Three Russian Kilo-class Submarine for India
The Indian Navy’s SSK force currently consists of 14 SSKs against a projected requirement of 24 SSKs under the service’s Maritime Capacity Perspective Plan (MCPP) 2012–27. In order to augment the submarine numbers in the Indian Navy, India and Russia are close to signing “three plus three” package that would include upgrade work on three Indian Navy Sindhughosh Kilo (Project 877EKM)-class SSKs with an additional three refurbished Russian Navy Kilo-class hulls for 1.8-2 billion dollars. The Indian Navy would receive the Russian-made SSKs at one-year intervals with the first submarine slated for delivery three years after the conclusion of the agreement. The refit of the three Sindhughosh Kilo (Project 877EKM)-class SSKs, which entered service in 1990, 1991, and 2000 respectively, would extend their operational life by 10 years.
“One important capability which the Kilos provide India is their submarine launched cruise missiles. They are equipped with the Russian supplied 3M-14E Club-S missile which is roughly similar to the American Tomahawk.”
The Russian 3M-54E1 Klub-S submarine-launched cruise missile (SLCM) has an estimated 220-kilometre range against surface targets.