Ep. 2 - Admiral, It's Time

On 31st of May, Admiral Krishna Swaminathan became the 27th Chief of the Naval Staff of the Indian Navy. As Navy chief, Admiral Swaminathan now holds the reins of the largest naval force in the Indian Ocean region that spans a width of over 7,600 kilometres between the horn of Africa and the Australian coast. As the new chief, Admiral Swaminathan will have several critical hats to wear. In his tenure, the navy is likely to sign contracts to acquire six new diesel electric submarines from Germany, a fleet of next-generation corvettes with significant stealth and firepower, a new generation of massive destroyers, and construct a batch of S5 class nuclear submarines.In his tenure, the Navy is also likely to receive the first batch of the 24 Rafale multirole strike aircraft it ordered from Dassault Aviation, sign a contract to purchase more P8I maritime surveillance aircraft, and stabilise its fleet of 24 brand new MH-60R Seahawk helicopters. Admiral Swaminathan's job will be to steer the massive wave of modernisation. He has to right-size the Naval staff to man major naval ships entering the service, introduce next-generation education and training across the fleets, and create a naval armada capable of dominating the high seas and winning wars in uphold Indian supremacy in the deep waters of the Indian Ocean.But his most significant challenge is to influence the Indian government's decision-making powers to make true use of the Navy's growing capabilities, particularly in theatres such as the Strait of Hormuz and the Straits of Malacca that serve as vital trade links that sustain the nation's economy.For Admiral Swaminathan, the need of the hour is to identify the kind of assets, technologies and logistics the Navy will need in the future to conduct long range maritime patrols and dominate the high seas.