Indian Navy’s Information Warfare squadron base INAS-310 ‘COBRA’ celebrated

Indian Navy’s Goa based based squadron, INAS-310 ‘COBRA’, celebrated its golden jubilee yesterday.

The squadron has two unit citations, over 80,000 hrs of flying, operations in – 1971 (East Pakistan), 1999 (‘Op Vijay’) and 2002 (‘Op Parakram’). Other operations that participated were Operation Vijay (Liberation of Goa) in December 1961, 1965 war (defend naval assets) against Pakistan, 1988 Operation Pawan (against LTTE) in Srilanka and 1988 Operation Cactus (maldives).

INAS 310 was commissioned by Nawab Ali Yavar Jung on 21 Mar 1961 in Heyres, France. The squardon was headed by Lt Cdr Mihir K Roy (later Vice Admiral). The squardon was commissioned on the French Aircraft carrier ‘Arromanches.’ The first Alize 1050 aircraft was handed over to India on 7th January, 1961 at a place called Villacoublay in France. The Cobra’s participated in a tactical excercise with Type-12 ships (INS Beas and INS Betwa). Both Alize and Type-12 (from UK) were newely acquired and were making their way to India.

The squadron operated from INS Vikrant being acquired from the UK. The COBRAs operated the Alizes from INS Vikrant for the next twenty six years ie till 10 May 1987. The Alizes saw action during the 1971 Indo-Pak war when the squadron’s aircraft flew extensively, remarkably, even by night. The squadron earned six Vir Chakras, six Nao Sena Medals and three mention-in-Despatches for these operations. Vice Adm M K Roy and Cmde RAJ Anderson, the pilot who carried out the first landing of the Alize on INS Vikrant were among the 100 odd veterans attending the ceremony.

With the induction of the Dornier 228, in 1991, the squadron transformed itself from a carrier borne ASW squadron to a shore based Maritime Reconnaisance and Electronic Warfare squadron . The squadron’s exploitation of the Electronic Suite on board, and demonstrated domain expertise, earned it the distinction of being called the ‘Information Warfare’ squadron of the Indian Navy.

The Information Warfare reputation of the squadron was such that the squadron’s services were requisitioned by the IAF and the Army for operations in the Western sector during the 1999 Kargil Operation. The squadron’s aircraft operated far from any sea and from IAF airfields all along the Western border.

It was during this period that the COBRAs moulted from the blue and white skin to the steel grey skin. As recounted by a COBRA, “one day as we were returning to the (IAF) airfield from a sortie, the airfield being camouflaged was quite invisible but the Naval Dornier with its sparkling White wings shone like a torchlight. Immediately thereafter the Dorniers were recalled to Goa and repainted to a dull grey in two days and repositioned in the forward airfields”. The squadron now operates only grey Dorniers.

The COBRAs earned another unit citation in 2002 for their stellar performance during Operation Parakram. The squadron later inducted the ‘Para’ version of the Dornier and has now expanded its repertoire to include para dropping of Marine Commandoes.

The COBRAs, currently commanded by Cdr Sanjay Chauhan.

The squadron is also hosting an International Seminar on ‘Airborne Maritime Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaisance (ISR)” on 22 Mar 11.

INDIAN COAST GUARD ARRESTED PIRATES WITH SEIZED MOTHER VESSEL

Prantlaya 11, 12 and 14 along with their crew were hijacked by the pirates in April last year. Prantlaya-14 was extensively used for piracy attacks and was eventually sunk in a co-ordinated operation of the Navy and the Coast Guard on 28 Jan 11.

Maritime Rescue Co-ordinating Center (MRCC), Mumbai received an information from the ReCAAP, Information Sharing Centre, Singapore at about 1600 hrs on 05 Feb 11 that MT Chios, a Greece flagged crude oil tanker transiting from Singapore to Yemen, was attacked by the pirates on 05 Feb 11, in position about 82 nautical miles west of Suheli Par in the Lakshadweep & Minicoy Islands.

