Pakistan Navy

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Pakistan Navy jack

Military of Pakistan

Military manpower

Military age

16 years of age

Availability

39,028,014 (2005)

Males ages

16-49

Reaching military age

males: 1,969,055 (2005)

Active troops

620,000 (Ranked 7th)

Military expenditures

Dollar figure

$3.848 billion (2004)

Percent of GDP

4.9% (2004)

Pakistan Armed Forces

Pakistan Navy

Personnel

Military history

Military history of Pakistan

Wars of Pakistan

Battles of Pakistan

[edit] History

[edit] 1947-1956

The birth of the Royal Pakistan Navy came with the creation of Pakistan on 14 August 1947. The Armed Forces Reconstitution Committee (AFRC) divided the Royal Indian Navy between both countries India and Pakistan. The Pakistan Navy secured two sloops, two frigates, four minesweepers, two trawlers, four harbor launches and some 3580 personnel (180 officers and 3400 ratings) and given the high percentage of delta areas on the Pakistan coast the Navy was given a number of Harbor Defense Motor Launches. The Royal Pakistan Navy saw no action during the Indo-Pakistani War of 1947 as all the fighting was restricted to Kashmir.

[edit] 1956 - 1965

In 1956 the Islamic Republic of Pakistan was proclaimed under the 1956 constitution. The prefix Royal was dropped and the service re-designated as Pakistan Navy short title PN. PN Jack and Pakistan flag replaced the Queen's colour and the white ensign respectively. The order of precedence of the three services changed from Navy, Army, Air force to Army, Navy, Air Force.

In February 1956, the British government announced supplying of several major surface combatants to Pakistan. These Warships, a cruiser and four destroyers were purchased with funds made available under the US Military Assistance Program. The acquisition of a few additional warships that is two destroyers, eight coastal minesweepers and an oiler (between 1956-63) was the direct result of Pakistan's participation in the anti-Communist defence pacts of SEATO and CENTO.

During the Indo-Pakistani War of 1965 the navy was involved in a conflict for the first time. Apart from carrying out a bombardment of the coastal town of Dwaraka - codenamed Operation Dwarka, the navy's submarine PNS Ghazi was deployed against Indian Navy's western fleet at Bombay (Mumbai) port. [1]

[edit] 1965-1971

PNS Ghazi, Pakistan's flagship submarine during the Bangladesh Liberation War, was sunk in the Bay of Bengal and was a major blow to Pakistan Navy.

The Navy's role changed in Indo-Pakistani War of 1971 when the military was caught in the thick of the battle. With East Pakistan having been surrounded on all three sides by the Indian Army, the Navy was under immense pressure to protect the coast. Despite the isolated incidents including the sinking of an Indian frigate INS Khukri by the submarine PNS Hangor, the Navy was largely overrun. The major threat from the much dreaded PNS Ghazi - the only long range submarine - was nullified when it sank in the Bay of Bengal thus enabling an easy blockade on East Pakistan^[1]. The damage inflicted by both Indian Navy and Indian Air Force on Pakistan Navy stood at 6 Gunboats, one submarine, a minesweeper, a Destroyer, 3 patrol crafts belonging to the coast guard, 18 supply and communication vessels, with some more crafts damaged - including friendly fire. 3 merchant navy ships Anwar Baksh, Pasni, Madhumathi^[2] and ten smaller vessels were captured. ^[3] The total number of personnel losses came to about 1900 and 1413 servicemen were captured by Indian forces in Dhaka(Official Pakistan losses)^[4]. In contrast the Indian Navy lost 212 personnel, a frigate (another frigate damaged) and a naval plane Breguet Alizé to the Pakistan Air Force (PAF)^[4]. According to one Pakistan scholar, Tariq Ali, Pakistan Navy lost a third of its force in the war.^[5] The primary reason for this loss has been attributed to the central command's failure in defining a role for the Navy - or the military in general, in East Pakistan. Since then the Navy has sought to improve the structure and fleet by putting special emphasis on sub-surface warfare capability as it allows for the most efficient way to deny the control of Pakistani sea lanes to the adversary.

