Movatterモバイル変換

Flag Officer Commanding Karnataka Naval Area

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Flag Officer Commanding Karnataka Naval Area (FOK)
Flag of the FOK (Rear Admiral's flag)
Incumbent Rear Admiral Vikram Menon,VSM since 21 August 2025
Indian Navy
Abbreviation	FOK
Reports to	Flag Officer Commanding-in-Chief Western Naval Command
Seat	Karwar
First holder	Commodore K. P. Ramachandran (as COMINKAR)

Flag Officer Commanding Karnataka Naval Area (FOK) is a senior appointment in theIndian Navy. One of the five Area Commanders of the Indian Navy, the FOK is atwo star admiral holding the rank ofRear Admiral. The FOK is responsible for the operations and administration of all units and establishments inKarnataka, including theNaval Base Karwar. The Current FOK isRear Admiral Vikram Menon,VSM, who assumed office on 21 August 2025.

History

[edit]

In 1999, followingPokhran-II, thenDefence Minister George Fernandes approvedProject Seabird to pursue the construction of the new naval base atKarwar in the state ofKarnataka. The first phase of construction of the base was completed in 2005 and the base was commissioned on 31 May 2005.^[1]

Headquarters Karnataka Naval Area (HQKNA) thus came into being on 31 May 2005.Commodore K. P. Ramachandran, VSM was appointed the first Commodore-in-Charge Karwar (COMINKAR). The COMINKAR also discharged the duties of Naval Officer-in-Charge Karnataka (NOIC (KTK)) andCommanding Officer INS Kadamba. After three incumbents serving as COMINKAR, the billet was upgraded totwo-star rank and rechristenedFlag Officer Commanding Karnataka Naval Area (FOK) in 2011.Rear Admiral Atul Kumar Jain was the first FOK who took over on 3 October 2011.^[2]

Organisation

[edit]

The FOK is assisted by the NOIC (KTK), aone-star appointment. The NOIC (KTK) also serves as the chief staff officer at Headquarters Karnataka Naval Area (HQKNA). The FOK is responsible to theFlag Officer Commanding-in-Chief Western Naval Command for the operations and administration of all units and establishments inKarnataka. This includes all ships and submarines based at the Karwar Naval Base as well.^[3]^[4] The establishments under the FOK include:^[5]

The Naval Base KarwarINS Kadamba
The naval hospitalINHS Patanjali
The missile and ammunition baseINS Vajrakosh
Naval Ship Repair Yard (NSRY) Karwar
Sagar Prahari Bal, Karwar

List of Commanders

[edit]

S.No.	Name	Assumed office	Left office	Notes
Commodore-in-Charge Karwar (COMINKAR)
1	Commodore K. P. RamachandranVSM	31 May 2005	26 April 2007	First COMINKAR.
2	Commodore C. G. Silar KhanVSM	27 April 2007	31 August 2009	^[6]
3	Commodore Rajiv Jaswal	1 September 2009	3 October 2011	^[7]
Flag Officer Commanding Karnataka Naval Area (FOK)
4	Rear Admiral Atul Kumar JainVSM	3 October 2011	8 August 2013	First FOK. LaterFlag Officer Commanding-in-Chief Eastern Naval Command andChief of Integrated Defence Staff.^[8]^[9]
5	Rear Admiral C. S. MurthyNM	10 August 2013	26 March 2015	^[10]
6	Rear Admiral Satishkumar Namdeo GhormadeNM	27 March 2015	18 October 2015	LaterVice Chief of the Naval Staff.^[11]^[12]
7	Rear Admiral Ravindra Jayant NadkarniVSM	19 October 2015	11 October 2016	LaterFlag Officer Defence Advisory Group.^[13]^[14]
8	Rear Admiral K. J. KumarVSM	11 October 2016	29 March 2019	LaterFlag Officer Commanding Tamil Nadu & Puducherry Naval Area.^[15]
9	Rear Admiral Mahesh SinghNM	30 March 2019	19 December 2021	LaterFlag Officer Defence Advisory Group.^[16]
10	Rear Admiral Atul AnandVSM	20 December 2021	30 March 2023	CurrentAdditional Secretary of theDepartment of Military Affairs.^[17]
11	Rear Admiral K. M. RamakrishnanVSM	1 April 2023	20 August 2025	^[3]
12	Rear Admiral Vikram MenonVSM	21 August 2025	Present	Current FOK.^[18]

References

[edit]

