Indian Aircraft Carrier Retreats Following Pakistan Navy Strategy

KARACHI: The Pakistan Navy’s anti-access/area-denial strategy has seemingly deterred an Indian aircraft carrier, leading to India’s withdrawal of the INS Vikrant. The vessel was previously stationed at the INS Kadamba naval base in Karwar, Karnataka, near the Pakistani border.

Recent satellite imagery indicates that the Indian aircraft carrier INS Vikrant has abruptly returned to the Indian port of Karwar after a brief period at sea. The Indian Navy stated that the INS Vikrant was deployed in the Arabian Sea in response to recent tensions involving Pakistan.

The Indian government had positioned INS Vikrant near Pakistani territorial waters in the North Arabian Sea on April 23. However, the Indian Navy reportedly opted to recall the aircraft carrier due to the presence and ongoing patrols conducted by the Pakistan Navy in the area.

According to the latest satellite intelligence images dated April 26, 2025, the INS Vikrant is now docked at Karwar port. Images from April 23 showed the vessel sailing towards the open waters of the Arabian Sea. The initial deployment of INS Vikrant sparked considerable attention across Indian media platforms. Typically, an aircraft carrier isn’t deployed in open waters for such a short duration. The presence of Pakistan Navy’s active “carrier killer” missile systems at sea may have made a strategic retreat the safer course of action.