India decided the fate of its retired aircraft carrier INS Viraat (R 22). According to the recently approved plan, it will serve as a museum ship and adventure centre. The platform will be grounded on the Nivati Rocks which placed 7 nautical miles off the coast of Mumbai and then sealed into concrete.
The platform, which was commissioned by the Royal Navy in 1959 under the name of HMS Hermes (R 12), was sold to India in 1986. The following year, she entered the new user's inventory and started to serve as INS Viraat (R 22). The ship underwent a major structural modernization in 1980 and added a 12-degree ski-jump on the bow. INS Viraat, who also served in the Falkland War before her sale to India, officially retired at the beginning of last July. The platform was in use for 57 years when it was taken out of service and was the oldest warship in combat use
