Western Naval Command

The INS Viraat operating during Exercise Malabar.

The Western Naval Command is a formation of the Indian Navy.^[1] It has its HQ in Mumbai, Maharashtra and is commanded by the Flag Officer Commanding-in-Chief, currently Vice Admiral Shekhar Sinha.

Area of responsibility

The Western Naval Command (WNC) is the sword arm of the Indian Navy and naval operations conducted on the western seaboard would be central to the outcome of any conflict at sea against Pakistan. The western fleet is the two-star level operational formation of the Western Naval Command. It utilizes Mumbai and Karwar as its home ports, with its HQ in Mumbai. The fleet at the WNC is based under Flag Officer Maharashtra Area (FOMA) and provides naval defence in the sensitive north Arabian Sea adjacent to Pakistan. INS Kadamba, a large naval base, was constructed under Project Seabird and completed in 2005. This naval base, at Karwar in Karnataka, is used exclusively by the Indian Navy.^[1]

Capabilities

INS Viraat is the Flagship of the Western Fleet. The WNC is equipped with submarine pens, a carrier dock and main maintenance dockyards.

The Carrier Battle Group of the Western Fleet has the aircraft carrier INS Viraat, Delhi class destroyers, Talwar class frigates and Sindhughosh class submarines. The Naval Aviation is provided by Sea Harrier strike aircraft along with airborne early warning Kamov Helicopters.

Full fledged shipbuilding facilities on the western seaboard include the Mazagon Dock Limited in Mumbai, the Goa Shipyard Limited and the Cochin Shipyard Ltd in Kerala, which is India's largest repair dry dock.

See also

• Eastern Naval Command
• Southern Naval Command

References