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{{Short description|Blackwood-class frigate}}
{{Short description|Indian blackwood-class frigate sunk by Pakistan}}
{{Other ships|INS Khukri}}
{{Other ships|INS Khukri}}{{Use Indian English|date=August 2015}}
{{Use Indian English|date=August 2015}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=November 2020}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=November 2020}}
{|{{Infobox ship begin}}
{{Infobox ship
{{Infobox ship image
|section1={{Infobox ship/image
|Ship image=[[File:INS Khukri (F149).jpg|300px]]
| image = INS Khukri (F149).jpg
|Ship caption=INS ''Khukri'' underway
| image_caption = INS ''Khukrii'' underway
}}
}}
{{Infobox ship career
 
|Hide header=
|section2={{Infobox ship/career
|Ship country=India
| hide_header =  
|Ship flag={{shipboxflag|India|naval 1950}}
| country = India
|Ship name=INS ''Khukri''<ref name=Janes1961i>{{cite book|editor-last=Blackman |editor-first=Raymond VB |title=Jane's Fighting Ships, 1961-62 |publisher=Sampson Low, Marston & Co Ltd |pages=114}}</ref>
| flag = {{shipboxflag|India|naval}}
|Ship namesake=[[Khukri]]
| name = INS ''Khukri''<ref name=Janes1961i>{{cite book|editor-last=Blackman |editor-first=Raymond VB |title=Jane's Fighting Ships, 1961-62 |publisher=Sampson Low, Marston & Co Ltd |pages=114}}</ref>
|Ship ordered=
| namesake = [[Khukri]]
|Ship builder=[[J. Samuel White]], [[Cowes]]
| ordered =  
|Ship laid down=29 December 1955
| builder = [[J. Samuel White]], [[Cowes]]
|Ship launched=20 November 1956
| laid_down = 29 December 1955
|Ship acquired=
| launched = 20 November 1956
|Ship commissioned=16 July 1958
| acquired =  
|Ship decommissioned=
| commissioned = 16 July 1958
|Ship in service=
| decommissioned =  
|Ship out of service=
| in_service =  
|Ship struck=
| out_of_service =  
|Ship reinstated=
| struck =  
|Ship honours=
| reinstated =  
|Ship identification=[[Pennant number]]: F149
| honours =  
|Ship fate=Torpedoed and sunk by Pakistan Navy submarine PNS ''Hangor'' on 9 December 1971
| identification = [[Pennant number]]: F149
|Ship notes=
| fate = Torpedoed and sunk on 9 December 1971
}}
| notes =  
{{Infobox ship characteristics
}}
|Hide header=
 
