The ''Godavari''-class frigates (formerly Type 16 or Project 16 frigates) were guided-missile frigates 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 ...

. The ''Godavari'' class was the first significant indigenous warship design and development initiative of the Indian Navy. Its design is a modification of the with a focus on indigenous content of 72%, a larger hull and updated armaments. The class and the lead ship, were named after the Godavari River. Subsequent ships in the class, and also took their names from Indian rivers. INS ''Gomati'' was the first Indian Navy vessel to have digital electronics in her combat data system. The ships combined Indian, Russian and Western weapons systems.

History

The concept for the ''Godavari'' class originated from the lessons learnt in the

Indo-Pakistan War of 1971 The Indo-Pakistani War of 1971 was a military confrontation between India and Pakistan that occurred during the Bangladesh Liberation War in East Pakistan from 3 December 1971 until the Pakistani capitulation in Dhaka on 16 Decemb ...

. There was a need for a ship unique to Indian requirements, for deploying a hybrid of indigenously-designed, as well as Russian and European weapons systems. The keel of the lead ship INS ''Godavari'' was laid in 1978 at

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 ...

Bombay Mumbai (, ; also known as Bombay — the official name until 1995) is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra and the ''de facto'' financial centre of India. According to the United Nations, as of 2018, Mumbai is the second-m ...

. She was commissioned in December 1983. One of the requirements was to deploy two Sea King helicopters from the ship. The ''Nilgiri''-class vessels were too small for this requirement. The final design incorporated a larger hull in order to accommodate this. INS ''Godavari'' was decommissioned on 23 December 2015, and her

Barak 1 Barak ( he, ברק, '' lightning'') is an Israeli surface-to-air missile (SAM) designed to be used as a ship-borne point-defense missile system against aircraft, anti-ship missiles, and UAVs. Overview The Barak SAM system is designed to replac ...

surface-to-air missile will be installed on the flagship . INS ''Ganga'' was retired from active service on 28 May 2017, and was decommissioned on 22 March 2018. The last ship of its class, INS ''Gomati'', was decommissioned on 15 May 2022 after 34 years of service.

Design

Although the Directorate of Marine Engineering suggested replacing steam propulsion with gas turbines, it was decided not to do so, since

Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited (BHEL) is an Indian central public sector undertaking. It is under the ownership of Ministry of Heavy Industries, Government of India. It is based in New Delhi, India. Established in 1956, BHEL is India' ...

and

Hindustan Aeronautics Limited Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) is an Indian state-owned aerospace and defence company, headquartered in Bangalore, India. Established on 23 December 1940, HAL is one of the oldest and largest aerospace and defence manufacturers in the worl ...

had made heavy investments in facilities and tooling for design of steam turbines and auxiliary systems. For armaments, the missile and gun package of the Soviet was installed on the frigate.

Ships of the class

Upgrades

All three ships later underwent an extensive upgrade of weapons and sensors. These include the fitment of the Israeli Barak SAM system, and a new fire control system based on the EL/M-2221 STGR. The P-20 missiles have been retained for now.

Gallery

File:INS Godavari (F20)+INS Brahmaputra (F31)+INS Beas (F39).jpg, INS ''Godavari'' with and trailing during exercises with the US Navy. File:INS Ganga (F22).jpg, INS Ganga (F22) during sea operations. File:INS Gomati with Seaking heli operations.jpg, INS Gomati with Seaking helicopter operations.

References