INS Sindhurakshak called at Portsmouth en route to Mumbai. Maritime Photographic

The Indian Navy took redelivery of INS Sindhurakshak following the completion of the boat’s mid-life refit at the Zvezdochka shipyard in Severodvinsk on 26 January. During a two-year overhaul, the 1997-built vessel was retrofitted with the Klub-S cruise missile system for 200km range 3M54E1 anti-ship and 3M14E land attack cruise missiles, along with a range of Indian-made systems, including a hydro-acoustic ‘USHUS’ sonar, a CCS-MK radio-communication system and Porpoise Electronic Support Measures.

The 2,300-tonne diesel-electric submarine is the seventh and last of the navy’s ten Project 877EKM (Kilo class) fleet to be refitted in Russia and the only one to be returned during ice conditions. Attention has now turned towards building their replacements.

A global tender for six AIP-capable submarines, designated Project 75-I, is expected to be issued soon with India showing interest in Russia’s Amur 1650, the French-designed Scorpené, Spain’s S-80 and the German Type 214.

The cruiser RFS Moskva has spearheaded the biggest Russian naval exercise for a decade. Gary Davies

The Russian Navy held its biggest naval exercise for more than a decade in January. The war games in the Mediterranean and Black Seas involved the Northern, Baltic, Black Sea and Pacific Fleets conducting more than 60 joint training missions. The inter-fleet warships taking part were headed by the imposing Black Sea Fleet flagship, RFS Moskva, along with the destroyers Severomorsk and Smetlivy, and the frigate Yaroslav Mudry.

The exercise was to test the ships’ ability to act together outside Russian waters. Moscow has been trying to strengthen its military presence in the Mediterranean region, where its only overseas base is in Syria. So it was timely that the landing ships Saratov, Azov, Kaliningrad and Alexandr Shabalin carried out amphibious landings of troops on to an unprepared coast.

The salvage of USS Guardian is expected to take several weeks. US Navy

A delicate and drastic salvage operation is underway to remove a grounded American warship from a protected coral reef near the Philippine coast. USS Guardian became firmly beached on 17 January after the minehunter sailed from a routine visit to the former US base at Subic Bay. The 1,400-tonne vessel was subsequently flooded as wave motion punctured several holes in her wooden hull leaving her unseaworthy. All 79 crew were taken off as salvage teams arrived to remove 56,000 litres of fuel to reduce the risk of pollution to the UNECSO World Heritage site.

It was later decided that the only viable salvage option, to minimise further damage to the coral reef, was to dismantle the ship and remove it in sections. An investigation is under way as to why the ship was in the wrong area. The US Navy revealed the digital navigational chart in use by Guardian misplaced the correct location of the reef by about eight nautical miles.

The amphibious assault ship FS Dixmude has deployed to West Africa. DCNS

The ongoing military operation against Islamist fighters in Mali has seen the French Navy deploy one of its Mistral class LHDs in a power projection role for the first time. The recently-commissioned FS Dixmude sailed from Toulon with a full load of vehicles from the 92nd Infantry Regiment filling the hangar, garage and well-decks, and also on the flight deck.

The cargo of Infantry Fighting Vehicles, anti-tank reconnaissance armoured vehicles, armoured personnel carriers and ambulances, armoured vehicles, as well as tactical trucks and refuelling tankers, would stretch for six kilometres if laid end to end. The loading procedure was computer-monitored in real time throughout to ensure that the 2,000 tonnes of cargo was evenly distributed to maintain the vessel’s stability. The reinforcements, which also included around 700 troops, were taken to the Ivory Coast port of Abidjan.