|Header caption=
|section3={{Infobox ship/characteristics
|Ship class={{sclass|Blackwood|frigate}}<ref name=russellphillip />
| hide_header =  
|Ship tonnage=
| header_caption =  
|Ship displacement={{convert|1,180|LT|t|abbr=on}} full load<ref name=russellphillip />
| class = {{sclass|Blackwood|frigate}}<ref name=russellphillip />
|Ship length={{convert|300|ft|m|abbr=on}}pp {{convert|310|ft|m|abbr=on}}oa<ref name=russellphillip />
| displacement = {{convert|1,180|LT|t|0|abbr=on}} full load<ref name=russellphillip />
|Ship beam={{convert|33|ft|m|abbr=on}}<ref name=russellphillip />
| length = {{convert|300|ft|m|abbr=on}}pp {{convert|310|ft|m|abbr=on}}oa<ref name=russellphillip />
|Ship height=
| beam = {{convert|33|ft|m|abbr=on}}<ref name=russellphillip />
|Ship draught={{convert|15.5|ft|m|abbr=on}}<ref name=russellphillip />
| height =  
|Ship depth=
| draught = {{convert|15.5|ft|m|abbr=on}}<ref name=russellphillip />
|Ship hold depth=
| depth =  
|Ship decks=
| hold_depth =  
|Ship deck clearance=
| decks =  
|Ship ramps=
| deck_clearance =  
|Ship ice class=
| ramps =  
|Ship power=
| ice_class =  
|Ship propulsion=Y-100 plant; 2 x [[Babcock & Wilcox]] boilers, steam turbines on 1 shaft, {{convert|15,000|shp|MW|abbr=on}}
| power =  
|Ship speed={{convert|27.8|kn|km/h|0}} maximum, {{convert| 24.5|kn|km/h|0}} sustained<ref name=russellphillip />
| propulsion = Y-100 plant; 2 x [[Babcock & Wilcox]] boilers, steam turbines on 1 shaft, {{convert|15,000|shp|MW|abbr=on}}
|Ship range={{convert|5200|nmi|km|-1}} at {{convert|12|kn|km/h|0}}
| speed = {{convert|27.8|kn|km/h|0}} maximum, {{convert| 24.5|kn|km/h|0}} sustained<ref name=russellphillip />
|Ship endurance=
| range = {{convert|5200|nmi|km|-1}} at {{convert|12|kn|km/h|0}}
|Ship test depth=
| endurance =  
|Ship boats=
| test_depth =  
|Ship capacity=
| boats =  
|Ship troops=
| capacity =  
|Ship complement=150<ref name=russellphillip />
| troops =  
|Ship crew=
| complement = 150<ref name=russellphillip />
|Ship time to activate=
| crew =  
|Ship sensors=*Radar Type 974 navigation
| time_to_activate =  
*Sonar Type 174 search
| sensors = *Radar Type 974 navigation
*Sonar Type 162 target classification
            *Sonar Type 174 search
*Sonar Type 170 targeting
            *Sonar Type 162 target classification
|Ship EW=
            *Sonar Type 170 targeting
|Ship armament=*3 × [[Bofors 40 mm Automatic Gun L/60|40 mm Bofors gun Mark 7]] (quarterdeck mount later removed)<ref name=russellphillip />
| EW =  
*2 × [[Limbo (weapon)|Limbo Mark 10]] A/S mortars<ref name=russellphillip />
| armament = *3 × [[Bofors 40 mm Automatic Gun L/60|40 mm Bofors gun Mark 7]] (quarterdeck mount later removed)<ref name=russellphillip />
|Ship armour=
              *2 × [[Limbo (weapon)|Limbo Mark 10]] A/S mortars<ref name=russellphillip />
|Ship armor=
| armour =  
|Ship aircraft=
| armor =  
|Ship aircraft facilities=
| aircraft =  
|Ship notes=
| aircraft_facilities =  
| notes =  
}}
}}
}}
|}
'''INS ''Khukri''''' was a [[Blackwood-class frigate|Type 14 (''Blackwood''-class)]]  [[frigate]] of the [[Indian Navy]]. She was a part of the ''14th Frigate Squadron'', a task force that formed part of the [[Western Fleet (India)|Western Fleet]]. The squadron consisted of the three frigates – INS ''Khukri'', {{INS|Kirpan|F144|6}} and {{INS|Kuthar|F146|6}}.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Hiranandani |first1=GM |title=Transition to triumph: history of the Indian Navy, 1965-1975 |year=2000 |publisher=Director Personnel Services (DPS) |isbn=978-1897829691}}</ref> She was sunk off the coast of [[Diu, India|Diu]], [[Gujarat]], India by the [[Pakistan Navy]] {{sclass|Daphné|submarine|0}} submarine {{ship|PNS|Hangor|S131|2}} on 9 December 1971 during the [[Indo-Pakistani War of 1971]]. She was the [[List of ships sunk by torpedoes after 1945|first warship sunk by a submarine since World War II]] and is the post-independence Indian Navy's only warship to have been lost in war.<ref name=russellphillip /><ref name="navalforces">{{usurped|1=[https://web.archive.org/web/20120313093601/http://www.spsnavalforces.net/mn_mulla.asp]}}</ref>
'''INS ''Khukri''''' was a [[Blackwood-class frigate|Type 14 (''Blackwood''-class)]]  [[frigate]] of the [[Indian Navy]]. She was sunk off the coast of [[Diu, India|Diu]], [[Gujarat]], [[India]] by the [[Pakistan Navy]] {{sclass|Daphné|submarine|0}} submarine {{ship|PNS|Hangor|S131|2}} on 9 December 1971 during the [[Indo-Pakistani War of 1971]]. This was the first warship sunk in action by a submarine since [[World War II]]. It remains the post-Independence Indian navy's only warship to be lost in war.<ref name=russellphillip /><ref name="navalforces"/>


