Pak vessel PNS Hunain involved in collision with Indian Navy ship – all about Yarmook-class corvette
The Pakistani naval vessel involved in a collision with an Indian Navy ship in the North Arabian Sea on Tuesday evening was PNS Hunain, a Yarmook-class corvette of the Pakistan Navy, sources were quoted as saying by news agency ANI.According to sources, the incident took place on September 15 when the Pakistani vessel approached a frontline Indian Navy warship that was carrying out a routine surveillance mission in the North Arabian Sea.
What is the Yarmook-class corvette?
PNS Hunain (F-273) is a Yarmook-class corvette operated by the Pakistan Navy and was built by Damen Shipyards in Galati, Romania.The class comprises multi-role vessels designed for coastal defence, patrol and maritime security operations, with surveillance and firepower capabilities for missions in the Arabian Sea and along coastal areas.
The Yarmook-class corvettes have a displacement of about 2,300 tonnes, a length of 91.3 metres and a crew of around 60 personnel.They are powered by four Caterpillar 3516 diesel engines in a combined diesel and diesel (CODAD) configuration and can reach a maximum speed of 22 knots. The vessels have a range of about 6,000 nautical miles at 12 knots and an endurance of up to 40 days.
Armament and aviation capabilities
The Yarmook-class corvettes are equipped with a mix of guns, missile systems and close-in defence weapons. Their armament includes one 30 mm Aselsan SMASH remote weapon station and two 12.7 mm Aselsan STAMP remote weapon stations.The vessels are also fitted with two four-cell launchers for Harbah surface-to-surface missiles, which are part of the Babur missile family. For close-range defence against aerial and other threats, they carry one 20 mm Phalanx Block 1B close-in weapon system (CIWS).The ships can also operate one helicopter and one unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), extending their surveillance and maritime reconnaissance capabilities.
What happened in Arabian Sea?
The Pakistani naval ship closed in at high speed and manoeuvred in an “unprofessional and unsafe manner”, resulting in a collision, sources said. No major damage was reported in the incident.Following the incident, India on Wednesday summoned the Charge d’Affaires of the Pakistan High Commission in New Delhi and lodged a strong protest over what it termed the “unacceptable and unprofessional conduct” of Pakistani naval units.“The Charge d’Affaires of the High Commission for the Islamic Republic of Pakistan in New Delhi was summoned to the Ministry of External Affairs today and a strong protest was lodged with him over the unacceptable and unprofessional conduct of Pakistani naval units at sea that led to a collision with a unit of the Indian Navy,” the ministry of external affairs said in a statement.
