INS Sindhurakshak catches fire at naval dockyard in Mumbai

[nirranj]

"If it was sabotage, only an insider could have done it"

The fully-armed submarine was to go on a long patrol

While the jury is out on what really triggered the crippling blasts that wrecked the naval submarine INS Sindhurakshak in Mumbai on Tuesday night, chances of a sabotage causing it are giving the Navy the jitters.

Given that the fully-armed submarine was at the high-security Naval Dockyard in preparation for a long patrol on Wednesday evening, only an insider could have done some foul play, if that was the case, indicate Navy sources.

The severity of the twin explosions that gutted the forward area of the kilo-class submarine, which was handed over to India after a $ 150-million upgrade in January this year, points to torpedo burst, as the flame bore an unmistakable orange hue, sources say.

HYDROGEN THE TRIGGER?

Live ammunition was being loaded on the boat till 10.30 p.m. on Tuesday in view of the patrol on Wednesday. "There must have been frenetic activity going on. Hydrogen released while charging its 800 kg batteries could have caused the first explosion, which would have set off the torpedo burst," said an officer.

While the Navy Chief Admiral D.K. Joshi did not fully rule out sabotage, seasoned submariners like Vice-Admiral (retd) K.N. Sushil, former chief of the Southern Naval Command, consider the scenario "very very dangerous."

"I don't even want to think of such a possibility," said Mr. Sushil. It would mean someone had penetrated the crew, which was highly unlikely.

He said if there was just a hydrogen blast, it would not have been this disastrous and damaging. But if that were the case, it somehow caused the oxygen torpedoes [torpedoes having oxygen compressed to 200 bars instead of compressed air as fuel oxidizer in its propulsion system] to explode. It could also be conjectured that electric short circuit or something caused the oxygen to blow out. Shockingly, the sequence of events hardly explained anything, he told The Hindu.

The missile warhead couldn't have gone off as missiles "are loaded into the torpedo tubes in nitrogen-pressured containers." To a question on chances of sabotage, he said someone adept at handling torpedoes executing it could not be ruled out.

Vice-Admiral (retd) A.K. Singh, who commanded nuclear submarine INS Chakra and headed the Eastern Naval Command, told The Hindu that there could be two surmises. "Submarine batteries give out hydrogen while charging. There are devices to neutralise hydrogen thus released, as its concentration above 4 per cent can set off a blast. Two decks above this is the weapon compartment and the fire caused the warheads to explode. Another possibility is that something went terribly wrong while arming the boat," he said.

Former Vice-Chief of the Navy Vice-Admiral (retd) Raman P. Suthan termed 'highly unlikely' the sabotage theory, citing that access to submarines was highly restricted.

"If it was sabotage, only an insider could have done it" - The Hindu

 

[IBSA]

Sindhurakshak was refitted and delivered by Russia this year
VINAY KUMAR

Barely had it soaked in the proud moments of glory on the launch of India's first indigenous aircraft carrier INS Vikrant; the Indian Navy was on Wednesday jolted by the loss of INS Sindhurakshak, a kilo class Russia-made submarine in an explosion and fire that engulfed it in naval dockyard in Mumbai.

Just three years ago INS Sindhurakshak had suffered another mishap when a fire had erupted on board, leaving a sailor dead and two others injured. The mishap was then blamed on an explosion in its battery compartment.

The submarine was bought from Russia as part of a deal in the early 1980s and it was commissioned in 1997. INS Sindhurakshak was the ninth of the ten diesel-electric submarines, which the Navy has in its submarine fleet of 16, including four German HDW submarines.

The Indian Navy also operates a nuclear-powered submarine INS Chakra, which is on lease from Russia. Six Scorpene submarines are now under construction at Mazagaon Dock in Mumbai and are likely to be made available between 2015 and 2018. The Scorpene is a diesel-electric attack submarine with additional air-independent propulsion jointly developed by the French shipbuilder DCN — now DCNS — and Spain's Navantia.

Reason for explosion

Vice Admiral (Retd.) A.K. Singh said an internal explosion in a submarine could be caused by either material failure or by not following the standard operating procedure (SOP). He suspected that the hydrogen gas generated during charging of the batteries of the submarine could have led to the fire, which in turn could have triggered the massive explosion.