{{Infobox military conflict
== The sinking of INS ''Khukri'' ==
| conflict          = Sinking of INS ''Khukri''
After the beginning of hostilities on 3 December 1971, Indian Naval radio detection identified a submarine lurking about {{convert|35|mi}} southwest of Diu harbour. The 14th Frigate Squadron of the Western Fleet was dispatched to destroy the submarine.<ref name=russellphillip /> It usually consisted of five ships, ''Khukri'', {{INS|Kirpan|1959|2}}, ''Kalveti'', ''Krishna'' and ''Kuthar,'' but at the time of the incident ''Kuthar''{{'}}s boiler room was being repaired in [[Mumbai|Bombay]].<ref name=russellphillip /> One reason that may have prompted the decision to deploy two obsolete ''Blackwood''-class frigates against a modern ''Daphne''-class submarine was that the Indian Navy lacked sufficient numbers of anti-submarine aircraft.<ref>{{usurped|1=[https://web.archive.org/web/20060710173052/http://www.acig.org/artman/publish/article_431.shtml Indian-Subcontinent Database]}}</ref>
| image            =  
| caption          =  
| partof            = the [[Indo-Pakistani Naval War of 1971|Naval Conflict]] of [[Indo-Pakistan War of 1971]]
| date              = 9 December 1971
| place            = [[Arabian sea]]
| result            = INS Khukhri sank<ref name=russellphillip />
| combatant1        = {{PAK}}
----
{{navy|Pakistan}}
| combatant2        = {{IND}}
----
{{Navy|India}}
| commander1        = [[Commander]] [[Ahmed Tasnim]]
| commander2        = [[Captain (naval)|Captain]] [[Mahendra Nath Mulla]]{{KIA}}
| strength1        = {{ship|PNS|Hangor|S131|6}} ([[submarine]])
| strength2        = INS ''Khukri'' ([[frigate]])<br>{{INS|Kirpan|1959|6}} ([[frigate]])
| casualties1      = ''None''
| casualties2      = INS ''Khukri'' sunk<ref name=russellphillip /><br>194<ref name=exp1 /><br>|
}}


==Sinking==
The submarine sighted the squadron on the evening of 9 December. ''Khukri'' was still not aware of the submarine's presence<ref name="brharry">{{cite web|last=Harry |first=B. |title=Loss of the INS Khukri |url=http://www.bharat-rakshak.com/MONITOR/ISSUE4-3/harry.html |access-date=21 October 2011 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120118015853/http://www.bharat-rakshak.com/MONITOR/ISSUE4-3/harry.html |archive-date=18 January 2012 }}</ref> and continued slowly on a steady course because she was testing an improved version of the 170/174 sonar, which required a low speed to increase detection, despite the fact that moving on low speed was against Indian anti-submarine doctrine.<ref name="russellphillip">{{cite web|title=The Sinking of INS Khukri|url=http://www.russellphillipsbooks.co.uk/articles/ins-khukri.php|work=Society of Twentieth Century Wargamers Journal.|publisher=russellphillipsbooks|access-date=20 October 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120326015444/http://www.russellphillipsbooks.co.uk/articles/ins-khukri.php|archive-date=26 March 2012|url-status=dead}}</ref>  
After the beginning of hostilities on 3 December 1971, Indian Naval radio detection equipment identified a submarine lurking about {{convert|35|mi}} south-west of Diu harbour. The 14th Frigate Squadron of the Western Fleet was dispatched to destroy the submarine.<ref name=russellphillip /> It normally consisted of five ships, ''Khukri'', {{INS|Kirpan|1959|2}}, ''Kalveti, Krishna'' and ''Kuthar,'' but at the time of the incident ''Kuthar''{{'}}s boiler room was being repaired in Bombay.<ref name=russellphillip /> One reason that may have prompted the decision to deploy two obsolete ''Blackwood''-class frigates against a modern ''Daphne''-class submarine was that the Indian Navy lacked sufficient numbers of anti-submarine aircraft.<ref>[http://www.acig.org/artman/publish/article_431.shtml Indian-Subcontinent Database]  {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060710173052/http://www.acig.org/artman/publish/article_431.shtml |date=10 July 2006 }}</ref>