Position of Pirate Mother Vessel
On receipt of the information, MRCC Mumbai contacted MT Chios to ascertain the ongoing situation. The vessel reported that one skiff with 05 heavily armed pirates attempted to hijack the vessel. The attack was thwarted by the ship through anti piracy measures. The vessel was reported to be safe. However, one pirate mother vessel along with a skiff was suspected to be operating in area.

Indian Coast Guard Ship Samar on routine patrol off the Lakshadweep Islands, was diverted with dispatch at 1845 hrs on 05 Feb 11 for sanitizing the area. The ship proceeded at maximum speed, arrived the area at 0500 hrs and commenced search for the pirate mother vessel operating in area. At about 0510 hrs on 06 Feb 11, the ship encountered an unlit contact operating in the area suspected to be the pirate mother vessel. ICGS Samar commenced shadowing the vessel. In the meantime, a small
contact approached the ICG ship from the stern at high speed. ICG ship fired at the contact and therefore it broke off its chase and returned to the pirate mother vessel.

ICGS Samar continued shadowing of the pirate vessel till day break. INS Tir reportedly in the area, joined the coordinated anti piracy operation with the ICG ship. ICGS Samar assumed the duties of On Scene Commander. ICG Dornier was also launched from Kochi in armed configuration at about 0630 hrs on 06 Feb 11 for sea-air coordinated operation. At day break, ICGS Samar closed in towards the pirate mother vessel and identified her as Prantalaya-11 (Thailand flagged fishing vessel hijacked by Somalian pirates in Apr 10). The efforts of the ship to contact the mother vessel on MMB channel 16 did not yield any result.

The vessel was sighted picking up the speed and proceeding west. ICGS Samar fired warning shots across the bows and ahead of the fleeing vessel to compel her to stop.

Further, men with arms were observed on the upper decks of the vessel. The vessel subsequently stopped due to firing by ICGS Samar along with ICG Dornier and IN ship. After firing by ICGS Samar using higher grade weapons, the crew of the pirate
vessel surrendered by hoisting a white flag and mustered on the forward portion of the ship.







All personnel onboard the pirate vessel were thereafter directed to jump into the water for recovery by ICG ship. While 22 Somalian pirates and 16 Thai crew members were recovered by ICG Samar, 06 Somali pirates and 08 Thai crew members were recovered by INS Tir. During the operation 03 pirates are reported to be injured and most of the arms from the mother vessel are suspected to have been dumped overboard.

Further rummaging of the mother vessel is in progress and she is likely to be towed to Mumbai for handing over to the police for initiating legal action.

pakistan navy advertised indian warship

An advertisement issued by the Pakistan Navy Tuesday for a multi-national exercise prominently featured images of Indian Navy warships even though India is not among the countries participating in the manoeuvres being held in the Arabian Sea.

An advertisement issued by the Pakistan Navy Tuesday for a multi-national exercise prominently featured images of Indian Navy warships even though India is not among the countries participating in the manoeuvres being held in the Arabian Sea.

The full-page advertisement for the Aman-11 exercise, which appeared in The Nation and Nawa-e-Waqt newspapers, featured images of the Indian Navy's Delhi, Godavari and Talwar-class warships.

It also featured images of US warships under the slogan: "Together for peace".

Warships, aircraft, Special Forces and representatives from 39 countries are participating in the manoeuvres aimed at fostering peace in the region and enhancing cooperation to counter maritime threats like piracy.

Pakistan has not invited India to participate in the exercise due to the strained relations between the two countries.

Within hours of the Pakistan Navy's advertisement being posted on the websites of newspapers, blogger Shahid Saeed posted the original image of American and Indian warships from the Malabar 2010 exercise that was used in the advertisement.
The full-page advertisement for the Aman-11 exercise, which appeared in The Nation and Nawa-e-Waqt newspapers, featured images of the Indian Navy's Delhi, Godavari and Talwar-class warships.

It also featured images of US warships under the slogan: "Together for peace".

Warships, aircraft, Special Forces and representatives from 39 countries are participating in the manoeuvres aimed at fostering peace in the region and enhancing cooperation to counter maritime threats like piracy.

