RAS question
India's first indigenous aircraft carrier INS Vikrant uses which launch method for aircraft?
Correct answer: (B) STOBAR (ski-jump).
India's first indigenous aircraft carrier, INS Vikrant, uses the STOBAR launch method, with a ski-jump for take-off and arrested recovery for landing.
Explanation
INS Vikrant uses STOBAR, or Short Take-Off But Arrested Recovery: aircraft take off from a 14-degree ski-jump ramp and return using arrester wires. That is why option B is the substantive answer, not merely a label. The cited PIB release identifies Vikrant as India's first indigenous aircraft carrier and records that it was commissioned as INS Vikrant, built by Cochin Shipyard Limited after design by the Indian Navy's Warship Design Bureau. The launch system matters because STOBAR is a simpler carrier arrangement than CATOBAR, but it comes with a trade-off: aircraft weight is more limited. In Vikrant's case, MiG-29K fighters operate from this carrier configuration.
Why the other options are wrong
- (A) CATOBAR uses catapult-assisted launch, whereas the given Vikrant explanation specifies a 14-degree ski-jump ramp, not a catapult.
- (C) STOVL is built around short take-off and vertical landing, but Vikrant's stated method uses arrested recovery with arrester wires.
- (D) VTOL would mean vertical take-off, while Vikrant's aircraft take off using a ski-jump ramp under the STOBAR system.
Concept
This tests defence technology under Science and Technology, especially how naval aviation systems differ across carrier designs. It recurs in RAS because indigenous defence platforms like INS Vikrant combine current affairs, strategic capability and applied technology.