Cochin Shipyard launches anti-submarine warfare ship for Indian Navy
Cochin Shipyard Limited (CSL) launched Machilipatnam, the seventh of eight Anti-Submarine Warfare Shallow Water Craft (ASW SWC) being built for the Indian Navy under the Mahe-class programme.
The vessel is designed to undertake anti-submarine operations in coastal waters, low-intensity maritime operations (LIMO), and mine-laying/subsurface surveillance duties.
The ship carries a high proportion of indigenously sourced equipment and systems, reflecting continued localisation in the Navy's warship-building programme.
The launch event was attended by senior officials of the Ministry of Defence's Department of Military Affairs and the Indian Navy's Western Naval Command.
The vessel is named after Machilipatnam, a historic port town in Krishna district, Andhra Pradesh, with a centuries-old maritime trading legacy.
Mahe-Class ASW Shallow Water Craft Programme
The Mahe-class ASW SWC programme addresses a specific capability gap in the Indian Navy: dedicated, shallow-draught platforms for anti-submarine warfare in coastal waters and harbour approaches, where deep-draught frigates and destroyers cannot effectively operate. The Ministry of Defence contracted for 16 such craft in April 2019, split equally between Cochin Shipyard Limited (Kochi) and Garden Reach Shipbuilders & Engineers or GRSE (Kolkata).
Key Details
- Total programme size: 16 ASW SWCs across two public sector shipyards (8 each with CSL and GRSE), contracted in April 2019.
- Lead ship of the class, INS Mahe, was commissioned in November 2025; a second vessel, Malvan, has since followed.
- Machilipatnam is the seventh CSL-built hull in the class, carrying pennant designation "BY 529."
- Roles: anti-submarine warfare in shallow/coastal waters, low-intensity maritime operations (LIMO), mine-laying, and underwater/subsurface surveillance.
Machilipatnam's launch is a sequential production milestone in this 16-ship indigenous shallow-water ASW programme, following the commissioning of the first vessels of the class into active service.
Weapons and Sensor Fit — Shallow-Water Anti-Submarine Warfare
Shallow-water ASW craft carry a distinct weapons mix suited to littoral engagement ranges, differing from the longer-range sonar/torpedo suites of blue-water ASW frigates. Machilipatnam-class vessels are equipped with rocket-based depth-charge launchers, lightweight torpedoes, and close-in guns for self-defence and mine warfare.
Key Details
- Reported armament includes an RBU-6000 anti-submarine rocket launcher, twin triple-tube lightweight torpedo launchers (firing Advanced Light-Weight Torpedoes), a 30 mm naval gun, and stabilised 12.7 mm remote-controlled guns.
- The vessels have a displacement in the 900–1,100 tonne range, a top speed of about 25 knots, and an endurance of roughly 1,800 nautical miles at economical (14-knot) speed.
- Length is approximately 78 metres, beam about 11.3 metres, and draught around 2.7 metres — shallow enough for close-coast and harbour-approach operations that larger warships cannot undertake.
- Crew complement is approximately 57 personnel (7 officers and 50 sailors).
These specifications place Machilipatnam within a class purpose-built to fill the "brown water" (coastal/harbour) anti-submarine gap, complementing the Navy's blue-water ASW assets such as P-8I maritime patrol aircraft and Kamorta-class corvettes.
Cochin Shipyard Limited and Indigenous Naval Shipbuilding
Cochin Shipyard Limited is a Miniratna Category-I Central Public Sector Enterprise under the Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways, and one of India's largest shipbuilding and maintenance yards. It has built progressively more complex naval platforms, culminating in India's first indigenous aircraft carrier.
Key Details
- CSL built and delivered INS Vikrant, India's first indigenously designed and built aircraft carrier, commissioned in September 2022.
- CSL is listed on Indian stock exchanges (IPO in 2017) while remaining majority government-owned, reflecting the "Miniratna" PSU disinvestment-with-control model.
- Government procurement of the ASW SWCs falls under the "Buy (Indian-IDDM)" category of the Defence Acquisition Procedure (DAP) 2020 — the highest-priority route reserved for Indian vendors, requiring a minimum 50% indigenous content for IDDM-tagged platforms.
- The programme supports the Atmanirbhar Bharat (self-reliant India) push in defence manufacturing, alongside CSL's other indigenous vessel classes for the Navy and Coast Guard.
Machilipatnam's launch demonstrates the scaling of India's warship-building capacity within a single PSU shipyard, from major capital platforms like INS Vikrant to a serial production run of specialised littoral ASW craft.
- Machilipatnam: seventh of eight CSL-built ASW SWCs; 16 total across CSL and GRSE, contracted April 2019.
- Dimensions: ~78 m length, ~11.3 m beam, ~2.7 m draught; displacement 900–1,100 tonnes.
- Speed: ~25 knots maximum; range ~1,800 nautical miles at 14 knots; crew ~57.
- Armament: RBU-6000 rocket launcher, twin triple lightweight torpedo tubes, 30 mm gun, 12.7 mm remote-controlled guns, anti-submarine mines.
- Lead ship of class, INS Mahe, commissioned November 2025.
- Procurement category: "Buy (Indian-IDDM)" under Defence Acquisition Procedure (DAP) 2020.
- Builder: Cochin Shipyard Limited (Miniratna CPSE), Kochi — also builder of INS Vikrant (commissioned 2022).
- Named after Machilipatnam, a historic port in Krishna district, Andhra Pradesh.