5 Years Of Submarine Secrecy: India’s Unique Arihant Class Is Still In Hiding
5 years after she was commissioned in 2016, the Indian Navy’s INS Arihant remains something of an enigma. It is a very secretive submarine program.
Editorial Staff
5 Years Of Submarine Secrecy: India’s Unique Arihant Class Is Still In Hiding
Few submarines are less photographed than India’s two Arihant Class ballistic missile submarines (SSBNs). The lead boat, INS Arihant (S2), was commissioned in 2016 and a second boat, INS Arighat (S3) is expected to join her in service this year. The Arihant is a unique design which can be characterized as a ‘pocket boomer’. It is much smaller than other ballistic missile submarines (North Koreas’ conventionally powered boats excepted). Its hull is shorter and thinner than its contemporaries and it only carries four missile silos. But this does not take away from the industrial achievement of an indigenous nuclear-powered submarine. And in many respects its modest size seems pragmatic. Other countries now taking the nuclear submarine path, such as Brazil, are also going for smaller types. The Kilo Connection Analysis of the few photograph available confirm that some aspects of Arihant bear a strong resemblance to the Kilo Class. The upper sonar dome on top of the bow and many aspects of t…
