The ''Visakhapatnam''-class destroyers, also classified as the P-15 ''Bravo'' class, or simply P-15B, is a 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 currently being built for 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 ...

(IN). The ''Visakhapatnam'' class is an upgraded derivative of its predecessor, the , with improved features of stealth, automation and ordnance. Designed by the Warship Design Bureau (WDB), a total of four ships are being built by

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 ...

(MDL), under the

Make in India Make in India is an initiative by the Government of India to create and encourage companies to develop, manufacture and assemble products made in India and incentivize dedicated investments into manufacturing. The policy approach was to crea ...

initiative. The first vessel of the class, was commissioned on 21 November 2021. The IN plans to have all four destroyers in active service by 2024.

Design

Development

The

destroyer In naval terminology, a destroyer is a fast, manoeuvrable, long-endurance warship intended to escort larger vessels in a fleet, convoy or battle group and defend them against powerful short range attackers. They were originally developed ...

s were designed by the Warship Design Bureau (formerly the Directorate of Naval Design), a branch of the IN responsible for designing the service's

warship A warship or combatant ship is a naval ship that is built and primarily intended for naval warfare. Usually they belong to the armed forces of a state. As well as being armed, warships are designed to withstand damage and are usually faster ...

s, several among them including the s - India's first indigenously-designed nuclear-powered ballistic missile submarines, - India's first indigenously-designed

aircraft carrier An aircraft carrier is a warship that serves as a seagoing airbase, equipped with a full-length flight deck and facilities for carrying, arming, deploying, and recovering aircraft. Typically, it is the capital ship of a fleet, as it allows a ...

, and the s. The goal of the project was to develop a line of destroyers that were comparable to the ''Kolkata''-class destroyers, with only several, yet incremental alterations - in order to minimize its development time and associated costs. The design plans of the four vessels were completed by the WDB in mid-2013.

Comparison to the ''Kolkata''-class destroyers

The P-15B is a derivative of the ''Kolkata''-class destroyers (P-15A), a class of three

stealth Stealth may refer to: Military * Stealth technology, technology used to conceal ships, aircraft, and missiles ** Stealth aircraft, aircraft which use stealth technology **Stealth ground vehicle, ground vehicles which use stealth technology ** St ...

guided-missile destroyers, which currently serve as the IN's frontline destroyers; both classes feature several differences, with regard to their respective designs :- * Observed as one of the most distinctive features, the P-15B and the P-15A feature different

bridge A bridge is a structure built to span a physical obstacle (such as a body of water, valley, road, or rail) without blocking the way underneath. It is constructed for the purpose of providing passage over the obstacle, which is usually someth ...

layouts; the P-15B's bridge was designed to minimize the vessel's

radar cross-section Radar cross-section (RCS), also called radar signature, is a measure of how detectable an object is by radar. A larger RCS indicates that an object is more easily detected. An object reflects a limited amount of radar energy back to the source. ...

(RCS) and enhance resilience. * Unlike the P-15A, the P-15B features a "rail-less" helicopter traversing system meant for securing the vessel's helicopter, in the event of adverse weather conditions. * Contrary to the P-15A destroyers - which features its sonar equipment at the hull, the P-15B vessels features its sonar equipment at the bow. * The P-15B features a network-centric layout, equipped with a Ship Data Network (SDN), an Automatic Power Management System (APMS), as well as a Combat Management System (CMS).

Features

*The destroyers are equipped with a "Total Atmosphere Control System" (TAC), which allows them to operate in regions of

nuclear fallout Nuclear fallout is the residual radioactive material propelled into the upper atmosphere following a nuclear blast, so called because it "falls out" of the sky after the explosion and the shock wave has passed. It commonly refers to the radioac ...

. Additionally, the destroyers are also equipped with nuclear, biological and chemical warfare (NBC) protective equipment, with its entire requirement of air being filtered through NBC filters. *An estimated 72% of the destroyers' components are indigenously sourced, as compared to 59% for the ''Kolkata''-class destroyers and 42% for the s. *The destroyers feature multiple fire zones, battle damage control systems and distributional power systems for improved survivability and reliability in emergent conditions. *The destroyers feature ergonomically-designed accommodations based on modular concepts, which ensures a significant amount of crew comfort.

