INS Satpura

INS Satpura (F48) is a Shivalik-class stealth multi-role frigate built for the Indian Navy. This class is an improvement over the preceding Talwar-class frigates with increased stealth and land attack features.^[5]

INS Satpura (F 48) departs Pearl Harbor to begin the Rim of the Pacific (RIMPAC) 2022 exercise, July 12
History
India
Name	Satpura
Namesake	Satpura range
Builder	Mazagon Dock Limited
Laid down	31 October 2002
Launched	4 June 2004
Commissioned	20 August 2011
Identification	Pennant number: F48
Motto	Nishchay, Garv, Sahas (Determination, Pride, Bravery)
Status	Active
General characteristics
Class & type	Shivalik-class frigate
Displacement	6,200 tonnes (6,100 long tons; 6,800 short tons) full load[1]
Length	142.5 m (468 ft)[2]
Beam	16.9 m (55 ft)
Draught	4.5 m (15 ft)
Installed power	2 × Pielstick 16 PA6 STC Diesel engines (11,300 kW each) 2 × GE LM2500+ (25,100 kW each)
Propulsion	CODOG
Speed	32 knots (59 km/h; 37 mph)[3] 22 knots (41 km/h; 25 mph) (diesel engines)
Complement	257 (including 35 officers + 222 sailors)
Sensors & processing systems	Radar :- 1 x Fregat M2EM 3-D radar (Surface & Air) 4 × MR-90 Orekh radar 1 × Elta EL/M-2238 STAR 2 × Elta EL/M 2221 STGR 1 × BEL APARNA Sonar :- BEL HUMSA-NG active/passive sonar[4] Thales Sintra active towed-array sonar Combat Suite :- "Combat Management System" (CMS-17A)
Electronic warfare & decoys	BEL Ellora electronic warfare suite[4] Decoy:- 4 x Kavach decoy launchers[4]
Armament	Anti-air missiles: 32-cell VLS for Barak 1 missiles 1 × Shtil-1 arm launcher (24 missiles) Anti-ship/Land-attack missiles: 8 × VLS launched BrahMos, anti-ship and land-attack cruise missiles Guns: 1 × OTO Melara 76 mm naval gun 2 × AK-630 CIWS 2 × OFT 12.7 mm M2 Stabilized Remote Controlled Gun Anti-submarine warfare: 2 × 2 DTA-53-956 torpedo launchers 2 × RBU-6000 (RPK-8) rocket launchers
Aircraft carried	2 × HAL Dhruv or Sea King Mk. 42B helicopters.

Construction

INS Satpura was built at the Mazagon Dock Limited (MDL) in Mumbai. The keel was laid on 31 October 2002 and was launched on 4 June 2004. She was completed in 2010 and underwent sea trials before being commissioned on 20 August 2011 into the Eastern Naval Command headquartered at Visakhapatnam.^[5]

Service history

Deployment	Date	Port Visited	Commander	Notes and References
2012
Malabar 2012 with naval destroyers INS Ranvir, INS Ranvijay, corvette INS Kulish and fleet-tanker INS Shakti.		Bay of Bengal		[6][7]
2013
South East Asia with naval destroyer INS Ranvijay, corvette INS Kirch and fleet-tanker INS Shakti	6 May	Da Nang, Vietnam		[8]
	28 May	Changi, Singapore		Participated in IMDEX-13[9]
2015
South East Asia with naval destroyer INS Ranvir, corvette INS Kamorta and fleet tanker INS Shakti	23-26 May	Singapore	Captain Hari Krishnan[10]	SIMBEX-15 with Singapore Navy[11]
	4-6 June	Fremantle, Australia		[12][13]
	28-30 June	Sattahip, Thailand		[14]
2016
South China Sea and the Western Pacific Ocean	30 May to 3 June	Cam Ranh Bay, Vietnam	Captain A N Pramod[15][16]
	13-15 August	Port Majuro, Marshall Islands		[17][18]
	30 June – 4 August	Hawaii, United States		25th edition of the RIMPAC Exercise[19][20]
	18-20 August	Pohnpei, Micronesia		[21]
	31 August – 3 September	Singapore		[22][23]

On 8 October 2024, INS Satpura hosted the opening ceremony of Exercise Malabar at Visakhapatnam under the aegis of the Eastern Naval Command.^[24]

In July 2025, INS Satpura was deployed in the South East Asia as part of the four-ship flotilla under the command of Rear admiral Susheel Menon, the FOCEF. The flotilla included INS Delhi (D61), INS Shakti (A57) and INS Kiltan (P30). The flotilla called on Singapore from 16 to 19 July.^[25][26]

Later, Satpura joined the Republic of Singapore Navy's RSS Supreme and RSS Vigilance conduct the 32nd edition of SIMBEX, which is the acronym for Singapore India Maritime Bilateral Exercise.^[27] The exercise was hosted by Singapore from 28 July to 1 August. The harbour phase was held at RSS Singapura base and was followed by the sea phase in the southern parts of South China Sea. The RSN's ships were also supported by MV Mentor. The Republic of Singapore Air Force also participated in the exercise with an S-70B Seahawk naval helicopter, two Fokker-50 maritime patrol aircraft and two F-15SG fighter aircraft. During the sea phase, the participating forces carried out advanced warfare drills, including gunnery firings, air defence exercises, and maritime security operations. The sea phase concluded with a ceremonial sail-past by the participating ships.^[28]

Gallery

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  The EL/M-2238 STAR radar onboard Satpura