The Navy’s urgent priorities include helicopters and minesweepers, while India continue discussions with Japan for buying the US-2 amphibious aircraft, naval officials say.
“The US-2 is a good capability addition, but it is not a top priority. There is a constraint of resources and there are other things on that list. The Navy is in urgent need of helicopters, minesweepers and submarines among others,” one naval source says.
India and Japan have been negotiating a deal for 12 ShinMaywa-built US-2 amphibious aircraft at a cost of around $1.3 billion, but differences over the pricing offset clause have held it up.
Joint statement
The joint statement issued after talks between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his visiting Japanese counterpart, Shinzo Abe, earlier this month noted Japan’s “readiness to provide its state-of-the-art US-2 amphibian aircraft”, and the two governments decided to “continue their discussions in this regard”.
While the aircraft will be a great force multiplier for the Navy, they will divert precious resources from other pressing needs. Of these, the most pressing need is for helicopters, which are crucial in clearing way for ships and are also the first responders in any emergency on the seas.
The inventory
The Navy’s inventory currently consists of Chetaks, Russian Kamov-28 and 33s, six Sikorsky UH-3Hs, Seaking 42B & 42C and some advanced light helicopters. Except the last, all others are of 1980s vintage.
“Flying does not mean anything. It has to be able to see and do the job. But most of the sensors on the systems are obsolete,” another officer noted.
Surprisingly, while the force is inducting modern stealth ships, most of the decks lie vacant because of a lack of copters. Beyond the off-shore patrol vessels, all ships can accommodate two helicopters each. To meet these, there is a requirement of over 123 naval multi-role helicopters.
“These helicopters are needed to sanitise the area around the high-value assets and carry out attacks against enemy submarines at stand-off ranges,” an officer says.
Early this month, the Request for Information (RFI) was issued to global vendors for procurement of 123 NMRH and 111 Naval Utility Helicopters (NUH). The procurement would be under the recently approved Strategic Partnership (SP) model of the Defence Procurement Procedure (DPP). Past efforts to acquire new helicopters have repeatedly failed.
In addition to helicopters, the Navy recently floated the tender for a new line of six submarines under Project-75I, estimated to cost over ₹50,000 crore. Talks for procurement of 12 minesweepers estimated at ₹32,000 crore are in advanced stages.
