Imphal, the third in the series of Visakhapatnam-class guided missile destroyers, will be commissioned into the Indian Navy in Mumbai on December 26.
Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders Limited (MDL), on October 20, handed over Imphal (Yard 12706), the third in its series of 15B class stealth-guided missile destroyers, to the Indian Navy. First ship of P15B class INS Visakhapatnam launched on December 18, 2022.
The third ship – Imphal – will be launched on December 26 while the fourth, Surat, is in an advanced stage of fitting out. The ship is built using indigenous steel DMR 249A and is one of the largest missile destroyers built in India, with an overall length of 164 meters and a displacement of over 7500 tonnes. The ship is a powerful platform capable of undertaking various tasks and missions spanning the entire spectrum of maritime warfare.
It is armed with supersonic surface-to-surface ‘Brahmos’ missiles and ‘Barak-8’ medium-range surface-to-air missiles. The destroyer also has undersea warfare capabilities and has indigenously developed anti-submarine weapons and sensors, notably the hull-mounted Sonar Humsa NG, heavyweight torpedo tube launchers and ASW rocket launchers.
The ship can accommodate a crew of 312, has an endurance of 4000 nautical miles and can conduct a typical 42-day mission with extended mission time in out-of-area operations. The ship is equipped with two helicopters on board to further extend its reach. The ship is powered by a powerful Combined Gas and Gas Propulsion Plant (COGAG), consisting of four reversible gas turbines that enable it to achieve a speed of 30 knots (about 55 km/h).
The ship boasts of a very high level of automation with state-of-the-art digital networks such as the Gigabyte Ethernet-based Ship Data Network (GESDN), Combat Management System.