India has launched a second French Scorpène -class submarine built at its shipyards but is faced with an embarrassing scenario: the torpedoes for this advanced submarine are nowhere to be found.
The reason: the Ministry of Defense (MoD), moving at its traditional leisurely pace, failed to approve the $200 million tender it received five years ago to buy the Italian-made Black Shark heavyweight torpedoes that was to have armed this submarine, the INS Khanderi (S-51). MoD has put the tender on hold.
Khanderi was launched Jan. 12; will be delivered to the Indian Navy by mid-year and will be commissioned into the navy in December. There is little chance the Black Shark torpedoes will reach the submarine this year.
The navy has ordered 98 of these fiber-optic wire heavyweight torpedoes developed by Whitehead Alenia Sistemi Subacquei Italy. Black Shark, which is 6.3 meters long, can destroy targets as far away as 50 kilometers.
The Khanderi is amog six Scorpène-class submarines being built by MDL under a $3.5 billion contract signed in 2004 between India and DCNS of France. The first of Scorpene-class sub, the INS Kalvari (S-50) is at sea but hasn't yet been commissioned into the navy.
The Scorpène building program is years behind schedule, a delay attributed to a variety of reasons, one of which the low-level absorption of complex technology and procurement of MDL-purchased materials.
The Indian Navy operates 13 outdated submarines. Experts estimate only half this number are operational at any time, a weakness India can ill afford since China is aggressively expanding its maritime presence in the Indian Ocean, which India considers its backyard.
Scorpène-class subs are operated by the Malaysian, Chilean and Brazilian navies. They have a range of over 1,000 kilometers submerged and feature superior stealth technology.
India chose the Scorpène design in 2005, purchasing six submarines for $500 million per boat. The first Scorpène submarine, the INS Kalvari, began sea trials in April 2015 and will be delivered in September 2016.
INS Kalvari is armed with heavyweight torpedoes (not Black Shark) and can also launch precision-guided weapons such as the famed Exocet anti-ship missile.