Manoj Ambat's Blog dealing with Defence, Foreign Affairs, Strategic Affairs and Politics

Kilo class submarine ( Image credits- Wikimedia Commons / Russian Ministry of Defense) Source- The National Interest Author- Kyle Mizokami Unlike the United States Navy, which went all-in on nuclear power, Russia maintains fleets of both diesel and nuclear-powered submarines. A land power encompassing much of Eurasia, Russian submarines are based much closer to “the action” than American submarines are. While Russia maintains nuclear submarines for distant ocean patrols, its fleet of diesel submarines is more than adequate for conflicts in Europe, the Middle East and the Russian near abroad. The mainstay of the Russian Navy’s conventionally powered fleet are Project 877–class submarines, known as the Kilo class to NATO and the West. Nicknamed the “Black Hole” submarine by the U.S. Navy, the Improved Kilos are extremely quiet. The class has been built more or less continuously for thirty years, a testament to their effectiveness at sea............. ( Now click here to

Credits-  http://www.losbarcosdeeugenio.com/credit_en.html Source- Russia & India Report Author- Alexander Yemelyanenkov , RIR Another diesel-electric submarine owned by the Indian Navy, the Sindhukesari, will be in the Zvezdochka ship repair centre for repairs in Russia later this summer. It is being awaited at the Severodvinsk centre, where five similar Russian- built submarines of the Indian Navy were earlier sent to undergo repairs and modernization. The India Embassy in Moscow sent a delegation headed by the naval attaché Commodore Tarun Sobti recently for an inspection visit to Severodvinsk, RIR has learnt. The authorized Indian representatives have checked the enterprise’s industrial and consumer sites for readiness to receive the Sindhukesari diesel-electric submarine for repair. During the visit, Sobti examined the ship lifting facilities and main production plants, which will be involved in the repair of the Indian submarine, Eugene Gladyshev, offici

INS Sindhukirti S-61 on trial at HSL ( Image credits- Hindustan Shipyards Ltd, Government of India) Source- Russia & India Report Author- Tass Russia’s defence shipyard, the Zvezdochka Ship Repair Centre (Severodvinsk), has repaired, refitted and modernized the ‘INS Sindhukirti’, the Indian Navy’s diesel-electric submarine, at the Vishakhapatnam shipyard, a press release stated. The exercise, which took 10 years to complete, was the first time that such a feat has been accomplished successfully. The shipyard’s press release noted that the repairs to the ‘Sindhukirti’ were the first experience of a capital overhaul and modernization of a Russian-built submarine in an Indian shipyard. The works lasted almost 10 years. In the end, the ship was re-equipped with a Club-S modern missile system, becoming a full-fledged multi-purpose submarine, able to strike surface targets from the water. The Indian submarine has also been provided with the latest motion control sys

A Kilo class submarine ( Image credits- Wikimedia Commons / Ministry of Defence, Russian Federation) Source- The Diplomat Author- Nam Nguyen The fifth Kilo-class submarine procured for the Vietnamese People’s Navy (VPN) arrived at Cam Ranh Bay at the beginning of February. The Russian-built submarine started its journey from St Petersberg on the 16th of December on the Dutch-registered cargo ship Rolldock Star and arrived late in the night on Tuesday, February 2,  according to Thanh Nien News. There are currently four Vietnamese crews, supported by Russian advisers, for each of the existing Kilo-class Type 636 submarines in service with the VPN. Under Vietnam’s expanded relationship with Russia, a purpose-built submarine support facility was included as part of the deal to procure six conventional submarines for the VPN. With the end of this modernization cycle looming on the horizon, however, it remains to be seen how much of an impact these new platforms will ha

