The Need of Fast attack Missile Boats for Indian Navy

The Need of Fast attack Missile Boats for Indian Navy

    The Indian Navy currently operates some twenty missile launching small ships, and planning to build some six more next generation missile ships. Those missile boats are armed with mixture of subsonic and super sonic cruise missiles for both anti shipping and anti surface missions. Compared to the destroyers/frigates, Missile boats are fast moving ambush ships to strike and escape from enemy controlled sea. Compared to the rival Chinese Navy, India has very low amount of missile boats also lacks speed for quick attack. The Navy performed very well in 1971 by carried out a devastated attack using the Soviet supplied missile Boats.

    Chinese Navy operates nearly hundreds of Type 022 fast moving missile boats, with the speed of some 35 knots. However those missile boats don't pose a serious threats to Indian Navy in Indian controlled sea. Those Missile boats are very small in size and weights about only 220 tons. So this could be used for littoral operations only, means it's a good system to counter enemy ships if they tries to comes close to the Chinese shore's.

    Each Type 022 Missile Boats can carry C 802 anti ship missiles and Hongniao land attack cruise missiles, both missiles are high subsonic. The C 802's engagements range is more than 500 kilometers,  and the Hongniao can reach more than 1000 kilometers. Even if the Missile boats stay inside the safe zone, they can fire the missiles to off shore targets. The missiles can be guided by the Chinese airborne systems like AEWCS and satellites for targets acquisition and lock. They too have active seekers which helps the missiles to strike the enemy ship in good accuracy.

    The Chinese also uses the Type 056 Missile corvette's for fleet support and offensive anti shipping capability, they were some 1500 tons load and 20 knots of speed and 5000 kilometers Range, which can be further increased by the support of fleet replenishment ships. The PLA Navy operates more than 15 such missile corvette's. Each of the Corvette's can carry four YJ 38 Anti shipping high subsonic sea skimming missiles. whose range is upto some 250 kilometers.

    The Type 056 Missile corvette's also comes with light air defense for self defense. The onboard QR SAM can engage targets upto some 20,000 feet of altitude. where most Indian ASW crafts fly above the MANPAD range.The Type 056 also comes with AK 630 for CIWS support makes the Ship very difficult to intercept by using the sea skimming cruise missile's.

PLA Navy Type 022 Launching two C 802 missiles

     Another PLA Navy's Missile attack boat is the modified Type 037 ships. PLA Navy operates nearly 20 such Missile boats. unlike corvette's these are the real missile boats, as fast moving capablities  and lesser in range well they can operate beyond littoral sea's. Each Type 037 can carry four C 802 missiles for offensive operation, which is a sea skimming long range anti shipping missiles. Those Missile Boats can attain speed of more than 28 knots enough speed for ambush.

   Those Chinese Missile Boat who can carry long range missiles can be supported by flying airborne systems for guidance, once it was launched from the small boat, Also it's very hard to intercepting the missile boats due to smaller in size and fast moving. Most countries around the world using those missile boats for ensuring their offensive capabilities. 

INS Vidyut a Veer class Corvette, Armed with four Termit Missiles

    The Indian Navy has zero missile Boats, however good number of Missile corvette's armed with heavy and light missiles. Some of the Navy's Kora class corvette's can launch more than 16 Uran anti shipping cruise missiles, which is enough to take down a bigger aircraft carrier too. The Navy also operates some Veer and Khukri class missile corvette's, which uses Moskit or Termit missiles, those missiles are heavy in size so lesser range, each missile have enough power to rip off any modern destroyers. They can act as Anti shipping and Anti surface roles too. Since they use the active seeker in terminal Phase.

    The Navy's operates range of Offshore patrol vessels which don't have Anti shipping or Anti Surface  Missiles, since they were quite big enough to carry missiles,  it's believed in upcoming refit's those Off shore patrol vessel's too can be modified to carry Klub class anti shipping cruise missile, makes the Indian Navy's offensive fire power almost identical to PLA navy.