The submarine sighted the squadron on the evening of 9 December.  ''Khukri'' was still not aware of the submarine's presence<ref name="brharry">{{cite web|last=Harry |first=B. |title=Loss of the INS Khukri |url=http://www.bharat-rakshak.com/MONITOR/ISSUE4-3/harry.html |access-date=21 October 2011 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120118015853/http://www.bharat-rakshak.com/MONITOR/ISSUE4-3/harry.html |archive-date=18 January 2012 }}</ref> and continued slowly on a steady course because she was testing an improved version of the 170/174 sonar, which required a low speed to increase detection, despite the fact that moving on low speed was against Indian anti-submarine doctrine.<ref name="russellphillip">{{cite web|title=The Sinking of INS Khukri|url=http://www.russellphillipsbooks.co.uk/articles/ins-khukri.php|work=Society of Twentieth Century Wargamers Journal.|publisher=russellphillipsbooks|access-date=20 October 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120326015444/http://www.russellphillipsbooks.co.uk/articles/ins-khukri.php|archive-date=26 March 2012|url-status=dead}}</ref> At 19:57 ''Hangor'' fired a homing torpedo on a sonar approach at ''Kirpan''.<ref name="russellphillip" /> The torpedo did not explode<ref name="brharry" /><ref name="interviewtasneem" /> and was detected by ''Kirpan'' which turned away and fired anti-submarine mortars.<ref name="russellphillip" /> ''Khukri'' increased its speed and turned towards the submarine, which then fired a second torpedo directed at ''Khukri''.<ref name="russellphillip" /> The torpedo struck ''Khukri'' and exploded under its oil tanks.<ref name="russellphillip" /><ref name="brharry" />  According to the Pakistani submarine captain, Commander [[Ahmed Tasnim]], the ship sank within two minutes.<ref name="interviewtasneem">[https://web.archive.org/web/20101223133653/http://www.zimbio.com/member/Pakistan1947/articles/4112973/Vice%2BAdmiral%2BTasneem Interview with Vice Admiral Tasneem, December 2008]</ref> Other sources claim that ''Khukri'' was struck by three torpedoes before going down.<ref>Friedman, Norman (1984). ''Submarine design and development''. Conway Maritime, p. 188</ref>
At 19:57 ''Hangor'' fired a homing torpedo on a sonar approach at ''Kirpan''.<ref name="russellphillip" /> The torpedo missed ''Kirpan'', did not explode,<ref name="brharry" /><ref name="interviewtasneem" /> and was detected, causing ''Kirpan'' to turn away and fire multiple anti-submarine mortars, all of which also missed.<ref name="russellphillip" /> ''Khukri'' increased its speed and turned towards the submarine, which then fired a second torpedo directed at ''Khukri''.<ref name="russellphillip" /> The torpedo struck ''Khukri'' and exploded under its oil tanks.<ref name="russellphillip" /><ref name="brharry" />  According to the Pakistani submarine captain, Commander [[Ahmed Tasnim]], the ship sank within two minutes.<ref name="interviewtasneem">[https://web.archive.org/web/20101223133653/http://www.zimbio.com/member/Pakistan1947/articles/4112973/Vice%2BAdmiral%2BTasneem Interview with Vice Admiral Tasneem, December 2008]</ref> Other sources claim that ''Khukri'' was struck by three torpedoes before going down.<ref>Friedman, Norman (1984). ''Submarine design and development''. Conway Maritime, p. 188</ref>


After a few minutes, ''Kirpan'' attacked ''Hangor'' with depth charges, as her anti-submarine mortars were no long functional.<ref name="russellphillip" /> ''Hangor'' then fired a final torpedo at ''Kirpan'' before leaving the area.<ref name="russellphillip" /><ref name="brharry" />  ''Hangor'' patrolled the region for the next four days before returning safely to her berth.
After a few minutes, ''Kirpan'' attacked ''Hangor'' with depth charges, as her anti-submarine mortars were no longer functional. All missed.<ref name="russellphillip" /> ''Hangor'' then fired a final torpedo at ''Kirpan'', which ''Kirpan'' dodged before returning back. ''Hangor'' then left the area.<ref name="russellphillip" /><ref name="brharry" />  ''Hangor'' patrolled the region for the next four days before returning safely to her berth.


