Navy of India. Nuclear submarine fleet of India. History, Modernity and Prospects Directorate of Naval Signals of India

INDIAN NAVY

NAVAL FORCES OF INDIA

02.05.2016

India's first Scorpene-class submarine has passed sea trials for the first time, India's defense ministry said on Saturday.
Russia and India continue negotiations on leasing a second nuclear submarine
The Calvary was built by Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders in Mumbai and is the first of six submarines of this class to be built by the yard.
According to the Ministry of Defense, the submarine first went to sea on its own propulsion system off the coast of Mumbai at about 10 am. A series of tests were carried out on the engine, auxiliary equipment and systems, navigation equipment, communication equipment and rudder. In the evening the submarine returned to port. In the next few months, the submarine will continue to undergo sea trials, diving tests, as well as weapons tests.
“Later this year, the Kalvari submarine will be commissioned by the Indian Navy,” the press release says.
RIA News

14.01.2017


India has launched a second Scorpene-class submarine called Khanderi, but it will not be equipped with torpedoes.
The reason lies in the fact that the country's Ministry of Defense has not been able to decide on the choice of a torpedo for five years now. Previously, it was decided to purchase 98 Black Shark heavy torpedoes manufactured by WASS (a subsidiary of the Italian Leonardo group), but in May last year the results of the tender were canceled due to allegations of corruption of another Leonardo subsidiary, the helicopter manufacturer AgustaWestland, with involvement in unrighteous cases of members of the Indian parliamentary party "National Congress".
It is expected that the Khanderi nuclear submarine will be transferred to the fleet in mid-2017. Currently, the Indian Navy is armed with a total of 13 conventional Varshavyanka-class submarines, one Arihant SSBN and one rented Akula nuclear submarine (Varshavyanka and Akula - Russian-built - approx. VP). By comparison, China's PLA Navy has 65 nuclear and conventional submarines.
Military parity

28.01.2017


The Indian Navy intends to buy 57 carrier-based fighters and has requested technical and commercial proposals from possible suppliers. The corresponding document is published on the public procurement website of the Indian government.
According to the document, the military wants to get 57 aircraft, designated as MRCBF (multi-purpose carrier-based fighters). Proposals for the future competition will be collected over the next four months. The volume of offset (the share of the final cost of finished aircraft produced under contract in India) should be at least 30 percent.
The deployment of an RFI (Request for Information from Suppliers) means the Navy is likely to give up trying to get a carrier-based version of the LCA light fighter being developed in India. The criticism of the aircraft from the military was especially aggravated at the end of 2016 - in their opinion, the aircraft has insufficient thrust-to-weight ratio and is not capable of taking off from the deck with a full supply of fuel and maximum combat load.
Despite this, the LCA Navy Mk.2 (in the planned, more advanced version, with General Electric F414 engines) formally remains among the contenders for the future competition. Among the rest, they name the F / A-18E / F Super Hornet (USA), the deck version of the Rafale aircraft (France), one of the F-35 variants and the Russian MiG-29K.
As of December 2016, the Indian Navy operates 41 carrier-based MiG-29K/KUB fighters. In total, the fleet ordered 45 of these machines under two contracts (2004 and 2010). However, in July 2016, the Indian Audit Office released a report criticizing these aircraft.
In particular, there were problems with the operation of the engines and the fly-by-wire control system, as well as deviations in the quality of the airframe. As a result, at different times the serviceability of the MiG-29K aircraft fleet ranged from 15.93 to 37.63 percent, and the MiG-29KUB fleet - from 21.30 to 47.14 percent.
Lenta.ru

11.03.2017


An acute shortage of helicopters has become one of the most serious gaps in the combat capabilities of the Indian navy, while new plans for the purchase and production of military equipment do not bode well, according to the Indian newspaper The Times of India.
The author of the article notes that the Indian Navy needs 147 multi-purpose MHR (Multi-role helicopter) helicopters capable of anti-submarine warfare, and 110 NUH (Naval light utility helicopter) marine light twin-engine utility helicopters to replace the obsolete single-engine Chetak helicopters.
However, the decision to purchase 16 S-70B Seahawk multi-purpose helicopters from the American company Sikorsky (since 2015 owned by Lockheed Martin), taken back in 2008, may be revised due to the inability of the parties to agree on the cost of the contract.
According to the sources of the newspaper, representatives of the Indian Navy note the critical need for these helicopters and oppose the cancellation of the purchase, but the Ministry of Defense believes that the contract is overpriced by more than 40%.
In addition, a plan to purchase an additional 123 MHR helicopters and 110 NUH helicopters has not yet been agreed, as the military department has not completed the development of the "strategic partnership" model under the "Make in India" policy.
The Indian Navy is commissioning four to five warships a year, in line with a plan to expand the fleet to 212 units by 2017, while not having enough carrier-based helicopters to carry out operations to detect, track and destroy enemy submarines.
Currently, the Indian fleet of 138 warships is armed with 10 Ka-28 helicopters and 17 Westland Sea King helicopters. Russian-made helicopters are being upgraded under a $294 million agreement signed last year.
http://bmpd.livejournal.com

KA-27 anti-submarine helicopter

08.04.2017


On April 3, the Indian Ministry of Defense approved the purchase of 100 Barak-1 short-range anti-aircraft guided missiles manufactured by Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI - Israel Aerospace Industries) and Rafael for the Indian Navy.
According to Janes Defense Weekly, the total value of weapons and military equipment purchases approved at the meeting of the Defense Acquisition Council (DAC) is estimated at 8.6 billion rupees (132.3 million dollars). These include the acquisition of 100 Barak-1 missiles worth 5 billion rupees. As stated, new missiles are needed to replace ammunition that has expired. The purchase of Israeli missiles has been approved ahead of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi's scheduled visit to Israel in July 2017.
TsAMTO

BARAK AND BARAK 8 air defense / missile defense system (ISRAEL)
WORLDWIDE ARMS TRADE

20.04.2017


The Indian Navy intends to finally sign an agreement with the South Korean corporation Kangnam Corporation in 2017 for the construction of 12 modern large minesweeping minesweepers worth about $ 5.4 billion, according to the Indian newspaper The Economic Times. These ships are to replace the last six of the 12 Soviet-built project 266ME sea minesweepers currently in service with the Indian Navy, which are scheduled to be decommissioned by the end of 2018.
Vice Admiral Dilip Deshpande (DM Deshpande), head of the Indian Navy's Warship Production and Procurement Department, said that the earlier problems on this project between the Indian state-owned shipbuilding company Goa Shipyard Limited (GSL, Goa) and its Korean partner Kangnam Corporation have been resolved, and the contract must be signed before the end of the year.
In addition, before the end of this year, a contract will be signed for the purchase of amphibious assault ships (Landing Platform Dock, LPD). The Indian Navy planned to purchase four such ships with a displacement of 20 thousand tons at a price of about $ 2 billion.
Answering a question from journalists about the status of the project to develop the second Indian aircraft carrier Indigenous Aircraft Carrier (IAC-II), Vice Admiral Deshpande noted that the preparatory work on it is being completed, and in the next two to three months the Navy will be able to apply to the Indian Ministry of Defense on the issue of providing the necessary funding.
http://bmpd.livejournal.com

11.01.2018


Anguish continues in India over a 16-year-long program to build a new generation of anti-mine ships for the Indian Navy. As Indian resources reported on January 8, 2018, the Indian government again, for the second time, canceled the construction program for 12 new minesweepers, which was to be carried out at the state-owned Goa Shipyard Limited (GSL) shipyard in Goa in partnership with the South Korean corporation Kangnam Corporation. The cost of the program was estimated at 32,840 crore rupees (about $5.19 billion).
The official reason for the cancellation of the program was, according to statements by unnamed Indian officials, the inability to reach a final agreement with Kangnam Corporation regarding "full satisfaction of Indian procurement procedures." The Indian spokesman said that Kangnam demanded about $1 billion for licensing rights, project and technology transfer, and refused to fully accept Indian demands for intellectual property rights and technical support in accordance with the "Make in India" principle.
http://bmpd.livejournal.com/

WORLDWIDE ARMS TRADE

26.03.2018


On March 22 and 23, in separate ceremonies, the Indian Navy decommissioned a nationally built frigate and three Russian-built minesweepers. These are the frigate INS Ganga (Godavari class) and the mine-sweeping ships Konkan, Cannanore and Cuddalore (Karwar class). The ships served for about 30 years (the frigate was built in 1985, the minesweepers were received from the former Soviet Union in 1987-88). It is reported that the minesweepers will be replaced by new units built by the Indian company Goa Shipyard Limited in cooperation with the Kangnam Corporation (South Korea).
Military parity

