INS Mysore (C60)

INS Mysore c. 1960s
History
India
Name	INS Mysore[1]
Namesake	Mysore
Builder	Vickers Armstrongs, Walker, Newcastle upon Tyne
Laid down	8 February 1938
Launched	18 July 1939 (as HMS Nigeria)
Acquired	29 August 1957
Decommissioned	20 August 1985
Identification	Pennant number: C60
Motto	Na bibheti kadachana
Fate	Scrapped
General characteristics
Class and type	Fiji-class light cruiser
Displacement	8,530 tons standard 10,450 tons full load
Length	169.3 m (555.5 ft)
Beam	18.9 m (62 ft)
Draught	5.0 m (16.5 ft)
Propulsion	Four oil fired 3-drum Admiralty-type boilers, 4-shaft geared turbines, 4 screws, 54.1 megawatts (72,500 shp)
Speed	33 knots
Range	6,520 nmi at 13 knots (24 km/h)
Complement	907
Armament	9 × BL 6 in (152 mm) Mark XXIII guns in 3 triple mountings Mark XXI 8 × QF 4 in (102 mm) Mark XVI guns in 4 twin mountings Mark XIX 8 × 40 mm (1.6 in) Bofors AA guns (4 twin mounts) 12 × 2 pounder AA guns ("pom-pom") (3 quadruple mounts) 12 × 20 mm (0.79 in) AA (6 × 2) guns (6 twin mounts) 6 × 21 inch (533 mm) torpedo tubes (2 triple mounts)
Armour	Main belt: 83 mm (3.3 in) Deck: 51 mm (2.0 in) Turrets: 51 mm (2.0 in) Director control tower: 102 mm (4.0 in)

INS Mysore was a Fiji-class light cruiser commissioned in the Indian Navy in 1957. She was acquired from the Royal Navy, where she served in World War II as HMS Nigeria.

Mysore was the second cruiser to be purchased by independent India. She was commissioned into the Indian Navy in August 1957. The crest for Mysore depicted the mythological double-headed eagle Gandaberunda from the coat of arms of the former Mysore state. The ship's motto Na bibheti kadachana was taken from the Taittiriya Upanishad.

Operational history

In 1959, Mysore rammed the Royal Navy destroyer Hogue, severely damaging Hogue's bow.^[2] In 1969, she collided with the destroyer Rana resulting in the latter being decommissioned and again in 1972 with the frigate Beas. Mysore served as a crucible of training. On her several Indian naval officers earned their stripes as her successive commanding officers. In 1971 she served as the flagship of the Western Fleet of the Indian Navy and commanded the missile attack on Karachi harbour in December 1971. Later in her life from 1975 onwards Mysore served as a training cruiser for naval cadets.

Mysore was decommissioned on 20 August 1985 and scrapped.

In popular culture

Mysore appears in the 2016 Bollywood movie Rustom, which was based loosely on the popular K. M. Nanavati v. State of Maharashtra case of the 1960s.^[3]

Citations

References

• Colledge, J. J.; Warlow, Ben (2006) [1969]. Ships of the Royal Navy: The Complete Record of all Fighting Ships of the Royal Navy (Rev. ed.). London: Chatham Publishing. ISBN 978-1-86176-281-8.
• HMS Nigeria at Uboat.net

This page was last edited on 20 March 2024, at 07:29