1. The biggest change from the original Italian design is the main radar mast. First the Kolkatas, then the Vizags & Nilgiris. The Navy loves that mast.
I have to wonder if its not a placeholder though, due to the LRMFR's operational radar housing not yet being frozen. On the other hand if its just going to be MFSTAR again, the lack of a prominent secondary radar cannot be explained.
2. The main gun on the Italian DDX is the Otobreda 127mm x 64 cal. That's an obvious choice for the Italians. As you know, for us this has been a problematic point for years. Do we go with the Otobreda or the BAE Mark45 Mod4? It is difficult to freeze designs without clarity of supply of such critical equipment.
Yea - I'm also certain this time around they'll want to develop one indigenously as well. Tbh, I'm surprised all the progress made on Dhanush /45 and ATAGS /52 guns has not even spawned even a study for possible naval application. On a ship the size of the NGD (if we make it same as DDX, it'll be at least 11,000 tons) even a 155mm main gun won't be out of place. It would also open the doors for a pool of new ammo types that would be common to the land-based cousins such as Excalibur or future Ramjet-powered 155 shells.
15,000-ton Zumwalt was supposed to have 2 x 155mm guns - their plan didn't work out, thanks to the ammo being unnecessarily sophisticated, but it shows the calibre has naval applications especially on a DDG.
3. The renders shown in the navy video shows two 76mm SRGMs placed mid-ship & another one overlooking the helo-deck. That is understandable for a ship this long. I can see a few mounted machine guns too. Probably 12.7mm. There are 2 CIWS mid-ship just infront of the SRGMs. Just 2 for a ship this big? What's more the CIWS appears to be an American Phalanx. What the fook ?
I don't think we can take a call on the CIWS yet - we know IN wants DEWs on NG combatants eventually. Yes, 2 x capable modern CIWS like Phalanx or Goalkeeper should be enough.
4. There is a dish like thing behind the rear VLS farm, beside the exhaust vents. Secondary radar? Why would it look like that? Can't be a satcom, those can be seen behind.
No idea...its a parabolic antenna so has to be some kind of transceiver/radar...but that's no place to put a surveillance radar, half its field of view is blocked, and there's an SRGM on the other side so we know there isn't a second one covering that sector.
My first thought was some kind of illumination radar like SPG-62 (which strangely is still present even on DDG(X) concept), but that's still a bad spot for it and it can't see anything behind the ship.
5. No FCRs? Will the primary radar take up that role?
Possibly - Right now I'm thinking the primary radar housing will contain several different 'sections' of the array dedicated for various roles.
Fincantieri also were a consultant to the MDL for readying the shipyard to adopt modular construction method for the Nilgiri class frigates. They also built an oil tanker for the Navy many years ago.
Italians have worked upon INS Vikrant with us. Maybe they are consultants for NGD also ?
And the Shivalik class before that. Fincantieri has had a hand in DND's design efforts for a long time. There's also cooperating on NGMV - reason why I think that ship may actually end up being a modified Doha-class.
Besides, it seems the Italians are still iterating their DDX design, this is the latest one I've seen:
It seems DND has seized on the older iteration as a baseline for NGD.