New Delhi: In a first-if-its-kind, longest ever deployment of India’s Scorpene submarines, INS Vagir, commissioned in January this year, has made its way to Australia, covering a distance of nearly 7,000 km.
The Indian Navy released a statement Saturday evening saying that the submarine is on an extended-range deployment.
The deployment commenced in June 2023 and Vagir will reach Fremantle, Australia on 20 August, it added.
The submarine, which is the Indian Navy’s fifth Kalvari class submarine, was commissioned into the Indian Navy in January this year and is based in Mumbai.
Sources in the defence and security establishment told ThePrint that except for one port call in Sri Lanka, as part of International Day of Yoga, the submarine has not made any other port call.
They also said that the submarine has traversed about 7,000 kilometres, or a little over 4,000 nautical miles, since it began its operational deployment in June.
This means that the Vagir has sailed continuously since the Sri Lanka stop, with it resurfacing every three-four days depending on the speed, to recharge its batteries for a few hours before sinking to the depth of the ocean again.
The extended range deployment is the maiden deployment by an Indian submarine to Australia and showcases the capability and professional acumen of the Indian Navy to undertake sustained operations at extended ranges from the base port for prolonged durations, the official statement read.
During her stay in Australia, INS Vagir will participate in various exercises with Royal Australian Navy (RAN) units on the West Coast of Australia.
Concurrently, on the East coast of Australia, Indian naval ships and aircraft are involved in Exercise Malabar between 11 and 21 August and AUSINDEX between 22-24 August.
During the Vagir’s ongoing deployment, basic, intermediate and advanced-level anti-submarine exercises are scheduled. In addition, RAN submarines and Indian Naval P8i aircraft are scheduled to exercise with INS Vagir.
(Edited by Poulomi Banerjee)