INDIAN NAVY

The naval forces (55 thousand people, including 5 thousand - naval aviation, 1.2 thousand - marines) are designed to perform the following tasks: combating enemy surface ships and submarines, disrupting its sea lanes in the northern parts of the Indian Ocean, the protection of territorial waters and the special economic zone, the implementation of landing operations on the coast of the enemy, as well as anti-submarine and anti-amphibious defense of naval bases and ports of the country.
The supreme body of operational and administrative management of the naval forces is the headquarters of the Navy, which is located in Delhi. Four naval commands are subordinate to him: Western (Mumbai), Eastern (Vizagapatnam), Southern (Cochin) and Andaman and Nicobar Islands (Port Blair). The Western and Eastern military commands are operational formations of the Navy and have fleets (Western and Eastern) in their composition. The southern military command is educational. Large surface ships, up to and including the frigate, are directly subordinate to the headquarters of the fleets, the rest of the warships and boats are grouped into divisions.
The Navy has nine naval bases: Mumbai (formerly Bombay), Goa (Naval Aviation Headquarters), Karwar, Cochin. Vizagapatnam (submarine headquarters), Kolkata, Chennai (former Madras). Port Blair, Arakona (Navy Aviation). In addition, India has twenty major ports where it is possible to repair and base warships of all types. The Indian Navy includes the following classes of ships: diesel torpedo submarines, aircraft carrier, destroyers, frigates, corvettes, minesweepers.
The scope of the Indian Navy has long been limited to defensive actions in the coastal zone. However, the purchase of modern weapons and military equipment, the decommissioning of obsolete types of ships have allowed the country's Navy in recent years to operate almost anywhere in the Indian Ocean.
The naval forces play an important role in the plans of the Indian military-political leadership to turn the country into a leading regional power. The rather ambitious plans of the leadership, aimed at the comprehensive improvement of the national naval forces, are explained by the desire to protect the political and economic interests of the country in the region and strengthen its leading position in South Asia. The increase in the combat power of the Indian Navy will be carried out by introducing new ships and boats, combat aircraft and helicopters of naval aviation into the combat structure. In addition, the fleet management system, as well as the basing system for the Navy and naval aviation, will be improved. In particular, Indian military experts consider it necessary to build or purchase aircraft carriers in order to have permanently operating 1-2 AUGs already at the beginning of the 21st century. In this regard, work is underway in the country to design an aircraft carrier with a displacement of about 20 thousand tons. According to the leadership of the Navy, the fleet should have three aircraft carriers, two of which should be constantly in service, and the third one under repair.
To increase the combat capability of the fleet, the Indian military leadership is actively using the practice of conducting joint exercises with the ships of the navies of other countries. Foreign experts note, however, that the current state of the country's navy does not fully meet the tasks set before them by the state leadership to protect the economic and military interests of India in the oceans.
UNDERWATER FORCE
SSBN. For more than 30 years, India has been working on the concept of creating its own submarine under the ATV (Advanced Technology Vessel) program. The reason for this was the threat of possible American intervention in the Indo-Pakistani conflict that took place in 1971.
PLAT. In 1988-1991, the Indian Navy acquired the necessary experience in operating a project 670 submarine leased from the USSR, which received the name Chakra. The same lease made it possible to facilitate and speed up the process of designing your own submarine. In April 2012, Russia leased to India a multi-purpose nuclear submarine (PLAT) of project 971 "Nerpa" for ten years (the newspaper "Military Industrial Courier" reported on this event - http://vpk-news.ru/articles/8788 . - Ed.), which was completed with Indian money and again received the name "Chakra". Thus, one newest PLAT appeared in the combat composition of the Indian Navy.
NAP. At the beginning of this year, 14 NNS of foreign projects remained in combat strength: ten NNS of project 877EKM were built in the USSR / Russia, two NNS of project 209/1500 - in Germany and two NNS of the same type - in India. Ten NNSs of the Shishumar type (Shishumar, type 877EKM) built in the USSR / Russia, according to Indian military experts, are the most advanced among the NNSs of other countries of the world. Sufficiently modern and non-nuclear submarines of the 209/1500 type, but, according to a number of experts, they lose "underwater duels" to Russian-made boats of the specified project. At the same time, these are quite unique non-nuclear submarines, which, with such a small displacement, have a pop-up rescue chamber (VSC) for the crew. In the process of repairs of Project 877EKM NNSs, Club-S anti-ship missiles (3M-54E/E1) are being re-equipped. In the future, it is possible to arm the Club-S / N (3M-14E) SLCM boats.
Until the beginning of 2005, many foreign experts believed that all programs for the construction of non-nuclear submarines were curtailed in the interests of concentrating financial resources on the ATV program, since after 2000 purchases of non-nuclear boats were stopped. However, in 2005, the NNS construction program was restored, and in 2010, the construction of French NNSs under Project 75 (Scorpene) began. This decision was made based on the results of a tender with a contract worth three billion dollars.
It is planned to build a series of six nuclear submarines by 2017. However, according to a number of experts, if this series is completed, then at a later date, and the program for the construction of NNSs under project 75 is probably intended mainly for the development of French technologies: an air-independent power plant (VNEU) of the MESMA type and anti-ship missiles Exocet SM39.
Within 30 years, the Indian Navy plans to purchase 24 NNS of national and foreign production.
CARRIER FORCE
Currently, there are two aircraft carriers in combat strength:
one light aircraft carrier (AVL) Viraat (type Hermes) with vertical takeoff and landing aircraft (VTOL) Sea Harrier FRS Mk 51 based on it and helicopters. The ship entered service in 1959 and has significant physical wear and tear. In early 2007, a research team was formed to explore the possibility of extending its life until 2012.
The second Vikramaditya ("Almighty") of project 11430 was transferred to the Indian Navy in November 20913 and arrived at its permanent base in India in early January 2014.
According to most experts, the new ABC of the ADS program of the 71 Vikrant project is most likely to be a development of the 11430 project with a total displacement of more than 45,000 tons. At the same time, a number of experts doubt the creation of a new AB with a springboard, and not with catapults. In any case, information about the characteristics of the new Indian Air Force and the timing of its construction is considered by many experts to be insufficiently reliable. Although they are all sure that the construction of the Project 71 ABC is underway, and the completion date for its construction has not been precisely determined - probably no later than 2017. There is also an intention to build a second ABC of this type in the long-term plans.
AMPHIBIAN FORCE
DK. As of the beginning of 2012, the Navy has one landing helicopter docking ship (DVKD) Jalashwa (former Trenton LPD-14 of the US Navy) and 10 tank landing ships (TDK) of two types: Magar - five units, Sharabh (Polish-built project 773) - five units. The Magar-class ships were based on the Sir Lancelot-class DC of the British Navy.
DKA. Currently, the Navy has eight landing craft of the LCU type, but they can be used to a limited extent as landing craft (ICE) DVKD. We can expect the start of construction (or purchases in other countries) of new LCM, LCU and, possibly, LCAC class spacecraft adapted for use as a DVKD ICE.
MULTI-PURPOSE FORCE
EM. By the end of 2011, the Navy had five Soviet-built Rajput-type destroyers (project 61ME) and three national-built Delhi-type destroyers (project 15). When designing the Delhi-type EM, the Rajput EM was used as a prototype. It should be noted that the new ships turned out to be quite powerful, and their appearance is very elegant. All EMs are being upgraded to enhance air defense and missile defense.
To replace the first three EMs of the 61ME project, three EMs of the Kolkata type (project 15A) are being built. The ships differ from their prototype in architecture, which takes into account the requirements of Stealth stealth technology, the placement of BrahMos PJ-10 anti-ship missiles and missiles in the TLU. The Barak-2 air defense system was adopted as the main air defense system, and the Barak-1 air defense system was placed at the last line for self-defense.
FR. If EM ships have the USSR ships as a prototype, then the first FR of the Indian Navy of national construction are the development of ships of this class of the British Navy. The first Himgiri-type FRs (currently three units in service) almost completely copied the English Leander-type FRs. The next three FRs of the Godavari type (Project 16), while retaining common features with the first FRs, are much larger ships with all types of weapons. The most advanced of them are ships of the second series - three FRs of the Brahmaputra type (project 16A).
And the most modern are three FRs of the Talwar type (project 11356) built in Russia. The ships carry the most advanced weapons: the Club-N anti-ship missiles in the VPU 3S-14E, the Shtil-1 / Uragan air defense system and two Chestnut / Kortik air defense systems.
KRV. In 2002, the construction program of eight Khukri-type WACs (four of Project 25 and four of Project 25A) was completed.
PATROL FORCES
PC. The Navy has six Sukanya-class PCs (three built in South Korea). In the near future, it is planned to begin construction of new PCs (up to four units) with a total displacement of 2200-2300 tons under the PSON program.
BKA. Previously, the Indian Navy paid considerable attention to the development of missile boats (RCA) and they were assigned tasks directly in the coastal zone. Currently, there are 35 BKA in combat strength, of which 12 are RKA of project 1241RE (modification 12411T of the USSR Navy). The rest are patrol boats (four of project 1241PE, eight of the SDB Mk3/5 type, seven of the Nicobar type and seven of the Super Dvora type). There is a sluggish program to replace old SKAs with new ones, but there are no plans to increase the number of SKAs.
MINE-SWEEPING FORCES
The minesweeping forces (MTS) are based on minesweepers built in the USSR. At the end of 2011, eight sea minesweepers (MTSC) of the Pondicherry type (project 266ME) remained in service. There are no further plans for the development of mine defense ships (PMOs), but the MTS are rapidly aging and, probably, a program for their renewal will appear in the near future.

The heavy frigate "Trishul" was built in St. Petersburg.
Photo from www.pvo.guns.ru

The cooperation of our country with India in the naval field has already half a century of history and has marked a number of milestones for both countries. For the Indian navy, which was originally created and developed according to the British model and manned by ships purchased in the former mother country, the transition in the 60s to the purchase of warships and naval weapons in the USSR served as an important turning point in political reorientation and gaining access to advanced military technology. For the domestic shipbuilding industry, India became the first external customer for which ships were built on special export orders and on special export projects - until that time, the USSR supplied abroad only “standard” ships and boats built for the Soviet fleet, and more often simply transferred from members of the Soviet Navy. India became and remains the main importer of Soviet and then Russian naval equipment.

Over the past 50 years, the USSR, and then the Russian Federation, have become the main supplier of warships and naval technology for the Indian Navy. Many ships being built in India itself are designed with Russian participation and are equipped with Russian equipment and weapons. Thanks to Russia, India was able to gain access to technologies and capabilities unique to the global defense market, such as nuclear submarine shipbuilding technologies and supersonic anti-ship missiles. No other country would give India anything like this.

HISTORY UNPARALLELED

Military-technical cooperation between India and the USSR began in 1961 and experienced rapid growth. The beginning of intensive cooperation with the USSR in the naval field was the signing of the Soviet-Indian agreement in September 1965. In accordance with it, India ordered from the USSR four diesel-electric submarines of project I641, a floating base Amba project 1886E for them, five patrol ships of project 159E and five patrol boats of project 368P. All these units were received already in 1967-1969. The boats of the I641 project became, in fact, the first submarines built in the USSR on a special export order. Then, in 1972-1974, four more submarines of the improved project I641K and five more patrol ships of project 159E were built in the USSR for India.

The most important step in increasing the combat capabilities of the Indian fleet was the receipt from the USSR in 1971 of eight Project 205 missile boats armed with the P-15 anti-ship missile system. These were the first ships with guided missile weapons in the Indian Navy. Already at the end of the same year, these boats took part in the hostilities against Pakistan, providing the Indians with absolute superiority over the Pakistani fleet that did not have missile weapons and making a significant contribution to the Indian victory. In 1976, the Indian Navy received an additional eight missile boats of the improved project 205ER with the P-20 (P-15U) missile system, and in 1977-1978, three project 1234E small missile ships with the P-20M missile system.

In 1974, India signed a contract with the Soviet side for the construction in Nikolaev at the Plant named after 61 Communards of five large anti-submarine ships (destroyers according to the Indian classification) according to the modified project 61ME developed by the Northern Design Bureau (PKB). This order also became a milestone for the domestic shipbuilding industry - for the first time the USSR built large warships under a special export order, and according to a project that was significantly different from the one according to which similar ships were built for the USSR Navy. The receipt in 1980-1988 of these ships, armed with the M-1 anti-aircraft missile system, the P-20M anti-ship missile system and a permanently based anti-submarine helicopter and equipped with an all-mode gas turbine power plant, significantly increased the combat capabilities of the Indian Navy.

