The seventh and last frigate of the advanced Nilgiri-class frigates of the Indian Navy was launched today (1 September) by Mazagon Dockyard Limited (MDL) in Mumbai.
The newly launched frigate was constructed under Project-17 Alpha, which involves the construction of seven new-generation stealth frigates for the Indian Navy using advanced technologies.
These frigates are being built by two state-run shipyards — MDL and Garden Reach Shipbuilders and Engineers (GRSE).
Four of the frigates — INS Nilgiri, Udaygiri, Taragiri, and Mahendragiri are being manufactured by MDL, while the remaining three, INS Himgiri, Dunagiri, and Vindhyagiri, by GRSE.
This milestone comes just a fortnight after President Droupadi Murmu launched the sixth frigate, INS Vindhyagiri, made by GRSE in Kolkata.
These ships are follow-on versions of the three Project-17 vessels, also known as the Shivalik-class frigates in the Indian Navy.
According to reports, the first two frigates are expected to be delivered to the Navy by 2024, with the remaining five being inducted by 2026.
The stealth frigate is designed by Indian Navy's in-house Warship Design Bureau.
The stealth frigate Mahendragiri has a flush-deck design and is constructed using a significant amount of composite materials, including radar-absorbent materials, which reduce its radar cross-section, making the frigate harder to detect and engage using anti-ship missiles.
The 6,670-tonne frigate will be equipped with an indigenously designed CMS-17A combat management system, providing highly sophisticated and secure data links for uninterrupted interoperability among multiple navy surface and aerial assets.
Armed with eight BrahMos supersonic anti-ship and land-attack cruise missiles and 32 Barak-8 medium-range surface-to-air missiles, the 149-m frigate packs a formidable punch.
The Israeli EL/M-2248 multi-function surveillance, track, and guidance radar or MF-STAR provides exceptional situational awareness capabilities to the frigate.
The EL/M-2248 can detect a fighter jet-sized target from a maximum range of over 400 km.
Comments ↓
An Appeal...
Dear Reader,
As you are no doubt aware, Swarajya is a media product that is directly dependent on support from its readers in the form of subscriptions. We do not have the muscle and backing of a large media conglomerate nor are we playing for the large advertisement sweep-stake.
Our business model is you and your subscription. And in challenging times like these, we need your support now more than ever.
We deliver over 10 - 15 high quality articles with expert insights and views. From 7AM in the morning to 10PM late night we operate to ensure you, the reader, get to see what is just right.
Becoming a Patron or a subscriber for as little as Rs 1200/year is the best way you can support our efforts.
The embedded tweet could not be found…
