It had served in the U.K.’s Royal Navy as HMS Hermes and was named INS Viraat after being inducted in the Indian Navy in 1987.
Indian Navy’s decommissioned aircraft carrier Viraat on Saturday set sail for the last time, to Alang in Gujarat, where it will be broken down and sold as scrap.
For Navy veterans who watched the huge vessel being towed away by a tug boat, it was an emotional moment as they stood near the Gateway of India, waving at the once ‘floating town’, aboard which they spent the best years of their career.
As Viraat began its final journey from the Naval dockyard, a Navy helicopter circling overhead provided a majestic backdrop to the vessel’s last voyage.
A Defence spokesperson said Viraat was to leave for Alang on Friday, but its departure was delayed by a day.
The aircraft carrier served the Indian Navy for 29 years before being decommissioned in March…