The anti-mine forces of the Indian fleet were updated by building in the USSR in 1978-1988 12 sea minesweepers of project 266ME and in 1983-1984 six raid minesweepers of project 1258E.

Since the 1970s, the USSR has provided assistance to the Indian side in the development of national military shipbuilding. In addition to advisory and technical assistance, India was supplied with weapons (including the Osa-MA and P-20M missile systems) and electronic equipment to equip three Godavari-class frigates of the national project 16 built in India (based on the British Leander-class frigates), introduced in system in 1982-1988, and then, already in the post-Soviet period, more modern weapons (including Uran-E anti-ship missile systems) for three frigates of the modified project 16A (Brahmaputra type), transferred to the Indian fleet in 2000-2005.

Since the 1980s, India's cooperation with the USSR, and then with Russia, in the naval field has entered a new phase, characterized by the acquisition by India of the most advanced Soviet, and then Russian technologies and ships.

From 1986 to 2000, India received 10 Project 877EKM diesel-electric submarines built in the USSR and Russia. The construction of this series finally put forward India as the largest buyer of domestically built submarines. The last of the boats of this series, Sindhushastra, was built according to a modified project 08773 and was the first of the ships to be equipped with the Club-S missile system (which the Russian Navy did not have). After 2000, all other Indian boats of the 877EKM project are currently undergoing a similar upgrade with equipment from the Club-S complex during medium repairs at Russian enterprises (JSC Admiralty Shipyards, and now JSC Zvyozdochka).

The most decisive step in cooperation with Moscow was expressed in the receipt by India in 1988 in January of the lease of the Soviet nuclear submarine K-43 project 670 (or rather, its "export" version - project 06709), called Chakra ("Chakra") and equipped with anti-ship missiles "Amethyst". It was the first ever transfer of a nuclear submarine from one state to another. Although only three years later the submarine had to be returned to the USSR for political reasons, the operation of this boat clearly demonstrated to the leadership of the Indian Navy the great combat value of nuclear submarines.

To replace obsolete Soviet-built missile boats, the Indian Navy received from the USSR five large project 1241RE missile boats armed with the P-21/P-22 missile system in 1987–1990, and then launched their licensed construction in India from 1991 to 1997. six units were commissioned, and in 2002 the last two boats were commissioned, which were completed according to a modified project with the installation of a new Uran-E missile system. In addition, in 1989-1991, four small anti-submarine ships of project 1241PE were built in the USSR.

NEW STAGE

In India itself, in the 1980s, independent construction of new-generation warships began, designed by Soviet design bureaus and equipped mainly with Soviet and then Russian weapons and equipment. A great success for the Indian shipbuilding industry was the commissioning in 1997 of the Project 15 destroyer Delhi, developed by the Northern Design Bureau, which had been under construction for 10 years in Mumbai with technical assistance first from the USSR and then from Russia. Delhi became the first foreign ship to receive a number of modern and previously unexported Soviet naval weapons systems (Shtil anti-aircraft missile system, Fregat-MA radar). Particularly noteworthy is the armament of this ship with the Uran-E anti-ship missile system, thanks to which India became the first recipient of this complex in general, since the Uran missile system entered service with the Russian Navy only after 2002, and even then in limited quantities. Following the lead in 1999 and 2001, the Indian Navy received two more project 15 destroyers (Mysore and Mumbai).

Then the construction of three more destroyers was started according to the modified project 15A (Kolkata type), which is also being carried out with active Russian assistance. As expected, these ships will be armed with the Shtil-1 anti-aircraft missile system in vertical launchers, as well as the BrahMos missile system. All three ships are currently under completion and should be commissioned in 2011-2013. In addition, in 2009, the Government of India authorized the construction of four destroyers of an even more modified Project 15B.

According to the project of the Zelenodolsk Design Bureau in India, to replace the old patrol ships of project 159E, the construction of corvettes of the Indian project 25 (Khukri type) was started. Four of these ships, equipped with P-21/P-22 missile systems, were handed over to the Indian Navy in 1989-1991, and then four more units were built according to the modified project 25A (Kora type), equipped with the Uran-E missile system and entered service in 1998-2004.

However, the significant difficulties that India encountered in organizing the construction of ships at home forced the Indian fleet to once again resort to direct orders in Russia. In 1997, India signed a contract worth $1 billion for the construction in Russia of three frigates specially designed by the Northern Design Bureau of project 11356, equipped with the Shtil-1 anti-aircraft missile system and the Club-N missile system. The agreement became one of the most important achievements of the Russian shipbuilding industry of the post-Soviet period and the first significant military shipbuilding program implemented in Russia after the collapse of the USSR. At the same time, for the first time, Russia built ships for export that were more advanced than for its own fleet. Three Talwar-class frigates were built by Baltiysky Zavod OJSC in St. Petersburg and, despite delays due to technical problems, were delivered to the Indian Navy in 2003-2004, proving to be one of the most advanced and powerful ships of their class in the world. In 2006, India signed another contract worth $1.56 billion for the construction of three more frigates of the modified project 11356M due in 2011-2012, their construction is being carried out by the Yantar Baltic Shipbuilding Plant in Kaliningrad. These ships are equipped with the Shtil-1 anti-aircraft missile system in vertical launchers and the BrahMos missile system. It is not excluded in the future that India will order three more ships of project 11356M.

Based on Project 11356, the Indians, with the participation of the Northern Design Bureau, developed a Project 17 frigate to be built by the national industry, equipped mainly with Russian weapons (Shtil-1 and Club-N complexes). Three Project 17 frigates are being built in Mumbai, the lead of them Shivalik was delivered to the fleet in 2010.

However, the most landmark for Indian-Russian cooperation in military shipbuilding were the contracts concluded after 2000 for the supply of India with the former heavy aircraft-carrying cruiser Admiral of the Fleet of the Soviet Union Gorshkov and the nuclear multi-purpose submarine Nerpa.

Negotiations on the sale to India of the heavy aircraft-carrying cruiser "Admiral of the Fleet of the Soviet Union Gorshkov" (formerly "Baku") of project 11434 (standard displacement of 37 thousand tons), commissioned by the USSR Navy in 1987, but already in 1994 put on hold, were conducted almost a decade and were crowned with success only in 2004 with the signing of a contract worth $ 1.8 billion. According to this agreement, Russia transfers the ship to India (where it received the name Vikramaditya) and, for $ 970 million, rebuilds it by 2008 into a full-fledged aircraft carrier with a springboard launch of aircraft, and for another $ 752 million, develops and supplies India for the air group of this ship 16 carrier-based MiG-29K fighters (with an option for another 29). The package also includes the delivery of Ka-31 shipborne radar patrol helicopters and Ka-28 anti-submarine helicopters.

Work on the modernization of the Admiral Gorshkov for India under project 11430 of the Nevsky Design Bureau has been carried out at OJSC Northern Machine-Building Enterprise since 2005, but has been significantly delayed, further complicated by disagreements about the final cost of the conversion. In total, India subsequently had to pay an additional $1.5 billion for refurbishment in excess of the original contract price. It is expected that the commissioning of the converted ship into the Indian Navy will eventually take place no earlier than 2012. The ship should become the largest combat unit ever exported in world naval history, and significantly increase the combat potential of the Indian fleet.

The history of cooperation with India in the nuclear submarine fleet, begun by the lease of Chakra, was developed in an agreement signed in October 2000 on the transfer to India for a long-term lease of the nuclear multi-purpose submarine of the third generation K-152 Nerpa, which remained unfinished at the Amur Shipbuilding Plant OJSC ( order 518, construction began in 1986, developer of the Malachite SPMBM) and its completion. At the time of signing the agreement, the technical readiness of the Nerpa was 86.5%. Subsequently, a similar completion and leasing of India and the second boat of the same type, located at the same enterprise, was envisaged (order 519, readiness about 60%). The final signing of the contract took place in 2005. The total cost of the agreement with India on the completion and lease of two nuclear submarines is estimated at $1.8 billion, including the Nerpa contract at $650 million. to Indians on lease for a period of 10 years, with lease payments of $25 million per year.

In 2004, work was resumed only on the Nerpa, which was being completed for India according to a specially “deeply modernized” project 971I, on which, in particular, the armament was changed and the Club-S missile system was installed. The Nerpa has been undergoing trials since 2008, and its delivery to the Indian side is scheduled for spring 2011. As part of the Indian fleet, she will receive the same name Chakra. Then, apparently, the construction of a second nuclear submarine for India will be resumed.

In addition, it is known that Russia is assisting India in the implementation of the ATV program for the design and construction of its own nuclear submarine. Apparently, a number of systems are also supplied from Russia for it. The first Indian nuclear submarine, Arihant, was launched in 2009, and when it was launched, Indian Prime Minister Singh directly thanked the "Russian friends" for their assistance. Now the boat is in the stage of completion and testing.

It is also worth mentioning that in 1996, the Admiralty Shipyards built the Jyoti refueling tanker of project 15966 for the Indian Navy.

AIR COMPONENT AND FUTURE PROSPECTS

Cooperation with Moscow had a significant impact on expanding the combat capabilities of Indian naval aviation. In the 70s and 80s, for the needs of long-range aviation reconnaissance of the Indian Navy, six Il-38 anti-submarine aircraft, and then eight long-range Tu-142ME anti-submarine aircraft, were acquired from the aviation of the USSR Navy, the range of which made it possible to keep under observation barely or the entire Indian Ocean. The USSR delivered seven Ka-25PL anti-submarine helicopters and 19 more modern Ka-28 anti-submarine helicopters.

After 2000, five Il-38 aircraft (including two additionally delivered from the presence of the Russian Navy) were upgraded to the Il-38SD version with the installation of a new Sea Serpent search and sighting system. In 2003-2004, nine Ka-31 long-range radar patrol helicopters were delivered to India - and India became the main customer of this helicopter. For the converted former heavy aircraft-carrying cruiser Admiral of the Fleet of the Soviet Union Gorshkov and for the IAC aircraft carrier under construction in India itself (including the option transferred to the contract), the first six of which were delivered in 2009. In addition, nine more Ka-31 helicopters and eight anti-submarine Ka-28 helicopters have been contracted. The Nevskoye Design Bureau, on the Indian order, also developed a project for a ground-based complex for the training of carrier-based pilots, which should be built in India.

A very significant joint project between Russia and India was the development and production of the anti-ship supersonic missile BrahMos by the joint venture of the same name, created by the Indian defense organization DRDO and the Russian OJSC NPO Mashinostroeniya. The BrahMos missile was created on the basis of the Russian rocket of the Oniks (Yakhont) complex, and the production of kits for missiles is carried out by Strela OJSC in Orenburg with subsequent delivery to India for retrofitting. The BrahMos project is a reference example of the implementation of a bilateral military-industrial program. To date, all three branches of the Indian armed forces have ordered or plan to purchase a total of up to 1,000 BrahMos missiles worth up to $ 5 billion. The BrahMos joint venture is working in the interests of the Indian side and to create a new generation of missiles already at hypersonic speed.

