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Here's a video of S1000 submarine, a joint development by Russia and Italy. It is said to be an advanced version of the Amur class submarine of Rubin Design Bureau.
 
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Date Posted: 22-Jul-2011


Interview: Admiral Nirmal Verma, India's Chief of Naval Staff

Rahul Bedi Correspondent - New Delhi



The Indian Navy (IN) is evolving as a credible and operationally capable force that is looked upon as a regional "net security provider", according to Chief of Naval Staff Admiral Nirmal Verma.

It is envisaged that by 2025 the IN will operate 162 imported and locally designed platforms, including two aircraft carriers and conventional and nuclear-powered submarines. This means that the IN will be a significant stabilising force in the Indian Ocean Region (IOR), said Adm Verma.

These assets will be supplemented by a "potent" mix of long- and medium-range maritime reconnaissance aircraft, unmanned aerial vehicles, anti-submarine warfare helicopters, logistic support ships, landing dock platforms and a host of medium and small platforms for coastal and 'brown water' operations.

Adm Verma also said that over the next 15 years the majority of the IN's larger network-centric capable platforms will be fitted with indigenously designed combat management systems and advanced sensors that are capable of 'blue water' deployments across the navy's area of responsibility.

The remaining fleet, comprising minesweepers and offshore patrol vessels, will, along with the Indian Coast Guard, constitute part of India's newly formed coastal security architecture.

This new maritime security arrangement is headed by the IN and was created in response to the November 2008 terrorist attacks in Mumbai.

India's strategic and deterrence capabilities are based on a mix of nuclear weapons that are deliverable by air-, land- and sea-based platforms and this will be bolstered by the commissioning by 2012 of INS Arihant : the indigenously-designed ballistic missile submarine.

"The challenge is to field INS Arihant by 2012 and we are putting every effort into doing so," he said, adding that the nuclear-powered ballistic missile submarine (SSBN) would be supplemented by a "few" similar vessels. "A single SSBN does not cater for a fully fledged [strategic] deterrent so we will have to work towards building that. Besides, having developed the infrastructure to build SSBNs, we must put it to good use," he said.

Adm Verma also confirmed that INS Vikramaditya (ex- Admiral Gorshkov ), the second-hand 44,750-ton Kiev-class aircraft carrier the IN is acquiring from Russia, will be operational by the end of 2012 providing it completes trials on time.

The IN is also acquiring 45 MiG-29 fighter aircraft, which will operate from the 37,500-ton indigenous aircraft carrier (IAC) that is under local construction and is expected to be commissioned by 2014-15. Adm Verma said that the IAC's launch had been deferred from December 2010 to later this year due to a shortfall of gear boxes and generators.

The IAC's air group will include the naval version of Hindustan Aeronautics Limited's Light Combat Aircraft that was rolled out in July 2010, nearly three years behind schedule.

Adm Verma anticipated that the last two of the six Project 75 Scorpene submarines being built by Mazagaon Dockyard Limited in Mumbai could be fitted with an indigenous fuel-cell-based air independent propulsion system manufactured by the state-owned Defence Research and Development Organisation, rather than an imported alternative.

While the IN remains dependent on imported Russian and Israeli missiles, the BrahMos cruise missile, developed with Russian help has proven "highly effective", according to Adm Varma. Although the missile is fitted onto several frontline platforms, he questioned the technical feasibility of equipping the IN's submarine fleet with these weapons.

Meanwhile, the IN is negotiating the purchase of four Boeing P-8I Poseidon multi-mission maritime aircraft with anti-submarine warfare capabilities as well as eight similar platforms ordered in 2009 and due for delivery from 2013. The service will also acquire 16 anti-submarine warfare helicopters to replace the ageing Sea King Mk 42 fleet.

"I need to sign the attack helicopter deal, which is currently under evaluation, in a few months but definitely before the end of the financial year in March 2012," Adm Verma confirmed.

The IN performs a number of military, diplomatic and policing roles, which enable it to effectively "shape its security environment within its areas of maritime interest", said the admiral. "Multitudinous security-related challenges in the IOR like piracy, terrorism, natural and man-made disasters and sea-borne trafficking in drugs, arms and human beings are all activities the IN is well equipped to handle through firm and constructive engagement," said Adm Verma. The IN is also engaged with maritime powers, including those in the IOR, to establish "mutually beneficial and supportive bilateral relations".

Over the past decade the IN has conducted exercises with, among others, the British, French, Russian, Singaporean and US navies and in 2008 launched the Indian Ocean Naval Symposium in New Delhi as a platform for achieving mutually beneficial maritime security, stability and collective prosperity.

Adm Verma was not duly concerned by the rapid expansion of the Chinese navy and its growing presence in the IOR, stating that the IN would never allow any "asymmetry [in capability] to develop".

Admiral Nirmal Verma. India's Chief of Naval Staff (Indian Navy)
 
only 2 carriers by 2025 that means IAC-2 wont be operational even in 2025
 
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The Times of India on Mobile

To strengthen security along the vast 974-km coastline, the government is planning to establish an air force station in Visakhapatnam within the next two years. Sources said the Coast Guard has obtained the necessary permission for the air force station, which would be called Air Enclave.

Presently, the Coast Guard here has only one helicopter for surveillance. Once the new station comes into being, more choppers would be deployed for use. "The Air Enclave would be developed to accommodate lightweight vigilance aircraft like the Dorniers," highly-placed sources told TOI.

The necessity for a new Air Force station was mooted to check the intrusion of unlawful elements in the Indian territorial waters. "If they are spotted near the coastline, the marine police would swing into action based on the inputs given by the choppers of Air Enclave. In emergency situations, the personnel manning the choppers could also conduct attacks to keep the enemy at bay," sources said. The choppers would also be helpful in spotting illegal poaching by smugglers and entry of foreign vessels.

Sources said land has been identified near the Visakhapatnam port, close to the airport, where the new air station would come up with all modern facilities. The Coast Guard uses the airport for operating its chopper service. "It can take the help of its Chennai base if it needs to operate more choppers. After the air station takes shape, more number of choppers would be stationed here," a senior official said.

Meanwhile, the marine police wing, which has six stations along the coast, would be increased to 21. Presently, the wing is facing anchoring problems for its boats. "We have identified seven places for the jetties, but the depth is very low and needs dredging, which is a costly affair. We will finish the construction in a year's time," marine police IG Chandramouli said.
 

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