In a sad news INS Sindhurakshak caught fire. The torpedo cook off damaged another submarine parked close by INS Sindhuratna. 18 sailors are feared dead.

Navy submarine INS Sindhurakshak catches fire at naval dockyard in Mumbai
IANS | Aug 14, 2013, 05.01 AM IST

MUMBAI: A huge explosion accompanied by a fire rocked an Indian Navy submarine docked at the high security naval dockyard early on Wednesday, officials said.

The blast followed by a fire occurred shortly after midnight on the INS Sindhurakshak submarine.

Many sailors on board the submarine reportedly jumped off to safety.

“However, there is likelihood of some personnel being trapped inside. The details are being ascertained,” an official defence ministry statement issued at 3.15am said.

The details of other casualty figures were not immediately available though some injured sailors have been rushed to naval hospital INHS Ashvini in Colaba.

The cause of the explosion and blaze, as well as the extent of damage to the submarine and naval properties, is still not known.

At least 16 fire tenders of Mumbai Fire Brigade and Mumbai Port Trust were rushed to assist the naval fire brigade to douse the conflagration, the smoke emanating from which could be seen in many parts of south Mumbai.

A fire brigade official said that around 3am, the blaze had been brought under control and prevented from spreading to other vessels docked in the vicinity.

The blast was first heard ashore by deputy chief fire office PS Rahandale who was on leave and attending a private engagement near the Gateway of India promenade. He immediately alerted the fire brigade and other emergency services.

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Navy-submarine-INS-Sindhurakshak-catches-fire-at-naval-dockyard-in-Mumbai/articleshow/21813002.cms

The massive explosion was seen from miles away.

I’m also curious what is the purpose of those 3 cutouts (or vents ?) on the sliding canopy aft of the transparency.

I doubt that they are ‘vents’. It looks like a pattern on canopy.

Anyway, Vikrant is really shaping up to look like a real carrier now. Definitely something for the Indian shipbuilding industry to be proud of.

Indeed. August is indeed a good news month for Indian Navy. In other news, Arihant’s reactor has been activated.

http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/ins-arihant-reactor-goes-critical/article5009164.ece

It will undergo another 20 months of trial before it can go on deterrent patrol.

http://www.deccanherald.com/content/350309/039submarine-reactor-functioning-well-shut.html
Also, as per this^ report, the reactor for the second submarine has been delivered as well.

Meanwhile our Prime Minister’s facebook page passes off a picture of Ohio class as Arihant 😉 The height of deception 😀

India activates ‘secret’ undersea missile
By Hemant Kumar Rout – BALASORE
Published: 11th Aug 2013 11:34:00 AM

Amid escalation of simmering tension along the LoC in the wake of unprovoked killing of jawans leading to heightened resentment across the nation, India is contemplating to go for the maiden trial of its long range nuke-capable undersea missile K-4, which had been kept secret so far.

If things go as per the programme, defence sources said the indigenously built submarine launched ballistic (SLBM) missile, which has a strike range of 3000-km to 3,500-km will be test fired from a submerged pontoon, which is almost identical to submarine, off the Vishakhapatnam coast next month.

Though the missile has been designed to be launched from a depth of 50 meter, but this time the scientists are planning to fire it from the undersea platform nearly 20 to 30 meters deep in the Bay of Bengal. Earlier the developmental tests of the missile’s gas-booster have already completed successfully.

After the successful activation of the atomic reactor on-board the country’s first indigenous nuclear submarine INS Arihant in the wee hours on Saturday, the DRDO is in fact readying to conduct the first experimental trial of the much-awaited K-4 as soon as possible. This submarine will be equipped with the K-series missiles.

India has so far planned three missiles in the K-series. The 700-km range K-15, renamed as B-05 by the DRDO has been launched 10 times while the K-5 which will have a striking capability of over 5,000 km is under development. All the K-series missiles are faster, lighter and stealthier. The missiles are far more difficult to tackle as they skulk clandestinely undersea and manoeuvrable thus minimising the chance of being shot down by the enemy.

With a length of 12 meters and diameter of 1.3 meters, the missile weighs around 17 tonne and is capable of carrying a warhead of around 2 tonne. Basically a ballistic missile as it uses solid propellant, the K-4 missile combines the aspects of both cruise and ballistic missile, which use multiple-stage rockets to exit the atmosphere and re-enter in a parabolic trajectory.

http://newindianexpress.com/thesundaystandard/India-activates-secret-undersea-missile/2013/08/11/article1728237.ece?pageNumber=1&parentId=101891&operation=complaint

Starting to resemble a ship now.

