Two warships, a destroyer (Surat) and a frigate (Nilgiri) were delivered to the Indian Navy on 20 Dec 24.
INS Surat & Nilgiri Delivered Into Indian Navy
Two warships, a destroyer (Surat) and a frigate (Nilgiri) were delivered to the Indian Navy on 20 Dec 24. The ships have been designed and constructed indigenously by the Warship Design Bureau of Indian Navy and M/s MDL, respectively.
INS Surat
Yard 12707 (Surat), the fourth and final Project 15B stealth guided missile destroyer, follows in the wake of her predecessors IN Ships Visakhapatnam, Mormugao and Imphal commissioned in the past three years. The delivery of Surat culminates the iconic indigenous destroyer building project of the Indian Navy, which began with the Project 15 (three Delhi class, 1997-2001), followed by Project 15A (three Kolkata class, 2014-2016) and Project 15B (four Visakhapatnam class, 2021-2024).
Being a guided missile destroyer with a displacement of 7,400 tons and an overall length of 164 meters, Surat is a potent and versatile platform. Powered by a Combined Gas and Gas propulsion set, comprising four gas turbines, she has achieved speeds in excess of 30 knots (56 km/h) during her sea trials. It is also poised to be IN’s first Al enabled warship utilising indigenously developed Al solutions which would enhance its operational efficiency manifolds.
INS Nilgiri
Yard 12651 (Nilgiri), the first Project 17A stealth frigate is a follow-on of the Shivalik class (Project 17) frigates active in service. Nilgiri is first among the seven P17A frigates under construction and MDL, Mumbai and GRSE, Kolkata. The ships are fitted with supersonic surface-to-surface missile system, Medium Range Surface-to-Air Missiles system, 76 mm Upgraded Gun, and a combination of rapid-fire close-in weapon systems.
In keeping with the current thrust on nation building through self-reliance the vessels have 75% indigenisation content with orders on a myriad of indigenous firms including MSMEs (more than 200 in each shipyard).
The warships are fitted with major weapons and sensors sourced from indigenous OEMs, viz M/s BAPL, L&T, MTPF, M/s BEL, BHEL, Mahindra etc. The balance six ships of the class are at various stages of construction at MDL, Mumbai and GRSE, Kolkata. These ships are expected to be delivered to IN in 2025 and 2026.
