Anti-Submarine Warfare Shallow Water Craft

Androth, photographed on the day of her launch.
Class overview
NameAnti-Submarine Warfare Shallow Water Craft (ASW-SWC)
Builders
Operators Indian Navy
Preceded by
Succeeded byNext Generation Missile Vessels
Cost
  • ₹12,622 crore (equivalent to ₹150 billion or US$1.8 billion in 2023) for 16 ships (FY 2020)
  • ₹789 crore (equivalent to ₹929 crore or US$110 million in 2023) per ship (FY 2020)
Built2021-present
Planned16
Building16
Completed10
Active0
General characteristics
TypeCorvette
Displacement
  • GRSE :900 tons[3]
  • CSL :700 tons[4]
Length
  • GRSE :77.6 metres (255 ft) [5]
  • CSL :78 metres (256 ft)[6]
Beam
  • GRSE :10.5 metres (34 ft)[5]
  • CSL :11.26 metres (36.9 ft)[6]
DraughtGRSE : 2.7 metres (8.9 ft)[5]
PropulsionWater-jet propulsion[7]
Speed25 knots (46 km/h) [8]
Range1,800 nautical miles (3,300 km) (at 14 knots (26 km/h)[5]
Complement57 (7 officers + 50 sailors)
Sensors and
processing systems
  • Combat Suite:
  • ASW Combat Suite (presumably the DRDO-developed IAC MOD 'C' combat suite)[9][10]
  • Sonar:
  • DRDO Abhay Hull-Mounted Sonar (HMS)[11]
  • Low Frequency Variable Depth Sonar (LFVDS)[9]
  • Management Systems:
  • Fire Control System (FCS)[2]
  • Integrated Platform Management System (IPMS)[9]
  • Automatic Power Management System (APMS)[9]
  • Battle Damage Control System (BDCS)[9]
Armament
NotesLargest waterjet-powered vessels in the Indian Navy.[8]

The Anti-Submarine Warfare Shallow Water Craft (ASW-SWC) corvettes, are a class of anti-submarine warfare (ASW) vessels currently being built for the Indian Navy, by Cochin Shipyard (CSL) and Garden Reach Shipbuilders & Engineers (GRSE).[2] They were conceived as a replacement to the ageing Abhay-class corvettes of the Indian Navy, and are designed to undertake ASW duties – including subsurface surveillance in littoral waters, search-and-attack unit (SAU) missions and coordinated anti-submarine warfare operations with naval aircraft.[12] They were also designed to provide secondary duties – including defense against intruding aircraft, minelaying and search-and-rescue (SAR).[13]

Equipped with sophisticated sensors and ordnance, the vessels also possess the capabilities to interdict and destroy subsurface targets – primarily hostile submarines, within the vicinity of coastal waters.[12] A total of 16 vessels are being built for the Indian Navy, jointly by CSL and GRSE under the Make in India initiative.[5] The Indian Navy plans to have all 16 vessels in active service by 2026.[5]

  1. ^ a b "GRSE, CSL starts production of ASW-SWC Corvettes".
  2. ^ a b c d e f "Anti-Submarine Warfare Shallow Water Craft (ASW-SWC)".
  3. ^ "LAUNCH OF 'ARNALA', FIRST SHIP OF ASW SWC (GRSE) PROJECT ON 20 DEC 22 AT M/s L&T, KATTUPALLI". pib.gov.in. PIB. Retrieved 21 December 2022.
  4. ^ "Government gives GRSE contract to build 8 Anti-Submarine Warfare Shallow Water Crafts - GKToday". www.gktoday.in.
  5. ^ a b c d e f "GRSE starts ASW-SWC corvette production in partnership with Larsen & Toubro". Janes.com.
  6. ^ a b "Details of Indian Anti-submarine Corvette For Coastal Waters | Indian Politics". 16 November 2018.
  7. ^ a b "Touted As 'Game-Changer', What Are Indian Navy's 'Anti-Submarine Warfare Shallow Water Crafts'?". Latest Asian, Middle-East, EurAsian, Indian News. December 27, 2021.
  8. ^ a b c "Details of GRSE's small anti-submarine corvette emerge - Shephard Media". www.shephardmedia.com.
  9. ^ a b c d e http://grse.in/eoi/EOI_ASW_SWC_R1.pdf [dead link]
  10. ^ "Garden Reach Shipbuilders & Engineers Ltd.- Government of India Undertaking - Tender Archive". grse.in.
  11. ^ "Eyes and Ears Underwater". Force India. Retrieved 2024-08-23.
  12. ^ a b "Cochin Shipyard from India holds steel cutting ceremony of Anti-Submarine Warfare Shallow Water Crafts". Navy Recognition. December 2020.
  13. ^ "Anti-Submarine Warfare Shallow Water Crafts (ASWSWC)". May 9, 2019.