==Casualties==
==Casualties==
''Khukri'' is the only ship lost in combat in the history of the Indian Navy.<ref name=russellphillip /><ref name="navalforces">[http://www.spsnavalforces.net/mn_mulla.asp] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120313093601/http://www.spsnavalforces.net/mn_mulla.asp |date=13 March 2012 }}</ref><ref name="ojnews">{{cite web |url=http://www.ojnewscom.com/index.php?page=newsDetail&id=4446 |title=Why they chose to go down with the ship? |last=Wattal |first=Ameeta Mulla |publisher=OjNewsCom |date=9 December 2010 |access-date=7 June 2015}}</ref> Eighteen officers and 176 other sailors were killed.<ref name="navalforces"/><ref name="ojnews"/> The captain, [[Mahendra Nath Mulla]], was among the casualties and is the only Indian captain to go down with a vessel as INS Khukri is the only warship of Indian navy lost in combat. He was posthumously awarded India's second-highest military honour, the [[Maha Vir Chakra]].<ref name="navalforces"/><ref name="ojnews"/>
''Khukri'' is the only ship lost in combat in the history of the post-independence Indian Navy.<ref name=russellphillip /><ref name="ojnews">{{cite web |url=http://www.ojnewscom.com/index.php?page=newsDetail&id=4446 |title=Why they chose to go down with the ship? |last=Wattal |first=Ameeta Mulla |publisher=OjNewsCom |date=9 December 2010 |access-date=7 June 2015 |archive-date=6 February 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230206100514/https://www.ojnewscom.com/index.php?page=newsDetail&id=4446 |url-status=dead }}</ref> Eighteen officers and 176 sailors were killed.<ref name="navalforces"/><ref name="ojnews"/> The captain, [[Mahendra Nath Mulla]], was among the casualties and is therefore the only Indian captain to go down with a vessel. He was posthumously awarded India's second-highest military honour, the [[Maha Vir Chakra]].<ref name="ojnews"/>
 
==Remembrance==
There is a memorial to the sailors in [[Diu, India|Diu]]. The memorial consists of a scale model of ''Khukri'' encased in a glass house, placed atop a hillock facing the sea. The memorial was inaugurated by Vice Admiral [[Madhvendra Singh]] as the flag officer commanding-in-chief.<ref name=exp1>[http://cities.expressindia.com/fullstory.php?newsid=153894 Two-day ceremony at Navy’s Diu memorial] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130425031811/http://cities.expressindia.com/fullstory.php?newsid=153894 |date=25 April 2013 }}</ref>
A memorial in the remembrance of this ship has been built, along the coast, in [[Diu, India|Diu]]. The memorial consists of a scale model of ''Khukri'' encased in a glass house, placed atop a hillock facing the sea. The memorial was inaugurated by Vice Admiral [[Madhvendra Singh]] as the flag officer commanding-in-chief.<ref name=exp1>[http://cities.expressindia.com/fullstory.php?newsid=153894 Two-day ceremony at Navy's Diu memorial] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130425031811/http://cities.expressindia.com/fullstory.php?newsid=153894 |date=25 April 2013 }}</ref> India's first indigenously built corvette was also [[INS Khukri (P49)|named after her.]]


[[File:Unidentified Indonesian ship at full steam, Jalesveva Jayamahe, p57.jpg|thumb|INS ''Khukri'' during an execise with [[Indonesian Navy]] in 1960]]
[[File:Indian frigate INS Khukri at full steam, Jalesveva Jayamahe, p57.jpg|thumb|INS ''Khukri'' during an exercise with [[Indonesian Navy]] in 1960]]


[[File:Model of INS Khukri at memorial of the ship, 2012.jpg|thumb|Model of ''Khukri'' at the INS ''Khukri'' memorial, Diu]]
[[File:Model of INS Khukri at memorial of the ship, 2012.jpg|thumb|Model of ''Khukri'' at the INS ''Khukri'' memorial, Diu]]
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==See also==
==See also==
{{Div col}}
{{Div col}}
* {{Ship|HMS|Cadiz|D79}}
* [[Indo-Pakistani War of 1971]]
* [[Indo-Pakistani War of 1971]]
* [[Timeline of the Bangladesh Liberation War]]
* [[Timeline of the Bangladesh Liberation War]]
Line 125: Line 106:
* [[Pakistan Army order of battle, December 1971]]
* [[Pakistan Army order of battle, December 1971]]
* [[Evolution of Pakistan Eastern Command plan]]
* [[Evolution of Pakistan Eastern Command plan]]
* [[1971 Bangladesh genocide]]
* [[Operation Searchlight]]
* [[Indo-Pakistani wars and conflicts]]
* [[Indo-Pakistani wars and conflicts]]
* [[Military history of India]]
* [[Military history of India]]
* [[List of military disasters]]
* [[List of military disasters]]
* [[List of wars involving India]]
* [[List of wars involving India]]
*[[Sinking of ARA General Belgrano]]
*[[Sinking of IRIS Dena]]
{{div col end}}
{{div col end}}


