Eastern Fleet
Founded01 November 1971
Country India
Branch Indian Navy
TypeFleet
Part ofEastern Naval Command
HeadquartersVisakhapatnam
Nickname(s)Sunrise Fleet[1]
Commanders
FOCEFRear Admiral Rajesh Dhankhar, NM
Notable
commanders		Rear Admiral S H Sarma, PVSM

The Eastern Fleet is a Naval fleet of the Indian Navy. It is known as the 'Sword Arm' of the Eastern Naval Command and called the Sunrise Fleet.[2][1] It is headquartered at Visakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh on the east coast of India. It is a part of the Eastern Naval Command and is responsible for the naval forces in the Bay of Bengal and parts of the Indian Ocean.

The Eastern Fleet in 2016

The Eastern Fleet was constituted on 1 November 1971. The Fleet is commanded by a Rear Admiral with the title Flag Officer Commanding Eastern Fleet (FOCEF). Rear Admiral Rajesh Dhankhar is the current FOCEF, who took over on 10 November 2023.

The Eastern Fleet manoeuvring in the Andaman Sea

History

After the independence and the partition of India on 15 August 1947, the ships and personnel of the Royal Indian Navy were divided between the Dominion of India and the Dominion of Pakistan. The division of the ships was on the basis of two-thirds of the fleet to India, one third to Pakistan.[3]

The operational ships of the remaining Royal Indian Navy, minus Pakistan, were initially placed under the command of the Commodore Commanding Indian Naval Squadron (COMINS), later the Rear-Admiral Commanding Indian Naval Squadron (RACINS), whose title was then changed to Flag Officer (Flotilla) Indian Fleet (FOFIF). These appointments were initially held by British officers: Commodore H.N.S. Brown, who was the Commanding Officer of INS Delhi (C74) and serving as COMINS, seemingly at the same time, and later, Commodore (later Rear Admiral) Geoffrey Barnard who became COMINS and later Rear-Admiral Commanding, INS.[4] The Flotilla was later upgraded to the Indian Fleet under a Flag Officer Commanding Indian Fleet (FOCIF).[5] On the proclamation of a Republic in 1950, the 'Royal' title was dropped and the Navy became simply the Indian Navy. Barnard was succeeded by Rear Admiral N.V. ("Uncle Richard") Dickinson, Rear Admiral F.A. Ballance, and then the final British officer Rear Admiral St John Tyrwhitt as FOCIF.[4] In 1956, Rear Admiral Ram Dass Katari became the first Indian flag officer, and was appointed the first Indian FOCIF on 2 October, when he took over from Rear Admiral Tyrwhitt.[6][7] (title alternately given as Flag Officer (Flotilla).[8] In 1957, INS Mysore (C60) was commissioned, and the flag of Rear Admiral Katari was transferred, INS Mysore thus becoming the flagship of the Indian Fleet.[9]

On 1 March 1968, the Eastern Naval Command was established and the Indian Fleet was renamed as the Western Fleet.[10][11] On 1 November 1971, the Eastern Fleet was constituted. Rear Admiral S H Sarma, PVSM was appointed as the Founding Flag Officer Commanding Eastern Fleet (FOCEF) who commanded the fleet during the Indo-Pakistani War of 1971.[12]

Indo-Pakistani War of 1971

In mid 1971, The aircraft carrier INS Vikrant, along with the frigates INS Brahmaputra and INS Beas were moved from the Western Fleet to the Eastern Naval Command.[13] Thus, INS Vikrant became the flagship of the Eastern Fleet.

According to Vice Admiral Nilakanta Krishnan, the then Flag Officer Commanding-in-Chief Eastern Naval Command (FOC-in-C ENC), the aim of the Eastern fleet was:

"To destroy the enemy's maritime forces deployed in support of his military operations in East Bengal and to deny all sustenance from reaching the enemy from the sea. This aim would involve keeping under the most careful surveillance the area of a triangle with a base of 270 miles and two sides of 165 and 225 miles, involving 18,000 square miles. Apart from actual surveillance, each merchant ship in this area would have to be challenged, identified and boarded. If neutral and carrying contraband, the ship would have to be escorted to the nearest Indian port. If Pakistani, she would be boarded, captured and taken in as a war prize. Ships that refused to stop would have to be forced to do so. The main task would be the isolation of Chittagong. This would mean physical attack on this port from the sea and the air. The responsibility for this, it had been agreed with the Army and Air Force would be, in the main, that of the Navy."[14]

According to Rear Admiral S H Sarma, the Fleet Commander, the tasks of the Eastern Fleet were:

  • To seek and destroy enemy naval units at sea
  • To destroy his bases so that enemy naval units could not get shore support
  • To establish a blockade off the East Pakistani coast
  • To establish contraband control [15]
INS Vikrant with a Sea King helicopter during Indo-Pakistani war of 1971.jpg
INS Vikrant launches an Alize aircraft during Indo-Pakistani War of 1971

ORBAT

The Order of Battle of the Eastern Fleet in 1971 was:[16]
Fleet Commander: Rear Admiral S H Sarma

Anti-Aircraft Frigates

Anti-Submarine Frigates

Destroyer

Landing Ship, Tanks

Tanker

The Eastern Fleet effectively blockaded the ports of East Pakistan. Alizé and Hawker Sea Hawk aircraft from the INS Vikrant and the ships of the fleet bombarded Chittagong and Cox's Bazar.[16] The air strikes of INS Vikrant resulted in the sinking or rendering useless 11 merchant ships totalling 56914 tons.[17] The Eastern Fleet also enforced contraband control until tasked with an amphibious landing to cut off the land escape routes into Burma.[18]

On 11 December, the FOC-in-C ENC signalled the Eastern Fleet:

"Appreciate enemy with senior officers including FOCEF planning major breakout and will try to get away by hugging the coast. Senior officers may try to escape by air. Approaches to harbour likely to be mined.

