INS Vagir, the fifth Scorpène submarine built entirely in India, enters service

The Kalvari-class submarine INS Vagir, the fifth of its series, was commissioned into the Indian Navy on 23 January 2023 in the presence of Admiral R Hari Kumar, Chief of the Naval Staff of the Indian Navy, and other dignitaries. Laurent Espinasse, head of Naval Group’s submarine division, and the local teams also attended the ceremony. INS Vagir, based on Naval Group’s Scorpène design, was built by the Indian shipyard Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders Limited (MDL).

Launched on 12 November 2020, INS Vagir has successfully completed all its sea trials and now enters service with the Indian Navy. The submarine thus joins INS Kalvari, Khanderi, Karanj and Vela. The last submarine of the series, Vagsheer, is currently in the middle of its sea trials. It will be delivered in 2024.

“The commissioning of INS Vagir is an important milestone for the Indian Navy, MDL, Naval Group and all our industrial partners. We are proud to be part of the P75 programme and remain fully committed to delivering the last unit of the series and to increasing the level of indigenisation in the Indian Navy’s future projects,” said a delighted Laurent Espinasse, Naval Group’s Submarines director.

The submarine INS Vagir was built entirely in India by the Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders Limited (MDL) shipyard thanks to a transfer of technology from Naval Group, in line with the Indian government’s “Make in India” policy. The six submarines in this series are fitted with many items of equipment made in India by industrial SMEs. Naval Group says it has “developed [with MDL] an industrial ecosystem comprising more than 50 Indian companies, as well as an Indian subsidiary employing more than 70 engineers [...], thereby contributing to the industrial and technological sovereignty” of India.

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