The theme park is already bankrupt.

Be careful, the source is dubious and respectable press agencies haven’t reported it. :rolleyes:

Could that take off via Kuznetsov’s ski-jump with sufficient fuel for a patrol of sufficient duration?

in what aspects are they weaker than USN ships? afaik their freeboard is one deck level lower, they lack the Tomahawk programming equipment and some redundant damage control features.

GS says this (some structural issue):

Construction was done to mercantile rather than military standards

I also read somewhere this was done because of budget limits, but I forgot where.

Are these also being built to the weaker mercantile standards?

OK, rather than go into a protracted debate, I’ll focus on Europe. To be quite honest, I’m not sure that any European nation needs anything bar helicopter carriers (i.e. for search-and-rescue/humanitarian operations). France, Italy and Spain might like to think of themselves as “great powers”, but to be perfectly honest I don’t see how they’re going to need carriers as fighter-platforms in the future. For one thing, they have established trade and energy land-routes. Equally I have a sense that continental Europe is “turtling” and is becoming less & less interested in overseas operations – I can’t see any of those three countries deploying their carriers against any plausible threat in the next 30+ years.

You really don’t know France do you? Take a look at the site of the French ministry of defense and see where their troops operate: worldwide and there does not seem to be a trend away from it (actually the reverse for the EU as a whole). Read the papers, follow the news and see how France manifests itself on the world stage: elle pense qu’elle est importante, n’est-ce pas?

Also, I never heard about Spain or Italy having any grand power ambitions, except protecting their territory and participating in peace missions. Furthermore, there ‘s quite a difference between a CdG-type carrier and a small Harrier carrying amphibious assault ship.

I think that really differs per customer (and the competition) and the price can of course be negotiated about. You probably would need access to the parties involved in this procurement program to get more details about the precise packages of on offer an their prices.

The former AG will carry 16 MiG-29K, according to the Navy chief Admiral Arun Prakash, see below. Furthermore, interesting news is that the smaller ADS will carry 12 MiG-29K.

The Times of India

Navy’s air arm flies high with fighters
RAJAT PANDIT

TIMES NEWS NETWORK[ FRIDAY, APRIL 08, 2005 12:42:33 AM ]
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NEW DELHI: The Navy’s aging air arm is finally getting its much-needed booster dose. That Navy chief Admiral Arun Prakash is himself an aviator has only helped in administering the right medicine to bolster the force’s air power.

The Navy has now embarked on a mix of mid-life upgrades, planned inductions and new acquisitions of aircraft to emerge as “a true three-dimensional blue-water force”, capable of furthering India’s “political and geo-strategic objectives”.

First, the Navy is going in for upgradation of old warhorses like Sea Harrier jump-jet fighters and IL-38 long-range maritime reconnaissance aircraft, Kamov-28 and Sea King anti-submarine warfare helicopters.

The Cabinet Committee on Security last week approved upgradation of 14 Sea Harriers, inducted in 1983, which are deployed on the country’s sole aircraft carrier INS Viraat. The Rs 476-crore upgradation package will include Israeli Elta EL/M-2032 multi-mode fire control radar and Derby beyond visual range air-to-air missiles for the fighters.

“India and Israel have agreed for a $25 million deal for the Derby missiles. The upgradation package will also include indigenously-developed Electronic Counter-Measures systems,” said an officer.

The new inductions, in turn, include 10 Advanced Light helicopters (six in utility version and four for anti-submarine warfare) and two IL-38s to replace the two lost in the mid-air collision at the Dabolim naval airbase in 2002.

Then, of course, there are the 28 Russian MiG-29Ks, which will provide fleet air defence with an anti-warship and reconnaissance role, and six Kamov-31 helicopters for early-warning and anti-submarine missions.

“Sixteen MiG-29Ks will be for INS Vikramditya or Admiral Gorshkov when it’s inducted in end-2008, while the other 12 are for the indigenous Air Defence Ship expected in 2012,” he said.

The government has also given the nod for the Rs 726-crore acquisition of 11 more Dornier-228s, with spare engines, which will act as medium-range maritime reconnaissance and patrol aircraft.

The Navy is also negotiating with United States to buy eight P-3C Orions for long-range reconnaissance capabilities. These aircraft, to be acquired from the US Navy’s inventory or storage reserves, may together cost around $900 million with the upgradation package and initial product support.

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow/1071981.cms