Article Posted on : - Nov 27, 2009

Talwar class missile frigate INS Tabar. Image credit: Indian Navy

KALININGRAD (BNS): INS Teg � the first of the three new Talwar class guided missile frigates Russia is building for Indian Navy � is all set to touch �natural waters� on Friday.

Russian shipyard Yantar in Kaliningrad which is building the vessel will float it out, thereby making it waterborne for the first time.

�That is an important and symbolic date. It is the birthday of the warship, as it gets into its natural waters,� the shipyard's spokesman Sergei Mikhailov was quoted as saying by Itar-Tass.

INS Teg is being built along with two other new Talwar class warships � INS Tarkash and INS Trikand, under a $1.6 billion contract signed between India and Russia in July, 2006. Russia has already built and delivered three such ships � INS Talwar, INS Trishul, and INS Tabar � to Indian Navy.

Construction on INS Teg began in 2007 and its sea trials are expected to start in 2010 following which it will be delivered to Indian Navy by 2011-12.

The new class of missile frigates is designed to accomplish a wide range of maritime missions, primarily hunting down and destroying large surface ships and submarines.

They would be fitted with BRAHMOS supersonic cruise missiles instead of the 3M-54E Klub-N anti-ship missiles installed in the previous three frigates.

Besides, each new vessel would also have a 100-mm gun, a Shtil air defense system, two Kashtan air defense gun/missile systems, two twin 533-mm torpedo tubes, and an anti-submarine warfare helicopter.