INS Sindhughosh underway ( Image credits- Wikimedia Commons / United States Navy) Source- The National Interest Author- Dave Majumdar The Indian media is claiming that one of New Delhi’s Russian-built Kilo-class diesel-electric attack submarines managed to “sink” a nuclear-powered U.S. Navy Los Angeles-class attack submarine during exercises in October. The Indian submarine INS Sindhudhvaj (S56) allegedly “killed” USS City of Corpus Christi (SSN 705) during an exercise called Malabar that is held annually between India, Japan and the United States. According to the Indians, the submarines were assigned to track each other down in the Bay of Bengal. “The way it happens is that the Sindhudhvaj recorded the Hydrophonic Effect (HE) - simply put, underwater noise - of the nuclear powered submarine and managed to positively identify it before locking on to it. Being an exercise what did not happen was the firing,” an Indian naval officer told India Today. The Indian vessel

Russian Kilo Class Submarine ( Source- Wikimedia Commons / Author- Jon218) Source- The Diplomat Author- Franz Stefan-Gady On August 1, the Vietnamese Navy commissioned two new Russian-made Kilo-class diesel-electric submarines, according to Thanh Nien News. The 184-Hai Phong and 185-Khanh Hoa were both commissioned during a ceremony held at Cam Ranh Naval in Khanh Hoa province, south of Hanoi. The commander of the Vietnam People’s Navy, Rear Admiral Hoai Nam noted that this constituted  “a major step of modernizing the Navy, and the People’s Army of Vietnam in general.” He also emphasized that the acquisition of the two new vessels should not trigger a new arms race in the region or deter other countries but merely protect Vietnam’s sovereignty and help safeguard peace in the region. The two new vessels will join the Submarine Brigade 189, which is already home to the Vietnam People’s Navy’s first two Kilo-class SSKs – the 182-Hanoi and 183-Ho Chi Minh. Vi

Russian Klub Missile ( Image source- Wikimedia Commons / Credits- Allocer) Source- The Diplomat Author- Franz Stefan- Gady Vietnam is in the process of acquiring 50 anti-ship and land attack 3M-14E Klub supersonic cruise missiles for its burgeoning fleet of SSK Kilo-class diesel-electric submarines, Der Spiegel Online reports. According to the article, the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) recently updated data on its website, based on information obtained from the United Nations’ register of conventional arms, indicating that Russia has already delivered 28 missiles over the last two years to Hanoi, although the precise number remains unknown. The Klub is a Russian-made conventional supersonic cruise missile, “designed to destroy targets protected by sophisticated active air defenses and countermeasures,” deagel.com explains. It is an export variant of Russia’s “carrier killer” 3M-54 (NATO designation: SS-N-27A “Sizzler”) and capable of lon

Kilo Class Submarine ( Image source- Wikimedia Commons / Credits- United States navy) Source- The National Interest Author- Lyle J. Goldstein After a brief respite, the South China Sea cauldron is starting to boil once again. This time, the hub-bub concerns not a close call between aircraft, nor dueling flotillas of coast guard vessels surrounding a mysterious oil exploration rig, nor the precarious resupply of a rusted out hulk of a ship grounded purposefully on an obscure reef Rather, the current frenzy among journalists, strategists, and now legislators concerns a variety of new structures that Beijing has undertaken to build up in and around its occupied reefs in the Spratlys. These structures will likely include an airfield. While this recent construction makes for interesting satellite photos, the impact on the actual naval balance of power seems quite minimal: limited to perhaps somewhat improved Chinese surveillance in the southern part of the South China

Kilo Class Submarine ( Image credits- Wikimedia Commons/ Author- Ria Novosti) Source- The Want China Times With an attacking range of 280 kilometers, the Vietnamese navy's 3M-14E Klub-S submarine-launched ballistic missile can be used against China's Hainan and Guangdong provinces when launched from southern Vietnam's Cam Ranh Bay, military analyst Andrei Chang, also known as Pinkov, wrote in an article for the Kanwa Defense Review, a Chinese-language military magazine based in Canada. The purchase of 3M-14E ballistic missiles from Russia makes Vietnam's six Kilo-class 636MV submarines more powerful than their Chinese counterparts. Pinkov said the 3M-14E is only allowed to be exported to Algeria, India and Vietnam. It is not allowed to be installed aboard China's Kilo-class MV submarines yet. In a war between China and Vietnam, the Vietnamese navy is very likely to use the submarines in the vanguard against the PLA Navy. The Vietnamese subs have also u