It can be stated that there remains a huge potential for further development and deepening of cooperation between Russia and India in the naval sphere in many areas. Thus, new Russian projects of warships are also offered to India for joint construction. Rosoboronexport with a project 22350 frigate is taking part in the Indian Navy's tender for the construction of seven new-generation project 17A frigates (the Indians are going to build one ship at a foreign shipyard and six under license at Indian enterprises). Project 677 non-nuclear submarines (Amur-1650) capable of being equipped with the BrahMos missile system are offered for a new Indian tender for six submarines (to be built under license in India). Apparently, joint Russian-Indian developments in the field of naval technology will also be developed.

Indian naval experts and representatives of the Indian Navy command have repeatedly stressed that nuclear submarines have such a huge combat potential and can solve such a wide range of tasks that they can have a truly strategic impact. Moreover, according to Indian experts, for the Indian Navy, one of the most important tasks of which is to deliver powerful strikes on the land territory of a potential enemy (first of all, of course, it can be Pakistan and China), the presence of nuclear submarines armed with ballistic and cruise long-range precision strike missiles is a "mandatory, vital requirement."

For the first time, so to speak, with a “smear”, the possibility of introducing nuclear submarines armed with cruise and / or ballistic missiles capable of equipping nuclear warheads into the combat structure of the Indian fleet was mentioned by the Indian side in 1999 - in a document entitled "Nuclear Triad" ( "Nuclear Triad") and considered an unclassified part of the "preliminary" nuclear doctrine of India (India became the owner of nuclear weapons after May 18, 1974, at a special army test site Pokhran, Rajasthan, an underground nuclear test, code-named "Smiling Buddha" ("Smiling Buddha" or "Pokhran I") and classified as a test of a nuclear device with a yield of about 8 kilotons).

Moreover, it was pointed out then that naval carriers of nuclear weapons are less vulnerable to the means of detecting and destroying the enemy than aircraft or even ground carriers, the defeat of which, moreover, may cause significant casualties among the civilian population. The "complete" nuclear doctrine of India was published in 2003 and contained two postulates important for our narrative: the need to create a naval component of the nuclear deterrence forces and the obligation not to be the first to use nuclear weapons. But perhaps the most important step was Delhi's adoption of an ambitious naval doctrine, which clearly demonstrated the firm intention of India's MPR to create a naval component of nuclear forces.

The 184-page unclassified portion of the doctrine was made public in June 2004 under the title "Indian Maritime Doctrine". It clearly states that the navy is the most appropriate branch of the national Armed Forces in terms of "efficiency and capabilities" in the possession of nuclear weapons and their combat use. Moreover, it was specifically indicated that submarines are the preferred carrier of missiles with nuclear warheads. "In order to solve the problems of strategic deterrence, it is extremely important for the state to have at its disposal nuclear submarines capable of carrying missiles with nuclear warheads."

In the new edition of the Naval Doctrine, the unclassified 200-page part of which was published on August 28, 2009 signed by the commander of the Navy, Admiral Sureesh Mehta (Admiral Sureesh Mehta), the importance of having nuclear weapons carriers in the national Navy, especially submarines, re-confirmed. Moreover, in the same year, the first nuclear-powered submarine of its own Indian design and construction was launched.

The third arm of the nuclear triad

At the beginning of the new millennium, the military-political leadership (MPL) of India, which by that time had already taken a firm course towards turning the country into a regional superpower with subsequent accession to a limited number of leading powers of world importance, came to the conclusion that it was necessary to radically revise the main directions of the national military offshore construction. In a short time, a document was developed, which was called "The Navy's Maritime Capability Perspective Plan", which can be translated from English approximately as "Perspective Plan for Naval Construction". It contains the main directions for the construction of the Indian Navy for the period 2005-22. Today, a new version of this document is in force - from 2011, which was adopted before the approval of the Xllth plan for military development for 2012-17.

Moreover, the main task of the ambitious naval construction program, which is supposed to be implemented in three stages, is the creation by 2022 of modern naval forces (Indian admirals often talk about the so-called "three-dimensional forces" - three-dimensional force), which have absorbed the latest technological achievements. , possessing "network-centric capabilities" and able to effectively solve all the tasks assigned to them. In particular, the "Navy of a new type" should be able to conduct combat operations in the conditions of an armed conflict of any intensity - from local conflicts to large-scale wars and "implementation of the policy of nuclear deterrence", to ensure the protection of national interests in the oceans, "to project force through the littoral zone" and solve problems in the framework of humanitarian and peacekeeping operations.

The important attention paid by Delhi to the protection of its national interests in the oceans is not accidental: firstly, by 2025 India intends to become the fourth economy in the world, largely relying on maritime lines of communication, and secondly, according to the official data of the Indian government, the vast majority of the country's trade - more than 90% in volume and 77% in value - is carried out today precisely through maritime communications, plus, about 97% of oil is produced for India on the shelf or imported by it from abroad by sea.

The Commander of the Indian Navy, Admiral Nirmal Verma, in an interview with the Indian edition of "SP's Naval Forces" (No. 1, February-March 2012) emphasized in this regard: "As our country moves along the path of economic development and begins to play an increasingly important role in the world economy, the importance of maritime lines of communication is growing and, thereby, the role that the national naval forces play in ensuring national interests and stable economic development is steadily growing ... And it is quite natural that the Indian Navy is the largest military maritime forces in the region should play an increasing role in maritime security.”

It should be especially noted that the red thread in the new 15-year naval strategy of India, called "Freedom to Use the Seas: India's Maritime Military Strategy" ("The Freedom to Use the Seas: India's Maritime Military Strategy") and officially published in May 2007, there is a postulate about the need, in order to ensure the most effective “in all conditions, the ability to use the seas in the interests of the state”, to move in matters of naval construction of national navies from a “quantitative approach” to an approach based on “capabilities”, as well as more active use of "strategic deterrence" by the military-political leadership.

First experience

As mentioned above, one of the first steps taken by the Indian military-political leadership in creating its own nuclear submarine fleet was the lease from the Soviet Navy of a nuclear submarine of project 670 (code - "Skat", code designation according to the US/NATO classification - Charlie I). Retired Captain 1st Rank Alexander Ivanovich Terenov, commander of the Soviet K-43 crew and head of the instructor group, who later published his memoirs “Journey Beyond the Three Seas. The swan song of the cruiser submarine K-43" about his service on the "Indian" submarine, recalled that India initially "intends to acquire a Project 671 submarine, as it wanted to have ships without missile containers, firing missile weapons at sea targets and coastal facilities through torpedo tubes. But by that time we did not yet have such a weapon. Apparently, then, in August 1982, after the Indian delegation reviewed the K-43 submarine, the final decision was made in choosing the ship. This is not surprising, since the creation of such submarines in our country was a very unpleasant surprise for NATO aircraft carrier formations and large surface ships. Compact, well-armed, with an underwater launch of unique Amethyst cruise missiles, the submarine significantly "complicated life" for the enemy. The short flight time of missiles, low altitude and "dagger" distance made it much more difficult to counter a strike from under water. The absence of the need for external target designation, the possibility of attacking the enemy according to their own means of observation and reconnaissance, turned a disadvantage into an advantage.

So, the choice fell on the nuclear submarine "K-43" - the lead ship of project 670, designed by the Gorky SKB-112, then transformed into the Central Design Bureau "Lazurit". The task of designing a new high-speed nuclear submarine, designed to combat enemy surface ships on ocean and sea lanes, was received by the design bureau leadership in May 1960 - V.P. Vorobyov. Moreover, it was the first nuclear submarine that the future Lazurit was to design, and the main difference of project 670 was the presence of the Amethyst missile weapon complex (ammunition - eight P-40 anti-ship missiles (GRAU index 4K-66), placed in container launchers installations of the SM-97 type, which, in turn, were installed in the bow of the submarine hull, outside the pressure hull and at an angle of 32.5 ° to the horizontal plane). The anti-ship complex "Amethyst" was created by OKB-52 on the instructions of April 1, 1959, its feature was the underwater launch of its solid-propellant missiles, which significantly increased the secrecy of the submarine - the carrier of the complex. In addition, Project 670 submarines had four bow 533-mm torpedo tubes (ammunition - 12 torpedoes) and two 400-mm torpedo tubes (ammunition - four torpedoes or "submarine simulators"), and instead of torpedoes, up to 26 torpedoes could be taken on board sea ​​mines. In total, 11 submarines were built under Project 670 for the Soviet Navy during 1964-73, and later six more submarines of the upgraded Project 670M, the main difference of which was the more modern and powerful Malachite missile weapon system with a firing range of 150 km ( firing range "Amethyst" - about 80 km).

The submarine "K-43", designated as a "cruising submarine" (KrPL; briefly - from July 25, 1977 to January 15, 1978, was classified as a "large nuclear submarine" using the tactical number "B-43"), was laid May 9, 1964 on the slipway of the Shipbuilding Plant No. 112 "Krasnoye Sormovo" named after. A.A. Zhdanova (Gorky, today Nizhny Novgorod). On June 25, 1966, the submarine loaded the core of the nuclear reactor of its nuclear power plant (NPP), and on August 2, the ship was launched and, within a month, along the inland waterways of the USSR, was transferred to the outfitting base of the Krasnoye Sormovo plant in the city of Severodvinsk, Arhangelsk region. After the completion of state tests on November 5, 1967, during which five rocket firings were carried out at the combat training range in the White Sea with the Amethyst missile weapon system (single launches - two, two-missile volleys - two, four-missile salvos - one), the nuclear-powered ship was included in the combat structure of the Navy of the USSR. After eliminating a number of comments on December 24-27, the nuclear submarine moved to its permanent base in Zapadnaya Litsa, at the end of the same year it was officially included in the Red Banner Northern Fleet (11th submarine division of the 1st submarine flotilla), in the same year the nuclear-powered ship completed the tasks of his first military service.

In the period from August 25 to September 14, 1980, "K-43", solving the problem of short-range protection of the SSBN "K-223" of project 667BDR, moved under the ice of the Arctic from the Motovsky Bay of the Barents Sea to the Krasheninnikov Bay in the Pacific Ocean, to the place of the new base - Vilyuchinsk base, and in July 1982 - to Pavlovsky Bay. There, the submarine was inspected the following month by a delegation from the Navy and the Indian Ministry of Defense, led by the famous Indian submariner who became famous in the Indo-Pakistani war of 1971, and the future admiral, the 14th commander of the Indian Navy, Vijai Singh Shekhawat (Vijai Singh Shekhawat) .

