Interestingly, the ship was originally intended to operate under the Russian flag.
The ceremony was attended by high-ranking representatives of the Russian and Indian governments, including Defense Minister Raksha Mantri, Shri Rajnath Singh. The ship’s name means ‘the protector shield’ and its crest represents the ‘Abhedya Kavacham’ (impenetrable shield).
INS Tushil is the seventh Project 11356 frigate built for India. The first three (Talwar, Trishul, Tabar) were built by the “Baltiysky zawod” shipyard in St. Petersburg and delivered in 2003-2004. The next three (Teg, Tarkash, Trikand) were completed by “Yantar” in Kaliningrad, while the flags were raised between 2012 and 2013.
Currently, “Yantar” is building another pair, but modernized frigates of Project 11356M: Tushil which was commissioned today and Tamala currently at outfitting stage. These two vessels are unfinished units of Project 11356R, originally intended for the Russian Navy (ex-Admiral Butakov and ex-Admiral Butomin). The embargo on the gas turbines powering these ships, manufactured by the “Zorya-Mashproekt” company in Mykolaiv, Ukraine, prevented their construction for the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation. There is still a third frigate, the Admiral Kornilov, at the “Yantar”, but at a low stage of completion, and her fate is unclear.
Shri Rajnath Singh, India’s Defence Minister, termed Russia’s support to India’s vision of ‘Aatmanirbhar Bharat’ as another important example of deep friendship between India and Russia. “Made in India content is continuously increasing in many ships including INS Tushil. The ship is a big proof of the collaborative prowess of Russian and Indian industries. It exemplifies India’s journey towards technological excellence through jointmanship,” he added.
Russian hull + Ukrainian propulsion = Indian frigate
Tushil and Tamala are vessels whose production began in 2013 for the Russian Navy. Important for their size (displacement of about 4,000 tons) and combat capabilities, these Project 11356R (Admiral Grigorovich-class) ships were supposed to join the Black Sea Fleet, but were hindered by sanctions imposed by Ukraine after the annexation of Crimea in 2014. As a result, the chain of cooperation with its southern neighbor was disrupted, cutting off Russian shipyards from the supply of gas turbines, reduction gears, control systems and other components, as well as the repair and overhaul of these machines and numerous other defense industry products. For a time, this completely paralyzed the production of larger ships in Russia, including such highly anticipated ones as the next Project 11356R vessels.
In view of this situation, Russia has offered to India, already operating six similar Project 11356 Talwar-class frigates, to buy the two most advanced ships under construction – the would-be Admiral Butakov and Admiral Istomin. The contract for the purchase of the frigates was signed in October 2016 between Russian state-owned company Rosoboronexport, the Indian Navy and the Government of India. Before this could happen, India had to reach an agreement with Ukraine for the latter to agree to export the turbines needed to complete the frigates. In addition, India entered into a contract with Russia for the license construction of two more Project 11356M frigates at the Goa Shipyard Limited, with technical cooperation with “Yantar.”
A set of M7N1 marine powerplant for the two unfinished frigates was ordered in August 2017 and cost about $76 million. “Zorya-Mashproekt” delivered them to the Kaliningrad shipyard in late 2020 or early 2021. Each M7N1 consists of two DT59 top speed gas turbines and two DS71 cruise turbines, as well as two R063 and one R1063 reduction gears, and control system as well. It achieves a total power output of 44,000 hp.
Separately, at a cost of about $100 million, engines and gearboxes have been purchased for Indian-made frigates that are expected to raise flags by 2027. These are modified M7N2E units. The new variation features the use of a more modern digital control system.
Successful frigates with Soviet pedigree
Frigates of the Talwar-class and Grigorovich-class have their roots in the Cold War-era Project 11351 Nerey (NATO: Krivak III) guard ships, developed for the sinister KGB fleet. It was in turn a modification of the 1135 and 1135M anti-submarine warfare vessels (Krivak I/II). A hangar for a helicopter was added and armaments were replaced.
On the basis of the Nerey, the Severnoye Design Bureau designed the 11356 export frigate, which was purchased by India. Although it was not a very modern design, the Russians used it to quickly reinforce the Black Sea Fleet. This was possible because the 11356 was cheap, simple to build, and its production was well contained, having built six units for India. Based on the unfinished 11356R frigates, the 11356M version was developed, using Indian-made components.
The INS Tushil will differ from its predecessors mainly due to the use of more systems of Indian origin. These include PJ-10 BrahMos missiles, sonar systems, surface surveillance radar, depth charge rocket launchers, and communications systems. Today, the share of Indian equipment is estimated at 26%, and the number of Indian-made systems has more than doubled, to 33. The main Indian manufacturers involved in the project were: BrahMos Aerospace Private Limited, Bharat Electronics Limited, Keltron, Nova Integrated Systems, Elcome Marine, Johnson Controls India and others.