Naming

In accordance with naval traditions, the P-15B destroyers were christened after major Indian cities with historical and cultural connections, namely,

Visakhapatnam , image_alt = , image_caption = From top, left to right: Visakhapatnam aerial view, Vizag seaport, Simhachalam Temple, Aerial view of Rushikonda Beach, Beach road, Novotel Visakhapatnam, INS Kursura submarine museu ...

Mormugao Mormugao is a seaport city situated in the eponymous Mormugao taluka ( municipality) of the South district, in the Goa state, India. It has a deep natural harbour and remains Goa's chief port. Towards the end of the Indo-Portuguese era in 1 ...

Imphal Imphal ( Meitei pronunciation: /im.pʰal/; English pronunciation: ) is the capital city of the Indian state of Manipur. The metropolitan centre of the city contains the ruins of Kangla Palace (also known as Kangla Fort), the royal seat of the f ...

and

Surat Surat is a city in the western Indian state of Gujarat. The word Surat literally means ''face'' in Gujarati and Hindi. Located on the banks of the river Tapti near its confluence with the Arabian Sea, it used to be a large seaport. It is ...

- representing the Indian states of

Andhra Pradesh Andhra Pradesh (, abbr. AP) is a state in the south-eastern coastal region of India. It is the seventh-largest state by area covering an area of and tenth-most populous state with 49,386,799 inhabitants. It is bordered by Telangana to the ...

, Goa,

Manipur Manipur () ( mni, Kangleipak) is a state in Northeast India, with the city of Imphal as its capital. It is bounded by the Indian states of Nagaland to the north, Mizoram to the south and Assam to the west. It also borders two regions of ...

and

Gujarat Gujarat (, ) is a state along the western coast of India. Its coastline of about is the longest in the country, most of which lies on the Kathiawar peninsula. Gujarat is the fifth-largest Indian state by area, covering some ; and the ninth ...

. Notably, INS ''Imphal'' and INS ''Mormugao'' were the first two destroyers to be christened as namesakes of important cities from the regions of

Northeastern India , native_name_lang = mni , settlement_type = , image_skyline = , image_alt = , image_caption = , motto = , image_map = Northeast india.png , ...

and Goa, respectively.

Instrumentation

Armament

*Anti-surface warfare For its

anti-surface warfare Anti-surface warfare (ASuW or ASUW) is the branch of naval warfare concerned with the suppression of surface combatants. More generally, it is any weapons, sensors, or operations intended to attack or limit the effectiveness of an adversary's ...

(ASuW) capabilities, the class features sixteen

Brahmos The BrahMos (also designated as PJ-10)anti-ship cruise missiles, capable of speeds of up to Mach 3. The BrahMos is widely regarded as one of the most formidable anti-ship missiles currently in service, given the missile's extreme versatility and maneuverability. Additionally, the vessels of the class are equipped with one

OTO Melara 76 mm The OTO Melara 76 mm gun is a naval gun built and designed by the Italian defence company OTO Melara. It is based on the OTO Melara 76/62C and evolved toward 76/62 SR and 76/62 Strales. The system is compact enough to be installed on rel ...

naval gun Naval artillery is artillery mounted on a warship, originally used only for naval warfare and then subsequently used for shore bombardment and anti-aircraft roles. The term generally refers to tube-launched projectile-firing weapons and excludes ...

. Originally, the IN had planned to install the Mk-45 naval gun, manufactured by

BAE BAE Systems plc (BAE) is a British multinational arms, security, and aerospace company based in London, England. It is the largest defence contractor in Europe, and ranked the seventh-largest in the world based on applicable 2021 revenues ...

; however, this plan was scrapped in 2021, on account of financial constraints. *Anti-air warfare As part of its

anti-air warfare Anti-aircraft warfare, counter-air or air defence forces is the battlespace response to aerial warfare, defined by NATO as "all measures designed to nullify or reduce the effectiveness of hostile air action".AAP-6 It includes surface based, ...