"Your mission is:

  • (a) Put Chittagong airport out of commission.
  • (b) Attack ships in harbour by air and surface units if they break out.

This is undoubtedly the most important mission of the war in the East. The enemy ships must, I repeat, must, be destroyed. Good Luck."''[14]

After the surrender of Pakistan on 16 December 1971, the FOCEF was given the task of reopening and reactivating the Port of Chittagong.

Kargil War

The Indian Navy launched Operation Talwar on 25 May 1999. The entire Western Fleet had sailed from Mumbai to the North Arabian Sea to increase surveillance and adopt a deterrent posture. Elements of the Eastern FLeet joined the Western Fleet in the Arabian Sea later. The joint Western and Eastern Fleets blockaded the Pakistani ports (primarily the Karachi port).[19][20][21][22][23] They began aggressive patrols and threatened to cut Pakistan's sea trade. This exploited Pakistan's dependence on sea-based oil and trade flows.[24] Later, then-Prime Minister of Pakistan, Nawaz Sharif disclosed that Pakistan was left with just six days of fuel to sustain itself if a full-scale war had broken out.[25][26][27][28]

Fleet Commander

The Eastern Fleet is commanded by a Rear Admiral with the title Flag Officer Commanding Eastern Fleet (FOCEF), based at Visakhapatnam.

See also

References

  1. 1 2 "FLEET AWARDS FUNCTION - EASTERN NAVAL COMMAND Recognising Operational Achievements". pib.gov.in.
  2. ↑ "Rear Admiral Suraj Berry Assumes Charge as the Flag Officer Commanding Eastern Fleet | Indian Navy". www.indiannavy.nic.in.
  3. ↑ Bhatia (1977), p. 28: "Consequent on the partition of the country on 15 August 1947, two thirds of the undivided fleet and associated assets came to India."
  4. 1 2 "Blue Print to Blue Water: Chapter 8" (PDF).
  5. ↑ Johnson, Cmde Odakkal (17 February 2016). "EVOLUTION OF WESTERN NAVAL COMMAND 1612 – 1968".
  6. ↑ Singh 1992, pp. 250.
  7. ↑ Katari, Ram Dass (1982). A sailor remembers. Vikas. ISBN 9780706920642.
  8. ↑ "Indian Navy | Rear Admiral R D Katari [www.bharat-rakshak.com]". www.bharat-rakshak.com.
  9. ↑ Singh, Satyindra (1992). Blueprint to Bluewater, the Indian Navy, 1951-65. Lancer Publishers. p. 80. ISBN 978-81-7062-148-5.
  10. ↑ "Golden Jubilee Celebrations of ENC | Indian Navy". www.indiannavy.nic.in.
  11. ↑ Hiranandani, G M (2000). Transition to triumph : history of the Indian Navy, 1965-1975. Lancer Publishers. ISBN 978-1897829721.
  12. ↑ "NAVY EASTERN FLEET FORMED ADM SARMA PLACED IN COMMAND" (PDF).
  13. ↑ Krishnan, Nilakanta (2011). A Sailor's story. Punya Pub. ISBN 978-8189534141.
  14. 1 2 Krishnan, N (2011). A Sailor's story. Punya Pub. ISBN 978-8189534141.
  15. ↑ Sarma, S H (2001). My years at sea. Lancer Publishers & Distributors. pp. 159–160. ISBN 978-8170621218.
  16. 1 2 Sarma, S H (2001). My years at sea. Lancer Publishers & Distributors. p. 154. ISBN 978-8170621218.
  17. ↑ Krishnan, Nilakanta (2011). A Sailor's story. Punya Pub. p. 64. ISBN 978-8189534141.
  18. ↑ Transition to guardianship : the Indian navy 1991-2000. Published by Principal Director of Administration, Integrated Headquarters, Ministry of Defence (Navy) [in association with] Lancer Publishers. 15 January 2010. ISBN 978-1935501268.
  19. ↑ Grare, Frédéric. "The Resurgence of Baluch nationalism" (PDF). Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. Retrieved 20 May 2009.
  20. ↑ "Sea Power". Force India. Archived from the original on 18 August 2013. Retrieved 17 August 2013.
  21. ↑ Azam Khan, Cdr (Retd) Muhammad. "Exercise Seaspark—2001". Defence Journal. Retrieved 17 August 2013.
  22. ↑ "Indian Navy celebrates its silent Kargil victory". DNA India. 30 November 2005. Retrieved 17 August 2013.
  23. ↑ General Ashok K Mehta (5 August 2005). "The silent sentinel". Rediff. Retrieved 17 August 2013.
  24. ↑ General Ashok K Mehta (5 August 1999). "The silent sentinel". Retrieved 19 October 2014.
  25. ↑ "1999 Kargil Conflict". GlobalSecurity.org. Retrieved 20 May 2009.
  26. ↑ Riedel, Bruce (2 May 2013). Avoiding Armageddon. HarperCollins. ISBN 978-9350299944. Archived from the original on 29 October 2013.
  27. ↑ Lambeth, Benjamin (2012). Airpower at 18,000': The Indian Air Force in the Kargil War (PDF). Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. p. 54.
  28. ↑ Hiranandani, G. M. (2009). Transition to Guardianship: The Indian Navy 1991–2000. New Delhi: Lancer Publishers. ISBN 978-1935501268.
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