Pakistan has not invited India to participate in the exercise due to the strained relations between the two countries.

Within hours of the Pakistan Navy's advertisement being posted on the websites of newspapers, blogger Shahid Saeed posted the original image of American and Indian warships from the Malabar 2010 exercise that was used in the advertisement.

CHINESE NAVAL BASE IN MALDIVES POSE A GREATE THREAT TO INDIA

India, China Maldives
A great game is on between India and China to take Maldives in its sphere of influence for the control of the Indian Ocean region. Presently more than 260 billion USD worth of oil and gas pass through the Indian Ocean and a base in Maldives by either country would directly infulence the oil commerce. Therefore India and China both are keen to woo Maldives for their strategic interests.


Since the year 2000, there has been a series of high-level contact going on between Maldivian government and senior Chinese officials. As many as five senior Chinese officials visited Maldives, prior to the visit of former Chinese Premier Zhu Rongi's in May 2001. The Chinese apparently have been in Maale for boosting bilateral trade and to provide assistance for infrastructure development but that’s not all about it.

The speculation since then has been that some high profile negotiation is going on for setting up a permanent Chinese Naval base in Maldives. However, Maldivian President Abdul Gayoom had scotched off such rumors way back in August 2000 on his visit to India. He categorically stated that Maldives was not entertaining any proposal of Chinese naval base since it enjoys excellent defence cooperation with India.

However, the news refused to die down and again surfaced with a report that between 2003 and 2004, China engaged two American and three European companies to conduct aerial and deep-sea surveys. The agreement with the companies was apparently to monitor the weather and magnetic response of the seabed but hidden agenda behind such surveys could not be ruled out.

The issue again becomes a hot topic of discussion after President Gyaoom's made three-day state visit to China in September 2006. Although the public stress was on economic cooperation, there was an increasing concern about China’s military-strategic ambitions in the Indian Ocean region.

Indian security sources have repeatedly been saying that ever since Maldives has leased its ‘Marao Island’ to China in 1999 for maritime traffic management there are sings that the island is also being used by the Chinese to monitor Indian and U.S. warships in the Indian Ocean, and could be developed into a submarine base in the future.

India's defense analysts are peeved about the growing Chinese- Maldives relationship. They say a base in Maldives will put China in direct confrontation with India, a prospect that daunts New Delhi, scares Southeast Asian countries and alarms the US.

It would be naive to think that India is not aware of the developments in Maldives. In fact since the Indian troops helped thwart an attack by Sri Lankan Tamil mercenaries in Maldives in 1988, India -Maldives relationship has been growing from strength to strength. Indian navy vessels patrol the water around the Maldivian archipelago and keep watch over its sea-lanes.

India and Maldives have signed a number of agreements in areas such as information technology, customs, culture, and air service. India is helping Maldives in the implementation of a number of projects under an agreement on economic and technical cooperation. India is also the largest source of manpower recruitment for Maldives.

Alongside there has been many a high profile diplomatic exchanges going on between India and Maldives. This includes Indian ex naval chief Sushil Kumar visit to Male a few years ago. This was followed by the visit of Maldives defence minister Major General Abdul Sattar Ambaree’s (the current High Commissioner to India) to New Delhi. This was reciprocated by India’s then Defense Minister George Fernandes visit to Maldives.

Since then there has been no letup in the high level contact between the two countries. India recently presented INS Tillanchang, a 260-ton fast attack craft commissioned in 2001 to Maldives. This craft is designed for quick and covert operations against smugglers, gunrunners and terrorists. India has also provided Maldives with armored cars and other military equipments. Besides, it has also trained Maldivian paratroopers in counter insurgency operations.

All theses points that India and Maldives is maintaining a fair amount of close contact with each other and the threat perception about Chinese Naval base in Maldives could be more imaginary than real.


Construction of Deepwater Harbor

The other big news from Maldives is that Gyaoom’s government has recently singed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with a Kuwaiti company to build and operate a trans-shipment port in the northern most atoll of the country.