Here is what captain 1st rank A.I. writes about this. Terenov: “The next day after Navy Day, we set off. The transition to Primorye, to Pavlovsky Bay along the Pacific Ocean, the Kuril Straits, the Sea of ​​Okhotsk and the Sea of ​​Japan, and the La Perouse Strait was successful. Upon arrival, within a month, the ship was cleaned, licked and painted to such a state that the crew walked around the ship in socks so as not to spoil the presentation of the nuclear-powered ship. The Indian delegation headed by the commander of the submarine forces, Rear Admiral Shekhawat, appreciated the merits and combat capabilities of the submarine, and the ship was sent to the Zvezda Far Eastern Shipyard in Bolshoy Kamen for modernization and preparation for transfer.

As you can see, here and in other domestic sources it is mentioned that at the time of visiting K-43 B.C. Shekhawat was the head of the Indian Navy Submarine Force and held the rank of admiral, but there is probably some inaccuracy here. The fact is that according to Indian naval sources, Vijay Singh Shekhawat received the first flag officer, that is, the admiral rank (rear admiral), only in June 1984 - at that time he served as assistant chief of staff of the Indian Navy. But at the time of visiting the Soviet nuclear submarine planned for leasing, he was most likely the commander of the 8th division of submarines stationed at the Vishakhapatnam naval base, or he commanded the submarine forces of the Eastern Naval Command, whose headquarters is located in Visakhapatnam, and most likely wore the rank of commodore (an intermediate rank between the ranks of captain (captain of the 1st rank) and rear admiral). This is indirectly confirmed by the fact that in Russian literature the rank of "commodore" is often equated - by analogy with the army rank of brigadier general equal to it - to the military ranks of the admiral category.

The decision to send B.C. Shekhavat was taken to the Soviet Union to get acquainted with a nuclear submarine, probably due to his extensive experience in the submarine forces and due to the fact that he was trained in the Soviet Union in 1966-67 (for the operation of submarines) and after that he “overtook” twice diesel-electric submarines of project I641K purchased in the USSR (project 641 diesel-electric submarine intended for the Indian Navy), diesel-electric submarine S-23 Kalvari (INS Kalvari, ex. B-51, 1967) and diesel-electric submarine S-21 Karanj "(INS Karanj, ex. "B-405", 1969), which, by the way, he commanded during the Indo-Pakistani war of 1971.

In general, the Indian sailors liked the Soviet submarine, and the top leadership of both countries finally resolved the issue of leasing, and in the same month, in August 1982, the K-43 was transferred to the Zvezda Far East plant, in the village of Bolshoi Kamen, for carrying out repairs and modernization under project 06709. In the period from August 1982 to July 1984, secret equipment that was not transferable was dismantled on the Zvezda, the living quarters, the air conditioning system, and the refrigeration system were re-equipped for operation in tropical conditions. After the modernization, the nuclear submarine moved to Pavlovsky Bay, where measures were to be taken to develop new equipment and was temporarily subordinate to the commander of the 26th submarine division of the 4th submarine flotilla.

After reorganization on August 30, 1984 in UTS-550, the submarine was transferred to Maly Uliss Bay, Vladivostok, and on December 27 of the same year, it was excluded from the combat strength of the USSR Navy. Already in March of the following year, the Indian crew began training on the submarine - two crews arrived in full and another officers from the third crew, since at first, as today with the Project 971 I nuclear submarine, it was planned to lease two nuclear-powered ships. In addition, a special training center was built near Vladivostok to train the Indian crew in a very short time. Classes in it began earlier - in 1983 - and were conducted in a very intense mode, moreover, theoretical classes alternated with practical ones on board the UTS-550.

“We started by studying the structure of the ship, immediately appreciated the excellent work of teachers from Obninsk who read the theoretical course,” later recalled Captain 1st Rank A.I. Terenov. - People were divided into groups led by the most trained officers and midshipmen. They drew up a schedule and a scheme according to which the groups, without interfering with each other, studied the device of the ship, subject to explosion and fire safety. A month later, they began to master the specialty at combat posts and command posts, and then to exercises, preparing the ship for battle and campaign, commissioning the main power plant, working at power, removing the plant, cooling down, and so on for each manager and commander of the movement division several times . The most difficult thing was the struggle for survivability, since this work is more creative than physical, and there were too many people on the ship.

The training went quite quickly, in October 1985, Indian submariners went to sea separately in combat shifts, then with a full crew for 15 days, after which they were allowed to pass the course task (it was accepted by Soviet submariners, led by the commander of the 26th submarine division Rear Admiral Alexei Arsentyevich Belousov - later head of the Pacific Higher Naval School named after S.O. Makarov), and in January 1986 - to practice combat exercises.

An interesting episode from this period of the K-43 history is described on the deepstorm website: “When performing one of the anti-submarine exercises on a diesel submarine in a duel situation, after firing a SET-53m torpedo, the submarine passed under the attacked diesel submarine. At this point, the torpedo was aimed at the target and made circulations under it. A nuclear submarine passing deeper redirected a circulating torpedo at itself. SET-53m hit the felling fence, lost its tightness and sank.” In total, for three months of combat training, the former K-43 carried out 35 torpedo firing, after which the Indian crew returned to India, and the Soviet sailors and workers of the Zvezda Far East Air Plant began preparing the submarine “for shipment” to a new duty station.

In the spring of 1987, a large delegation of the Main Engineering Directorate of the State Committee for Foreign Economic Relations of the USSR (GIU GKES), the Navy and the defense industry of the USSR visited the site of the prospective basing of the Soviet nuclear submarine, the base of submarine forces in Vishakshapatnam, and, interestingly, the infrastructure of the base of submarine forces located on the territory of the shipyard of the Indian Navy, was created with the direct participation of specialists from the Soviet 23rd Design Institute. Here is what captain 1st rank A.I. writes about this. Terenov: “We fenced off a part of the quay wall of 2 hectares, built a 3-storey building of the radiation safety service from marble, a navigation repair workshop, office space for the crew and the Soviet group. We installed autonomous power supply sources, brought communications to the pier, allowing them to receive all types of food, high-pressure water, high-purity water and even cold water for the air conditioning system. On the pier there is a rail crane with a lifting capacity of at least 50 tons for loading weapons. Everything was done to save the resource of the main mechanisms in the base.”

Again, the Indian crew arrived on the boat in July 1987, and on August 24, contract No. 80/712508415 was signed for the transfer of the former K-43 to a three-year lease of the Indian Navy. And here we turn again to the site mentioned above: “1987, October. The transfer and acceptance of the submarine by the Indian crew was started, but 2 days before the end, the command was received to stop the transfer, and remove the Indian crew from the submarine. 1987, December. After the arrival of Indian Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi in Moscow on a short working visit, a command was given to continue the transmission. These are the "squiggles" that were created during the "Gorbachev perestroika" ...

Be that as it may, but on January 5, 1988, the Indian Naval flag was finally raised on the submarine and the ship, renamed the Chakra (INS Chakra, tactical number S-71), officially became a combat ship of the Indian Navy. Moreover, part of the Soviet crew - according to some reports, 30 sailors and two military translators - became part of a group of Soviet instructors who were already in India to "look after" their Indian colleagues, teaching them all the intricacies of operating a nuclear submarine.

Retired Vice Admiral R.N. Ganesh (Vice-Admiral RN Ganesh), one of the three first commanders of the crews of the future Indian nuclear submarine Chakra (R.N. Ganesh, S.Ch. Anand and R.K. Sharma), who arrived in the Soviet Union, later recalled: “Absolutely it is obvious that the unprecedented lease of a nuclear submarine automatically meant that certain conditions had to be met that would allow the Soviet Union to fulfill international obligations, which meant that several members of the Soviet crew (seven to eight people) had to be on the ship at any time. time, both in the harbor and at sea. At the same time, the fact that the ship sailed under the Indian flag also meant that the responsibility for the ship, crew and nuclear reactor lay entirely with the Indian commander. Luckily for us, not once during the three years of the lease did any disagreement arise between the Soviet and Indian officers on this issue. This is surprising, given the delicacy of the situation, and undoubtedly testifies to the professionalism and tact of both crews.”

According to the “deepstorm” website, the group also “included specialists from the rocket-technical position - 5 officers and 1 translator, with the task of ensuring the storage of missiles, and industry specialists - 3 people with an interpreter. Later, during the period of repairs, the industry group reached 40 people. Under the terms of the contract, on board the submarine at sea and in the base, a watch was kept around the clock in the central post, at the command post of the missile warhead and at the power plant launcher by Soviet instructors.

The passage of the nuclear submarine "Chakra" took place in a submerged position along the route "Peter the Great Bay - the Sea of ​​​​Japan - the Tsushima Strait (the eastern passage of the Korea Strait) - the Yellow Sea - the East China Sea - the formation of the line of the Ryukyu Islands - the Philippine Sea - the Vashi Strait - the South China sea", where the submarine surfaced and, accompanied by the approaching warship of the Indian Navy, passed into the Strait of Malacca, where it plunged into a submerged position and went until the next ascent along the route "Strait of Malacca - Adaman Sea - Bay of Bengal".

When on February 3, 1988, the Chakra, having made a rapid 10-day submerged transition from the Pacific to the Indian Ocean, surfaced near the port and the Vishakhapatnam naval base, Indian Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi himself boarded it. The Indian leader was accompanied by the Minister of Defense, Commander of the Navy, Admiral Jayant Ganpat Nadkarni, Commander of the Eastern Naval Command and two guards. After receiving high-ranking guests, the nuclear-powered ship sank - the guests examined the surface through the periscope, went around the compartments and were invited to a gala dinner in the wardroom. Five hours later, the Chakra arrived at its base - on the shore it was met by the leadership of the Ministry of Defense and the command of the Indian Armed Forces, the USSR ambassador, the senior group of Soviet military specialists in India, Lieutenant General of Aviation Yu.D. Mikhailin, other Soviet specialists and many journalists, to whom Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi announced "the beginning of the era of the Indian nuclear submarine fleet."

The appearance of a nuclear submarine in the Indian Navy, armed not only with torpedoes, but also with eight anti-ship missiles, caused the effect of an exploding bomb in the world, and Delhi's restless neighbor Islamabad was in a state of shock, almost on the verge of panic. No wonder - after all, now the military confrontation between the two Asian powers has moved to a qualitatively new level: imagine that you are fighting with your opponent with clubs or spears and suddenly: your counterpart pulls out a revolver from his belt. Comments, as they say, are unnecessary.

