Indian Navy gets Varunastra torpedo
The Indian Navy has taken delivery of Varunastra, a ship-launched heavy-weight torpedo, the Indian Ministry of Defence announced on 29 June.
Varunastra has been developed by the Defence Research and Development Organisation’s (DRDO’s) NSTL laboratory based at Visakhapatnam in association with Bharat Dynamics. The torpedo has been built with 95% indigenous content.
Varunastra can be fired from the Indian Navy’s Delhi-class ships and Rajput-class destroyers. It will also be carried by future anti-submarine warfare vessels capable of firing heavy-weight torpedoes.
The torpedo is designed to target stealthy submarines in littoral and deep waters in intense countermeasure environments.
The navy has ordered 73 of the torpedoes. The DRDO is also developing a submarine-launched heavy-weight torpedo, which is currently in an advanced user trial stage.
More from Defence Notes
-
![“Capital follows confidence” as defence courts private money]()
“Capital follows confidence” as defence courts private money
Outside investment and the direction in which venture money flows may reveal what defence will buy years before formal programmes begin.
-
![Canada’s new military drone marketplace targets rapid acquisition pipeline]()
Canada’s new military drone marketplace targets rapid acquisition pipeline
The Department of National Defence expects initial contracts to deliver thousands of uncrewed systems, but has yet to establish the quantities, capability mix or deadline behind Ottawa’s promised tenfold expansion.
-
![Ukraine turns legacy Kongsberg land turrets into semi-autonomous USV weapons]()
Ukraine turns legacy Kongsberg land turrets into semi-autonomous USV weapons
The company told Shephard that Ukraine is operating modified Protector weapon stations originally supplied for armoured vehicles, with human operators authorising engagements from hundreds of kilometres away.
-
![Thales: deployment speed to determine winners in ‘production versus production’ era]()
Thales: deployment speed to determine winners in ‘production versus production’ era
At its technology summit in London, attended by Shephard, Thales UK examined the importance of speed to delivery, the growing focus on cross-domain capabilities and how procurement reform could be crucial for future battlefield advantage.
-
![Orchestrating operational readiness across every defence domain]()
Orchestrating operational readiness across every defence domain
Are all systems ready for the next mission? Have upgrades been applied? Are all assets aligned to deploy together, on time and fully prepared? In modern defence operations, readiness is no longer measured platform by platform. It is measured by how well people, assets, data and decisions move together — across land, sea and air.