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==References==
==References==
* {{cite book|last=Mankekar |first=D.R. |title=Twenty-Two Fateful Days: Pakistan Cut to Size. |location=New Delhi |publisher=Indian Book Co. |date=1972}}
* {{cite book|last=Mankekar |first=D.R. |title=Twenty-Two Fateful Days: Pakistan Cut to Size. |location=New Delhi |publisher=Indian Book Co. |date=1972}}
* {{cite book|last=Roy |first=Mihir K. |title=War in the Indian Ocean |publisher=Lancer International |date=1995}}
* {{cite book|last=[[M. K. Roy|Roy]] |first=Mihir K.|title=War in the Indian Ocean |publisher=Lancer International |date=1995}}
*{{cite journal |title=Indian Navy - Blackwood Class Type 14 Frigates |journal=Marine News Supplement: Warships|name-list-style=amp |date=May 2022 |volume=76 |issue=5|pages=S277–S281 |issn=0966-6958}}
*{{cite journal |title=Indian Navy - Blackwood Class Type 14 Frigates |journal=Marine News Supplement: Warships|name-list-style=amp |date=May 2022 |volume=76 |issue=5|pages=S277–S281 |issn=0966-6958}}


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{{DEFAULTSORT:Khukri}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Khukri}}
[[Category:Blackwood-class frigates of the Indian Navy]]
[[Category:Blackwood-class frigates of the Indian Navy]]
[[Category:Indo-Pakistani War of 1971]]
[[Category:Frigates of the Indian Navy]]
[[Category:Frigates of India]]
[[Category:Ships built in India]]
[[Category:India–Pakistan war of 1971]]
[[Category:Shipwrecks in the Arabian Sea]]
[[Category:Shipwrecks in the Arabian Sea]]
[[Category:Ships sunk by submarines of Pakistan]]
[[Category:Ships sunk by submarines of Pakistan]]
[[Category:Frigates and destroyer escorts sunk by submarines]]
[[Category:Ships of India–Pakistan wars and conflicts]]
[[Category:Maritime incidents in 1971]]
[[Category:Maritime incidents in 1971]]
[[Category:1956 ships]]
[[Category:1956 ships]]
[[Category:Diu, India]]
[[Category:Diu, India]]
[[Category:Frigates of the Cold War]]
[[Category:Frigates of the Cold War]]
[[Category:20th century in Gujarat]]
[[Category:20th century in India]]
[[Category:1971 in Pakistan]]
[[Category:1971 in India]]
[[Category:December 1971 in Asia]]
[[Category:Military history of India]]
[[Category:Naval battles of India–Pakistan wars and conflicts]]

Latest revision as of 12:18, 19 March 2026


For other ships with the same name, see INS Khukri.

Template:Infobox ship INS Khukri was a Type 14 (Blackwood-class) frigate of the Indian Navy. She was a part of the 14th Frigate Squadron, a task force that formed part of the Western Fleet. The squadron consisted of the three frigates – INS Khukri, INS Kirpan and INS Kuthar.[1] She was sunk off the coast of Diu, Gujarat, India by the Pakistan Navy -class submarine Hangor on 9 December 1971 during the Indo-Pakistani War of 1971. She was the first warship sunk by a submarine since World War II and is the post-independence Indian Navy's only warship to have been lost in war.[2][3]

The sinking of INS Khukri[edit | edit source]

After the beginning of hostilities on 3 December 1971, Indian Naval radio detection identified a submarine lurking about 35 miles (56 km) southwest of Diu harbour. The 14th Frigate Squadron of the Western Fleet was dispatched to destroy the submarine.[2] It usually consisted of five ships, Khukri, Kirpan, Kalveti, Krishna and Kuthar, but at the time of the incident Kuthar's boiler room was being repaired in Bombay.[2] One reason that may have prompted the decision to deploy two obsolete Blackwood-class frigates against a modern Daphne-class submarine was that the Indian Navy lacked sufficient numbers of anti-submarine aircraft.[4]

The submarine sighted the squadron on the evening of 9 December. Khukri was still not aware of the submarine's presence[5] and continued slowly on a steady course because she was testing an improved version of the 170/174 sonar, which required a low speed to increase detection, despite the fact that moving on low speed was against Indian anti-submarine doctrine.[2]