The deep-water harbor project has been on the table since 2001when a European consortium was granted the right to build and manage a transshipment port. However, the project got delayed due to lack of proper legislature on foreign investment and land lease. The Maldives government then revoked the MoU claming that the project was not being implemented on schedule. The contract is now been granted to a Kuwaiti company whose identity is yet to be disclosed.

The construction of deep-water harbor by some third party in Maldives has raised concerns in India. Indian security analysts say that a transshipment port in such a close proximity is potential security risk to both India and the region. They argue that the UN has declared Maldives as “potential vulnerable as a point for the illegal shipment of precursor chemicals or large quantities of drugs destined for other countries.” The proposal to build a deep-water port in the north of the country is therefore a matter of grave concern to India.

Indian government has not made any comment on this development in Maldives. Indian media too seems to be occupied with every thing except Maldives. There seems to be a general consensus that India - Maldives shares a model relationship based on geographical proximity and cultural ties that’s steeped in history.

However, the necessities of the geopolitics demand India should give a fresh look to its ties with Maldives. Today, India-Maldives relationship has become crucial than ever before because the long-term economic and strategic interests of both countries are entwined in the Indian Ocean region. A slight deviation to it may have grave consequences. Therefore, all efforts should be made not to allow Maldives become a theater of another Great Game.

CHINA BUILT NAVAL BASE FOR PAKISTANI NANY TO COUNTER INDIA

CHINESE HELP TO PAKISTANI NAVI FOR COUNTERING INDIAN THREAT

coral islands grouped into atolls that comprise Maldives and lies 40 km south of Male, the capital.

Coral islands make fine submarine pens. The Peoples' Liberation Army Navy or PLAN proposes to deploy nuclear submarines fitted with sea-launched Dong Feng-44 missiles and ballistic missiles (SLBMs) in Marao.

Scientists warn that global warming is pushing up ocean and sea levels. They fear that most of Maldives will be submerged by year 2040. Marao may be one of the few large islands that may survive. "And even if it goes under water," said a naval official, "it will be ideal for submarines."

The base deal was finalised after two years of negotiations when Chinese prime minister Zhu Rongji visited Male on 17 May 2001 on his four-nation South Asian tour. It marks a high point in China's ambitious - and audacious - plan to encircle India and choke its emergent blue-water navy in the Indian Ocean itself.

And it indicates schisms with Maldives, a friendly country saved from a coup by Indian special forces in November 1988.

Gayoom & India

Maldives president Gayoom visited India in August 2000 and held consultations with prime minister Atal Behari Vajpayee on issues of mutual interest including "cross-border terrorism" and regional security. Maldives favours "direct talks" between India and Pakistan to resolve the Kashmir issue. Maldives is a Sunni Muslim country that gained independence from Britain and has fair relations with Pakistan.

After the talks in New Delhi, Gayoom met reporters and disclosed that Maldives was "not considering any proposal to set up a permanent Indian naval base" in that country. He added that there was no such proposal from the Indian side, and that the issue did not figure in the talks. He concluded with a tantalising half-observation that Maldives had "excellent levels of cooperation in defence" with India.

That statement hid some things. It hid, for example, the fact that both India and China were actively wooing Maldives or, at any rate, spoiling it for each other.

Five months before Gayoom's visit, Indian naval chief Sushil Kumar had been to Male. In November 2000, Maldives' junior minister for defence and national security, Major General Abdul Sattar Anbaree, came to India. From 9-12 January 2001, (then) defence minister George Fernandes toured Maldives and held extensive discussions with Major-General Anbaree.

"Naval chief Sushil Kumar and Fernandes' visits got the Chinese suspicious," said a naval official. The Chinese had themselves taken off five times to Maldives before the Rongji visit "under the pretext of boosting bilateral trade and Chinese assistance for infrastructural development and boosting tourism". But Fernandes' visit was the turning point for them, not least because Fernandes, a Lohia-ite, lead the anti-Chinese lobby in the Indian government and had once labeled China India's "no 1 threat".

