If you want to open up the hull, just for general repairs, that alone take 2 year. Adding a plug will surely need more time.
What you're suggesting is the T/L for N powered submarines. 30-36 months which has now been brought it down to < 24 months in case of the French Navy.
Cutting open the Submarine is relatively easy. It's the work that follows that's difficult . I would say anywhere between 18-24 months from start to finish. The time taken for sea trials would be extra.
And then testing, a minimum of 2 years for that.
1 year. There aren't any all weather trials to be conducted. This is going to sail primarily in the Arabian Sea & BoB. That's where you focus your trials.
What my concern is, that if I belive the optimist people here then P75I would get signed by 2023. And by 2027-28 the first submarine will be ready for launch.
Speaking of optimists, resident story teller seem to be MIA. Strangely Avi Raina has been missing too since last month . Pls note
@Gautam
On topic we both know that it'd take a good 8-10 yrs for the first submarine to emerge for sea trials post the contract is signed which I don't see happening at least in the next couple of years. Latest news indicates that only DSME & TKMS have re affirmed their participation ever since MoD has clarified it's stance on the liability clause & reiterated it's choice of AIP as PFC.
No news on Navantia's participation, or whether it has qualified or even if the MoD / IN desire it's participation.
I guess things can be rapidly expedited from here on.
And with the current speed of work on drdo aip, that is exactly the timeline we might get it to certify.
Depends on when we get the first Kalvari class submarine for refit / MLU.
Are you getting what I am trying to point out ? Means like why is this approach being done?
Already answered this above.
And if say by 2030 our DRDO AIP will be operational in say 2 Kalvaris, will we change the spec for rest of P75I under construction and add our AIP ?
No. I've given you the reasons earlier. We have frozen on PFC as the AIP of choice. It's just going to be two different makes - one desi, one imported. I happened to read an H I Sutton article sometime back on the P-75(I) tender saga. He's speculating IN is interested in the latest developments in the PFC segment among foreign players to see how much we can adopt / indigenise . Prima facie it makes some sense.
Navy needs to understand these things. I think the Navy brass is mistaken on this.
I've just delineated their plan above. Whether it's good or bad time will tell.
(For the Kilo or Type 209 testbed news, I want it to be true. But I asked a couple of people and they said the plan is to test it on 1st Scorpene only. )
Yes. It turned out the Kilo class was to test the Li ion battery backs & electric propulsion. AIP got forcibly thrown into the mix. Dr Satish Reddy in an interview clarified last year that the AIP would be test fitted into the first INS Kalvari class sub which would come in for a refit in 2025. Hopefully by 2028 we certify our own indigenous AIP system.
You can also gauge the level of confidence that DRDO / NRML, IN & MoD have in this system that they're directly plugging it into the final product instead of trialing it on some test bed. It's the equivalent of say we developing the Kaveri keeping with the tech specs of the IAF & directly fitting it onto the LCA for flight trails & as it's engine if it clears all tests without first testing & certifying it on an FTB.
