NEW DELHI: INS Tushil, the country’s latest stealth missile frigate that was commissioned into the Indian Navy at the Yantar Shipyard in Kaliningrad, Russia on December 9, is expected to reach the country’s western coast in mid-February, officials aware of the development said on Sunday.
It will be a part of the Mumbai-based Western Fleet, the officials said.
It was commissioned in the presence of defence minister Rajnath Singh, who described the warship as a “proud testament” to India’s growing maritime might and a “significant milestone” in the long-standing friendship between the two countries.
As part of strengthening the bilateral relations and naval cooperation between India and Morocco, INS Tushil arrived at Casablanca, Morocco, on December 27, on its way to India.
The warship will also carry out anti-piracy patrols in the Gulf of Guinea off the west African coast before it arrives in India, the officials said.
In October 2023, India and the European Union carried out their maiden naval exercise in the Gulf of Guinea to boost maritime security cooperation including fighting piracy. INS Sumedha, an offshore patrol vessel, was then joined by Italian, Spanish and French warships for the drills.
Tushil (or the protector shield) is an upgraded Krivak III class frigate of Project 1135.6, and six such vessels are already in service — three Talwar class ships, built at Baltic shipyard in St Petersburg, and three follow-on Teg class ships, built at the Yantar shipyard.
Tushil has an indigenous content of around 26%, double that of the previous Teg-class frigates. This includes contributions from 33 firms including Bharat Electronics Limited, BrahMos Aerospace (an India-Russia joint venture), and Nova Integrated Systems (a fully owned subsidiary of Tata Advanced Systems Limited).
Tushil is part of an over $2.5-billion deal with Russia for four more Krivak/Talwar class stealth frigates for the Indian Navy, two of which were to be constructed at the Yantar shipyard and the remaining two will be built at the Goa Shipyard Limited (GSL) with technology transfer from Russia. The second Russia-made frigate. Tamal, is expected to be commissioned into the Indian Navy in mid-2025.
INS Tushil is designed for blue water operations across the spectrum of naval warfare in all four dimensions — air, surface, underwater and electromagnetic.
It is armed with a range of advanced weapons, including the BrahMos supersonic cruise missiles, Shtil surface-to-air missiles with enhanced range, upgraded medium-range anti-air and surface guns, optically controlled close-range rapid fire gun system, torpedoes, rockets, and advanced electronic warfare and communication suite.