In February 2001, a small delegation from Pakistan visited Maldives to boost cultural ties. "The Pakistanis put pressure on Male to facilitate Chinese plans for a naval base," said an official. "China used Pakistan to play the Islamic card with Maldives."

China is close to striking a formal deal with Maldives for Marao. It will use Marao islands for 25 years on lease and pay back Maldives in foreign currency and create jobs for the locals dependent entirely on tourism and fishing.

Superpower ambitions

The Marao base's principal aim would be to contain the Indian navy. "China," said a naval official, "is worried that the Indian Navy is getting more natural islets in the Indian Ocean and Bay of Bengal to establish bases that can impose a sea denial on China in case of a conflict in the South China Sea and harm Chinese interests in the Indian Ocean region."

But the Marao base is not expected to be operational until 2010. In the interim, according to a November 2000 white paper on China's national defence, PLAN and PLA's naval air force could deploy a minimum of two aircraft carrier battle groups and five submarine groups in the Indian Ocean. Oilers, AWACS and refueling aircraft will support these groups.

But once Marao comes up, China's power projection in the Indian Ocean will stabilise. It will also set China on the course followed in the earlier superpower, Cold War rivalry between the US and the Soviet Union. Both states built a series of naval bases throughout the world for emergency counter-offensive measures. China is embarked on doing the same.

More bases signify a bigger navy. This is also on the cards. According to the November 2000 white paper, China is moving away from Mao Zedong and Zhou Enlai's "People's War" doctrine biased toward land-based wars and land-based forces to a greater thrust on sea-based forces. The 2001-2002 defence budget gave PLAN a higher share of 35 per cent but cut the army allocation to 29 per cent.

American worry

These developments have worried the US that has proposed to its ASEAN allies and friendly countries to create a joint command to contain China and prevent its expansion in the South China Sea and the Indian Ocean. The US is keen for India to hasten construction of the Far Eastern Naval Command in the Andaman Islands, and this was repeated by the chairman of the US joint chiefs, General Henry H. Shelton, who visited India recently.

Specific to the Marao base, the US sent navy chief Dennis Blair to Maldives a month after Rongji's visit to take stock of China's military diplomacy. While the US base in Diego Garcia can launch surprise offensives, the US wants to restrict Chinese presence in the Indian Ocean because of its strategic value.

According to one survey, some $260 billion worth of oil and gas will be shipped through the Indian Ocean by year 2004. The oil route stretching from the Strait of Malacca to the Strait of Hormuz will be at the mercy of any power that dominates the sealanes. A Chinese base in Marao islands puts it in a direct position to influence oil commerce. It is a prospect that daunts India, scares Southeast Asia, and alarms the US.

On Wednesday, 25 July 2001, US defence secretary Donald Rumsfeld said that the US needed to keep a strong military presence in Asia to deter any future threats from China. "I've always felt," he said, "that weakness is provocative, that it kind of invites people to do things that they otherwise wouldn't think about doing." He disclosed that the Pentagon was evolving a new strategy for Asia that would focus on military operations.

Chinese checkers

But China is pressing ahead with its military plans with equal vigour - and stealth. It is most noticeable in the Marao affair. Indian officials say that China engaged two American and three European companies in the past two years to conduct aerial and deep-sea surveys to assess Maldives' suitability for a base. But the agreement with the companies was for monitoring the weather and magnetic response of the seabed in and around Male.

And yet, such environment-protection surveys may be more than a cover for a base. Environmental protection could also carry a political thrust. Maldives told the UN in 1987 that a 6.6 feet rise in sea level could submerge all of the country. Sea level is rising because of global warming. Global warming is a matter of paranoia for Maldives.

Maldives has criticised the decision of US president George Bush to reject the Kyoto pact on global warming. China calls the US decision "irresponsible", though it is one of the largest emitters of the global-warming carbon dioxide gas, and Zhu Rongji said in Male that China would work with Maldives on environmental issues.

"It will," said an official, "take China next to nothing to convert an honourable campaign against global warming into an anti-American campaign in Maldives."