Air Defence Ship launch will be a big morale booster: Cochin Shipyard Limited CMD
T Ramavarman, TNN | Aug 9, 2013, 06.12 AM IST

KOCHI: Waves of excitement lap the gates of Cochin Shipyard Limited (CSL) as the shipyard has initiated countdown for a historic mission – float-out of the country’s Indigenous Aircraft Carrier (IAC) aka the Air Defence Ship (ADS). Apart from helping India enter an elite league of six countries to indigenously build an aircraft carrier, the ADS will give the CSL a moment to cheer as it becomes the only shipyard in the country (and perhaps in the world) with proven expertise in defence and commercial ship building. This thrill finds echo in the words of CSL’s chairman and managing director Commodore K Subramaniam. Excerpts from a free-wheeling interview he gave the TOI:

Your reflections on phase-1 of project IAC?

CMD: Warships are much more difficult to build. The requirements are extremely stringent. Basically warships are designed to go into the harm’s way, to sustain battle damage. They must be able to perform even after taking some punishment.

What gave you the confidence to undertake the project?

CMD: CSL started shipbuilding in 1976, we launched the first ship Rani Padmini in 1980. The 80-odd vessels we have made so far, include the largest containers (two Aframax tankers built for SCI, each of 93,000 tonnes dwt), as well some of best platform supply vessels (PSVs) across the globe. But we got the order only because CSL dock could accommodate an aircraft carrier. About 16,000 tonne of steel has been erected in the dry dock in four years, which is a record.

About the next phase?

CMD: The next immediate work is putting the angle deck and sponsons (projections beyond the flight deck), and in 10 months we will finish that. Then we have to complete the entire hull structure, lay all the pipelines, cabling, ventilation trunkings, install all the motors, and switchboards, all these will go on. We also have to do the accommodation as an aircraft carrier is like a floating mini city housing 2,500 people. The next phase we will be completed by 2016.

But the Navy has set a 2018-deadline for you?

CMD: All countries making aircraft carrier take nine to 12 years, between keel laying and delivery. We laid the keel of this in February 2009, and if you are able to finish by 2018, you are actually on par with the Russians, better than the French, and as good as the British. 2018 is challenging deadline, but we will strive to stick to it.

So you are confident to bid for second aircraft carrier?

CMD: Most certainly. We should be the natural choice. Everybody will benefit, the Navy, the country and the shipyard. Anybody else will have to go through this learning cycle again. We are now looking at defence orders till commercial ship building picks up. We have responded to 20-dd tenders of navy, but there is tough competition among Indian shipyards.

But defence minister is of the view that nomination route may not work?

CMD: All the government agencies have to follow the tendering procedure. Private shipyards have lobbied with the ministry asserting that they should not be treated as untouchables (for government tenders). They are arguing that the public sector shipyards should not be given concessions as they will be deprived of level playing fields.

Are you intending to make forays into building of coastal ships?

CMD: We will have to be clear, we are not into boats, we are looking at high-end, high value jobs where our highly skilled manpower can be deployed.

How is your ship repair work progressing?

CMD: Our capacity is to generate a turnover of about Rs 250 crore last year we did even better, we did about Rs 280 crore. We feel ship repair has lot of potentials.

How is your ship building order book placed?

CMD: Right now we have got 25 vessels, including the IAC, 20 fast patrolling vessels (FPVs), worth about Rs 1,500 crore. There is an order for three vessels for a Norwegian owner, they will be Liberian flagged vessels. We also have an order for a vessel for Director General of Light Houses and Light Ships. Altogether these orders are worth Rs 2,400 crore, other than the aircraft carrier.

Any update on CSL’s IPO move?

CMD: We need to get government approval. We have started the process. We will need about Rs 500 crore for developing the ship repair facility. We are also looking at a dry dock for rig repair, roughly it will cost about Rs 1,100 crore. I would prefer the equity route for this project as well.

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/India-to-launch-first-indigenous-aircraft-carrier-INS-Vikrant/articleshow/21720713.cms

Larger aew&c project, AWACS India, taking shape.

http://drdo.gov.in/drdo/tenders/viewTender.jsp?paramMicro=4591

CABS has been entrusted with Design and Development of Airborne Surveillance Systems. The envisaged system will have uniform surveillance performance over full 360 degree coverage. The front end of the Radar and the Identification Friend or foe (IFF) systems shall be housed in an ellipsoidal radome on top of the fuselage installed using pylons. In addition suitable mechanical structures to transfer the air loads will be designed and housed in the radome. The radome also houses parts of the liquid cooling system(piping structure) and ladder system for maintenance.

Diameter of the radome (of the order of) 10.0 m
Height of the radome(of the order of) 2.0 m
Radome shape Ellipsoidal
Weight of the radome Shells (about) 1500Kg
Electromagnetically transparent in S and L band
Withstand aerodynamic loads on the radome as per flight envelope of wide body aircraft.
The radome shall have lighting detectors/dischargers and should have surface which will not permit ice accumulations.

The radome shall have 4 shells (3 in case of design change) and shall be easy to install /de-install as seen in figure 2.

The envisaged will have 4 faces arranged in a rectangular /square configuration (see Fig 3). The shells shall have suitable attachments to the antenna panels/supporting structures.