Project-15B

Subject – Defence and Security

Context – Navy takes delivery of warship

Concept –

The first ship of the four Project-15B state-of-the-art stealth guided missile destroyers, Visakhapatnam, being built at the Mazgaon Docks Limited (MDL), was delivered to the Navy.
Delayed by three years, the ships will be commissioned very soon.
The 163-metre-long warship has a full load displacement of 7,400 tonnes and a maximum speed of 30 knots.
The overall indigenous content of the project is approximately 75%.
The design of the ships has been developed in-house by the Directorate of Naval Design and are a follow-on of the Kolkata class (Project 15A) destroyers.
The four ships are named after major cities from all four corners of the country — Visakhapatnam, Mormugao, Imphal and Surat.
The keel of Visakhapatnam was laid in October 2013 and the ship was launched in April 2015.
These ships are equipped with BrahMos supersonic cruise missiles and long-range Surface-to-air missiles (SAM). The ship has several indigenous weapons systems like medium range SAMs, indigenous torpedo tube launchers, antisubmarine indigenous rocket launchers and 76-mm super rapid gun mount,
These ships are propelled by four gas turbines in Combined Gas and Gas (COGAG) configuration and have maximum endurance of 4000 nm at economical speed of 14 knots.