New Delhi: India is all set to commission
its latest indigenous stealth warship of the Shivalik class,
with features to hoodwink enemy radars, on April 29.
Defence Minister A K Antony will induct INS Shivalik, the
first of the the 3-ship Project-17 frigates, at the
Mumbai-based Mazagon Docks (MDL) to provide the fleet more
teeth.
"INS Shivalik, which will be commissioned on April 29 by
Defence Minister A K Antony at MDL, will have the latest
stealth features to outsmart the enemy with low radar cross
section, be it of the hull, infra-red or sound signatures,"
Navy's Director General for Naval Design Rear Admiral K N
Vaidhyanathan told reporters here today.
Two more of the Shivalik class, named INS Sayahdri and
INS Satpura, would be ready for commissioning by November this
year and middle of next year.
"Shivalik class warships can deal with multiple threat
environment, fitted with weapon suite comprising both area and
point defence systems; sensors for air, surface and subsurface
surveillance and tracking; medium range and close-in gunnery,
electronic support and counter measures; and decoys for soft
kill measures," Vaidhyanathan said.
The 143-metre-long warship, with 6,000-tonne
displacement, has a versatile control system and external
control system with signature management and radar cross
section reduction features.
"Shivalik is a steep jump in the indigenous design effort
of the Directorate of Naval Design that has since 1954
designed 17 warships of different class with 80 units built
out of them. Currently, there are four designs from which 11
warships are under construction," he said.
"The warship of this class incorporates several new
design features giving it enhanced operational capabilities in
terms of survivability, stealth, sea keeping, ship handling
and weapons," he added.
Vaidhyanathan said there had been a lull in the design
efforts of his Directorate after the designing of the Delhi
Class Destroyers in the mid-1980s, but Shivalik Class had
rejuvenated his department's design skills.
Among the new design features that the directorate worked
on for Shivalik included its sea keeping for improved
operability, bettering of habitation for the 250-odd crew
members, enhanced survivability of the ship, high degree of
automation and stealth radar vulnerability.
Shivalik class is equipped with a judicious mix of
imported and indigenous weapons and sensors, with the total
indigenous effort accounting for 60 per cent of the cost
estimated to be Rs 2,300 crore per ship.
The ship is powered by Combined Diesel or Gas Turbine
(CODOG) propulsion system consisting of one each of US-origin
LM-2500 gas turbine engine and SEMT Pielstick diesel engine on
each shaft driving a large diameter controllable pitch
propeller.
"The indigenous efforts include the two types of engines
fitted on the ship. While Defence PSU Hindustan Aeronautics
Limited has worked on the gas turbine engines, private sector
Kirloskar worked on the diesel engine," Vaidhyanathan said.
Shivalik project director Commodore Anil Kumar Saxena
said the design team had faced many challenges including
engineering, technology management, supply chain, and funds
management.
"But we succeeded in all of them and during trials at
high speeds by firing up the gas turbine engine, the ship
stood like a rock. We have already completed 70 per cent of
the weapons trials including super rapid gun mount, close-in
gunnery system and chaff dispensers," Saxena said.
With better modular habitation and galley facilities on
the ship including an electric 'chappati' (Indian bread)
maker, the warship would ensure that the crew would be more
comfortable while sailing and hence better performance from
them.
"We could have the best weapons and sensors on board, but
it has to be operated by the crew. Hence, the thrust has been
on comfort of the crew," he added.
Shivalik would also be the first warship of the Indian
Navy to provide for separate living rooms for women crew as
and when the Defence Ministry decides to send them on board
warships to the sea.
Though the Shivalik project took the Navy nearly 12 years
from the drawing board stage to its commissioning,
Vaidhyanathan said new designs for warships the world over
also took that much time.
Navy officials gave the examples of a Swedish warship
project that took about 10 years and the French 'Lafayette'
that again was under construction for over a decade.
The Rear Admiral said the government had in principle
given approval for a follow-on project for the Shivalik class,
codenamed Project 17A, under which another seven frigates
would be built.
"The orders for the construction are awaited for Project
17A. But the design phase is almost over. The Project 17A
ships would use the same hull as Project 17, but would have a
better design and additional weapon systems when compared to
the Shivalik Class and would be built for the first time under
modular construction technology currently adopted by global
shipyards," he added.
Among the ongoing projects with the Design Directorate
were the three Kolkata Class destroyers under Project 15A, the
Indigenous Aircraft Carriers under construction in Cochin
Shipyard and the Anti-Submarine corvettes at the
Kolkata-based Garden Reach Shipbuilders and Engineers (GRSE).
"The three Project 15A destroyers are scheduled for
commissioning from 2012 to 2014 with a ship being inducted
each year. There is also Project 15B, approved in March 2009,
under which another four destroyers would be built,"
Vaidhyanathan said.
The Navy currently has a 130-warship-strong fleet which
includes an aircraft carrier, 20 landing ships, eight
destroyers, 12 frigates and 16 attack submarines based in
four commands headquartered in Mumbai (Western Naval
Command), Visakhapatnam (Eastern Naval Command), Kochi
(Southern Naval Command) and Port Blair (Andaman and Nicobar
Joint Command).
PTI
First Published: Wednesday, April 21, 2010, 18:57