India to get second stealth frigate from Russia

New Delhi (India) May 6: India's second powerful warship, a multi-role stealth frigate featuring guns and sensors, will shortly be created in Russia. It will replace her sister ship, the INS Tushil, which was put into service in December of last year.

As tensions with Pakistan rise, India is showing its naval power in the Arabian Sea. On Monday, the Navy and DRDO successfully launched locally-made underwater "multi-influence ground mines" that were intended to destroy enemy submarines and stealth warships, despite with fewer explosives.

The new 3,900-tonne frigate, which will be commissioned as INS Tamal, is expected to be handed over to the Indian Navy in Kaliningrad after completing all critical testing, including weapon fire, in about a month.

The system will further enhance the undersea warfare capabilities of the Indian Navy,” Defence Minister Rajnath Singh stated.

India and Russia agreed on a general agreement in October 2016 for the purchase of four upgraded Krivak-III class frigates, with the first two to be bought at roughly Rs 8,000 crore. At a total cost of about Rs 13,000 crore, the other two, Triput and Tavasya, are being constructed at the Goa Shipyard with information transfer.

These frigates are built for blue sea operations in all four areas of naval warfare—air, surface, subsurface, and electromagnetic—and are provided with a variety of advanced armament systems.

Among the weapons are anti-submarine rockets and torpedoes, vertically launched Shtil surface-to-air missiles with larger ranges, and Brahmos supersonic cruise missiles, whose attack range has been extended from 290 to 450 km.

In addition to carrying modern anti-submarine and airborne early warning helicopters, the Kamov-28 and Kamov-31, which are force multipliers in and of themselves, the frigates can achieve speeds of over 30 knots.

 "High degree of automation and stealth features, across radio, infrared, and acoustic spectrums, further enhance their combat capability and survivability,”the officer said.

On February 14, the 125-meter-long INS Tushil, the first frigate, arrived in her home port of Karwar from Russia. These four more warships will join the six Russian frigates—three Talwar-class and three Teg-class—that the Navy has already received between 2003–2004.

Among the weapons are anti-submarine rockets and torpedoes, vertically launched Shtil surface-to-air missiles with improved ranges, and Brahmos supersonic cruise missiles, whose smashing range has been increased to 450 kilometres.

Aadrika Tayal