Three years of service of the nuclear-powered ship in the Indian Navy flew by quickly, but during this time the Chakra did not miss a single major naval exercise, each time demonstrating its enormous combat potential and emerging victorious from any training fights. Not once did Indian submariners lose their faces in the course of numerous missile firings, despite the fact that the operation of the Soviet nuclear-powered ship took place in extremely harsh conditions. Captain 1st rank A.I. Terenov, for example, recalled: “The operating conditions of the ship were the most severe: 100% humidity, high salinity, water and air temperatures increased the corrosion rate by several times. Outboard fittings, pipelines and hull, stern tube gland were especially hard hit. We made a very serious mistake during the last repair, not insisting on replacing the drainage line. Now it is already difficult to figure out who is to blame: the technical management of the fleet, which saved money, the plant, which considered this work too laborious, or the crew, which did not show perseverance. We paid for this mistake in full, and after 1.5 years we had to do this work, but already in India.” Unfortunately, there were also emergencies, including those related to the desire of Indian submariners to more fully explore the full potential of a nuclear submarine - a new class of naval technology for them.

“The most serious accident occurred 1.5 years later in the Bay of Bengal,” writes Captain 1st Rank A.I. Terenov, when the Indian commander decided to dive to 250 meters to determine the type of hydrology. My attempt to convince him to abandon this idea and limit himself to 150 meters, referring to the fact that the submarine is no longer a girl, but a mature woman who does not need such loads, did not lead to success. True, we managed to get him to announce the alarm and increase his speed. Formally, of course, he was right, since the ship should have been able to dive to a much greater depth, but ... At a depth of 180 meters, the rubber-metal pipe of the auxiliary equipment cooling system in the hold of the 3rd compartment, a meter from the largest electrical mechanisms - reversible converter, VPR and the main switchboard of the starboard side. In a matter of seconds, while the power and speed were increased to full, the hold was filled with sea water, which flooded the reversible converter, the VPR and closed the supply buses of the main switchboard. From a powerful electric arc, the main shield blazed like a sheet of paper, melted, spewing molten metal around. When switching power to the other side, the emergency protection of the reactor was overwhelmed at a power of 90% and at a depth of 160 meters they were left without a course, without power, with wedged horizontal rudders, with a fire on the lower deck and a filled hold of the central compartment.

At that time, in addition to the Indian sailors, the commander-instructor captain 1st rank A.I. was in the central post of the submarine. Terenov and the commander of the 3rd division, captain 3rd rank V.I. Likhachev, who took over the leadership and were able to ensure the establishment of control over the rapidly developing emergency, after which the crew stopped the flow of water, put out the fire, and after emergency blowing out of the Central City Hospital, the submarine floated to the surface. However, even this experience brought positive results. If we talk about the experience that the sailors gained, then it turned out to be simply invaluable. Suffice it to say that eight officers who passed through the compartments of the Chakra became admirals. In total, under the Indian Naval flag, the Chakra traveled more than 72,000 miles, the operating time of the nuclear reactor was 430 days, the crew performed five missile and 42 torpedo firing.

The nuclear submarine leasing agreement ended on January 5, 1991, the Indian military-political leadership repeatedly expressed a desire to extend the agreement, even talking about buying a submarine in full ownership. However, the Soviet side refused India and on January 5, 1991, exactly on the day the contract ended, the nuclear-powered ship arrived in Maly Uliss Bay, Vladivostok, where the nuclear submarine was handed over from the Indian crew to representatives of the Russian Navy. On March 1, the submarine was officially accepted by the Russian Navy and put into service with the 42nd Submarine Division of the 2nd Submarine Flotilla; on April 18, it arrived at its permanent base in Vilyuchinsk; in July, it took part in the Navy Day parade (held in Avacha Bay), and on July 3, 1992, the submarine, reclassified on April 28 into the large nuclear submarine "B-43", was decommissioned and laid up in Krasheninnikov Bay. On April 29, 2004, the submarine was towed to the territory of the Federal State Unitary Enterprise "North-Eastern Repair Center" (Seldevaya Bay), where the nuclear reactor core was unloaded, on October 23, 2006, the flag was lowered on the ship and, according to the deepstorm website, during 2007 the nuclear submarine was scrapped.

But there was a real opportunity to get a fairly large amount in hard currency, especially since our fleet did not actually need this submarine, and soon after returning to its homeland it was written off as scrap. It is believed that the reason for this is the “pressure” on the Russian leadership by Washington, which at that time had not yet lifted the sanctions imposed on India after it conducted a nuclear test and “unauthorized” joining the “nuclear club”.

Strategic "Enemy Destroyer"

On July 26, 2009, the first Indian-built nuclear submarine Arihant (INS Arihant; S-73) was launched, which means “Enemy Destroyer” in Sanskrit. The submarine is the lead ship of ATV (Advanced Technology Vessel) type nuclear-powered ships, the construction of a series of which, as stated, at least three units is being carried out at the shipyard of the Shipbuilding Center in Visakhapatnam. It should be especially noted that these submarines are classified by the Indian Navy as a nuclear submarine with ballistic missiles, that is, they are - at least based on the official statements of the military-political leadership of India - strategic missile carriers or SSBNs. “Today we are among the five selected states capable of building nuclear submarines,” Prime Minister Manmohan Singh emphasized at the solemn ceremony.

Instead of a bottle of champagne, a coconut traditional among Indian sailors was “smashed” on the side of the submarine by the wife of Indian Prime Minister Gursharan Kaur. “I call you the name Arihant, the name Destroyer of Enemies, and I wish all the best to this submarine,” the prime minister's wife said, opening a plate attached to the cabin of the nuclear-powered ship. Manmohan Singh himself opened the ceremony and made the main speech on this occasion, especially noting the great work done by the director of the ATV program, retired vice admiral D.S.P. Verma (Vice-Admiral (retd) DSP Verma) and his team of specialists. In addition to them, the ceremony was attended by Minister of Defense Arakkaparambil Kurian Anthony (Raksha Mantri Shri.AK Antony), Indian Minister of State for the Military Industrial Complex Pallam Raju, Commander of the Indian Navy Admiral Surish Mehta, as well as representatives of the government of India and the state of Andhra Pradesh, heads of various organizations directly involved in this program. It is noteworthy that the date of launching the "Enemy Destroyer" was not chosen by chance - it was timed to coincide with the 10th anniversary of the victory of the Indian army in the Kargil conflict, which in India is often referred to as the Kargil War.

The ATV program, which, according to Indian sources, was spent 300 billion rupees (at the current rate - about 6.02 billion dollars), was launched in India, according to local specialized media, as early as 1974, although the official date its start is considered by many to be 1984 - then, at least, she had her own leader. An article published on the occasion of the launch of the Arihant nuclear submarine in one of the Indian naval publications, SP's Naval Forces (T4/2009, pp. 1-2), indicated that in the 1980s, the military - the political leadership of India, after a long study of the issue and consultations with experts, decided to implement the program for creating a nuclear submarine fleet of the national Navy in two stages: firstly, it was decided to lease one Project 670 nuclear submarine (it was given the name "Chakra") , and secondly, to begin work on the design of a boat nuclear power plant and directly the nuclear submarine itself - on its own, but with the help of Soviet specialists from the relevant research institutes and design bureaus. At the same time, it was believed that it was necessary to design your own nuclear submarine, taking as a basis the design of the Soviet nuclear submarine of project 670.

However, the collapse of the Soviet Union, Russia's refusal to extend the leasing of the Chakra nuclear submarine and the termination of joint work on nuclear power plants and nuclear submarines had the most negative impact on the Indian program - one can say that these two events dealt a severe blow to it, causing a long-term delay in the practical implementation of the program. The first head of the ATV program (in the period 1984-88), later Vice Admiral Mihir K. Roy, recalled in 2009 that the collapse of the USSR had a negative impact on Indian work on the creation of a nuclear submarine fleet and led to significant delays, also mentioning, that initially, India's CDF planned to design and build three nuclear submarines at once. “We moved fairly quickly, but then there was a long delay,” the retired admiral said. The USSR fell, and all contracts for the ATV program were changed.” However, over time, the Russian side again took part in joint work on this topic - in 2004 new agreements were signed on this topic - and Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh even said at the ceremony of launching the Arihant nuclear submarine: “I thank our Russian friends for their consistent and invaluable cooperation, which symbolizes the close strategic partnership we maintain with Russia.”

The program for the design and construction of Arihant nuclear-powered ships turned out to be so secret - which is unusual for India in itself - and the security measures were so serious that the official laying of the lead missile carrier was never announced. The date of the laying of the Arihant submarine is not exactly known today (it is believed that this happened in the presence of Dr. Abdul Kalam, the head of the DRDO and then the President of India, in 1998), from prying eyes to a dry dock - this complex is referred to in the Indian press as the “Matsya base”. Moreover, those present were forbidden to take photos and films, only a couple of “government photographers” who captured VIPs received permission. In fact, it was not possible to “see” the ship from the satellite before it was taken out of the dock, hence there are so many speculations on this topic. Before proceeding to the consideration of technical issues - as far as possible with such a degree of secrecy, it is necessary to mention the declared cost of the lead ship, which, together with R & D and R & D, is estimated at around $ 2.9 billion, while the serial SSBN, according to a number of Indian media. citing "unnamed industry representatives" will cost just over 30 billion rupees ($600 million).

The Arihant SSBN, according to Indian sources, has a total surface displacement of about 6,000 tons, a maximum length of 110 meters and a width of 11 meters, and in its bow part there are GAS equipment, six 533-mm torpedo tubes - launchers of the Club- C", racks with ammunition (torpedoes and missiles of the Club-S complex - anti-ship, anti-submarine and winged for attacking ground targets), a central post, a solid cabin with retractable devices, and outside - horizontal rudders located on it. In the middle part of the hull there are combat posts with various equipment and ship equipment, ballistic missile launchers and related equipment. Finally, in the aft part of the SSBN hull there are equipment and apparatus for a nuclear power plant with a water-cooled nuclear reactor with a thermal power of 80-85 MW and a steam turbine plant with a capacity of about 47 thousand hp, propeller shafting, etc., and outside - rudders and a seven-blade propeller. The published working depth of immersion is 300 meters, the crew is 95-100 people.

According to Indian sources, the ground-based prototype of the ship's nuclear power plant was put into operation at the ground-based stand of the Atomic Industry Research Center named after A.I. Homi Bhabha, developer of a nuclear reactor, in the city of Kalpakkam, where the Madras Nuclear Power Plant is located, on September 22, 2006. In August 2009, a large group of journalists was admitted to the prototype, while A. Moorthi, an employee of the above department, noted that “the ground-based prototype of a pressurized nuclear reactor, which has been successfully operating for the past three years, and a reactor for a submarine, correspond to scale 1:1".

