DAMAGE ASSESMENT - 1971 INDO-PAK NAVAL WAR

B. Harry

[May 23, 2004]

TABLE 1.1 - Indian Navy Ship to Ship kills (Western Theatre 1971)

Date	Ship	Weapon	Victim	Victim type	Status
3 Dec, 1971	INS Rajput	Depth charges	PNS Ghazi	Submarine	Sunk
4 Dec, 1971	INS Nirghat	Styx ASM	PNS Khaibar	Destroyer	Sunk
4 Dec, 1971	INS Nipat	Styx ASM	PNS Shahjahan	Destroyer	Sunk^1
4 Dec, 1971	INS Veer	Styx ASM	PNS Muhafiz	Minesweeper	Sunk
4 Dec, 1971	INS Nipat	Styx ASM	Venus challenger	Merchant^2	Sunk
8 Dec, 1971	INS Talwar	4.5 "+ 40mm		C.R.C^3	Sunk
8 Dec, 1971	INS Vinash	Styx ASM	Harmattan	Merchant	Sunk
8 Dec, 1971	INS Vinash	Styx ASM	SS Gulfstar	Freighter	Sunk
8 Dec, 1971	INS Vinash	Styx ASM	PNS Dacca	Tanker	Dmg

1. Did not sink immediately. Claimed by Pakistan to be damaged beyond service. Disputed.

2. American vessel carrying ammunition for Pakistan

3. Communications Relay Craft

TABLE 1.2 - Indian Navy Air to Ship kills (Eastern Theatre 1971) (Incomplete list)

Date	Aircraft	Weapon	Victim	Victim type	Status
4 Dec, 1971	Hunter^^	30mm	PNS Comilla	Gun Boat	Sunk
4 Dec, 1971	Hunter^^	30mm	PNS Rajshai	Gun Boat	Dmg^
5 Dec, 1971	Alize	Rockets	PNS Salamat	Gun Boat	Sunk
5 Dec, 1971	Alize	Rockets	PNS Shahbaz	Gun Boat	Sunk
6 Dec, 1971	Sea Hawk	Rockets	PNS Sylhet	Gun Boat	Sunk
6 Dec, 1971	Sea Hawk	Cannon	?	Gun Boat	Sunk
6 Dec, 1971	Sea Hawk	Mixed	Ondarda	Merchant	Sunk
6 Dec, 1971	Sea Hawk	Mixed	Thetic Charlie	Merchant	Sunk
9 Dec, 1971	Sea Hawk	?	PNS Balaghat	Gun Boat	Sunk
9 Dec, 1971	Sea Hawk	Mixed	Mustali	Merchant	Sunk
9 Dec, 1971	?	Rockets		2x LCT	Sunk
9 Dec, 1971	Sea Hawk	Mixed	Makran	Merchant	Sunk
10 Dec, 1971	Sea Hawk	Mixed	Nordpol	Merchant	Sunk
11 Dec, 1971	Alize	Rockets	PNS Jessore	Gun Boat	B&D*
12 Dec, 1971	Sea Hawk	Bombs	Al Abbas	Merchant	Sunk
12 Dec, 1971	Sea Hawk	Mixed	Anisbaksh	Merchant	Sunk
12 Dec, 1971	Sea Hawk	Bombs	Avlos	Merchant	Sunk

* Beached and destroyed in attack.

^ Only one escaped East Pakistan to Malaysia. Serves in the Pakistan navy even today.

^^ Eyewitnesses claim that the aircraft were Hunters but they could have actually been Seahawks from the Vikrant. Indian Navy accounts make no mention of IAF Hunters and the area of interception was clearly assigned to the Vikrant.

TABLE 1.3 - Indian Navy losses

Date	Victim	Weapon	Claimant	Victim type	Status
9 Dec, 1971	INS Khukri	2x Torpedo	PNS Hangor	Frigate	Sunk
10 Dec, 1971	Alize 203	Aim-9B	PAF F-104A	Aircraft	Shot down

TABLE 1.4 - Other

Date	Victim	Weapon	Claimant	Type	Status	Comment
9 Dec, 1971	MV Zoe	Coast defense guns	Karachi Port Shore Guns	Merchant	Sunk	Greek vessel sunk in panic fire
10 Dec, 1971	PNS Zulfiquar	30 mm	PAF	Frigate	Damage	Fratricide. Attacked due to mistaken identity

TABLE 1.5 - Estimation of some of the damage inflicted on Enemy by Indian Air strikes

The following Wrecks were estimated:

Ship	GRT
Karnapuhli	6876
Surma	5890
Ocean Enterprise	5909
Unidentified - 1	1800
AnisBaksh	6273
Al-Abbas	9142
Maihar	5983
Materan	1198
Rangamati	5888
Comilla	345
Jessore
Sylhat
Unidentified - 2	8000
Unidentified - 3
TOTAL	57,259 TONS

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Sources

• Salik Siddiq,"Witness to Surrender",Vice Admiral Mihir K Roy (Retd.) PVSM AVSM,"War in the Indian Ocean",SPANTECH & LANCER 1995
• Vice Admiral N.Krishnan (Retd.) PVSM AVSM,"No way but surrender-An

Account of Indo-pak war in the Bay of Bengal 1971",Vikas Publishing,New Delhi

1980

• "Story of the Pakistan Navy",Naval HQ,Islamabad ,1991Vice Admiral Hiranandhini
• (Retd.) NM,PVSM,AVSM,"Transition to triumph - Indian Navy 1965-75",  Lancer International
• LLyod's casualty list, London
• Hamudhar Rehman report