MDL performs same-day launches of a destroyer and frigate
The final Visakhapatnam-class destroyer was launched by Mazagon Docks Limited on 17 May. (IN)
Mazagon Docks Limited (MDL) in Mumbai launched two surface combatants on 17 May that will eventually join the Indian Navy (IN) – one was a Visakhapatnam-class destroyer and the other a Nilgiri-class frigate.
The future INS Surat is the fourth Project 15B destroyer, while INS Udaygiri is the third Project 17A frigate. Defence Minister Rajnath Singh attended the dual-launch ceremony.
The Indian MoD stated that the 7,300t Visakhapatnam-class destroyers ‘herald a significant makeover’ compared to preceding Project 15A Kolkata-class destroyers.
Surat was built in blocks, with the 163m-long hull constructed at two different locations before being
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