(AAW) capabilities, the class features thirty-two Barak 8ER

surface-to-air missile A surface-to-air missile (SAM), also known as a ground-to-air missile (GTAM) or surface-to-air guided weapon (SAGW), is a missile designed to be launched from the ground to destroy aircraft or other missiles. It is one type of anti-aircraft syst ...

s, with sixteen missiles present in four "2 x 4" VLS configurations - with two placed at the bow and two placed aft. The Barak 8ER, also classified as the LR-SAM, is an "extended-range" variant of the original Barak 8 - designed to neutralize various aerial threats, including fighter aircraft, helicopters, anti-ship missiles, cruise missiles, ballistic missiles and

unmanned aerial vehicle An unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), commonly known as a drone, is an aircraft without any human pilot, crew, or passengers on board. UAVs are a component of an unmanned aircraft system (UAS), which includes adding a ground-based controll ...

s (UAV); the new variant is expected to feature a range of about . For

point defense Point defence (or point defense; see spelling differences) is the defence of a single object or a limited area, e.g. a ship, building or an airfield, now usually against air attacks and guided missiles. Point defence weapons have a smaller range in ...

, the vessels are equipped with four

AK-630M The AK-630 is a Soviet and Russian fully automatic naval, rotary cannon, close-in weapon system. The "630" designation refers to the weapon's six gun barrels and their 30 mm caliber. The system is mounted in an enclosed automatic turret and dir ...

close-in weapon system A close-in weapon system (CIWS ) is a point-defense weapon system for detecting and destroying short-range incoming missiles and enemy aircraft which have penetrated the outer defenses, typically mounted on a naval ship. Nearly all classes of l ...

s (CIWS), with two systems on either side of the

superstructure A superstructure is an upward extension of an existing structure above a baseline. This term is applied to various kinds of physical structures such as buildings, bridges, or ships. Aboard ships and large boats On water craft, the superstruct ...

. *Anti-submarine warfare For its

anti-submarine warfare Anti-submarine warfare (ASW, or in older form A/S) is a branch of underwater warfare that uses surface warships, aircraft, submarines, or other platforms, to find, track, and deter, damage, or destroy enemy submarines. Such operations are typ ...

(ASW) capabilities, the class features two twin torpedo launchers, designed to launch heavyweight

torpedo A modern torpedo is an underwater ranged weapon launched above or below the water surface, self-propelled towards a target, and with an explosive warhead designed to detonate either on contact with or in proximity to the target. Historically, ...

es - such as the

Varunastra The ''Varunastra'' (Sanskrit वरुणास्त्र) is the water weapon (a storm) according to the Indian scriptures, incepted by Varuna, god of hydrosphere. In stories, it is said to assume any weapon's shape, just like water. Upon usa ...

heavyweight torpedo, developed by the Defence Research and Development Organization (DRDO). The class also features two

RBU-6000 The RBU-6000 Smerch-2 (Реактивно-Бомбовая Установка, ''Reaktivno-Bombovaja Ustanovka''; reaction engine-bomb installation & Смерч; waterspout) is a 213 mm caliber Soviet anti-submarine rocket launcher. It is ...

(RPK-8) anti-submarine rocket launchers, capable of firing ASW projectiles to depths of up to . *Aviation facilities As part of its aviation facilities, the class is equipped with a

flight deck The flight deck of an aircraft carrier is the surface from which its aircraft take off and land, essentially a miniature airfield at sea. On smaller naval ships which do not have aviation as a primary mission, the landing area for helicopte ...

and an enclosed aviation

hangar A hangar is a building or structure designed to hold aircraft or spacecraft. Hangars are built of metal, wood, or concrete. The word ''hangar'' comes from Middle French ''hanghart'' ("enclosure near a house"), of Germanic origin, from Frankish ...

, capable of two medium-sized helicopters – primarily the

HAL Dhruv The HAL Dhruv is a utility helicopter designed and developed by Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) in November 1984. The helicopter first flew in 1992; however, its development was prolonged due to multiple factors including the Indian Army ...

, or the Westland Sea King Mk. 42B. Additionally, the ships are equipped with a "rail-less" helicopter traversing system, meant for securing the helicopter in case of adverse weather conditions at sea. *Decoys As for the class' defensive abilities, each destroyer is equipped with two

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 * ...

anti-missile decoy systems for neutralizing incoming aerial threats at short ranges.