[edit] 1972-1999

Following the breakup of Pakistan, the Navy sought to diversify its purchases instead of depending solely on the US, which had placed an arms embargo on both India and Pakistan. It sought more vessels from France and China. The Pakistan Navy thus became the first navy in South Asia to acquire land based missile capable long range reconnaissance aircraft.^[6] During the 1980s the Pakistan Navy enjoyed un-preceded growth. It doubled its surface fleet from 8 to 16 surface combatants in 1989. In 1982, the Reagan administration approved US$ 3.2 billions military and economic aid to Pakistan. Pakistan acquired eight Brooke and Garcia-class frigates from US Navy on a five year lease in 1988. A depot for repairs, EX-USS HECTOR followed the lease of these ships in April 1989. However after the Soviet withdrawal from Afghanistan in 1989 US President George Bush was advised to no longer certify that Pakistan was not involved in the development of nuclear weapons and the Pressler’s Amendment was invoked on 1 October 1990. The lease of the first Brooke class frigate expired in March 1993, the remaining in early 1994. This seriously impaired the Pakistan Navy, which was composed almost entirely of former US origin ships. Pakistan began to concentrate on self-reliance for its defense production.

[edit] 1999-Present

Pakistan Navy ensign

The Atlantique Incident was a major international incident on 10 August 1999 where a Pakistan Navy plane (Breguet Atlantic) with 16 on board was shot down in the border area of the Kutch region by Indian Air Force jets. It resulted in escalated tensions between the two neighboring countries.

The Navy has been involved in some peacetime operations, most notably during the tsunami tragedy that struck on December 26, 2004. Pakistan sent vessels to Sri Lanka and the Maldives to help in rescue and relief work.

[edit] Personnel

Pakistan Navy Coat of Arms

The Pakistan Navy has some 24,000 personnel. The force includes a small Naval Air Arm and the approximately 2,000 member paramilitary Maritime Security Agency, charged primarily with protecting Pakistan's exclusive economic zone(EEZ). The naval reserve consists of about 5,000 personnel. Included in this is the Naval arm of the Special Services Group, a marine commando unit stationed at Karachi. The SSG(N) as it is known is believed to number around 1,000 in troop strength.

[edit] Naval General Staff

Admiral Muhammad Afzal Tahir — Chief of Naval Staff)
Vice Admiral Mohammad Haroon — Vice Chief of Naval Staff.
Vice Admiral Sikandar Viqar Naqvi HI(M) — Commander Karachi.
Rear Admiral Asaf Humayun — Commander of Pakistan Fleet
Rear Admiral Mahmood Ahmed Khan — Commander of Logistics
Rear Admiral Saleem Menai — Commander of Coastal Areas
? — Commander of North Navy
Rear Admiral Shahid Iqbal — Deputy Chief of Naval Staff (Operations)
? — Deputy Chief of Naval Staff (Material)
Rear Admiral R U Khan — Deputy Chief of Naval Staff (Supply)
? — Deputy Chief of Naval Staff (Projects)
Rear Admiral Mohammed Shafi — Deputy Chief of Naval Staff (Training and Personnel)
? — Deputy Chief of Naval Staff (Projects-II)

[edit] Organization

The supreme commander of the Navy is the Chief of the Naval Staff. Admiral Afzal Tahir is the current Chief of the Navy. Pakistan Navy recently began inducting women for combat positions apart from the existing administrative posts, becoming one of the few Islamic Republics to do so.

The navy has four commands:

COMKAR - Naval headquarters and the only major base at Karachi (COMmander KARachi)
COMPAK - The fleet; (COMmander PAKistan Fleet)
COMLOG - The logistics; (COMmander LOGistics)
COMCOAST - The special command of SSG(N), Marine and Coastal stations (COMmader COAST) at Karachi

Other naval bases are Ormara, Pasni, Gwadar and Jiwani.

