by ModelMonkey » Tue Apr 01, 2008 7:26 am
Rob wrote:Would you know where i can find good references for INS Vikrant?
Cheers,
Rob
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space_moose wrote:If you want to make the Vikrant you can use the hull from any Majestic or Colossus Class Aircraft carrier kit, Heller makes a good one in 1/400. Then just google all the images from Vikrant then HMS Hercules, the RN reincarnation of the Vikrant and figure it out from there.
The Indian high commissioner to the United Kingdom, Vijayalakshmi Pandit, commissioned her as INS Vikrant on March 4, 1961 while she was still at Belfast, Northern Ireland. The name Vikrant was taken from Sanskrit vikr?nta = "stepped beyond", i.e. "courageous", "victorious". Captain Pritam Singh was the first commanding officer of the carrier. She formally joined the Indian fleet at Bombay on November 3, 1961, when she was received at Ballard Pier by Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru and other high-ranking dignitaries.
The Vikrant's initial airwing consisted of British Hawker Sea Hawk fighter-bombers and a French Alize anti-submarine aircraft. On May 18, 1961, the first jet landed on board, piloted by Lieutenant (later Admiral) R H Tahiliani.
In 1965, Pakistan claimed that it had sunk the Vikrant. At the time, however, the ship was under refit in dry dock.
Despite a crack in a boiler, she saw real combat against Pakistan in the Indo-Pakistani War of 1971. She was considered important enough by the Pakistan Navy that they sent the submarine Ghazi all the way to the Bay of Bengal to mine the Visakhapatnam harbor in an unsuccessful attempt to sink the Vikrant; the Ghazi itself was lost during the mission. The Vikrant played an instrumental role in sinking several Pakistani patrol boats and other naval vessels. During the war the crew of Vikrant earned two Mahavir Chakras and 12 Vir Chakras.
Vikrant was given an extensive refit, including new engines and modernization between 1979 and January 3, 1982. Between December 1982 and February 1983 she was refitted again to enable her to operate Sea Harriers. After the retirement of the Breguet Aliz� from carrier service in 1989, she received a 'ski jump' for more efficient use of her Sea Harriers.
Vikrant was India's only carrier for over twenty years, but by the early 1990s she was effectively out of service because of her poor condition. Even following major overhauls she was rarely put to sea. She was formally decommissioned January 31, 1997 and is preserved as a museum at Mumbai.
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Rob wrote:That is pretty much what I have in mind, albeit in 1/700 and the L'Arsenal kit.
What I was wondering is if there are any books with good info on Vikrant in there.
Cheers,
Rob
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Avery Boyer wrote:I was delighted to discover today that Vikrant is preserved as a museum! There was all that @#$% about HMS Vengeance/Minas Gerais becoming a museum, they acted like (and maybe even claimed) that she was the last surviving member of her class, but happily Vikrant/Hercules is preserved in Mumbai
I want to build her as she appears now, and am looking for a site that has lots of pics. I'm going the route of scratchbuilding, and want lots of detail pics. I'm building big (think 1/350) and want to add as much detail as possible. I may not start this project until mid-winter, but the more research I can get done now the better. TIA for any info.
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kalkurap wrote:Avery,
Yes, you are right, it is being converted into a museum in Mumbai. But I didn't find many pictures of it online. Could be because the museum is not open to the public yet. The only time when one gets to visit the ship is during Navy week, which is going to be in the first week of december.
Given the lack of photos and reference material on this ship, I am wondering if it is worth hiring a photographer in Mumbai to take some good photos of the ship (if the navy allows it). I don't expect it to cost a lot. I had seen some models of this ship when I was in high school and always wanted to build one. I am very interested to know if you have collected any information about this ship. It will be very interesting when you start the build.
[quote="Rob"]Would you know where i can find good references for INS Vikrant?
Cheers,
Rob[/quote]
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[quote="space_moose"]If you want to make the Vikrant you can use the hull from any Majestic or Colossus Class Aircraft carrier kit, Heller makes a good one in 1/400. Then just google all the images from Vikrant then HMS Hercules, the RN reincarnation of the Vikrant and figure it out from there.