Sensors

*Radar The class features the IAI

EL/M-2248 MF-STAR The EL/M-2248 MF-STAR is a multifunction active electronically scanned array naval radar system developed by IAI Elta for maritime installation on warships. It is capable of tracking both air and surface targets and providing fire control gui ...

S band The S band is a designation by the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) for a part of the microwave band of the electromagnetic spectrum covering frequencies from 2 to 4 gigahertz (GHz). Thus it crosses the conventi ...

active electronically scanned array An active electronically scanned array (AESA) is a type of phased array antenna, which is a computer-controlled array antenna in which the beam of radio waves can be electronically steered to point in different directions without moving the an ...

radar Radar is a detection system that uses radio waves to determine the distance (''ranging''), angle, and radial velocity of objects relative to the site. It can be used to detect aircraft, Marine radar, ships, spacecraft, guided missiles, motor v ...

, as its primary radar suite. The EL/M-2248 is a multi-function, phased-array radar system featuring an azimuth of 360^o, with the capability to track both aerial and surface targets - at a range of over . The class further features the

Thales Thales of Miletus ( ; grc-gre, Θαλῆς; ) was a Greek mathematician, astronomer, statesman, and pre-Socratic philosopher from Miletus in Ionia, Asia Minor. He was one of the Seven Sages of Greece. Many, most notably Aristotle, regarded ...

LW-08 (

BEL BEL can be an abbreviation for: * The ISO 3166-1 alpha-3 country code for Belgium * ''BEL'' or bell character in the C0 control code set * Belarusian language, in the ISO 639-2 and SIL country code lists * Bharat Electronics Limited, an Indian sta ...

RAWL-02) as its secondary radar suite. The LW-08 is a solid-state, two-dimensional, long-range D band surveillance radar, meant for providing target acquisition against aerial and surface threats. It is capable of operating in a cluttered electronic environment, equipped with an instrumental range of , with the capability to track both

cruise missile A cruise missile is a guided missile used against terrestrial or naval targets that remains in the atmosphere and flies the major portion of its flight path at approximately constant speed. Cruise missiles are designed to deliver a large warh ...

s and

fighter aircraft Fighter aircraft are fixed-wing military aircraft designed primarily for air-to-air combat. In military conflict, the role of fighter aircraft is to establish air superiority of the battlespace. Domination of the airspace above a battlefield ...

. *Sonar The class is equipped with the

HUMSA-NG

sonar Sonar (sound navigation and ranging or sonic navigation and ranging) is a technique that uses sound propagation (usually underwater, as in submarine navigation) to navigate, measure distances (ranging), communicate with or detect objects on o ...

, a hull-mounted "active cum passive" integrated sonar system developed by the DRDO. The HUMSA-NG is capable of detecting, classifying and tracking sub-surface targets in both active and passive modes, with the capability to simultaneously track up to eight targets. The destroyers are also equipped with the BEL ''Nagin'' active towed array sonar. *Electronic warfare For

electronic warfare Electronic warfare (EW) is any action involving the use of the electromagnetic spectrum (EM spectrum) or directed energy to control the spectrum, attack an enemy, or impede enemy assaults. The purpose of electronic warfare is to deny the opponent ...

(EW), the destroyers are equipped with the DRDL ''Shakthi'' EW suite, designed to provide Indian warships an electronic layer of defense against modern radars and anti-ship missiles. ''Shakthi'' is equipped with wideband electronic support measures (ESM) and

electronic countermeasure An electronic countermeasure (ECM) is an electrical or electronic device designed to trick or deceive radar, sonar, or other detection systems, like infrared (IR) or lasers. It may be used both offensively and defensively to deny targeting info ...

s (ECM), meant for intercepting, classifying and jamming both conventional and modern radars. Additionally, the suite is also equipped with an in-build radar fingerprinting and data recording replay feature for post-mission analysis and evaluation.

History

Background

In March 2009, the Defence Acquisition Council (DAC), the arms-procurement wing of India's

Ministry of Defence {{unsourced, date=February 2021 A ministry of defence or defense (see spelling differences), also known as a department of defence or defense, is an often-used name for the part of a government responsible for matters of defence, found in state ...

