New Delhi: An Indian and a British
submarine will test each other`s capabilities at a three-day
wargame in the Arabian Sea, even as the two sides try out a
new tabletop naval exercise in Mumbai, both as part of the
annual Konkan series this month-end.
The Royal Navy submarine `HMS Talent`, a Trafalgar class
vessel, will match its warfare skills with Indian Navy`s
`Shishumar` class submarine from July 28 to 30 off the west
coast, a Navy press release said here today.
At the same time, the British and Indian navies will
conduct their annual `Konkan 2010` bilateral exercise in the
form of a tabletop wargame in Mumbai from July 26, it said.
This will be the seventh edition of the `Konkan` series
of exercises and the tabletop wargame will be held on a
tactical simulator located at Maritime Warfare Centre of the
Western Naval Command.
The tabletop exercise will be a wargame without actual
participation of ships, but with Planning Staff of both
countries attending it.
The aim of the tabletop exercise is to exchange
operational planning concepts, Maritime Domain Awareness
procedures, and to test these plans through simulations of a
maritime scenario at sea.
Experiences from this tabletop game would be utilised to
refine concepts for future `Konkan` series of exercises
involving ships, submarines and aircraft.
The nine-member British team will be headed by Commodore
James Morse, the Commander of United Kingdom Task Group, and
the 11-member Indian side by Captain M A Hampiholi, Commanding
Officer of INS Talwar.
The first Konkan exercise was conducted in April 2004 at
Chennai, followed by exercises in 2006, 2008 and 2009 in
India. Two tabletop wargames were also held.
Konkan 2007 was a tabletop exercise conducted at the
Royal Navy`s Maritime Warfare Centre at Portsmouth in United
Kingdom.
In 2009, Konkan was conducted off the southern coast of
the UK during the deployment of Indian warships to the
Mediterranean Sea and North Atlantic Ocean.
The Konkan series of exercises are a part of continuing
and growing constructive engagement process between the two
navies, the release said.
PTI
