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| Akula class Nuclear submarine |
India and
Russia are to shortly begin negotiations on the lease of a second
nuclear attack submarine for the Indian Navy. The second boat likely to
be the completed might be Iribis, an Akula that was only half
constructed but abandoned as a result of paucity of funds.
The recently
leased Akula class submarine - INS Chakra II, currently in service with
the Navy’s eastern fleet has been on nearly non-stop patrol since its
induction in April last year, and the Navy is reported to be very
satisfied with its capabilities and performance.
Tentatively
christened INS Chakra III, the new submarine will be another advanced
variant of the Akula class submarines that are capable of spending
months under water. It is likely to be equipped with more lethal weaponry, including a vertically launched Brahmos missile system.
The submarine
is to be reconstructed around the hull of the Iribis, a Russian Akula
class submarine that was never completed as funds became scarce in the
late nineties. Vladimir Dorofeev, head of the Malachite Design Bureau, said
that the new submarine could also benefit from the design efforts that
Russia had put in its latest class of Yasen nuclear-powered attack
submarines.