INDIA HAS marked a major milestone in the extensive aviation trials currently being conducted by the service's first indigenously designed, developed and manufactured aircraft carrier, INS Vikrant (R11), after Indian naval test pilots landed two different fighter types on the vessel for the first time. This milestone event took place on February 6, when a domestically developed Tejas (naval variant) light combat aircraft and a Russian-built MiG-29K Fulcrum-D fighter landed on Vikrant for the first time. Having initially set sail for sea trials on August 4, 2021, Vikrant was formally commissioned into Indian Navy (IN) service on September 2, 2022. From December 13 onwards, the new carrier has been conducting a series of extensive air operations with fixed-wing aircraft and helicopters as part of its air certification and flight integration trials as the navy works towards achieving combat-ready status. These trials are expected to end this summer.
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