Admirals Embark for Indian Navy's Tropex 2014 in the Bay of Bengal

Admiral DK Joshi,  Chief of the Naval Staff and Vice Admiral Anil Chopra, Flag Officer Commanding-in-chief, Eastern Naval Command, embarked the combined Fleets at sea off the East coast on 13 Feb 14.  Photo: Indian Navy

The Indian Navy kicked of Tropex 2014 in the Bay of Bengal on February 13, 2014. The month long exercise will feature both the Western and Eastern fleets of the Navy working in a completely networked environment, utilizing GSAT-7, a geostationary communication satellite dedicated to Navy communication launched in the early hours of August 30, 2013 using Ariane-5 Flight VA215 from the Kourou island in French Guiana.

GSAT-7/INSAT-4F is a multi-band communication satellite carrying payloads in UHF, S-band, C-band and Ku-band.

Admiral DK Joshi,  Chief of the Naval Staff and Vice Admiral Anil Chopra, Flag Officer Commanding-in-chief, Eastern Naval Command, embarked the combined Fleets at sea off the East coast for the exercise, arriving in a Sea King helicopter.

INS Viraat, the Navy's sole operational aircraft carrier, and INS Chakra, an SSN leased by the Indian Navy from Russia, are participating in the exercise.

Also being put through their paces in the Tropex series for the first time, are the three three P-8I Long Range Maritime Reconnaissance and Anti Submarine Warfare (LRMRASW) aircraft acquired from the US in 2013, and Hawk fighter trainer jets. Other Navy air assets taking part include Searcher and Heron drones, and Kamov KA-31 AEW helicopters. The IAF is chipping in with its Air to Air Refuellers, Jaguar Maritime Strike Aircraft and SU-30MKIs.

According to a Navy press release, the exercise, which will involve Missile, Torpedo and Gun firing, will be conducted against the backdrop of two completely networked fleets, widely dispersed across the Indian Ocean Region, operating in a dense maritime environment.