Russia Tests Indian SSK Sindhurakshak Next Week

11.10.2012 Indian diesel electric submarine INS Sindhurakshak ("Sea Giant") being revamped under Project 08773 at Zvezdochka Ship Repair Center in Severodvinsk will start sea trials in the next week, a source in the shipyard told Central Navy Portal.

"Upon termination of all trial rounds, Sindhurakshak will be handed over to Indian Navy by the end of the current year", the insider said.

The contract for a 27-month long modernization of INS Sindhurakshak was signed in June 2010 in Delhi by delegations of Zvezdochka shipyard and Indian defense ministry.

Zvezdochka Ship Repair Center being specialized in repair of nuclear and diesel submarines, since 1997 has retrofitted four Project 877EKM submarines for Indian Navy: INS Sindhuvir, INS Sindhuratna, INS Sindhughosh, and INS Sindhuvijay. Not only service life of those subs was prolonged; they obtained cruise missile engagement capability. The shipyard continues work on Project 08773 submarine INS Sindhukirti at her permanent basing site in Vishakhapatnam naval base.

All those Kilo-class subs were built in Russia under Project 887EKM developed by Rubin Design Bureau (St. Petersburg). They are used for antisubmarine and antisurface warfare, as well as defense of naval bases, protection of coastal and sea lanes, reconnaissance and patrol missions. Their displacement is 2,300 tons, length is 72.6 meters, submerged speed is 19 knots, test depth is 300 meters, crew is 52 men, endurance is 45 days, armament includes six 533-mm torpedo tubes with combat load of 18 torpedoes. As a result of modernization, the subs received new Russian missile system Club-S with 200-km cruise missile range, Indian sonar USHUS and radio communication systems CCS-MK.

Diesel-electric submarine INS Sindhurakshak was built by Admiralteyskie Verfi shipyard in St. Petersburg and handed over to Indian Navy in 1997.