Monday, April 16, 2018

22 Nostalgic Warship Photos Showing The Indian Navy's Frigates In Operation

Eclectic collection of photographs to adorn your Desktop or Home-screen.

Wallpaper-grade hi-res images of some lethal Naval platforms, that serve the Indian Navy.

Godavari-class Guided Missile Frigate

A post-independance initiative, the Navy calls it the "First Indigenously designed and built frigate". Its genesis traces back to the British-origin Leander-class Frigates, that the Indian Navy acquired earlier. Each Godavari-class Frigate was, initially, armed with a complement of, primarily, Soviet weaponry, that included:

  • SS-N-2D Styx Subsonic Anti-Ship Missile

  • AK-725 double-barrelled 57 mm gun

  • AK-630 6-barrelled 30 mm Gatling gun

  • 2 units of the 3 tube Torpedo launcher that could fire both the Italian A244-S light-weight Torpedoes, as well as its license produced, NST-58, variant

Subsequent upgrades saw them being retro-fitted with the Israeli Barak 1 Surface to Air Missile [SAM] system.

A pair of Steam Turbines, generating a total of 22.4 MWth power, helped meet it's Power requirement. India built a total of 3 such ships at Mumbai's [then, Bombay] Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders Limited, each requiring a complement of around 300 personnel for operation, including the 2 Helicopters it can accommodate - either indigenous ALH Dhruv, French Chetak or British Westland Sea King.

INS Godavari - F20

The lead Ship of its Class, INS Godavari's construction started in 1978, & was Commissioned on December 10, 1983. It was eventually decommissioned on December 23, 2015, after nearly 32 years of service, during which it saw deployment for wide-ranging purposes, including UN Peacekeeping Missions & Anti-piracy patrols.

INS Godavari - F20 - Missile Frigate - Indian Navy - 02-TN

INS Godavari - F20 - Missile Frigate - Indian Navy - 01-TN

INS Godavari - F20 - Missile Frigate - Indian Navy - 03-TN

INS Godavari - F20 - Missile Frigate - Indian Navy - 04-TN

The INS Godavari featured on the cover of Time magazine's April 1989 issue, titled 'Super India'.

INS Gomati - F21

The second warship of its class, though the last to be constructed & Commissioned on April 16, 1988, it continues to remain in operational Service.

INS Gomati - F21 - Missile Frigate - Indian Navy - 02-TN

INS Gomati - F21 - Missile Frigate - Indian Navy - 01-TN

INS Gomati - F21 - Missile Frigate - Indian Navy - 03-TN

INS Ganga - F22

Following its Commissioning on December 30, 1985, it served in the fleet for 33 years, before finally retiring recently on March 22, 2018.

INS Ganga - F22 - Missile Frigate - Indian Navy - 01-TN

Brahmaputra-class Guided Missile Frigates

The follow-on design to the Godavari, the first of the Brahmaputra-class warship, INS Brahmaputra [F31], was commissioned on April 14, 2000. 3 such warships were built & currently operated by the Indian Navy:

  • INS Brahmaputra [F31]

  • INS Beas [F37]Each

  • INS Betwa [F39]

Fully armed, each warship consisted of:

  • 16 Nos. of SS-N-25 Switchblade Anti-Ship Missiles

  • 1 No. OTO Melara 76mm Super Rapido Naval Gun-System

  • 4 Nos. AK-630 6-barrelled 30 mm Gatling gun

  • 6 Nos. of B515 ILAS-3 Torpedo Tubes, in twin Units of 3 Tubes each, capable of firing the Whitehead A244S anti-submarine torpedoes, & its Indian licensed production, TAL

  • Igla Man Portable Air Defence System

A later upgrade programme saw them being kitted with the Barak 1 SAM units, acquired from Israel, across all warships in its class.

INS Brahmaputra - F 31

INS Brahmaputra - F31 - Missile Frigate - Indian Navy - 01-TN

Talwar-class Guided Missile Frigates

These Russian-origin war-fighting platforms, designed by its Severnoye Design Bureau, have been serving in the Naval fleet since 2003. The Navy, presently, operates a fleet of 6 Talwar-class Frigates. Both countries are, presently, engaged in follow-on negotiations to acquire 4 more of these, that could see the Goa Shipyard Limited building 2 of these 3850 MT warships under license.

INS Talwar - F40

The lead warship of it's class, it entered service in 2003. It's primary armament are the 8 Nos. of 3M-54TE Club-N Anti-Ship Cruise Missiles & the 24 Shtil-1 Air Defence missiles.

INS Talwar - F40 - Missile Frigate - Indian Navy - 01-TN

INS Talwar - F40 - Missile Frigate - Indian Navy - 02-TN

INS Talwar - F40 - Missile Frigate - Indian Navy - 03-TN

INS Talwar - F40 - Missile Frigate - Indian Navy - 04-TN

INS Tabar - F44

The third, and final, warship delivered as part of the initial acquisition agreement signed. Entered service in April 19, 2004.

INS Tabar - F44 - Missile Frigate - Indian Navy - 02-TN

INS Tabar - F44 - Missile Frigate - Indian Navy - 01-TN

INS Tabar - F44 - Missile Frigate - Indian Navy - 03-TN

INS Tabar - F44 - Missile Frigate - Indian Navy - 04-TN

INS Tabar - F44 - Missile Frigate - Indian Navy - 05-TN

INS Tabar - F44 - Missile Frigate - Indian Navy - 06-TN

INS Tabar - F44 - Missile Frigate - Indian Navy - 07-TN

INS Tarkash - F50

Entered service on April 27, 2012. It was built as part of the follow-on contract signed in 2006, to acquire 3 more warships of this class. These were also kitted to fire the Naval variant BrahMos Supersonic Cruise Missile, developed jointly by them.

INS Tarkash - F50 - Missile Frigate - Indian Navy - 01-TN

Nilgiri-class Frigates

Derived from the British-designed Leander-class Frigate, it featured improved indigenously developed Fire Control System, Radars, Soviet-origin AK-630 Gatling guns, among others, along with the ability of operate Sea King Helicopters for Anti-Submarine Warfare operations. A total of 6 warships were built in India, at the Mazagon Dock Limited.

Following completion of it's operational life, they have all been withdrawn from service.

INS Vindhyagiri [F42]

The Vindhyagiri was most famously involved in Operation 'Flowers are Blooming', that helped thwart an attempted coups d'état against the, then, President of Seychelles, France-Albert René, in 1986. This warship, however, met with a tragic end, in 2011, when it collided with a Civilian vessel, the MV Nordlake, near the busy, overcrowded Mumbai harbour. It was, subsequently, salvaged &, officially, decommissioned a year later, on May 08, 2012.

INS Vindhyagiri - F42 - Missile Frigate - Indian Navy - 01-TN

sources: www.archives.gov, www.worldwarships.com,

Note: Discovered these photographs, recently, stored in an one of my old HDD for close to half a decade. Trying to recreate the correct source attribute for the photos. If you know, do drop in a line.

Godspeed

Also read: A "Top Gun" Selfie Of This Surya Kiran Pilot [Coolness Unlimited]