At 19:57 Hangor fired a homing torpedo on a sonar approach at Kirpan.[2] The torpedo missed Kirpan, did not explode,[5][6] and was detected, causing Kirpan to turn away and fire multiple anti-submarine mortars, all of which also missed.[2] Khukri increased its speed and turned towards the submarine, which then fired a second torpedo directed at Khukri.[2] The torpedo struck Khukri and exploded under its oil tanks.[2][5] According to the Pakistani submarine captain, Commander Ahmed Tasnim, the ship sank within two minutes.[6] Other sources claim that Khukri was struck by three torpedoes before going down.[7]

After a few minutes, Kirpan attacked Hangor with depth charges, as her anti-submarine mortars were no longer functional. All missed.[2] Hangor then fired a final torpedo at Kirpan, which Kirpan dodged before returning back. Hangor then left the area.[2][5] Hangor patrolled the region for the next four days before returning safely to her berth.

Casualties[edit | edit source]

Khukri is the only ship lost in combat in the history of the post-independence Indian Navy.[2][8] Eighteen officers and 176 sailors were killed.[3][8] The captain, Mahendra Nath Mulla, was among the casualties and is therefore the only Indian captain to go down with a vessel. He was posthumously awarded India's second-highest military honour, the Maha Vir Chakra.[8]

Remembrance[edit | edit source]

A memorial in the remembrance of this ship has been built, along the coast, in Diu. The memorial consists of a scale model of Khukri encased in a glass house, placed atop a hillock facing the sea. The memorial was inaugurated by Vice Admiral Madhvendra Singh as the flag officer commanding-in-chief.[9] India's first indigenously built corvette was also named after her.

INS Khukri during an exercise with Indonesian Navy in 1960
Model of Khukri at the INS Khukri memorial, Diu
INS Khukri memorial, Diu

Controversy[edit | edit source]

Responsibility for errors by Indian naval officers related to the sinking has caused some controversy. The naval officer who led the inquiry into the sinking, Benoy Bhushan, has claimed that India's official naval history invented fictional accounts to cover up bungling and a surviving sailor from the frigate, Chanchal Singh Gill, has called for an investigation and withdrawal of gallantry awards to negligent officers in the squadron.[10]

See also[edit | edit source]

Notes[edit | edit source]

  1. ↑ Hiranandani, GM (2000). Transition to triumph: history of the Indian Navy, 1965-1975. Director Personnel Services (DPS). ISBN 978-1897829691.
  2. ↑ 2.00 2.01 2.02 2.03 2.04 2.05 2.06 2.07 2.08 2.09 2.10 "The Sinking of INS Khukri". Society of Twentieth Century Wargamers Journal. russellphillipsbooks. Archived from the original on 26 March 2012. Retrieved 20 October 2011.
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 [1][usurped]
  4. ↑ Indian-Subcontinent Database[usurped]
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 Harry, B. "Loss of the INS Khukri". Archived from the original on 18 January 2012. Retrieved 21 October 2011.
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 Interview with Vice Admiral Tasneem, December 2008
  7. ↑ Friedman, Norman (1984). Submarine design and development. Conway Maritime, p. 188
  8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 Wattal, Ameeta Mulla (9 December 2010). "Why they chose to go down with the ship?". OjNewsCom. Archived from the original on 6 February 2023. Retrieved 7 June 2015.
  9. ↑ Two-day ceremony at Navy's Diu memorial Archived 25 April 2013 at the Wayback Machine
  10. ↑ Sura, Ajay (7 January 2011). "Khukri sinking: Probe officer terms row 'silly fiction'". Times of India. Retrieved 7 June 2015.

References[edit | edit source]

  • Mankekar, D.R. (1972). Twenty-Two Fateful Days: Pakistan Cut to Size. New Delhi: Indian Book Co.
  • Roy, Mihir K. (1995). War in the Indian Ocean. Lancer International.
  • "Indian Navy - Blackwood Class Type 14 Frigates". Marine News Supplement: Warships. 76 (5): S277–S281. May 2022. ISSN 0966-6958.

External links[edit | edit source]

20°16′38″N 70°59′37″E / 20.27722°N 70.99361°E / 20.27722; 70.99361 Template:Blackwood class frigate

Template:1971 shipwrecks

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