, approved the procurement of four 6,800 t destroyers, to be built by Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders (MDL). Designed as a "follow-on" project to the ''Kolkata''-class destroyers, the new destroyers were envisaged to feature only incremental changes to the former, in order to minimize developmental time and costs. At the time of the project's approval, the four new destroyers were envisaged to be more cheaper than other destroyer classes being built at the time, namely, the s, the ''Daring''-class destroyers and the s. No competitive bidding was conducted for the development of the vessels, since MDL was the only Indian shipyard at the time with the capability to build destroyers. The contract for the construction of the four warships was signed on 28 January 2011, at an estimated cost of INR ₹29,643.74 crore.

Construction

The

keel The keel is the bottom-most longitudinal structural element on a vessel. On some sailboats, it may have a hydrodynamic and counterbalancing purpose, as well. As the laying down of the keel is the initial step in the construction of a ship, in Br ...

of the first vessel, INS ''Visakhapatnam'', was laid by MDL in October 2013 and the ship was launched on 20 April 2015, in a ceremony attended by then-Indian naval chief Robin K. Dhowan. Originally slated to enter service in 2018, the delivery of the vessel was delayed by three years, owing to delays in the supply of the vessel's sensors and ordnance. In July 2019, a minor fire broke aboard the unfinished-''Visakhapatnam'', leaving one contract worker dead and another two injured. Irrespectively, the fire was noted to have not caused any hindrance to the vessel's construction schedule; the shipyard's construction activities subsequently resumed without delay. ''Visakhapatnam'' completed its basin trials in December 2020 and subsequently proceeded for its sea trials in 2021. Initially scheduled to be delivered in April 2021, the vessel was delivered on October 28, owing to delays caused by the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identi ...

.On 21 November 2021, ''Visakhapatnam'' was commissioned into the IN. The second vessel of the class, ''Mormugao'', was laid in June 2015, before being launched in September 2016. Completing its basin trials in early-December 2021, the destroyer proceed on its maiden sea sortie on 19 December, coinciding with the 60th anniversary of Goa Liberation Day. ''Mormugao'' was delivered to the IN almost a year later, on 24 November 2022 and was commissioned on 18 December 2022. Construction of the third vessel, INS ''Imphal'', began with the laying of its keel in May 2017; the hull was later launched on 20 April 2019, in a ceremony attended by then-Indian naval chief

Sunil Lanba Sunil (सुनील) is a first name for males, often found in the South Asian community. The Sanskrit word ' means "dark", "very blue", and is also an epithet of Krishna. Notable people * Sunil (actor), Indian Telugu film actor * Sunil (d ...

. As of November 2021, ''Imphal'' is reported to be in the stages of outfitting, and is likely scheduled to be commissioned in 2023. Construction on the final vessel of the class, INS ''Surat'', began in July 2018; the hull was subsequently launched 17 May 2022, in a ceremony coinciding with the launch of , a ''Nilgiri''-class frigate. ''Surat'' is scheduled to be commissioned in 2024.

Operational history

On 11 January 2022, only two months after its commissioning, ''Visakhapatnam'' successfully test-fired an upgraded variant of the BrahMos anti-ship missile, which was subsequently followed by another successful test-fire on 18 February. The destroyer later took part in the 12th edition of the IN's "Presidential Fleet Review" on 21 February 2022, an event which was attended by

Indian president The president of India (IAST: ) is the head of state of the Republic of India. The president is the nominal head of the executive, the first citizen of the country, as well as the commander-in-chief of the Indian Armed Forces. Droupadi Murmu i ...

Ram Nath Kovind Ram Nath Kovind (; born 1 October 1945) is an Indian politician who served as the 14th President of India from 2017 to 2022. He is a member of the Bharatiya Janata Party. He is the second person after K. R. Narayanan, from the Dalit community ...

and Indian naval chief

R. Hari Kumar Admiral (India), Admiral Radhakrishnan Hari Kumar (born 12 April 1962) is a serving flag officer in the Indian Navy. He is the 25th and current Chief of Naval Staff (India), Chief of the Naval Staff (CNS). Previously, he served as the Flag ...

Ships in the class

Gallery

References

External links

''Kolkata''-class destroyer – Bharat Rakshak

– details on the specifications of the ship and recent images of INS ''Kolkata'' at sea. {{DEFAULTSORT:Visakhapatnam-class destroyer Destroyer classes Destroyers of the Indian Navy Ships built in India