INS ''Delhi'' is the lead ship of her class of

guided-missile destroyer A guided-missile destroyer (DDG) is a destroyer whose primary armament is guided missiles so they can provide anti-aircraft warfare screening for the fleet. The NATO standard designation for these vessels is DDG, while destroyers who have a prim ...

s of the

Indian Navy The Indian Navy is the maritime branch of the Indian Armed Forces. The President of India is the Supreme Commander of the Indian Navy. The Chief of Naval Staff, a four-star admiral, commands the navy. As a blue-water navy, it operates si ...

. She was built at the

Mazagon Dock Limited Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders Limited (MDL) (IAST: ''Majhagānv Dawk Limiṭeḍ''), formerly called Mazagon Dock Limited, is a shipyard situated in Mazagaon, Mumbai. It manufactures warships and submarines for the Indian Navy and offshore platfor ...

Mumbai Mumbai (, ; also known as Bombay — List of renamed Indian cities and states#Maharashtra, the official name until 1995) is the capital city of the Indian States and union territories of India, state of Maharashtra and the ''de facto'' fin ...

and commissioned on 15 November 1997. This class is among the largest warships to be designed and built in

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

. The Ship was undergoing midlife upgrades from 2018. As of April 2022, she was back in service with Sensor upgrades and new 'Modular Launcher' for Brahmos Missile as a replacement for KH 35E. A Brahmos test was carried out from the ship on 19 April 2022. ''Delhi'' is the second vessel of the Indian Navy to bear the name. She inherits the mantle from the of the same name, previously HMS ''Achilles'' of

Battle of the River Plate The Battle of the River Plate was fought in the South Atlantic on 13 December 1939 as the first naval battle of the Second World War. The Kriegsmarine heavy cruiser , commanded by Captain Hans Langsdorff, engaged a Royal Navy squadron, command ...

fame.

Operations

During May–July 2009, INS ''Delhi'' led the Indian Navy task force on deployment to Europe. During this deployment, the task force participated in joint-exercises with the

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against ...

and the

French Navy The French Navy (french: Marine nationale, lit=National Navy), informally , is the maritime arm of the French Armed Forces and one of the five military service branches of France. It is among the largest and most powerful naval forces in t ...

. Exercise ''Konkan-09'' with the

, was conducted off the coast of the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the European mainland, continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

. Exercise ''Varuna 2009'' with the

was off the coast of

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan area ...

. As of 2020, ''Delhi'' was undergoing a mid-life refit that includes upgrades for several weapons and sensors. The Kh-35E ''Uran'' missiles will be replaced by BrahMos missiles, which was originally sanctioned in 2015. The Shtil-1 air defence system will replace the 9K-90 ''Uragan'', with Fregat M2EM radar replacing the Fregat-MAE. The Kite Screech fire control system of the AK-100 is being replaced by BEL Lynx U2. The electronics warfare system will be upgraded to Ellora Mk II, with

Kavach Kavach may refer to: * Kavach (anti-missile system), an Indian anti-missile naval decoy system * Kavach (train protection system), Indian Railways train protection system * Kavach (TV series), a Hindi supernatural horror drama television series * ...

decoy launchers. Atlas Elektronik ACTAS towed-array sonar will also be installed. The BrahMos integration was validated with a test firing on 19 April 2022.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Delhi (D61) Delhi-class destroyers Destroyers of the Indian Navy Ships built in India 1995 ships