Major setback to Navy

Terming the mishap as a major setback to the Navy, former Navy chief Admiral (Retd.) Sushil Kumar said that Sindhurakshak was a frontline submarine.

In 2008, another submarine of the Kilo class, INS Sindhugosh, had collided with a merchant vessel off Mumbai while participating in a naval exercise. In 2011, a surface warship INS Vindhyagiri had caught fire when it hit a merchant vessel near the Mumbai harbour.

The ill-fated submarine had recently undergone an upgrade at the cost of Rs. 480 crore with an improved weapons system. The refit was expected to have increased its life span by another 10 years. It had undergone an overhaul including structural hull upgrades at the Zvyozdochka shipyard in Russia. The Sindhurakshak — a Russian Type 877EKM submarine, Sindhughosh class submarine for the Indian navy — was constructed in Admiralteiskie Verfi shipyard in St. Petersburg in 1997.

It's one of 10 Kilo class submarines constructed in Russia's shipyards for the Indian navy from 1985-2000. It was delivered to India earlier this year after undergoing overhaul and refitting in Russia. The 2,300-tonne submarine was upgraded with an improved electronic warfare systems, control system and integrated weapon control system.

The Indian Navy has already ordered an enquiry into the mishap, which came within days of first indigenously built nuclear powered submarine, INS Arihant's mini-nuclear reactor going critical.

Defence Minister A.K. Antony also condoled the death of naval personnel on the submarine. He briefed Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on the mishap before leaving for Mumbai. He said he was saddened at the tragedy of this magnitude which has happened in recent times.

"I also feel sad about those Navy personnel who lost their lives in the service of the country," Mr. Antony told reporters in the Parliament House complex, shortly before rushing to Mumbai.

The Kilo class is the NATO designation for a naval diesel-electric submarine made in Russia. The original version of the vessels were designated Project 877 Paltus (Halibut) in Russia. Original Project 877 vessels are equipped with Rubikon MGK-400 sonar system, which includes a mine detection and avoidance sonar MG-519 Arfa. The first Kilo Class submarine entered service in the Soviet Navy in early 1980s.

These Kilo class submarines are 70-74 metres long and can travel at the maximum speed of 10-12 knots when surfaced and 17-25 knots when under water. The submarines are propelled by a diesel-electric engine which generates 4,400 kw of power. These vessels can remain in the sea for about 45 days at one stretch. Former Navy officers, familiar with submarine operations, said that such vessels can carry up to eight surface-to-air missiles and 18 torpedoes or 14 underwater mines.

The Sindhurakshak was armed with the latest export variant of the Russian-made submarine-specific Club-S multi-role cruise missile system capable of hitting targets more than 150 miles away. The Kilo class vessels can travel at around a maximum 20 mph at a depth of around 900 feet.

 

[IBSA]

Was it Indian version of Kursk explosion?

One day a happy news of Indian national carrier, the next day a sad news.

Though all the progress achieved by Indian Navy, this fatality shows that much yet has to be done.

 

[Blackwater]

no, may be few bell devices. We have an agreement with US to use their services to rescue sub in time of emergency.

that is ridiculous, stupidity

 

[Blackwater]

"If it was sabotage, only an insider could have done it" - The Hindu

i agree and my conspiracy theory says there must be mole in those 18 soldiers or etc.my gut feeling says its a conspiracy

 

[asianobserve]

Imagine if this happened to a nuclear-powered submarine on dock...

 

[Twinblade]

is there any mullah among the 18 or in the entire crew!!! can plant an IED with timer coinciding with pak independence day !!! sorry to say this ,but cant help it.....one person was caught near kalpakkam with 400 photos of kalpakkam reactor.!!! The arrested person was a mullah!!!

If anyone else wants to speculate any pet theories regarding equipment failure/sabotage/mishap, wait for official reports to come out.

I also request the mods to keep the hate speech like this specimen to the minimum.

 

[StealthSniper]

At the end of the day all I have to say is that India DOES NOT have it's head in the right direction in regards to security (if it was sabotage) or proper protocols (if it was a explosion) and this incompetence gets innocent hard working brave souls killed because of the ignorance of the government as a whole.


