorshkov, which India has sought to buy, an official said. India recently injected urgency in the timely execution of the contract and set July-end as the deadline to resolve the deadlock over the cost escalation.

June 4th, 2009 NEW DELHI - India has given an additional $102 million to Russia for the aircraft carrier Admiral Gorshkov ahead of fresh negotiations before July end between the two countries on the final purchase price of the warship, a senior official said here Thursday. An Indian team was in Russia last week to break the deadlock over the cost escalation of the aircraft carrier.

March 2nd, 2009 NEW DELHI - The first indigenous aircraft carrier that will be ready for induction into the Indian Navy by 2015 will be named INS Vikrant, after the first aircraft carrier that was imported in the 1960s and played an important role in the 1971 war with Pakistan. 'The decision to name this aircraft carrier after INS Vikrant is taken as the force has golden memories of this aircraft carrier, which retired in 1997 after 36 years of eventful service,' sources at the Cochin Shipyard Ltd (CSL) told IANS.

February 24th, 2009 NEW DELHI - As Russia continues escalating the price for the aircraft carrier Admiral Gorshkov much to the chagrin of the defence establishment here, India is all set for the keel laying of its first indigenous carrier for which Rs.3,260 crore (Rs.32.60 billion/$654 million) has initially been allocated. The keel will be laid at the Cochin Shipyard Feb 28.

February 17th, 2009 NEW DELHI - Progressing towards self-reliance in the defence industry, India's first indigenous aircraft carrier will be in the waters by 2011, Indian Navy chief Admiral Sureesh Mehta said Wednesday. The under-construction aircraft carrier will be ready in two years.