Admiral R.K. Dhowan unveiling the plaque onboard the INS Kadmatt in Visakhapatnam | Photo: Indian Navy
The Indian Navy commissioned its latest Kamorta(P-28)-class Anti Submarine Warfare (ASW) corvette today at Visakhapatnam.
The INS Kadmatt, named after an island in the Lakshadweep group of islands is a Karmota-type corvette, designed by the navy’s Directorate of Naval Design, built by Garden Reach Shipbuilders and Engineers in Kolkata and commissioned in August 2014.
Like it’s predecessor, it boasts a percentage of indigenization in the region of 90 percent and has been ‘constructed using high grade steel (DMR 249A) produced in India’, according to a statement issued by the navy.
The next two Kamorta-class corvettes, INS Kiltan and INS Kavaratti, will incorporate the use of composite material in the construction of their superstructures, which is expected to reduce the weight of the vessels. This material was developed by Sweden’s Saab Kockums and has been used in the the construction of the Visby-class of frigates.
Capable of operations in a Nuclear, Biological and Chemical (NBC) environment, the INS Kadmatt has a displacement of 3300 tonnes, length of 109 meters and beam measure of 13.7 meters. Four diesel engines can power it to speeds of more than 25 knots and an endurance of 3450 nautical miles (more than 6300 kilometers).
According to the statement, the corvette has ‘many firsts to its credit which include the rail-less helo traversing system and foldable hangar door for the integral ASW helicopter’.
The navy says the INS Kadmatt is equipped with a Total Atmospheric Control System (TACS), Integrated Platform Management System (IPMS), Integrated Bridge System (IBS), Battle Damage Control System (BDCS) and Personnel Locator System (PLS) along with a ‘predominantly indigenous’ weapons and sensors suite and some of the indigenously developed system include the Combat Management System, Rocket Launcher, Torpedo Tube Launchers and Infra-Red Signature Suppression System.
The statement referred to the navy chief Admiral R.K. Dhowan as saying that the new INS Kadmatt commissioned today, would carry forward the name she inherits from her illustrious predecessor, the older Petya class. “The earlier Kadmatt, also an ASW Corvette, acquired in 1968 from the erstwhile Soviet Union, distinguished herself in the 24 years of service to the nation, particularly during the 1971 Indo-Pak war, Operation Pawan in Sri Lanka, and Operation Tasha,” said the navy in its statement.
The INS Kadmatt is commanded by Commander Mahesh Chandra Moudgil and will be part of the Eastern Fleet under the Eastern Naval Command.