Moreover, representatives of the Indian nuclear industry have repeatedly emphasized that the development of the reactor and its construction, as well as the entire nuclear power plant, were carried out exclusively by Indian specialists. So, in the article by T.S. Sabramanian, published in August 2009 in Frontline magazine (TS Subramanian. Nuclear arm. Frontline. Volume 26 - Issue 17, Aug. 15-28, 2009), the following words are quoted by the head of the Department of Atomic Energy of India, Srikumar Banerjee: “Russian specialists provided us with advice. And consultations were provided on the entire development of the submarine, and not just on the nuclear power plant. In turn, the former head of the Atomic Energy Commission of India, M.R. Sri Nivasan (M.R. Srinivasan) noted that work on a nuclear reactor has always been the lot of the Atomic Energy Commission, and the Navy only designed and built the nuclear ship itself. “Naval specialists received some help from the Russians in the design of the submarine, but the reactor is completely Indian development,” emphasizes Dr. M.R. Srinivasan. “The reactor, its components and fuel were made by the hands of Indian industry specialists.” However, in a number of Indian sources, with references to representatives of the same centers, there is evidence that after the version of the reactor developed by the Center for them. Homi Bhabha showed his inoperability, the Indian leadership decided to "purchase a reactor in Russia." Other companies and organizations were also involved in the work on the ATV program, such as: Naval Physical and Oceanographic Laboratory (NPOL), Kochi city; electronic equipment), Naval Science and Technology Laboratory (Naval Science and Technological Laboratory (NSTL), Visakhapatnam city; hydroacoustics), Atomic Research Center. Indira Gandhi (Indira Gandhi Atomic Research Center, near Chen-nai; work on nuclear weapons), the company "Larsen and Toubro" ("Larsen & Toubro", a shipyard in the city of Khazira; hull work on submarines - hull sections are built in Khazira and then transported Vishakhapatnam Navy Yard), Walchandnagar Industries Limited, and several other DRDO divisions. SSBN crew training was carried out at the School of Advanced Underwater Warfare in Vishahpatnam.

The main weapon of the "Arihant" is a missile system developed by the Defense Research and Development Organization of India (DRDO) with ballistic missiles K-15 "Sagarika" (ammunition load of 12 missiles), the launch of which can be carried out from the submerged position of the nuclear-powered ship and which can be equipped as nuclear ( from 17 to 150 kt), as well as conventional warheads.

The Sagarika (Oceanskaya) sea-launched ballistic missile was created with extensive use of the developments obtained by Indian specialists during the implementation of the Prithvi family of ballistic missiles and the BrahMos family of missiles. Work on it has been underway since 1991, the rocket is a two-stage one, both stages use solid propellant engines. Flight tests began in 2004 - the first two were carried out on January 23 and March 19, 2004. To date, according to Indian sources, the missiles have already been repeatedly tested from an underwater stand near the coast in the Visakhapatnam area - the first test on October 27, 2004, and in total six launches have already been completed from a depth of 20-50 meters. The development of a shipborne launcher for the K-15, carried out by Larsen and Tubro, the city of Hazira, Gujarat, under the "Project 420" (Project 420) or, according to other sources, "Project P78" (Project P78), completed in 2001 year, and it was handed over to the customer for testing.

The rocket body is made of steel alloy. The length of the rocket is about 10.0 m, the maximum body diameter is 0.74 m, the launch weight is at least 7 tons (according to some sources, up to 10 tons), the KVO is about 25 m, the firing range is up to 750 km, the useful mass loads, according to various sources, from 500 to 1000 kg. A number of Indian sources indicate that the developer is taking measures to increase the missile's firing range to 1300-2500 km, while reducing the mass of the warhead - the corresponding technical assistance is reportedly requested from Israel and Russia. The missile is stored in a composite transport and launch container with a diameter of 2.4 meters. The launch of the Sagarika BR from a submerged position is possible at a depth of 50 meters (the exact starting depth corridor is unknown).

The K-15 development team - 86 people led by A.K. Chakrabarti (A.K. Chakrabarti) - received the 2007 award "For the best achievements" for the successful implementation of this project. However, it is more interesting that Sandeep Annithan's article "Secret Undersea Weapon", published in January 2008 in India Today (Sandeep Unnithan. The secret undersea weapon. India Today. 01/17/2008), quoted the words of the retired Rear Admiral Raja Menon (Rear Admiral (retired) Raja Menon) that "the submarine carries at least 12 missiles, each with MIRV, which in total gives 96 warheads." This is a very significant statement - neither before nor after Indian sources mentioned MIRVs for Saagarika missiles. Although, on the other hand, a number of experts are skeptical about the words of the retired admiral.

A number of sources claim that DRDO is also developing the K-4 SLBM with a range of more than 3,500 km based on one of the Agni ballistic missiles (probably the Agni III). It is alleged that the missile, which, like the K-15, is being developed under the "black program", referred to in Indian sources as the "K Series Missiles Program", has a launch weight of 17-20 tons, a length of 10 meters , can carry warheads weighing 1000 kg and has already been tested at least once (in January 2010 near Visakhapatnam). At the same time, data are provided that it will be possible to place four such SLBMs on Arihant-type SSBNs - instead of 12 missiles of the K-15 complex. Recently, reports have appeared in the Indian press about work on the K-5 SLBM, a variant of the Agni VI ICBM.

The Arihant SSBN test program is carried out in two stages: the first is factory tests, the second is sea sea and state tests. Everything is going according to the approved schedule. At least in an interview with The Hindu newspaper in the summer of 2010, the Chairman of the Atomic Energy Commission of India, Dr. Srikumar Banerjee, stated: “Our NPP is 100% ready. From our side, the Department of Atomic Energy of India, everything has been done. We are waiting for other systems to come on line to start the reactor.” After the completion of state tests and the commissioning of the Arihant nuclear submarine into the combat structure of the Indian Navy, the country will finally receive, as Indian military experts emphasize, "the third hand in the national nuclear triad." Today, the construction of the second Arihant-class submarine (the name Aridhaman / INS Aridhaman is given in the Indian press) is already underway, which, according to the already mentioned Vice Admiral Mihir K. Roy, will be ready much faster than the lead ship.

The Arihant-class SSBNs are planned to be based on the territory of the new naval base of the Indian Navy, which, under the code name "Project Varsha", is being built on the east coast of the country in the Rambilli region, not very far from VMB Visakhapatnam. The new naval base will have special means to ensure the safety of nuclear-powered ships and the technical personnel serving them. It is planned that only military personnel will work at the base, the territory of which will be about 3,000 acres. The first phase of construction is said to have been completed at a cost of 15 billion rupees ($300 million).

"Chakra" with shark habits

In order to increase the combat potential of the submarine forces of the Indian Navy, gain experience in operating a modern nuclear submarine, as well as for the practical training of crews for Arihant nuclear-powered ships, it was decided to lease another multi-purpose nuclear submarine from Russia - this time project 971 (" Pike-B"). However, since the Russian Navy has submarines of this type and, as they say, “with a gulkin nose”, the Indian side was invited to take part in the completion of one of the Project 971 submarines, which are in a high degree of readiness on the stocks of Russian shipyards.

The choice fell on the Nerpa multi-purpose nuclear submarine (K-152, factory No. 518), which was laid down at the stocks of the Amur Shipbuilding Plant at the end of 1991 and then fell into the category of long-term construction due to the lack of funds from the Russian Navy for its completion and commissioning into the fleet. Several options were considered for the future fate of the Nerpa, which on December 4, 1997 received the Guards flag from the K-56 nuclear submarine of project 675, from gradual completion, including on the slipway of Severodvinsk Sevmashpredpriyatie, and to immediate disposal, but in In October 1999, the then Prime Minister Vladimir Putin, during a visit to the NEA, ordered the ship to be completed. However, active work on the completion of the K-152 began only after an agreement was signed in January 2004, during a visit to India by Defense Minister Sergei Ivanov, on the construction, according to project 971I, and the lease of two multi-purpose nuclear submarines. Moreover, at first, the deadline for the delivery of the first submarine to the customer was set for August 2007, but later it was postponed to June 2008, and then to December 2009, while the number of “leased” submarines was reduced to one (according to open sources, the cost of a leasing agreement nuclear-powered ship for 10 years is about 650 million dollars).

Project 971 ICAPL is one of those few military equipment and weapons created by Soviet designers in the 1970s and 1980s that were head and shoulders above their foreign counterparts. The technical design of the new nuclear-powered ship, which received the code "Pike-B" from us, and in the US / NATO classifier the code "Shark" and "Improved Shark" (Akula - project 971, Improved Akula - project 971U), was approved on September 30, 1977 ( the designer is the St. Petersburg Marine Engineering Bureau "Malachite"), and the lead ship was launched on April 16, 1988. The ship, which had a surface displacement of 8140 tons, underwater - 10500 tons, and capable of diving to a working depth of 480 meters (maximum diving depth - about 600 meters), turned out to be such a perfect "underwater hunter" that it literally caused shock to the command of the Navy and US military and political leadership.

Distinctive features: full underwater speed of 33 knots, fairly low noise levels (even in the 1990s, it was stated in foreign special press that the latest American shipborne sonar facilities were not able to maintain contact with the Improved Shark-type nuclear submarine for a long time at the speed of the latter at within 6-9 knots) and powerful armament - four 533-mm and four 650-mm torpedo tubes with a total ammunition load of up to 40 units, of which 28 are of 533 mm caliber. Moreover, from 533-mm torpedo tubes, it was possible to launch cruise missiles of the Granat complex with a firing range of up to 3000 km, including those with nuclear weapons. In addition, the ships received modern self-propelled sonar submarine simulators and means of non-acoustic detection of enemy submarines and surface ships.

A vivid example of the unique capabilities of these nuclear-powered ships was the example of the Tigr (K-154) ICAPL under the command of Captain 1st Rank Alexei Burilichev, which discovered and secretly monitored the American Ohio-type SSBN for a long time, for which the commander of the nuclear-powered submarine was awarded the title of Hero Russia. Including in response to the Soviet Pike-B program, the Americans were forced to implement an expensive program to create new generation multi-purpose nuclear submarines of the Seawolf type, the cost of only R&D and R&D for which and the development of a new nuclear reactor of the S6W type cost the Pentagon budget not less than 1 billion dollars, and the cost of one serial ship was about 4.4 billion dollars!

It is not surprising that retired Commodore Anil Jai Singh, who has served for a long time in the submarine forces of the Indian Navy, in the article "The Strategic Impact of Nuclear Submarines" specifically noted: "A nuclear multi-purpose submarine of the Shark type will provide a significant increase in the combat potential of the Indian Navy , possessing today only a fleet of non-nuclear submarines.

