Indian Navy commissions third Project 15B destroyer Imphal

The Indian Navy commissioned its latest stealth guided missile destroyer Imphal at Naval Dockyard, Mumbai on December 26.

The event marks the formal induction into the Navy of the third of four Visakhapatnam-class destroyers, indigenously designed by the Indian Navy’s in-house organization, Warship Design Bureau, and constructed by Mazagon Dock Limited (MDL), Mumbai.

Notably, INS Imphal is the first warship to have been named after a city from the North East, the approval for which was accorded by the President on 16 April 2019, thus underlining the importance of the region for national security, sovereignty, and prosperity, the navy said.

The destroyer was delivered to the Indian Navy on October 20 after completing a rigorous and comprehensive trial program both in the harbor and at sea.

The ship successfully test-fired the extended-range supersonic BrahMos missile in November 2023, a first for any indigenous warship before commissioning.

Following this milestone achievement, the ship’s crest was unveiled by Indian Defense Minister at New Delhi on 28 November 2023, in the presence of the Chief Minister of Manipur and other senior dignitaries. Upon commissioning, INS Imphal will join the Western Naval Command.