Indian Navy commissions third water jet fast attack craft

The Indian Navy commissioned the third water jet fast attack craft INS Tillanchang during a ceremony held at Karwar on Thursday.

Built by M/s Garden Reach Shipbuilders and Engineers Ltd (GRSE), INS Tillanchang is the third of four follow on fast attack craft to join the Indian Navy.

INS Tarmugli and INS Tihayu, the first two commissioned vessels, are based at Vizag,Visakhapatnam, while the INS Tillanchang will be based in Karwar.

The 48-meter-long fast attack craft will be used for coastal patrol and surveillance operations.

The ships armament consists of a 30 mm CRN 91 gun manufactured by ordnance factory Medak. An electronic day-night fire control system called Stabilised Optronic Pedestal (SOP) and manufactured by Bharat Electronics Limited (BEL) controls the gun.

The vessels are also equipped with two 12.7 mm heavy machine guns (HMG) and multiple medium machine guns, besides shoulder-launched Igla surface-to-air missiles to combat aerial threats.

The 320-tonne vessels can achieve speeds in excess of 30 knots and are manned by a team comprising four officers and 41 sailors.