After a series of unfortunate delays, the Indian Navy has expressed cautious optimism over the Vikramaditya aircraft carrier, currently in the middle of final sea trials in the White Sea. The ship recently completed high-speed tests in the Barents Sea, and is now on track for delivery to the Indian Navy by December this year, hopefully ahead of Navy Day on December 4.

Rear Admiral Hari Kumar, leader of the Navy's supervisory acceptance team in Russia, is understood to be satisfied with progress on the final leg of the ship's preparation for operation service. The last eight months have seen the Sevmash shipyard up the tempo of repairs and modifications to see the Vikramaditya finally find its sea legs for long-endurance operations—a major area of concern earlier.