On Saturday, Indian Navy's decommissioned aircraft carrier Viraat set sail for the last time, from from the Naval dockyard in Mumbai. The massive vessel is being taken to Alang in Gujarat, where it will be broken down and sold as scrap.
The aircraft carrier served the Indian Navy for 29 years before being decommissioned in March 2017. It had served in the UK's Royal Navy as HMS Hermes and was named INS Viraat after being inducted in the Indian Navy in 1987. There were attempts to convert 'Viraat' into a museum or a restaurant, but none of the plans fructified.
It was an emotional moment for many navy veterans as they watched the vessel aboard which they had spent many a day being towed away by a tug boat. As Viraat began its final journey , a Navy helicopter circling overhead provided a majestic backdrop to the vessel's last voyage, as the onlookers stood at the Gateway of India.
Take a look at some of the pictures:
Photo: BL Soni |
Photo: BL Soni |
Photo: BL Soni |
Photo: BL Soni |
Photo: BL Soni |
Photo: BL Soni |
Photo: BL Soni |
Photo: BL Soni |
Photo: BL Soni |
Photo: BL Soni |
Photo: PRO Defence Mumbai/Twitter |
Photo: PRO Defence Mumbai/Twitter
Photo: PRO Defence Mumbai/Twitter
Photo: PRO Defence Mumbai/Twitter
