The Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) has taken up a preliminary study on the design and development of an indigenous conventional submarine under Project-76.
- A formal case for project sanction will be put up to the Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS) after the initial preliminary study is completed.
About Submarines
- Submarine are naval vessels or ships that is capable of propelling itself beneath the water or underground as well as on the water’s surface.
- Submarines missiles or weapon systems are called a torpedo
- First used: Submarines were first employed in naval warfare during World War I (1914–18), when Germany employed them to destroy surface merchant vessels.
- Submarines in Indian Navy: The Navy has a 30-year submarine building programme and after the P-75I, it intends to design and build conventional submarines indigenously.
- Nuclear ballistic missile submarines (SSBN): The Arihant class submarines comprising INS Arihant (S2) and INS Arighat (S3) are developed under the Advanced Technology Vessel (ATV) project to design and build nuclear-powered submarines.
- Convention Diesel Electric submarines:
- Kalvari Class: INS Kalvari is the first of the six Scorpene class submarines built under Project 75, commissioned on 14 December 2017.
- Sindhughosh Class: Sindhughosh class submarines are the Kilo class diesel-electric submarines and have a displacement of 3,000 tonnes.
- Shishumar Class: The Shishumar class vessels (Type 1500) are diesel-electric submarines being developed by the German yard Howaldtswerke-Deutsche Werft.
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Project-76
Project-76 is a program to design & develop a new generation of indigenous conventional Air Independent Propulsion equipped diesel-electric attack submarines for the navy.
- The Project-76 will be a continuation of the Advanced Technology Vessel (ATV) project, to build a conventional submarine
- The Arihant series of nuclear ballistic missile submarines (SSBN) are being built under the project.
- Successor to: The project will be a successor to Project-75 (France) and Project 75I (German/ Spanish) and harness the learning and the best of their technology.
- Built by: The project will be a joint effort by DRDO and the Warship Design Bureau of Indian Navy (design of the submarine is expected to be completed by 2026)
- Fleet Size: The Indian Navy is anticipating to build 6 submarines under Project 76 with the weight ranging from 3000-4000 tons.
- Technology: It is expected to features some of the very advance technologies such as AIP technology, indigenous Weapon Control system, & Lithium-ion batteries, advanced acoustic absorption techniques, low radiated noise levels, long-range guided torpedoes, tube-launched anti-ship missiles, sonars and sensor suites.
- Indigenous Content: The Project will have close to 70-80% indigenous content, including weapons, missiles, combat management system, sonars, communications, Electronic Warfare suite, mast and periscope.
Project-75I (India)
- It is a military acquisition initiative which aims to procure The Scorpene class diesel-electric attack submarines with fuel cells and Air-Independent Propulsion System (AIP) for the Indian Navy to build India’s naval strength and develop indigenous submarine-building capabilities.
- Stealth capability: The AIP technology in Project 75I enables the submarines stay submerged for up to two weeks as opposed to the scorpene class submarines under Project 75 which has to come up the surface every 48 hours.
- Strategic Partnership model: Mazagaon Dock Limited has signing an agreement with German shipbuilder ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems (TKMS) in June 2023 to bid for the project.
- Larson & Toubro also signed a teaming agreement with Spain’s Navantia submitting a techno-commercial bid for the project.
Scorpene Class Submarines
- Project-75: The MDL has built six Scorpene class submarines under the Project-75, as part of a $ 3.75 billion deal signed in October 2005.
- Strategic Partner: The French defence firm, Naval Group allowed for transfer of technology.
- Commissioning Status:
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- The first four: INS Kalvari, INS Khanderi, INS Karanj and INS Vela were commissioned between 2017 and 2021.
- INS Vagir, was commissioned in January this year.
- INS Vagsheer: The sixth submarine INS Vagsheer began her sea trials.
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Air Independent Propulsion
- It is a marine propulsion technology that increases the stealth and endurance of a non-nuclear submarine to operate without access to atmospheric oxygen (by surfacing or using a snorkel)
- Significance: An AIP module acts as a force multiplier as it enables conventional submarines to remain submerged for longer duration thereby increasing their endurance and reducing chances of detection.
- Types: Closed cycle diesel engine (CCD), autonomous submarine energy module (MESMA), stirling engine and fuel cells.
- Indigenous AIP technology: Fuel Cell-based Air Independent Propulsion (AIP) system of DRDO’s Naval Materials Research Laboratory (NMRL) will soon be fitted onboard INS Kalvari.
- Fuel cells: The AIP module is phosphoric acid based and has a stack of fuel cells generating hydrogen with the power output of each fuel cell being 13.5 kW which will eventually be scaled up to 20 kW to meet future submarine requirements of Project-76
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July 1, 2024