INS Dhruv

Not to be confused with HAL Dhruv, a helicopter manufactured by HAL.
INS Dhruv
History
India
NameDhruv
OperatorJointly operated by Indian Navy

National Technical Research Organisation

Defence Research and Development Organisation
BuilderHindustan Shipyard Limited
Cost₹1,500 crore (equivalent to ₹17 billion or US$200 million in 2023) (FY 2020)
Laid down30 June 2014
Acquired31 October 2020[1]
Commissioned10 September 2021
IdentificationPennant number: A40
StatusIn Service
General characteristics
TypeOcean surveillance and missile tracking ship
Displacement15,000 t (15,000 long tons) [2]
Length175 m (574 ft 2 in)
Beam22 m (72 ft 2 in)
Draught6 m (19 ft 8 in)
Propulsion
  • 2 × diesel engines in CODAD, 9,000 kW (12,000 hp) each
  • 3 × auxiliary generators 1,200 kW (1,600 hp) each
  • 15 MW power
Speed21 kn (39 km/h; 24 mph)
Complement300
Sensors and
processing systems
  • X-Band AESA radar
  • S-Band AESA radar
Aircraft carried1 × helicopter

INS Dhruv (A40) is a research vessel and missile range instrumentation ship built by India's Hindustan Shipyard Limited (HSL). The ship was earlier only known by its shipyard designated yard number as VC-11184.[3]

The ship can gather electronic intelligence and will be used to track missile and satellites to aid India's strategic weapons and anti-ballistic missiles. It will be jointly operated by National Technical Research Organisation (NTRO), Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) and the Indian Navy. The development span of ships has remained largely secretive with little information in public domain. The ship reportedly started sea trials in early 2019,[4] and entered service in October 2020 without a public commissioning ceremony.[2] The ship was officially commissioned on 10 September 2021 at Visakhapatnam in the presence of senior officials from the Indian Navy, the DRDO and the NTRO.[5]

Development

The purpose of the ship is to support the development of India's strategic weapons and the Indian Ballistic Missile Defence Programme. The ship can also track strategic missiles and satellites.[6] In addition, it can also gather electronic intelligence. The keel of the ship was laid on 30 June 2014 at Hindustan Shipyard Limited.[7] It is being built under a classified and confidential programme which is directly under the control of the Prime Minister's Office and the National Security Advisor, similar to the Advanced Technology Vessel (ATV) programme of the Indian Navy.[8][7] The ship started harbour trials in July 2018 and was expected to undergo sea trials by the end of 2018.[9] As of March 2019, sea trials were ongoing.[10] The ship was delivered to the Indian Navy in October 2020 quietly[2] meanwhile official induction expected on first half of 2021.[6]

Design and description

The ship cost around ₹1,500 crore (equivalent to ₹24 billion or US$290 million in 2023) and has been designed in India by Vik Sandvik Design India.[7] It has a displacement of more than 10,000 tonnes, length of 175 metre, beam of 22 metre, draught of 6 metre and can attain a speed of 21 knots. It is powered by two imported 9,000 kilowatt combined diesel and diesel (CODAD) configuration engines and three 1200 kilowatt auxiliary generators.[8][7]

The ship will be fitted with a primary X band and a secondary S band active electronically scanned array (AESA) radar. In addition, it has a long open deck with ample space for installing multiple missile tracking antennas. It will have a crew complement of 300 personnel and will carry a single helicopter.[8] The ship will also have a special team from National Technical Research Organisation on board.[11]

Commissioning

The ship was commissioned by NSA Ajit Doval on 10 September 2021 in Visakhapatnam.[12] The ship will be jointly operated by National Technical Research Organisation (NTRO), Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) and the Indian Navy.[6]

INS Dhruv will be under Strategic Forces Command (SFC) and based in Eastern Naval Command of Indian Navy.[13]

Service

INS Dhruv had its first mission deployment to support Mission Divyastra, the planned test on an Agni-V missile with MIRV technologies. It successfully tracked the test flight on March 11 2024. The project directors will examine the trajectory and other variables of the missile as recorded by the Indian ballistic missile tracker INS Dhruv to make any operational changes if required.[14]

See also

References

  1. ^ "Annual Report 2020-21" (PDF). Hindustan Shipyard Limited. 27 December 2021.
  2. ^ a b c Puby, Manu (16 March 2021). "India commissions secretive nuclear missile tracking vessel". The Economic Times. Retrieved 16 March 2021.
  3. ^ "VC 11184 — Indian Navy's First Ocean Surveillance Ship". www.indrastra.com. Retrieved 27 March 2021.
  4. ^ Patnaik, Santosh (11 September 2018). "India's first missile tracking ship is readying for sea trials". The Hindu. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 27 March 2021.
  5. ^ "INS Dhruv: India gets its first nuclear missile tracking ship today. Details here". Hindustan Times. 10 September 2021. Retrieved 10 October 2021.
  6. ^ a b c "INS Dhruv that can track satellites, strategic missiles, to join navy soon". Hindustan Times. 16 March 2021. Retrieved 16 March 2021.
  7. ^ a b c d Ray, Kalyan (21 December 2014). "Mystery ship project gets Rs 725 crore from Centre". Deccan Herald. Archived from the original on 6 July 2016.
  8. ^ a b c Bedi, Rahul (23 November 2017). "India to commission ocean surveillance ship in 2018". IHS Jane's Defence Weekly. Archived from the original on 6 December 2017.
  9. ^ Bedi, Rahul (27 July 2018). "India's ocean surveillance ship starts harbour trials". Jane's Navy International. Archived from the original on 27 July 2018.
  10. ^ Patnaik, Santosh (18 March 2019). "Sea trials of ocean surveillance ship evoke good response". The Hindu.
  11. ^ Mehta; Rathod (21 November 2017). "India's most advanced missile-tracking warship to be handed to Navy in 2018". The Times of India. Archived from the original on 6 December 2017.
  12. ^ Gupta, Shishir (3 September 2021). "India's Ist N-missile tracking ship Dhruv to be launched on Sept 10". Hindustan Times.
  13. ^ R Sagar, Pradip (11 September 2021). "Explained: India's Ballistic Missile Defence programme, developed by DRDO". The Week. Retrieved 11 September 2021.
  14. ^ "India notches MIRV tech success in Agni-V firing, Pak failed 3 years ago". Hindustan Times. 12 March 2024. Retrieved 12 March 2024.