thedrifter
01-22-07, 08:16 AM
Issue Date: Monday, January 22, 2007
Gift from US: A warship and a Marine idea
SUJAN DUTTA
New Delhi, Jan. 21: Naval headquarters is toying with the idea of raising an Indian Marines Expeditionary Force on the lines of the US Marines in scenarios drawn up with the acquisition of an American amphibious warfare ship that was transferred to an Indian crew in Norfolk, Virginia, this week.
With the export of the Trenton to the Indian Navy, the Pentagon is transferring not only a warship but also a whole idea of expeditionary warfare that the Indian military has so far been chary about.
The US Marines typically engage in assault operations on land as in Iraq and Afghanistan but are under the US department of navy.
The scenarios involve not only attacking enemy territory but also operations to protect and/or secure Indian economic assets overseas such as Bombay High off the Malabar coast or the Greater Nile Oil Project of ONGC Videsh Limited in strife-torn Sudan.
The peace-time scenarios involve delivering relief after a natural disaster, such as a tsunami or evacuating citizens from a foreign war zone as in Lebanon last July.
The USS Trenton is to be re-christened the INS Jalashva and is due for commissioning after it docks in India sometime in May this year. But already the possibilities thrown up by its acquisition have led to ideas of restruct-uring Indian maritime capabilities.
The Indian Navy has a nucleus for such a force in its Marine Commandos (Marcos) and there are also infantry units of the army like the 9 Sikh currently dedicated to its amphibious warfare vessels such as the INS Magar and the INS Gharial. But the INS Jalashva will be in a wholly different class.
It packs a lot more punch. For example, while the Magar can carry upto 500 troops, 15 tanks and eight armoured personnel carriers, the Jalashva will be able to ferry a marine detachment of nearly a 1,000 troops, a column of tanks, plus six helicopters and hovercraft.
But before an Indian Marines Corps is raised, the army, navy and the air force will need to sort out their respective areas of jurisdiction. While the services adopted a joint services doctrine last year and an integrated headquarters of defence has been formed again an idea from the US military they are still some distance away from fine-tuning processes for actual operations.
Indian naval and army detachments have intensified exchanges with the Americans. Two drills last year Exercise Shatrujeet-06 and Exercise Malabar-06 had the Indian Navy and army operating with the US Marines.
In October, soldiers of the 9th Sikh landed with soldiers of the US 15th Marine Exp- editionary Unit on a beach in Goa, simulating an assault.
The marines then went on to train at the Indian Armys Infantry School in Belgaum.
The last time India tried amphibious warfare in a major way was during the Indian Peacekeeping Force duty in Sri Lanka in 1987. That left the Indian Armys land-lubber troops exhausted and seasick even before they landed in battle-scarred Trincomalee.
Ellie
Gift from US: A warship and a Marine idea
SUJAN DUTTA
New Delhi, Jan. 21: Naval headquarters is toying with the idea of raising an Indian Marines Expeditionary Force on the lines of the US Marines in scenarios drawn up with the acquisition of an American amphibious warfare ship that was transferred to an Indian crew in Norfolk, Virginia, this week.
With the export of the Trenton to the Indian Navy, the Pentagon is transferring not only a warship but also a whole idea of expeditionary warfare that the Indian military has so far been chary about.
The US Marines typically engage in assault operations on land as in Iraq and Afghanistan but are under the US department of navy.
The scenarios involve not only attacking enemy territory but also operations to protect and/or secure Indian economic assets overseas such as Bombay High off the Malabar coast or the Greater Nile Oil Project of ONGC Videsh Limited in strife-torn Sudan.
The peace-time scenarios involve delivering relief after a natural disaster, such as a tsunami or evacuating citizens from a foreign war zone as in Lebanon last July.
The USS Trenton is to be re-christened the INS Jalashva and is due for commissioning after it docks in India sometime in May this year. But already the possibilities thrown up by its acquisition have led to ideas of restruct-uring Indian maritime capabilities.
The Indian Navy has a nucleus for such a force in its Marine Commandos (Marcos) and there are also infantry units of the army like the 9 Sikh currently dedicated to its amphibious warfare vessels such as the INS Magar and the INS Gharial. But the INS Jalashva will be in a wholly different class.
It packs a lot more punch. For example, while the Magar can carry upto 500 troops, 15 tanks and eight armoured personnel carriers, the Jalashva will be able to ferry a marine detachment of nearly a 1,000 troops, a column of tanks, plus six helicopters and hovercraft.
But before an Indian Marines Corps is raised, the army, navy and the air force will need to sort out their respective areas of jurisdiction. While the services adopted a joint services doctrine last year and an integrated headquarters of defence has been formed again an idea from the US military they are still some distance away from fine-tuning processes for actual operations.
Indian naval and army detachments have intensified exchanges with the Americans. Two drills last year Exercise Shatrujeet-06 and Exercise Malabar-06 had the Indian Navy and army operating with the US Marines.
In October, soldiers of the 9th Sikh landed with soldiers of the US 15th Marine Exp- editionary Unit on a beach in Goa, simulating an assault.
The marines then went on to train at the Indian Armys Infantry School in Belgaum.
The last time India tried amphibious warfare in a major way was during the Indian Peacekeeping Force duty in Sri Lanka in 1987. That left the Indian Armys land-lubber troops exhausted and seasick even before they landed in battle-scarred Trincomalee.
Ellie