Navy Plans to Induct 6 Next Gen Missile Boats

Navy Plans to Induct 6 Next Gen Missile Boats

Model of a Next gen Missile Boat with Brahmos

       Indian Navy plans to induct six new next generation Missile Boats/Vessels under make in India program.  The missile vessel primary mission indicated as surface warfare unlike most other missile boats perform only Anti shipping.previously Indian navy used the Russian missile boats that can bring down entire Karachi and did awesome work in the 1971 WAR. and get the Nickname Killer Squadron. thus later replaced by the corvette's.

   It seems navy didn't satisfied those Corvette's they need new generation missile Boats.  but here the missile vessel have 8 VLS or Tubes for Surface attack this can be added with either Nirbhay LACM ( Land Attack Cruise Missile ) or Combination of Brahmos land attack and anti shipping cruise missiles.  the Nirbhay can strike target far more than 1200 kilometers with impressive loitering capability. also flies at low level and reduced RCS. so hard to be tracked by enemy air defence radars. 

the Indian Navy OSA 1 Class Missile Boat. The Killer Squadran

   the RFI indicates the vessel should have reduced RCS. so it will be hard to be detected by enemy ships. and along with lower acoustic signatures to make the ship hard to be detect by sonar's. both of these specification indicates the ship hull should be  stealth in design and material.

   the ship should be accomodate some 100 Navy personells include 11 officers. so the ship size provide beds and other living features and stocks food.

Range and Endurance

   The ship should be attain the max speed of 35 knots. and at the cursing speed of 25 knots  in any rough conditions such as sea state 4 or seat state 7 the ship should be perform it's primary tasks as per the indicated speed. also the ship can be contentiously cruise at the speed of some 10 knots about 8 hours. and the ship should be in the sea for continuously next ten days and can able to come back to the port with 25% fuel reserve. the missile boat can also be take resupply and refuel from Tankers and Replenishment vessels to further increase the endurance and range.

Weapon Pack

   as per the RFI, the vessel can carry 8 surface to surface missiles. but didn't mentions stocks or reloading. 

   the vessel also equipped with PDMS ( Point Defence Missile System ) that can perform targets in all sides that is provide cover of 360 degree. can also be engage the sea skimming and low flying AShM who flies below 3 meters above sea level. here again the RFI didn't mentions reloading, Range and Anti Aircraft capability. as of now Barak 8 is the only option for this.

  the ship can also need a Gun that can engage both surface bombardment anti air and anti missile engagements. along with separate fire control radar.and mentioned the range more than some 15 kilometers I think OTO Melara 127/64 LW. 

  they also informed the ship need a CIWS system which can be a stand alone version that can have Fire cotrol radar and EO ( Electro Optical ). along with target destruction of 360 degree. but the CIWS information can be normal like all others like range and detection.

Defensive Packs

   The ship should have Chaff flares for confusing incoming enemy missiles. known as the ECM (elctronic Counter measure ). that can provide cover to the entire ship. the ships also accomodate small fire arms such as can hold Assault rifles for sailors and heavy machine gun and Anti material rifles for special operations.  the ship also can smell the sonars who are all tracking the ships and can have high powerful search lights that can be operated by remotely. that will be very useful for search and rescue  missions. the ship also can have upto three big size PTZ camera's and two more fixed camera's that should be work both night and day.

Radars

   The ship can have main  Fire Control radar that can control entire Weapons and guide them the correct directions and targets. the FCR should can accommodate with the naval comabat management system which can integrate all ships under one umbrella known as C4ISR.  the ship also can have radars for Air surveillance for keep the air space under watch and another radar for surface search to keep watching surface ships movements. the ship also can have the proper Navigational system quoted in the RFI.

the dimensions and ship displacement is not listed that means the ship manufacture should accommodate all the above in the ship. no matter of dimensions and displacement. 

A Israeli Missile boat in similar Configuration