COMNOR - Naval installations in the north of Pakistan;

(COMmander NORth)

[edit] Training Instituions

Pakistan Navy has an academy of its own called the Pakistan Naval Academy (also known as PNS RAHBAR), it is the home of initial training of officers of Pakistan Navy. The academy also has provided basic training to the officers of Allied Navies. The Chief of Naval Staff of Qatar Emiri Navy and many high ranking officers of Royal Saudi Navy as well as other navies in the Gulf were graduates of the PNA. The academy is a full fledged training institution catering to the needs to Pakistani junior Naval officers. The Navy also has its own navy war college called the Pakistan Navy War College [2] specilizing in imparting Naval Warfare techniques to officers of the Pakistan marine forces.

Other worthwhile training institutions are:

PNS BAHADUR: conducts specialist courses

PNS HIMALAYA: for basic training of sailors

PNS KARSAZ: for technical training of sailors

PNS JAUHAR: for technical training of officers PNS Jauhar has been absorbed by the National University of Sciences and Technology as Pakistan Navy Engineering College, where officers and civilian students are offered degrees in Electrical, Mechanical and Electronics Engineering.

[edit] The fleet

PNS Shahjahan & PNS Tippu Sultan with USS Rueben James during Exercise Inspired Siren in 2002.

Classification of ships with respect to their classes ^[7]^[8]

6 Ex-UK Class Type 21 Frigates
3 French Eridan Class Mine Hunter vessels
3 Jalalat Class Missile Boats
4 Sabqat Class (Huangfeng Class) Fast Attack Crafts
2 Shanghai II Class Attack Patrol Gunboats
1 Larkana Class Patrol Boat
2 MRTP 15 Fast Attack Patrol Boats
1 Fuqing Class AOR
1 Poolster Class AOR
2 Coastal Tankers
4 Griffon Ambhibious Assault Ships
1 Hydrographic Survey Vessel, SV Behr Paima
1 Leander Class Frigates Training vessel

[edit] Submarines

A total of 5 main submarines plus 3 midget submarines, MG110 are in the Naval inventory^[8]. These include:

Daphne class submarine Ghazi (S-134)

3 Agosta-90B (PNS/M Khalid, PNS/M Saad & PNS/M Hamza)
2 Agosta-70 (PNS/M Hasmat and PNS/M Hurmat)
1 Daphne class (PNS/Hangor, kept for display)

All of the Pakistani SSKs have been equipped with AshMs which can be fired while submerged. The 3 Khalid class boats are capable of firing Exocet AshM , while the older Agostas and Daphnes have been equipped with US Harpoon AshMs. PNS/M Hamza (third Agosta-90B) is equipped with the MESMA Air Independnat Propulsion system, PNS/M Khalid and PNS/M Saad will be upgraded with the same MESMA AIP system in the near future. The Pakistan Navy also plans to integrate the Boeing Harpoon Block II on to its Agosta-90Bs; and currently the Agosta-90Bs are capable of firing Blackshark torpedos.

In mid-2006 the Pakistan Navy announced its requirement of three to six new SSK attack submarines to replace the four Daphne and two Agosta-70 submarines. French shipbuilder DCN announced that it will offer its latest export design - the Marlin SSK - which is based off the Scorpene SSK, but also uses certain technologies from the Barracudda nuclear attack submarine. The German firm HDW will offer its U-214 SSK design. The new SSK deal will be similar to the Agosta-90B deal in which Pakistan will locally produce a portion of the Pakistan Navy's order.

Pakistan is also seeking to enhance its strategic strike capability by developing a submarine-launch variant of the Babur cruise missile. The Babur cruise missile has a range of 500km and is capable of using both coventional and nuclear warheads. Future developments of Babur include capability of being launched from submarines, surface vessels (like frigates) and aircraft, as well as enhancing range to 1000km.

[edit] Destroyers

Pakistan Navy destroyer PNS Babur.

The Pakistan Navy has one modern destroyer, PNS Babur, and has the option to buy the American Spruance-class destroyer Fletcher.

[edit] Frigates

PNS Badr (F184) steams along side USS Tarawa (LHA-1) in November of 2005

The Navy's eight frigates include six ex-British Amazon class (PNS Babur) and two Leander-class ships: PNS Zulfiquar and PNS Shamsher. These are expected to retire between 2010 and 2020.

