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BRAHMOS Supersonic Cruise Missile was successfully test fired from the Indian Navy's newest destroyer INS Kolkata. The launch was flawless and the missile met all its designed parameters.

The Indian Navy commissioned INS Kolkata on 16th August 2014. This is the first ship of this class, with two more ships in the pipeline. All the three ships are equipped with vertical launched BRAHMOS Supersonic Cruise Missile System as the prime strike weapon.

Kolkata class destroyers are fitted with IAI's EL/M-2248 MF-STAR radar , VLS to launch 16x Brahmos anti-ship supersonic cruise missile and Barak 8 surface-to-air missiles, 4x AK-630 close in weapon systems. The Universal Vertical Launcher (UVLM) being used in these has a unique design, developed and patented by BrahMos Aerospace. The UVLM has the benefits of stealth and permits launching of the missile vertically in any direction.

BrahMos chief Shri Sudhir Mishra congratulated the BrahMos Team and Indian Navy on the successful mission.

Analysis of the Indian Navy's new Project 17 Shivalik-class frigates has revealed that the vessels are fitted with a new-generation very high frequency / ultra high frequency (VHF/UHF) communications intelligence/direction finding (COMINT/DF) system supplied by Israel Aerospace Industries' Elta subsidiary.

Built by Mazagon Dock Ltd in Mumbai, INS Shivalik , INS Satpura , and INS Sahyadri were commissioned into the Indian Navy between April 2010 and July 2012. The ships mix weapon and sensor systems acquired from European, Israeli, Russian, and indigenous sources.

A distinctive feature of the Project 17 design is a pole mast, mounted on a platform extending just forward of the EL/M-2038 surveillance radar aft, with a distinctive COMINT/DF antenna.

Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) introduces the new generation ELI-3360 Maritime Patrol Aircraft (MPA) based on a modified Bombardier Global 5000 business-jetplatform. Designed by IAI's ELTA Group to provide maritime domain situational awareness and maritime superiority, the new MPA provides the most sophisticated surveillance, reconnaissance and armament systems to be installed on a business-jet to date.

The system incorporates the advanced ELTA ELM-2022 Maritime Patrol Radar, an electro-optical sensor, the ELL-8385 ESM/ELINT system, and a comprehensive communications suite comprising radios, broadband SATCOM and data-links as well as advanced Electronic Warfare (EW) and self-protection Suite.
The integrated multi-mission Command & Control Suite includes multi-purpose operator workstations and a weapon and stores management system which controls the under-wing weapons that may include torpedoes and anti-ship missiles for Anti-Submarine Warfare (ASW) and Anti Surface Warfare (ASuW) as well as dispensable Search & Rescue (SAR) stores.

The new generation ELI-3360 joins IAI's series of Special Mission Aircraft (SMA), and is based on IAI's 30 years of experiencein supplying advanced maritime domain sensors and integrated systems to leading customers worldwide. IAI's line of business-jet SMA includes the operationally proven Gulfstream G550 Conformal Airborne Early Warning (CAEW), and the G-V Signal Intelligence Aircraft (SEMA) - the world's first business-jet based mission aircraft.
Since IAI's pioneering conception of business-jet SMA, the SMA market has moved steadily over the past decade towards cost-effective business jets. High endurance, speed, range and multi-mission versatility of such SMAs is unmatched by large commercial transport aircraft or turbo-props.

Stealth destroyer INS Kolkata, the largest warship built in India, will fire a long-range surface-to-air missile (LR-SAM) for the first time in 2015.

“The vertical launch units of the LR-SAM, also called Barak 8, have been built into the vessel and the MF-STAR [multifunction surveillance and threat alert radar] is in place for missile guidance. All you need to do is take delivery of the missile, load it and fire. It is slated to take place next year,” Captain Tarun Sobti, Commanding Officer of INS Kolkata, told The Hindu during an exclusive tour of the ship.

The ship, commissioned in August in Mumbai, has just finished its maiden work-up here, during which the vessel and its crew were put through their paces by the Flag Officer Sea Training. The ship will carry 32 SAMs, with an enhanced range of up to 70 km, for missile defence.

The first flight of the LR-SAM, jointly developed by the Israeli Aerospace Industry and the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), took place in Israel in November.

An operational firing of the vertical BrahMos supersonic cruise missile, against surface targets, would be carried out early next year, Capt. Sobti said. The vessel fired BrahMos during the sea-acceptance trials off Karwar in June.

He said the vessel had an indigenous content of about 70 per cent. The work-up laid emphasis on, and perfected, the standard operating procedures, safety routines and tactical skills. “It’s a special training where procedures are perfected, the crew put together and safety drills performed to a fault,” he said.

The vessel, sporting a stealth design and displacing 7,500 tonnes, demonstrated strength, manoeuvrability and survivability and provided crew comfort. robust anti-submarine warfare capability was achieved with depth chargers, heavy-weight torpedoes, rockets and a bow-mounted sonar, the HUMSA-NG, developed by the Naval Physical and Oceanographic Laboratory, a DRDO lab.