Which Indian Naval Ship participated in Exercise Cutlass Express, 2021 ?
- (a)INS Vikrant
- (b)INS Magar
- (c)INS Talwar
- (d)INS Vikramaditya
Correct — C, INS Talwar. INS Talwar, the lead ship of the Indian Navy's Talwar-class (Project 1135.6) guided-missile frigates, took part in Exercise Cutlass Express 2021, a multinational maritime-security exercise held off the East African coast (based at Mombasa, Kenya) in late July 2021. Sponsored by US Africa Command, the exercise focuses on countering piracy, illegal trafficking and improving maritime domain awareness in the Western Indian Ocean; India joined in a training and mentoring role, with INS Talwar as its participating warship.
- (a)INS Vikrant — Wrong — the indigenous aircraft carrier INS Vikrant (IAC-1) was still undergoing sea trials in 2021 and was only commissioned in September 2022; it did not participate in Cutlass Express 2021.
- (b)INS Magar — Wrong — INS Magar is an amphibious warfare vessel (Landing Ship Tank), not the ship deployed for this East African maritime-security exercise.
- (d)INS Vikramaditya — Wrong — INS Vikramaditya is the Navy's large aircraft carrier (a capital ship), not the frigate sent to Cutlass Express 2021.
Exercise Cutlass Express is an annual maritime-security exercise sponsored by US Africa Command and conducted off East Africa (Western Indian Ocean, around Mombasa). It brings together navies and coast guards to improve cooperation against piracy, illegal fishing and trafficking. In the 2021 edition India participated with the guided-missile frigate INS Talwar, largely in a trainer/mentor capacity.
The distractors are all famous but LARGE platforms (two aircraft carriers and an amphibious ship). A frigate — nimble, patrol-capable — is the natural choice for a distant maritime-security and anti-piracy exercise, which points to INS Talwar. Remembering that IAC Vikrant was not yet commissioned in 2021 also eliminates option (a).
- Cutlass Express is a US Africa Command-sponsored maritime-security exercise off East Africa (Mombasa).
- INS Talwar participated in Cutlass Express 2021 (late July 2021), India in a training role.
- INS Talwar is the lead ship of the Talwar-class (Project 1135.6) guided-missile frigates.
- INS Vikrant (IAC-1) was commissioned only in September 2022, so it could not have taken part in 2021.
- Assuming a big-name carrier (Vikrant/Vikramaditya) is the answer for a distant security exercise
- Forgetting that IAC Vikrant was not commissioned until September 2022
UPPSC & UPSC pair a named exercise with the participating ship/country — link Cutlass Express (East Africa, anti-piracy) with INS Talwar (2021).
No directly related past PYQ was found.
- practice — not a real PYQ
Exercise 'Cutlass Express', in which the Indian Navy participates, is primarily conducted in which region?
- (a)Off the East coast of Africa (Western Indian Ocean)
- (b)South China Sea
- (c)Mediterranean Sea
- (d)Arctic Ocean
Answer(a) Off the East coast of Africa — a US Africa Command-sponsored maritime-security exercise based around Mombasa.
- practice — not a real PYQ
INS Talwar, which took part in Exercise Cutlass Express 2021, belongs to which category of warship?
- (a)Aircraft carrier
- (b)Guided-missile frigate
- (c)Submarine
- (d)Landing Ship Tank
Answer(b) Guided-missile frigate — lead ship of the Talwar-class (Project 1135.6).