Russia to float out frigate for Indian Navy on Nov 27

The Yantar shipyard in Russia's Baltic exclave of Kaliningrad is building three modified Krivak III class (also known as Talwar class) guided missile frigates for the Indian Navy under a $1.6 billion contract signed in July 2006.

"The frigate is due to be floated out on Nov 27," Sergei Mikhailov said on Tuesday.

He said sea trials would not start right away because "post-construction work" was still to be carried out. The trials should start in 2010, he added.

The shipyard is to deliver the last warship to India in 2011-2012. He did not indicate exactly when the first frigate would be complete and handed over to India.

In an interview with RIA Novosti, Yantar's director Igor Orlov said the shipyard was currently in talks with Russia's Vnesheconombank on "a $60 million loan to complete the construction of the three frigates for the Indian Navy".

The Talwar-class frigate has deadweight capacity of 4,000 metric tonnes and a speed of 30 knots, and is capable of accomplishing a wide range of naval missions, primarily hunting down and destroying large surface ships and submarines.

Russia has previously built three Talwar class frigates for India - the INS Talwar, the INS Trishul, and the INS Tabar.

Indian President Pratibha Patil has named the new ships the Teg, the Tarkash, and the Trikand.

All the new frigates will be armed with eight BrahMos supersonic cruise missiles rather than 3M-54E Klub-N anti-ship missiles that were installed on previous frigates.

They will be also equipped with a 100-mm gun, a Shtil surface-to-air missile system, two Kashtan air-defence gun/missile systems, two twin 533-mm torpedo launchers, and an anti-submarine warfare helicopter.