On June 24, 2006, K-152 was launched, on June 11, 2008, tests began on it before commissioning, at the end of October, the nuclear-powered ship went to sea for the first time, and on October 31, it made its first dive. However, on November 8, 2008, as part of the next stage of state acceptance, which included torpedo firing in one of the combat training areas at the “target”, the role of which was played by the Admiral Tributs military-industrial complex, as a result of unauthorized operation in the second compartment of the fire extinguishing system on a submarine, 20 people (three military personnel and 17 civilian specialists), and another 21 people received burns of the respiratory tract, suffered from suffocation and frostbite.

The repair of the nuclear submarine cost, as announced in the media, 1.9 billion rubles, among the work carried out is the replacement of freon in the fire extinguishing system of the LOH and a change in its control algorithm, as well as an audit of equipment and retraining of a commissioning team of about 200 people. In February 2009, the Inspectorate of the Indian Navy conducted an inspection of the state of the nuclear-powered ship, and after eliminating the comments it identified and the wishes made, factory sea trials were restarted on July 10, 2009, the first stage of which was successfully completed on July 27 of the same year. On September 23, 2009, the Governor of the Khabarovsk Territory, Vyacheslav Ivanovich Shport, announced that the third stage of sea trials had been successfully completed, and the last stage of state trials was completed - also successfully - on December 25, 2009. On December 28, 2009, in the city of Bolshoi Kamen, Primorsky Krai, a solemn ceremony was held to introduce the Nerpa ICAPL into the combat strength of the Russian Navy, in which Vice Admiral Konstantin Semenovich Sidenko, Commander of the KTOF, took part.

On June 1, 2010, the head of the Federal Service for Military-Technical Cooperation of Russia, Mikhail Arkadyevich Dmitriev, while on a business trip to Delhi, told reporters that "the training of the crew has been completed, the bulk of the tests have passed - everything is going to the finish line." October 2010 was called the date of transfer of the nuclear-powered ship to the Indian Navy, but later the date was postponed to the first quarter of 2011. However, only on December 30, 2011, at the General Headquarters of the Russian Navy, an act was signed on the transfer of the Nerpa to the Indian fleet. “All tests and checks of the functioning of the submarine at sea have been successfully completed, after the New Year the Indian crew will begin to settle in and master it,” a representative of the Russian Navy told Russian media. Finally, on January 23, 2012, at the Zvezda shipyard in the city of Bolshoy Kamen, Primorsky Krai, the final ceremony of transferring the Nerpa ICAPL to the Indian Navy was held, and at the request of the customer, the press was not allowed to attend the event. The ship in the Indian Navy received the name "Chakra" (INS Chakra), published in January 2012, the cost of a 10-year lease was $ 900 million.

Fleet of the new millennium

Speaking to reporters on December 2, 2011, on the eve of Indian Navy Day celebrated on December 4, the Commander of the Indian Navy, Admiral Nirmal Verma, emphasized that by 2027, the Indian Navy will be completely transformed and will have at least 150 warships of the main classes and at least 500 different aircraft. For comparison, today the Indian Navy has 132 warships, including 14 submarines, and 80 aircraft, 122 helicopters and 14 UAVs. Moreover, the rate of introduction of ships of the main classes into the combat composition of the fleet over the next five years is planned to be increased to an average of five NK (PL) per year. Only in the coming years, according to the admiral, the fleet will receive 49 new surface ships and submarines, 45 of which are being built at national shipyards.

Among the latter are nuclear submarine missile carriers of the Arihant type. And although the admiral never mentioned this extremely secret program in his speech, the Indian naval strategy specifically states in the section on nuclear deterrence: deployments, build-ups and redeployments… Nuclear-armed submarines are the most effective means of retaliatory nuclear strike. Taking the above into account, we can make an unambiguous conclusion that nuclear submarines are the most preferred type of weapon for creating compact nuclear forces.

The latter fits well into the "limited nuclear deterrence" policy approved and implemented by India's CDF, and, in particular, provides for the creation of compact ground-based, air-based and sea-based strategic nuclear forces. That is, the creation of its own minimally necessary "nuclear triad", which is a necessary tool for any state seeking to achieve the status of a regional power - not to mention a world-class power. At the same time, Indian military experts are sure that only the "nuclear triad", which has the universality and multivariance of the use of nuclear weapons, will ensure full-fledged nuclear deterrence and, if necessary, the most effective use of nuclear weapons. And finally, this year, the long-term dream of Indian admirals is probably starting to come true.

In this regard, retired Commodore Anil Jai Singh, a long-serving Indian Submarine Force and Naval Attaché at the Indian Embassy in London, in an article "The Strategic Impact of Nuclear Submarines" published in early 2012 in SP's Naval Forces" (Commodore Anil Jai Singh. Strategic Implications of Nuclear Submarines, SP's Naval Forces, No. 1, February-March 2012), indicates: "In the event of both events (meaning the commissioning of the Indian Navy leased Nuclear submarine "Chakra" of project 971I and the first going to sea to test the submarine "Arihant" - approx. V.Sh.), the Indian Navy will be very close to the moment when they can acquire the capabilities of a truly balanced ocean-going fleet and will be able to solve all problems in the interests of ensuring national interests. The commissioning of these two ships will not only allow us to reconsider the emphasis in the field of ensuring national security, but will also have a direct impact on changing the very structure of ensuring regional security at sea.”

Moreover, in his opinion, an experienced submariner, the submarine forces of the Indian Navy should have at least three Arihant-class submarines, given that at least one submarine should be on combat patrol in the ocean. “There is evidence,” notes retired Commodore Anil Jai Singh, “that the command of the Indian Navy has decided to commission at least five multi-purpose nuclear submarines and 20 non-nuclear submarines as part of the shipbuilding program, which provides for the construction by 2022 of the year 160 warships of the main classes.

Russia, France, Great Britain and the United States are competing for a contract to develop a new aircraft carrier for the Indian Navy, having received offers from the Indian Navy to participate in the tender.

India received its first aircraft carriers from Great Britain, whose role in the creation can hardly be overestimated. With independence, the influence of the Royal Navy did not decrease: in addition to traditions and a certain number of ships of various types inherited from the British, India cooperated with Great Britain for many decades, buying both finished ships and developments embodied in national shipyards.

The first Indian aircraft carrier was the INS Vikrant, built in 1945 by the joint efforts of the shipyards Vickers-Armstrong and Harland and Wolf for the Royal Navy under the name HMS Hercules. The ship never became part of the British Navy: in 1946, as part of the post-war reduction in the fleet, it was mothballed. In 1957, the ship was sold to India, and in 1961, after completion, it became part of the Indian fleet already as the Vikrant. A relatively small aircraft carrier with a total displacement of about 20,000 tons carried 20-25 aircraft: carrier-based Hawker Sea Hawk fighters, Breguet Br.1050 Alizé anti-submarine aircraft, American Sea King helicopters ( Sea King) and the French "Alouette" (Alouette). Subsequently, it was converted to VTOL fighter "Sea Harrier".

In 1997, 52 years after the construction, the Vikrant, which had served the Indian Navy for 36 years, was decommissioned and permanently moored as a naval museum in Mumbai.

By this time, the Indian Navy already had a second aircraft carrier. The ship, known as the INS Viraat, was purchased from the UK in 1986 and arrived in India in 1987.

The former Hermes (HMS Hermes) - a Sentor-class light aircraft carrier - was laid down at the Vickers-Armstrong shipyard in 1944, launched in 1953 and transferred to the British Royal Navy in 1959. As part of the Royal Navy, Hermes distinguished herself in the Falklands War of 1982, where she was the flagship of the British aircraft carrier formation. Larger than the Vikrant (28,700 tons of full displacement), it can carry up to 30-35 aircraft, although usually its air group, like its predecessor, is no more than 20-25 aircraft.

Already in the late 1980s, Indian admirals thought about the prospect of replacing both aging ships. The original plans called for the construction of two 28,000-ton aircraft carriers: the first would replace the Vikrant by the end of the 1990s, and the second would replace the Viraat in the mid-2000s. These plans were not implemented for economic reasons. In 1991, the Defense Expenditure Committee called for abandoning plans for large aircraft carriers and considering an alternative project the size of the Italian light aircraft carrier Giuseppe Garibaldi, known as one of the smallest aircraft carriers in the world, with a standard displacement of 10,000 and a gross displacement of 13,850 tons.

The Indian admirals did not like the idea of ​​replacing the Vikrant and Viraat with ships almost half the size. Nevertheless, the design of a new aircraft carrier capable of carrying 12-15 aircraft began, although the fleet was able to knock out an increase in displacement to 17,000 tons. In 1997, the Indian Navy almost managed to win back its former positions: the ADS (Air Defense Ship) project was considered as a promising one - a 24,000-ton ship with an air wing of 20-25 vehicles, based on the project of the French company DCNS.

During this period, the fleet changed its views on the concept of the future ship. Instead of an aircraft carrier designed to base short / vertical takeoff and landing aircraft (STOVL scheme), the admirals planned to get a ship capable of carrying full-fledged fighters. These aircraft carriers, built according to the scheme CATOBAR (ejection takeoff, landing with arresters) or STOBAR (short takeoff with a springboard, like on STOVL, and landing with arresters, like on CATOBAR), did not fit into the originally set size limits. The displacement of the designed ship increased, exceeding 30,000 tons and eventually stopped at a value of 37,500 tons of standard and over 40,000 - full displacement.

At the same time, it was clear that the implementation of our own project with such a difficult political climate would take a long time: the order for the first ship of the new project 71, named Vikrant, was issued in 2004, the laying of the aircraft carrier at the shipyard in Cochin took place in 2009 , the final launching - in 2015, and the commissioning, announced for 2018, can be postponed for another 1-2 years. Under these conditions, the leadership of the Indian Navy accepted the Russian offer to purchase the former Soviet heavy aircraft-carrying cruiser Admiral Gorshkov with its restructuring into an aircraft carrier of the STOBAR scheme, for basing MiG-29K fighters and helicopters. Negotiations that have been going on since the late 1990s ended in 2004, and in 2013 the ship was handed over to the customer under the name Vikramaditya. At the same time, India received 45 MiG-29K fighters, which should form the air wing of both the Vikramaditya and the new Vikrant.

In the late 2000s, when China was working on the Liaoning aircraft carrier (the heavy aircraft-carrying cruiser Varyag, unfinished for the Soviet Navy) and planning to build its own Chinese aircraft carrier, India was thinking about building the next ship. According to press reports, he should be given the name "Vishal" (INS Vishal).