By IANS,
New Delhi : After facing extensive delays in its overhaul, Kilo-class diesel-electric submarine INS Sindhuvijay will set sail for India shortly from the Zvezdochka shipyard in northern Russia after undergoing refitting, a navy official said.
The submarine, the fourth to be refitted at Zvezdochka, will start for India Aug 5 to rejoin the Indian Navy.
“The sea trials for the Club-S subsonic cruise missile, fitted on the submarine, have been successful and the ship is ready to join the Indian navy’s submarine fleet,” the navy official said.
The Project 877 EKM Kilo-class submarine INS Sindhuvijay had been undergoing a refit at the Zvezdochka shipyard in Severodvinsk since 2005.
The overhaul of the submarine saw extensive delays with the new SS-N-27 Club-S cruise missiles miserably failing to meet performance levels.
In six consecutive pre-delivery test firings in the September-November 2007, the missiles failed to find their targets.
The Indian Navy refused to take delivery of the submarine till the glitches were fixed.
The Club-S subsonic cruise missile is designed for launch from a 533 mm torpedo tube, or a vertical launch tube and has a range of 160 nautical miles (about 220 km).
The upgrade programme also involved a complete overhaul of the submarine, including its hull structure, as well as improved control systems, sonars, electronic warfare systems, and an integrated weapon control system. The upgrades reportedly cost about $80 million.
Russian Kilo-class diesel-electric submarines have gained a reputation as extremely quiet boats, and have been purchased by China, India, Iran, Poland, Romania and Algeria.