In 2005 Pakistan ordered four F-22P light frigates from China in a deal worth $600mn. The first is expected to be commissioned 2009[3] and the remainder by 2013. One of the F-22Ps will be built in the Karachi Shipyard. The F-22P is an improved version of the Type 053H3 Jiangwei II class light frigate, it has a displacement of roughly 2400 tons.

Four used S-Class frigates were bought from Greece, they will be commissioned into the Navy by the end of 2007. The S-Class has a displacement of nearly 3800 tons and surpasses the PN's Type-21 in regards to performance, weapons and systems. It is likely that the Pakistan Navy S-Class frigates will go through a similar upgrade as their Greek counterparts.

According to Jane's IDEAS2004 interview with former Pakistan Navy Chief ex-Admiral Kariumullah another four or so new frigates will be acquired; either a larger and improved F-22P or entirely new model like the Type-054. Options for this new class also include the German MEKO A-200 and MEKO-D (Delta) series.

[edit] Corvettes & Missile Boats

A hover boat

In a recent interview with the Pakistan Naval Chief of Staff, Admiral Tahir, the Pakistan Navy is considering the purchase of at least four new corvettes; expected displacement range is 1,500 tons to 2000+ tons. According to the Admiral these would also be built in Pakistan alongside the F-22P frigate and new SSK attack submarine in the Karachi Shipyard. The Pakistan Navy may be considering the German MEKO A-100 or the Turkish MILGEM Class corvettes.

The Pakistan Navy operates two 250 ton missile boats, the PNS Quwwat and PNS Jurraat; the Quwwat Class were locally produced with the help of the Thai based firm Marsun. An unknown number of locally built Jalalat-II class 200 ton missile boats are also in service with the PN. In November 2006 the Pakistan Navy ordered two MRTP-33 missile boats from Turkey - the first to be delivered in 2008; the Navy has an overall requirement of eight MRTP-33s.

[edit] Aviation

The Pakistan Navy Aviation wing is quite small compared to the Pakistan Army Aviation, but despite its size it has a potent fleet which is continuously advancing in offensive and defensive warfare. Currently the PN Aviation Force consists of:

•	3		Westland Lynx Anti-Ship/Anti-Submarine/Transport Helicopters
•	6		Westland Sea King Mk45 Transport Helicopters
•	8		Aerospatiale SA-319B Alouette III Transport/Anti-Ship Helicopters
•	4		Lockheed P-3C Orion Maritime Surveillance/Anti-Submarine Warfare Aircraft (6 to be delivered)
•	5		Fokker F27-200 Maritime Surveillance Aircraft
•	2-3		Breguet Atlantique I Maritime Surveillance/Anti-Submarine Warfare Aircraft.
•	12	+	Mirage V Anti-Ship Fighter Aircraft (Operated by the Pakistan Air Force)

The Pakistan Navy ordered six (6) Chinese Z-9EC Anti-Ship/Anti-Submarine/Transport Helicopters. Eight (8) P-3C Orion Surveillance/Anti-Submarine Warfare Aircraft were also ordered (and two delivered) to replace the ageing Fokker and Atlantique aircraft. In December 2006 the U.S State Department notified U.S Congress about a possible sale of another three P-3 Orions to the Pakistan Navy, but equipped with the Hawkeye 2000 AEW&C system.

Future acquisitions include:

At least 6 new helicopters to replace the Westland Seaking Mk45.
At least 8 new helicopters to replace the Aerospatiale SA-319B Alouette III

[edit] Others

The Pakistan Navy has one Poolster Class AOR and one Fuqing Class AOR auxilary tankers as well as two Gwadar class coastal tankers. The PN plans to procure up to two tankers from Turkey or the Netherlands. Three Eridan Class mine hunters are also in service with the PN; plans for additional mine hunters are underway.

[edit] Conclusion

Pakistan has always relied on stealth and prides itself on its submarines. However the financial crunch and the Pressler Amendment has hindered its ability to match the growing military capability of its neighbour, India. Since the late 1990s, Pakistan stepped up its efforts to modernize its navy's surface, submerged, and aerial fleet, as well as weapons inventory of various missiles, torpedoes, etc.