We have the damn money, we have the courageous individuals that will risk their lives for our country in a blink of a eye, but we will NEVER succeed with this current government and the "don't care mindset" and that's the most saddest thing at the end of the day.


We lost brave Navy men in the dock of a major city in peacetime for god sakes not even fighting the enemy. India is at war with itself, who needs a enemy.

 

[bhramos]

RIP

 

[sayareakd]

that is ridiculous, stupidity

yeah it is, L&T can make rescue sub. Indian Navy has to be seriously think about having few, ready to shift on short notice.

 

[sayareakd]

 

[sayareakd]

is there any mullah among the 18 or in the entire crew!!! can plant an IED with timer coinciding with pak independence day !!! sorry to say this ,but cant help it.....one person was caught near kalpakkam with 400 photos of kalpakkam reactor.!!! The arrested person was a mullah!!!

submarine is very difficult environment and these stupid things happen, even if you take all precautions, lets not jump to conclusions before the report arrives. Lets first investigate as to what has happen and learn from it and make sure that this will not happen again.

 

[Kunal Biswas]

Russian 53-65KE wave-homing anti-ship torpedo..

The 53-65 is a heavy gas-turbine propulsion, wave-homing anti-ship torpedo originally developed in 1965. The late 1960s witnessed the introduction of an oxygen version 53-65K which was extensively employed by the Soviet Navy. The 53-65KE is the improved export variant which has been sold to many countries.

Its turbine-type thermal propulsion system ensures a considerable operating range and running speed.

SPECIFICATIONS

Calibre: 533mm
Length: 7,945mm
Weight: 2,100kg
Warhead: 300kg
Propellant: Kerosene-Oxygen turbine
Speed: 45kt
Range: 18km
Guidance: Wave-homing

=================

If not warhead, it is possible the fuel somehow leak ?

it somehow caused the oxygen torpedoes [torpedoes having oxygen compressed to 200 bars instead of compressed air as fuel oxidizer in its propulsion system] to explode.

 

[venkat]

kunal !! you have removed my reply to an uncivilized person!!! This is not fair!!!

 

[venkat]

submarine is very difficult environment and these stupid things happen, even if you take all precautions, lets not jump to conclusions before the report arrives. Lets first investigate as to what has happen and learn from it and make sure that this will not happen again.

Thanks saya for a fair reply!!! Do you remember!!! when Nerpa was ready to be sent to India on lease.there was an explosion in the sub and Russian submariners lost their lives!!! was it not a sabotage?

 

[Kunal Biswas]

It is already said, sabotage is highly unlikely ..

Religion has no place in defense forces .. leave that option out

 

[sayareakd]

@Kunal Biswas if you look at the video and screen shots of the same, color of explosions and the point where it held says lot. Plus the way INS Sindhurakshak was on the deck also tell us what would be extent of damage on the sub.

if you see first pic of the blast, it location is different and color is different, then it goes bigger and subsequently blast move and then color change (most likely Klub missile fuel and explosives).

If klub missile and torpedo have exploded inside then sub will have same damage as on the Russian sub Krusk.

 

[ersakthivel]

RIP , brave men who put their life in line to defend the honor of the nation,

Hope their families be blessed with the courage to move on,

In case this unfortunate incident had happened in the high seas the loss of life would have been far greater,

These brave men with their supreme sacrifice have high lighted the need for stricter safety audits on the other subs,

it is way of life for any service personnel to spend most of his life near high explosives and have to face the attendant dangers bravely,

As a result of this incident if better sense prevails and strict safety measures are taken , their sacrifice won't go in vain.

 

[natarajan]

It already faced accident because of faulty battery in 2010 ,its a crime of negligence or easy going of neta ,that too after refit.One frigate got destroyed before in collision,something fishy

 

[pankaj nema]

RIP , brave men who put their life in line to defend the honor of the nation,

Hope their families be blessed with the courage to move on,

In case this unfortunate incident had happened in the high seas the loss of life would have been far greater,

These brave men with their supreme sacrifice have high lighted the need for stricter safety audits on the other subs,

it is way of life for any service personnel to spend most of his life near high explosives and have to face the attendant dangers bravely,

As a result of this incident if better sense prevails and strict safety measures are taken , their sacrifice won't go in vain.

Soon we can hope that IN will come out with more stricter safety guidelines and procedures