This level of jointness and synchronisation among our three forces bodes quite well for our future war victories, IMO.
so they airdropped because they didn't have enough men on hand to subdue the pirates on board? If the IN is planning to continue this anti-piracy ops maybe they need to station more commandos on participating ships?
On a ship of Kolkata class there are generally limited space for not only special forces but also number of RHIBs availability. And one can't keep multiple ships in same vicinity logically speaking, hence naval ship rerouting would had taken much more time compared to Arial supply & insertion.so they airdropped because they didn't have enough men on hand to subdue the pirates on board? If the IN is planning to continue this anti-piracy ops maybe they need to station more commandos on participating ships?
It is always a trade-off. Kolkata class destroyer have a nominal endurance of 45 days. That means the ship can carry its full load and run at max speed for 45 days straight, then it runs out of fuel. INS Kolkata has been deployed near the Somalian coast since late December 2023, she has been at sea for almost 3 months. Of course, she has not been running around at 33 knots all the time. The ship is likely to remain deployed for a few more months at least.so they airdropped because they didn't have enough men on hand to subdue the pirates on board? If the IN is planning to continue this anti-piracy ops maybe they need to station more commandos on participating ships?
I guess the followup question would be if the Kolkata class destroyers are the appropriate ships for the mission? If it is low-intensity pirate hunting is it wise to utilize a guided missile destroyer? I imagine the job could be done cheaper with frigates or even the larger OPVs.It is always a trade-off. Kolkata class destroyer have a nominal endurance of 45 days. That means the ship can carry its full load and run at max speed for 45 days straight, then it runs out of fuel. INS Kolkata has been deployed near the Somalian coast since late December 2023, she has been at sea for almost 3 months. Of course, she has not been running around at 33 knots all the time. The ship is likely to remain deployed for a few more months at least.
When planning for a deployment of this sort, long endurance but low-intensity conflicts, the Navy has to plan their load outs accordingly. In this type of missions carrying 16 Brahmos isn't very useful. But carrying more fuel, food, medicine, firefighting equipment etc. will make all the difference.
The Navy has to make a careful choice of how many MARCOS personnel each ship will carry. Remember INS Kolkata has carried out a few interceptions before where the on-board personnel were enough. This is a bigger op & thus more people were needed. Plus, it's a great learning experience in joint operations.
Exactly. The ideal ships for this mission in my mind would be a combined fleet of the Navy's upcoming NGMVs & NGFACs mixed in with some OPVs. They have the right combination of small size, high speed, fire power & air-defence capabilities for this job.I guess the followup question would be if the Kolkata class destroyers are the appropriate ships for the mission? If it is low-intensity pirate hunting is it wise to utilize a guided missile destroyer? I imagine the job could be done cheaper with frigates or even the larger OPVs.
Even the smallest of IN's modern frigates, the Talwar class, are sent out for deployments in the South China Sea. Shivalik class has better endurance than the Talwar & the upcoming Nilgiri class have endurance similar to the Kolkata class DDGs. IN has the option of switching out the DDGs for the frigates. It's just that they want the Kolkata & the Vizag class there.Is this just because there aren't a lot of other good options for the IN in terms of ships capable of loitering in the high seas for extended times?
Well besides the SAMs the destroyers have the size & intimidation factors going for it. These things have an important role to play when you are trying to "persuade" the pirates to not start a kinetic fight. A smaller but equally armed ship may not give you that "street rep".Perhaps the Kolkata is not specifically there for anti-piracy and this was more of an action of convenience.. I'd imagine that it is carrying a decent SAM load-out considering the drone/missile threat from Yemen right now.
I also get that it is great experience for the crew and the learnings from joint operations is also great for future tactical planning.