Stealth guided missile destroyer Imphal commissioned into Navy

Mumbai: Stealth guided missile destroyer Imphal, which has an ability to fire extended range supersonic BrahMos missile, was commissioned into the Indian Navy in Mumbai on Tuesday.

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, Chief of Naval Staff Admiral R Hari Kumar were present at the event that marked the formal induction into the Navy of the third of four ‘Visakhapatnam’ class destroyers, indigenously designed by the navy’s in-house organisation, Warship Design Bureau and constructed by defence PSU Mazagon Dock Limited, Mumbai.

INS Imphal is the first warship to have been named after a city from the northeast, said Vice Admiral Dinesh K Tripathi, Flag Officer Commanding in Chief, Western Naval Command.

A guided missile destroyer with a displacement of 7,400 tonnes and overall length of 164 meters, Imphal is a potent and versatile platform equipped with state-of-the-art weapons and sensors, including surface-to-air missiles, anti-ship missiles and torpedoes.

Powered by Combined Gas and Gas (COGAG) propulsion, the ship is capable of achieving speeds in excess of 30 knots (56 km/hour).

The ship boasts of a high indigenous content of approximately 75 per cent that includes BrahMos surface-to-surface missiles, medium-range surface-to-air missiles, anti-submarine indigenous rocket launchers and 76mm super rapid gun mount.

INS Imphal was delivered to the Indian Navy on October 20 after the completion of a rigorous and comprehensive trial programme both in the harbour and at sea.

Subsequently, the ship successfully test-fired the extended-range supersonic BrahMos missile last month, a first for any indigenous warship before commissioning.

Following this milestone, the ship’s crest was unveiled by Defence Minister Singh in New Delhi in the presence of the chief minister of Manipur.

Upon commissioning, INS Imphal will join the Western Naval Command