According to the Global Times, citing a report by India**, in the case of the intensification of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict and the appearance of missile drones in the Red Sea and other waters, India finally decided to send the "Indian Aegis" fleet to the relevant sea area of the Arabian Sea to counter various missile drones aimed at oil tankers and other targets. (An oil tanker named "MV Chem Pluto" was attacked in the Arabian Sea).
Recently, an oil tanker "MV Chem Pluto" 210 nautical miles off the coast of India was attacked by "Iranian Shahed 136 loitering ammunition", according to India**. This incident apparently seriously irritated India, as the waters where the attack took place were the Arabian Sea, which India considers "doorstep".
India has announced retaliation, planning to send three Calcutta-class destroyers and two Visakhapatnam-class destroyers to patrol the Red Sea exit, near Yemen and in the waters of the Arabian Sea. At the same time, P-8 patrol aircraft, MQ-9B will also carry out maritime patrol missions, and the Indian Coast Guard will also be involved. ("Aegis of India").
India's dispatch of five "shield ships" to make such a big move, but only to deal with the "slipper army" like the Houthis, makes people feel like a bit of a fuss. Of course, this also has practical significance, because the Houthi drones are indeed difficult to defend against, and after the attack on the "MV Chem Pluto", India could not hold on to itself, so it could only send 5 of the 6 "shield ships" to the region.
If it weren't for the only one left that had just entered service, the Indian Navy might have sent it out. (Visakhapatnam-class destroyer "Imphal"). India's move may have been intended to be a deliberate show of power. Recently, India has sent a strong naval force to deliberately select the waters of the Gulf of Aden for military operations, which overlaps with the area where the 45th escort group of the Chinese Navy carries out peaceful escort missions.
It is worth mentioning that American ** lovers have recently hyped up a piece of news, claiming that the PLA Type 052D destroyer is close to the US aircraft carrier in the Red Sea, while India likes to compare its own ** with China's, especially the Type 052D destroyer and the Indian Kolkata-class destroyer. Indian Defence News even published an article comparing the performance of the two in detail, belittling the 052D, and ultimately concluding that the Calcutta class was "better to make".
India** trumpeted that the Indian Navy was equipped with "Barak-8" anti-aircraft missiles from Israel, and touted the "BrahMos" anti-ship missiles developed with Russian support, claiming that the 052D could not compete with the Kolkata-class, and if it encountered a "BrahMos" salvo, it would be "finished". As for the Type 055 large destroyer, India does not seem to make a comparison, mainly because India does not currently have a 10,000-ton destroyer, and the Visakhapatnam class is just an enlarged version of the Calcutta class.
However, India has a program of P-18 destroyers, which are expected to have a displacement of 13,000 tons and the number of vertical launch systems to 144 units. India's hype claims that the P-18 project will be "on par with China and the United States." In addition, India plans to build 8 P-18 nuclear submarines, which appear to be comparable to China's 8 Type 055 large destroyers.
However, unlike the eight Type 055 large destroyers that have already been launched, India's eight P-18 nuclear submarines are currently under mystery.