The Indian Navy has commissioned INS Aridhaman, its third and biggest Arihant-class SSBN submarine, and its fourth Nilgiri-class stealth frigate INS Taragiri.
The new surface vessel, built by the Mazagon Dock shipyard, was welcomed into the fleet in a special ceremony at Visakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh last week.
Meanwhile, no official statement was released about the launch of the new domestically built ballistic missile submarine, but its arrival into service was widely reported by domestic media and India’s Defence Minister Rajnath Singh alluded to it in a social media post.
Launched in 2021, the 130-metre 7,000-ton submarine INS Aridhaman is larger than the two previous boats in her class, the Arihant and Arighaat; she is reported to have eight launch tubes, twice the number of the other Arihant-class SSBNs.
This means she can carry up to 24 shorter-range K-15 Sagarika missiles, and eight K-4 or K-5 missiles; the latter projectile is thought to have a range of up to 3,700 miles.
INS Taragiri is the fourth Nilgiri-class stealth frigate to enter service, and the third Mazagon Dock-built warship in the class to be commissioned.
Replacing the Shivalik-class vessels, as per the Indian Ministry of Defence (IMoD), the 149-metre warships “represent a generational leap” from their predecessors.
Roughly 75% of all the ship’s systems have been domestically developed. They displace about 6,700 tons, have a 5,500-nautical-mile range and are capable of cruising at up to 32 knots.
Each warship’s weapon suite includes the supersonic BrahMos anti-ship missile system, and Barak 8 medium-range surface-to-air missiles. The ships are also fitted with Varunastra torpedoes and an OTO Melara 76mm naval gun, and a combination of 30mm and 12.7mm rapid-fire close-in weapon systems.
- You can read more details on the Indian MoD website and the Defence Minister’s X feed