Context:
Indian Navy is set to commission the first squadron of MH-60R Seahawk helicopters at INS Garuda in Willingdon Island, Kochi, Kerala.
INS Garuda
- It is a naval air station located at Willingdon Island (largest artificial island in India) Kochi, Kerala.
- It is the oldest operating air station of the Indian Navy commissioned in 1953.
More on news
• The Seahawks squadron will be commissioned in the Indian Navy as INAS 334 at Southern Naval Command.
• These platforms are part of a $2.6 billion Foreign Military Sales deal with United States for 24 Lockheed Martin/Sikorsky MH-60R Seahawk anti-submarine warfare and anti-surface warfare helicopters.
- Six of them have been delivered to the Indian Navy so far.
• Delivery of the entire fleet expected to be completed by 2025.
MH-60R Seahawk helicopter
- It is an all-weather helicopter designed to support multiple missions with state-of-the-art avionics and sensors.
- The helicopter is designed for anti-submarine warfare (ASW), anti-surface warfare (ASuW), search and rescue (SAR), medical evacuation (MEDEVAC) and vertical replenishment (VERTREP).
- The MH-60R helicopter is designed to operate from frigates, destroyers, cruisers and aircraft carriers.
- It a maritime variant of the Blackhawk helicopter.
- These helicopters are manufactured by Sikorsky, a subsidiary of aerospace giant Lockheed Martin.
Features
- This helicopter is crewed by four personnel during anti-submarine warfare operations and by five personnel during anti-surface warfare missions.
- It is equipped with advanced airborne active sonar, a multi-mode search radar, and a nose-mounted forward-looking infrared (FLIR) turret.
- This helicopter also boasts an integrated self-defense system.
Indian Navy
• The Indian Navy operates following three commands:
- The Western Naval Command at Mumbai
- The Eastern Naval Command at Visakhapatnam.
- The Southern Naval Command at Kochi.
Advantage
- It would enhance India’s blue-water capabilities, extending the operational reach of the Navy in Indian Ocean.
- It strengthens India’s position against the China’s increasingly aggressive forays into the Indian Ocean Region.
