Indian Sonar and Torpedo developments

hellbent

hellbent

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Dec 4, 2017
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Varunastra is a ship launched torpedo

The under development electrical heavy weight torpedo EHWT is the one purpose built to be launched from submarines.

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hellbent said:
Stupid presstitudes

Varunastra is a ship launched torpedo

The under development electrical heavy weight torpedo EHWT is the one purpose built to be launched from submarines.

View attachment 4151
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Yes but the author is not Indian so we can slide it. Still, scorpene will need some modification in its combat system and torpedo tubes also to launch these.

DRDO Takshak/EHWT (Electrical Heavy Weight Torpedo)
DRDO EHWT (Electrical Heavy Weight Torpedo)..jpg


Its a fibre-optic wire guided 533mm x 6.4m submarine-launched torpedo along with Ring Laser Gyro INS guidance as well as GPS based guidance.

Range- 40 km
Depth- 400m
Speed- 40 knots/hr
300 kW AgO-Zn battery
 
@Ashwin found the spec sheet of the ALWT I was looking for. From MoD Annual Report 2018-19 :
Screenshot (765).png

The ALWT is on par or better than most lightweight torpedoes out there in the world today. The only thing left to improve upon is the maximum depth. Right now operating depth is at 600 m, assuming a safety factor of 0.8 the maximum attainable depth is 750 m. There are torpedoes out there with 1000 m maximum depth. Of course with the upcoming SMART engagement ranges that were previously impossible will be attained. Range and speed will be further improved when the high energy density batteries come. DRDO/NSTL was also working on super-cavitation technologies for underwater weaponry.

Well since you made a thread let's keep these photos of the ALWT here :
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Ashwin said:
It's safe to assume Atlas Elektronik delivered six ACTAS by now.

DRDO Advance Light Towed Array Sonar (ALTAS) was undergoing user trials last year. Yet to place get orders.
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No, both operate on different frequency bands, Altas electronic operates on VLF and DRDO ALTAS operates on low frequency, both have have been ordered and have different roles as far as I can tell.
 
Gautam said:
Is Shakthi torpedo project still on ? I thought it was closed.
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Even though NSTL had claimed that the TD project was successful, Navy did not agree. When audit sought to know (March 2013) the reasons for the delay in taking up the project on development of Thermal Torpedo, Navy stated (June 2013) that culmination of a TD project into an MM project is possible only when DRDO demonstrates its capability to develop component technology in a TD project. Since the objectives of the TD project were not met and developmental capability not demonstrated, the project was not pursued further.

From CAG
 
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janme said:
No, both operate on different frequency bands, Altas electronic operates on VLF and DRDO ALTAS operates on low frequency, both have have been ordered and have different roles as far as I can tell.
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Both are towed. Which was the question.

Do you have frequency numbers to compare?
 
Chain Smoker said:
Is drdo developing ultra low frequency sonar. @Gautam
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Depends on the type of sonar. The dunking sonars and the anti-diver sonars are mostly in the low to ultra low frequency range. So those are already there.

Submarine/Ship-bourne sonars are not in that range. But DRDO has developed low frequency transducers for ship & submarine-bourne applications as of 2016(pics below). They have research papers on the ultra low &/or low frequency range sonars dating back to early 2000s.

Screenshot (19).png
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A sonar with the transducers shown above will be low frequency capable. Whether they have actually put together a sonar or not is not known in public, but the building blocks are very much there.

Admittedly, the work done on low frequency sonar is numerous and such sonars can be readied for deployment within a short amount of time if needed. But on ultra low frequency work hasn't advanced as much. We are in prototype stage of ultra low frequency transducers and it will take a couple of years to have a full sized prototype ready, most time will be taken up in finding/making the right PZT material to use as the vibrating element in the transducer. All this assuming there is any demand for such a sonar. I don't know if the IN has expressed any such needs.



Edit : Just remembered that NMRL was making PZT-Polymer Elements for "Advanced Sonar Transducers". PZT(Piezocomposite) polymer composite elements were developed by NMRL as an alternative for conventionally used PZT piezoceramic material having the limitation like high acoustic impedance, higher weight factor and poor mechanical properties. The Piezocomposite based sonar transducers exhibit enhanced receiving and transmitting response over a large frequency bandwidth and narrow beam width.
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So maybe the Navy wants it after all.:p
 
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Ashwin said:
Yeah, they are just operationalizing optical fiber to the island but they already installed sonar along the entire Andaman sea (Even touching Indonesia). That too without any other close neighbors protesting. When these kinds of installations are directly against their sovereignty and it's inside their EEZ for god sake. And PLAN chooses to ignore these developments in the international waters?

