India-Navy-Ship Landing Docks
Indian Navy is proposing to venture into building huge ship landing docks to give it the capability to carry heavily armed troops and armaments over oceans.

The Naval Design Bureau has now finalized plans to go ahead to manufacture over 20,000-ton displacement landing ship docks on the pattern of the INS Jalashva, which it recently acquired from the US Navy.

According to PTI, along with trying its hand on manufacturing such large warships, the navy has also proposed to the government to set up two more public-sector shipyards located on the east and west coast, as its order book for vessels grow.

India, at present, only has the knowhow to manufacture smaller amphibious warships of 4,000- to 6,000-ton displacement.

The navy has three such vessels on deployment but with New Delhi's commitments growing in view of demands for humanitarian assistance at sea, plans have now been cleared to go in for larger ship landing docks.

However, as in the case of aircraft carriers, the navy lacks the design expertise to build such huge warships. In the case of the indigenous carrier being built at Kochi shipyard, the navy has roped in an Italian firm Fincantieri.

In order to build the country's first ever blue water troop carrier, the navy is looking at a number of designs, including American and French.

INS Jalashva, formerly USS Trenton, which the Indian Navy recently acquired from the US navy is an Austin class vessel and New Delhi is looking at its more modern versions like Cleveland or Denver class.

With a 17,000-ton displacement, Cleveland class ship landing docks can carry six CH-46 Sea Knight helicopters and 900 marines.

India is also looking very closely at the French landing ship dock Mistral, which is a much larger 21,300 displacement warship with an operational range of 19,800 nautical miles and four huge landing barges, naval sources said here today.

Mistral, which was recently here to participate in the Varuna-2008 Indo-French naval exercises has the capability of carrying 16 helicopters and 900 fully armed marines.

French shipbuilders DCN international which is already collaborating with India on building Scorpene submarines under technology transfer at Mazagoan docks has offered to collaborate in building of the Ship Landing Dock.