^"INS Kadamba". Indian Navy. Retrieved8 July 2013.
^Doraibabu & Godbole 2023, p. 474.
^^a ^b"Rear Admiral KM Ramakrishnan takes charge as Flag Officer of Karnataka Naval Area".Deccan Chronicle. Retrieved4 September 2023.
^"Change of Command - Flag Officer Commanding Karnataka Naval Area (FOK) | Indian Navy".indiannavy.nic.in. Retrieved7 September 2023.
^"WNC Authorities & Units | Indian Navy".indiannavy.nic.in. Retrieved7 September 2023.
^"Key installations make the coast vulnerable".The New Indian Express. Retrieved7 September 2023.
^"Phase-I work of Naval Base in full swing".The New Indian Express. Retrieved7 September 2023.
^"Vice Admiral Atul Kumar Jain taking over as Chief of Staff, Eastern Naval Command".indiannavy.nic.in. Retrieved7 September 2023.
^"Naval bicycle expedition".The Times of India. 19 March 2012. Retrieved7 September 2023.
^"Karwar: Rear Admiral C S Murthy, former Director General, Sea Bird assumed command as the Flag Officer Commanding Karnataka Naval Area".The Times of India. 11 August 2013. Retrieved7 September 2023.
^"Karnataka shows interest in 'INS Viraat' museum".BusinessLine. 21 July 2015. Retrieved7 September 2023.
^"Dakshina Kannada district sent a proposal to government of Karnataka with reference to Rear Admiral SN Ghormade, NM, Flag Officer Commanding, Headquarters, Karnataka Naval Area, Karwar, for the setting up of Aircraft Carrier Museum for INS VIRAAT at Mangaluru after its deconmissioning".The Times of India. 21 July 2015. Retrieved7 September 2023.
^"Visit of Dr Ashton Carter, Secretary of Defense, USA to Karwar".indiannavy.nic.in. Retrieved7 September 2023.
^"Naval Base Visit - Make in India impresses US defence secy".The Times of India. 12 April 2016. Retrieved7 September 2023.
^"Joint HADR Exercise commences at Naval Station Karwar".indiannavy.nic.in. Retrieved7 September 2023.
^"Radm Mahesh Singh takes over as Flag Officer Commanding Karnataka Area".pib.gov.in. Retrieved7 September 2023.
^"Change of Command - Flag Officer Commanding Karnataka Naval Area (FOK)".indiannavy.nic.in. Retrieved7 September 2023.
^"Rear Admiral Vikram Menon assumes command of Karnataka Naval Area".The Times of India. 22 August 2025. Retrieved24 August 2025.

Bibliography

[edit]

Doraibabu, M; Godbole, Amrut (2023),A Decade of Transformation: The Indian Navy 2011-2021, Harper Collins Publishers India,ISBN 9789394407909

Indian Navy

Leadership

Components
and
Commands

Naval Commands

Operational	Western Naval Command Eastern Naval Command Southern Naval Command
Joint	Andaman and Nicobar Command Strategic Forces Command Defence Cyber Agency Defence Space Agency Armed Forces Special Operations Division

Fleets

Ship Squadrons

Bases

New Delhi	INS India
Western Naval Command	INS Dwarka INS Sardar Patel INS Kadamba INS Vajrakosh INHS Patanjali INS Gomantak INS Hansa INHS Jeevanti INS Angre INS Abhimanyu INS Agnibahu INHS Asvini INS Kunjali INS Shikra INS Tanaji INS Trata INS Tunir INS Vajrabahu
Southern Naval Command	INS Dweeprakshak INS Minicoy INS Androth INS Bitra INS Garuda INHS Sanjivani INS Venduruthy INS Dronacharya INS Chilka INHS Nivarani INS Mandovi INS Hamla INS Shivaji INHS Kasturi INS Valsura INS Agrani INS Zamorin INS Satavahana INS Vishwakarma INS Jatayu
Eastern Naval Command	INS Circars INS Dega INS Virbahu INHS Kalyani INS Kalinga INS Eksila INS Karna INS Adyar INS Rajali INS Parundu INS Kattabomman INS Tuticorin INS Netaji Subhash INS Paradip INS Bhubaneswar INS Varsha
Andaman and Nicobar Command	INS Kardip INS Jarawa INS Utkrosh INS Baaz INHS Dhanvantari INS Campbell Bay INS Kohassa

Equipment

Aircraft Squadrons

Fighter	300 303
Airborne Early Warning (AEW)	339
Anti-submarine (ASW)	330 333 336
Reconnaissance	342 343 344
Maritime patrol	312 315 318 550 313
Electronic Warfare	310 311
Multirole helicopter	322 323 334 335 350
Search & Rescue	321
Training	551 552 561

Military Academies

Education & Training	Sainik School Armed Forces Medical College Ajmer Military School Bangalore Military School Belgaum Military School Chail Military School Dholpur Military School Rashtriya Indian Military College
Schools & Colleges	Indian Naval Academy Naval War College
Tri-Service Institutions	Defence Services Staff College National Defence Academy National Defence College College of Defence Management Military Institute of Technology