Who produced this so-called SOSUS at such a scale ? We know suppliers of our most secretive arihant project. Is this more secretive than that? It is one thing to say we are developing and testing seabed sonars and another to give a map of kilometers of deployed one. They are yet to operationalize a basic towed array sonar for comparison.
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hellbent said:
Indian uderseas network is an independent network contrary to assertion that it is linked to others and it is localised in areas of interest and expanded over a period of time. It is total misinformation being spread that it is linked to SOSUS. india recieves 'selected' data from SOSUS and that is it .

Frankly speaking I have no idea of their location.

I know of one system which was place right in the doorsteps of the ' party ' 😛 and later recovered after it approached end of service life .

I can name the company which makes these seabed arrays or rather integrates them.

Nobody will publicize all these

The effectiveness of these systems lies in their annonimity , especially their location is kept secret if possible

And unrelated let me tell you another thing india does submarine cable tapping ( though not in th deep seas afaik )

@_Anonymous_
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I think you ought to create a separate thread - preferably a sticky for the SOSUS / Fishhook system as well as India's fledgling attempts in this direction as well as India's plans to link it with the SOSUS.

@Ashwin

@hellbent

trishul-trident.blogspot.com

DEFEXPO 2016 Show Report-2

Undersea Web s A web of strategic projects is now taking firm shape as India enters into closer multilateral military cooperation relati...
trishul-trident.blogspot.com trishul-trident.blogspot.com
 
hellbent said:
Indian uderseas network is an independent network contrary to assertion that it is linked to others and it is localised in areas of interest and expanded over a period of time. It is total misinformation being spread that it is linked to SOSUS. india recieves 'selected' data from SOSUS and that is it .

Frankly speaking I have no idea of their location.

I know of one system which was place right in the doorsteps of the ' party ' 😛 and later recovered after it approached end of service life .

I can name the company which makes these seabed arrays or rather integrates them.

Nobody will publicize all these

The effectiveness of these systems lies in their annonimity , especially their location is kept secret if possible

And unrelated let me tell you another thing india does submarine cable tapping ( though not in th deep seas afaik )

@_Anonymous_
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India's undersea surveillance and its cable network in Cochin shipyard (the place where IAC Vikrant is being build) was build by an Israeli company. Now knowing Mossads history, you cannot blame people for doubting the level of caution in India when it comes to security matters??
 
CountryFirst said:
India's undersea surveillance and its cable network in Cochin shipyard (the place where IAC Vikrant is being build) was build by an Israeli company. Now knowing Mossads history, you cannot blame people for doubting the level of caution in India when it comes to security matters??
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You are talking about integrated underwater harbour defence and surveillance system (IUHDSS) which is installed in harbours / ports . There is nothing secretive about it . It is meant to protect the harbour against enemy divers , midget submarines , saboteurs etc. And is installed in the periphery of the harbour itself . And no connection of mossad whatsoever .

We are talking about underwater surveillance / sensor systems which are deployed in deep seas / oceans . It is a totally different ball game. Eg

Underwater acoustic sensors or non acoustic sensors which as part of seabed arrays are installed on the floors of the sea / oceans over a large area of interest.

Satellites which can detect the submarine surface / subsurface wake , submerged submarine trail, localised wave and temperature variations usually associated with underwater / surface vessels . Even the periscopes of submarines.

Sensors which can detect the lingering magnetic signature left by a submarines wake. Such detectors can detect the same from a large distance and follow it to localize the submarine which is travelling underwater.

Underwater / overwater non acoustic sensors which can detect and discriminate subsurface / surface generated wake and wave signatures or any hydrodynamic signatures in seas / oceans .

Let me reveal something here , India already uses its satellites for ocean and sea surveillance since last 10 years or so inorder to detect surface and subsurface threats. DRDO had made a huge breakthrough in the science of free and forced hydrodynamics and ocean / sea dynamics which allowed them to detect and discriminate between the same long time back.
 
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vstol Jockey said:
SMART gives us the capability to engage ships and submarines from a very long distance in complete passive mode. Once a ship is detected by radar, we can fire SMART and it will dip underwater at a safe distance from the ship and than home on to the propeller noise and strike it. All kinds of anti missile defences will not be able to save the ship as the torpedo gets detected very late.
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But anti-missile defences are created to destroy incoming missiles and they can kill it before it drops the torpedo...
 
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