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

INS Kolkata ( Image credits- Indian navy) As Indian navy undertakes rapid modernisation and transformation, it is time to look at some of the ships and their capabilities which will play the leading role or the Indian navy for decades to come. Each week we feature a class of ships that is entering series with the Indian navy or are planned for the future. We begin with the Kolkata class destroyer which is comparable to the best in the world. A stealthy boat by design, Kolkata along with the upcoming Visakhapatinam class will play a vital role for the Indian navy for the next three decades.  The Kolkata class: The Kolkata class (Project 15A) are a class of stealth guided missile destroyers constructed for the Indian Navy. The class comprises three ships – Kolkata, Kochi and Chennai, all of which are being built by Mazagon Dock Limited (MDL) in India, and are the largest destroyers to be operated by the Indian Navy. Due to delays in their construction, and a problem found d

INS Visakhapatnam ( Image credits- Getty Image)  Source- The Diplomat Author- Franz- Stefan Gady Yesterday, the Indian Navy, in the presence of Admiral RK Dhowan, India’s current chief of naval  staff, launched its latest stealth guided missile destroyer with a ceremony held at Mazagaon Dock Limited (MDL), Mumbai. The 7,300 ton Visakhapatnam is the first of four planned Visakhapatnam-class (Project 15B) vessels, based on the older Kolkata-class destroyers design (Project 15A), to enter Indian service. The other three vessels will be launched at an interval of three years at a total cost of INR 293.40 billion ($4.89 billion). According to Indian naval officials, the 164 m-long Visakhapatnam will be commissioned in July 2018.  The Kolkata-class destroyer INS Kolkata (Project 15A) was commissioned in August 2014, with the two remaining vessels of the class to be commissioned by 2016. According to IHS Jane’s Defense Weekly: Vishakhapatnam‘s key differences from th

INS Visakhapatnam ( Source- Internet Image) Source- The National Interest Author- Zakhary Keck India will launch the lead vessel of its new class of super advanced, stealth destroyers on Saturday, according to numerous local media reports. This week a number of Indian publications reported that the Indian Navy plans to launch the INS Visakhapatnam in Mumbai this weekend. The ship will be the first of four Visakhapatnam-class stealth destroyers that India is building as part of Project 15B. These vessels will serve as the follow-ons to the three Kolkata-class guided missile destroyers. As India’s largest destroyer, INS Visakhapatnam and its sister ships will be a boon to India’s naval power projection capabilities. “At 7,300 tonnes, Visakhapatnam will be the largest destroyer commissioned in the country and will be equipped with the Israeli Multi Function Surveillance Threat Alert Radar (MF-STAR) which will provide targeting information to 32 Barak 8 long-ra