Malfunctions delay delivery of Russian aircraft carrier to India

(Xinhua)

09:32, September 22, 2012

MOSCOW, Sept. 21 (Xinhua) -- Russia will delay delivery of a renovated nuclear aircraft carrier to India for five months because of construction problems, the ship's builder said Friday.

"A number of units have broken down, including those made in NATO countries," Andrei Dyachkov, head of the state-owned United Shipbuilding Corp. (USC), said during a meeting with Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Rogozin.

Dyachkov cited problematic units in the aircraft carrier, including the heat insulation of diesel-powered boilers, three freezing devices and nitrogenous generators.

Because of the problems, Russia will be unable to deliver the aircraft carrier "Vikramaditya," originally built as the "Admiral Gorshkov" in Russia, to India by the end of 2012 as contracted.

Now, Dyachkov said, the work would be completed no earlier than in May 2013.

Russia initially planned to consign the carrier to the Indian Navy in 2008. However, upgrade work has been repeatedly prolonged, with the cost of the contract climbing to at least 2.3 billion U.S. dollars compared with an initial 974 million dollars.

Russia also sold India 530-million-dollars-worth of aircraft, including 16 MIG-29K fighters, along with Ka-27 and Ka-31 anti-submarine helicopters to be stationed on the vessel.

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（Editor：厉振羽、马茜）

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