India’s Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders (MDL) handed over two new stealth warships to the Indian Navy in a ceremony on Friday, December 20.
The delivered ships include the Visakhapatnam-class guided-missile destroyer INS Surat the frigate INS Nilgiri, also the lead ship of its class. Both ships will be deployed for anti-air warfare, anti-surface warfare, and anti-submarine warfare missions.
Like its three earlier Visakhapatnam-class sisters, Surat was developed to be a modified variant of the Indian Navy’s Kolkata-class stealth guided-missile destroyers. The alterations were aimed at minimising costs and development time while retaining the general dimensions, displacement, and combat capability of the Kolkatas. Notable changes include an updated bridge layout to reduce radar signature and the placement of the main sonar equipment at the bow instead of further along the hull bottom.
The destroyer has a length of 163 metres, a beam of 17.4 metres, a draught of 6.5 metres, a displacement of 7,400 tonnes, and a crew complement of 50 officers and 250 enlisted personnel. Two Bergen 7,400kW diesel engines and two Zorya M36E gas turbines in a combined gas and gas (COGAG) configuration allow the ship to reach speeds of just over 33.5 knots and sail up to 8,000 nautical miles at a cruising speed of 18 knots. This capability also translates into a maximum operating endurance of 45 days, making extended-duration patrols possible.
Surat‘s armament consists of 16 Brahmos anti-ship cruise missiles, 32 Barak 8ER surface-to-air missiles housed in vertical launch cells, a Leonardo 76mm naval gun, twin 533mm torpedo launchers, anti-submarine rocket launchers, and four AK-630M 30mm close-in weapon systems for point defence against hostile missiles and airborne threats. Also fitted are two 12.7mm heavy machine guns on two stabilised remote controlled mounts.
Nilgiri meanwhile has a length of 149 metres, a beam of 17.8 metres, and a displacement of 6,670 tonnes. The frigate is propelled by two diesel and two gas turbine powerplants in a combined diesel and gas (CODAG) configuration and will be able to achieve sustained speeds in excess of 28 knots.
A total of seven Nilgiri-class frigates will be built. In addition to Nilgiri, three others will be constructed by MDL.