To the best of my knowledge, every nation that has conducted primary carrier-landing training has had at least one mock-up of a carrier deck to train its pilots with… and the mock-up included the same equipment a real carrier had, including carrier arresting gear* and often catapults (if their ships had catapults).
This arresting gear works, and actual arrested landings are conducted as part of the training (and sometimes catapulted launches as well).
Thus, if India is intending to eventually conduct its own primary carrier pilot training, it would set up such a facility itself… and would require a carrier-rated trainer to use with it.
Thus, the Goshawk would be logical if this is what India is planning.
* not a standard “field emergency arresting system” as found on most fighter airfields, but the same equipment as is fitted in the aircraft carrier.
Note that when China scrapped the former HMAS Melbourne in the mid-1980s, they removed the catapult and installed it in a land-based deck-simulator to conduct research on catapults and catapulted take-offs.
ANY Navy pilot will tell you that land based mock-ups are good….but….they just cant replace a real ship.
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