Navy issues request for information On New Amphibious Ships
More than a decade ago, the Navy had first floated its requirements to build four LPDs. A Request for Proposals’ was issued in 2011 for the LPD project. However the project was unable to take off, mainly on account of financial difficulties on part of Indian shipyards partnering with foreign designers. A tender was issued in2013 but the Navy in 2020 finally scrapped the tender to build four LPDs. This was done as the Navy’s specifications for the LPDs had changed. These are now likely to be in the range of 30,000 and 40,000 tons or nearly twice the size of previous designs.
A landing helicopter dock (LHD) is an amphibious assault warship that can deploy troops, tanks, helicopters and even small landing crafts stored inside or on its deck. During the 2004 tsunami, the Navy’s largest amphibious assault were tank landing ships or LSTs of just 6000 tons, which are significantly smaller and less versatile than LPDs. In 2007, the Navy had inducted INS Jalashwa, an amphibious assault vessel that was being decommissioned by the US Navy.
The Indian Ocean tsunami in late 2004 was a landmark for the Navy. India had then launched one of the largest humanitarian assistance and disaster relief (HADR) mission in Asia. Indian Navy ships provided considerable Assistance to Sri Lanka, Indonesia and Maldives. However the humanitarian response also exposed the shortcoming of India’s lack of large sized amphibious assault ships equipped with all the necessary resources.
The space provided for storage and carriage of tanks, vehicles, guns, helicopters and troops can also carry large quantity of humanitarian aids. Such ships also have well equipped hospitals. In the event of earthquakes, tsunamis and other natural disasters, having destroyed or blocked the receiving ports are no obstacles for such ships. Their integral helicopters and landing crafts ferry everything to the shore.
So the Indian Navy has once again issued requests for information from Indian shipyards to buy four LPDs. The earlier price estimates for four new LPDs was in the range of $2 billion, so by now it must have nearly doubled.
The new RFI document, catering for future requirements have the specifications for not only transporting troops and equipment to shore, but also be able to embark unmanned UAVs and underwater unmanned submerged vessels to support operation/exploitation of all dimensions of futuristic unmanned requirements. The Navy RFI also envisages the ships should be capable of acting as a hospital ship during humanitarian operations, including having an operation theatre and dental facility.
The RFI specifies the LPDs should have a maximum length of around 200 metres and be capable of embarking 900 troops. The Navy has also specified that the LPDs should be able to carry 16 surface-to-surface missiles. In addition it should have 32 short-range surface-to-air missiles to defend against air attack and must be capable of carrying a ‘directed energy weapon’ to replace fast-firing guns. That is lasers and microwaves that can be used to destroy the guidance seekers of missiles and UAVs.
It is intended that the future LPDs should carry a heavy load of battle tanks, BMPs and vehicles to support an amphibious brigades operations. RFI states the ship’s vehicle carriage capacity should be adequate to embark at least six Main Battle Tanks (MBT), 20 AAVs/ BMP Class armoured vehicles and approx. 60 heavy trucks or combination of lighter vehicles at any given time. These vehicles would be transported to shore using smaller amphibious craft that are deployed from the LPD’s dock.
The Indian Navy wants these LPDs to carry up to 14 helicopters (two heavy-lift and 12 medium lift ones for ‘special operations’). Special operations helicopters are typically used to carry upto to soldiers or light vehicles to battlefields, while heavy-lift helicopters carry heavier equipment or 60+ soldiers and even underling field guns.
While India is issuing the RFI, China is already indicting a new class of LPDs, which displaces about 40,000 tonnes and can carry large numbers of personnel, helicopters and tanks.
