Hawker Sea Hawk [IN240]

The foxtrot submarine Kursura on the Vizag beach. There is a Seahawk accompanying the Submarine.

The Navy has a huge presence in the port city of Visakhapatnam in the Northeastern part of the state. Visakhapatnam is the Headquarters of the Eastern Naval Command. The Navy uses Visakhapatnam airport for its aerial operations which include Helicopters as well as Kiran trainers. The ENC Headquarters has a couple of warbirds on display inside its environs. Though no information is there as far as the types and serial numbers are concerned, The customary Sea hawk can be expected to be there.

Part of the Victory at Sea Memorial is the immaculate Sea Hawk IN-240. is one of the best displayed Sea Hawks in the country.

A walk along the Vivekananda beach road is a must for Warbird watchers and Military enthusiasts. The first thing that strikes the visitor while going north on the road is the huge Foxtrot Submarine displayed parallel to the road. This is the INS Kursura Submarine Museum, the only one of its kind in the whole of Asia. The Submarine was beached and bought here in February 2001. It was formally opened for the general public in August 2002. This has been handed over by the navy to the AP Tourism board. A fee of Rs 50 is charged for entry and the proceeds go for the upkeep of the vessel.

A little further to the north, is the Victory at Sea Memorial. It was inaugurated to commemorate the role of Eastern Naval Command in the 1971 War. The memorial consists of a huge park area, with an Amar-Jawan style jyothi and Obelisk. Within the park area is a T-55 Tank representing the land component and an immaculate Sea Hawk [IN-240] displayed in flying position on a concrete pylon to represent the air component.

IN-240 is maintained quite well, as can be seen by the paint scheme. The T-55 Tank can be seen in the background in the picture on the right.

The Seahawk is displayed with its undercarraige in the open position and looks complete in all aspects. There was a rumour that this particular aircraft was one of the last flying examples in the Indian Navy. Though it is not confirmed.

A closeup of the rear fuselage of the Sea Hawk gives a detailed look at the Arrester Hook and tail markings.

Further north on the road is the Visakha Municipal Corporation Museum. This is another stopover. Outside the museum is the Conning Tower of the former IN Submarine Kalvari. INS Kalvari was the first ever Submarine in the Indian Navy and was decommissioned in the early 90s. The hull was too far gone to be saved and the conning tower was given to the Vizag corporation. The area where the conning tower is displayed also has a couple of Torpedoes and diving bells displayed.

The Museum which is just behind the Tower houses an Unexploded Bomb that was salvaged from the Japanese Raid on Visakhapatnam in 1942. The defused bomb was on display for four decades at the St Aloysius School in Vizag and was bought to the museum in 1995.