The Indian high commissioner to the United Kingdom, Vijayalakshmi Pandit, commissioned her as INS Vikrant on March 4, 1961 while she was still at Belfast, Northern Ireland. The name Vikrant was taken from Sanskrit vikr?nta = "stepped beyond", i.e. "courageous", "victorious". Captain Pritam Singh was the first commanding officer of the carrier. She formally joined the Indian fleet at Bombay on November 3, 1961, when she was received at Ballard Pier by Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru and other high-ranking dignitaries.
The Vikrant's initial airwing consisted of British Hawker Sea Hawk fighter-bombers and a French Alize anti-submarine aircraft. On May 18, 1961, the first jet landed on board, piloted by Lieutenant (later Admiral) R H Tahiliani.
In 1965, Pakistan claimed that it had sunk the Vikrant. At the time, however, the ship was under refit in dry dock.
Despite a crack in a boiler, she saw real combat against Pakistan in the Indo-Pakistani War of 1971. She was considered important enough by the Pakistan Navy that they sent the submarine Ghazi all the way to the Bay of Bengal to mine the Visakhapatnam harbor in an unsuccessful attempt to sink the Vikrant; the Ghazi itself was lost during the mission. The Vikrant played an instrumental role in sinking several Pakistani patrol boats and other naval vessels. During the war the crew of Vikrant earned two Mahavir Chakras and 12 Vir Chakras.
Vikrant was given an extensive refit, including new engines and modernization between 1979 and January 3, 1982. Between December 1982 and February 1983 she was refitted again to enable her to operate Sea Harriers. After the retirement of the Breguet Aliz� from carrier service in 1989, she received a 'ski jump' for more efficient use of her Sea Harriers.
Vikrant was India's only carrier for over twenty years, but by the early 1990s she was effectively out of service because of her poor condition. Even following major overhauls she was rarely put to sea. She was formally decommissioned January 31, 1997 and is preserved as a museum at Mumbai.
[img]http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/f/fb/INS_Vikrant.jpg/800px-INS_Vikrant.jpg[/img]
[/quote]
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[quote="Rob"]That is pretty much what I have in mind, albeit in 1/700 and the L'Arsenal kit.
What I was wondering is if there are any books with good info on Vikrant in there.
Cheers,
Rob[/quote]
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[quote="kalkurap"]Rob,
Information and picture of Vikrant, if you already haven't seen this site:
http://www.bharat-rakshak.com/NAVY/Majestic.html
A beautiful line diagram of the ship, on the same site:
http://www.bharat-rakshak.com/NAVY/Galleries/Art/Grotnik/Vikrant.jpg.html
You can download a larger version too. In general http://www.bharat-rakshak.com is a good reference for Indian armed forces.
Regards,
Prasanna.[/quote]
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[quote="Avery Boyer"]I was delighted to discover today that Vikrant is preserved as a museum! There was all that @#$% about HMS Vengeance/Minas Gerais becoming a museum, they acted like (and maybe even claimed) that she was the last surviving member of her class, but happily Vikrant/Hercules is preserved in Mumbai :jump_1:
I want to build her as she appears now, and am looking for a site that has lots of pics. I'm going the route of scratchbuilding, and want lots of detail pics. I'm building big (think 1/350) and want to add as much detail as possible. I may not start this project until mid-winter, but the more research I can get done now the better. TIA for any info.[/quote]
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[quote="kalkurap"]Avery,
Yes, you are right, it is being converted into a museum in Mumbai. But I didn't find many pictures of it online. Could be because the museum is not open to the public yet. The only time when one gets to visit the ship is during Navy week, which is going to be in the first week of december.
Given the lack of photos and reference material on this ship, I am wondering if it is worth hiring a photographer in Mumbai to take some good photos of the ship (if the navy allows it). I don't expect it to cost a lot. I had seen some models of this ship when I was in high school and always wanted to build one. I am very interested to know if you have collected any information about this ship. It will be very interesting when you start the build.[/quote]