INS Sudarshini Journey: India’s sail training ship INS Sudarshini reached New York this week and proudly took part in the United States International Naval Review 250 and Sail4th 250 events. These celebrations are part of the 250th Independence Day marking of the United States. The ship entered the Port of New York and New Jersey on July 4 and joined the special events on the same day. It also sailed in the Parade of Sail on the Hudson River with tall ships from many other countries, and the Indian tricolour was flying high as it moved into the city.
The Embassy of India in the United States posted, “INS Sudarshini enters Port of New York and New Jersey”. It also said, “Indian Naval Sail Training Ship Sudarshini represented India at the United States International Naval Review 250 and Sail4th 250 on 4 July at New York.”
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The three-masted barque stood out in the crowd because it looked very different from modern warships and yachts. Its tall masts and old-style sailing rig made it easy to spot on the river.
Lokayan 2026
This New York visit is part of Lokayan 2026, a 10-month long sailing voyage by the Indian Navy. The name “Lokayan” comes from a Sanskrit idea meaning “vision of the world”. The voyage is guided by the old saying “Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam,” which means “the world is one family.” The main goal is to build friendship, trust, and maritime cooperation with countries around the world. Before New York, the ship had already visited Norfolk, Virginia, and Baltimore, Maryland during its US tour.
INS Sudarshini left Kochi nearly five months ago and has already sailed more than 13,000 nautical miles. The bigger Lokayan 2026 journey is planned to cover around 22,000 nautical miles and include 18 ports in 13 countries.
What is INS Sudarshini?
INS Sudarshini is one of the Indian Navy’s sail training ships. It is used to train young officers and cadets in old sailing skills like handling square-rigged sails, celestial navigation, and working as a team at sea. Even though modern navies use advanced ships and submarines, these basic sea skills still matter a lot in naval training. The ship was built at Goa Shipyard and is the sister ship of INS Tarangini.
The ship is 54 metres long and has three masts. It carries 20 sails and uses about 7.5 kilometres of rope and 1.5 kilometres of steel wire rope. Its sails cover about 1,035 square metres. It usually sails with five officers, 31 sailors, and 30 cadets. It can stay at sea for at least 20 days without going back to port. INS Sudarshini was commissioned on January 27, 2012.
The ship’s first major overseas mission began on September 15, 2012. That voyage went across Southeast Asia and followed old sea routes once used by Indian sailors who travelled to ASEAN countries. During that trip, the ship visited 13 ports in nine ASEAN nations, including places in Indonesia, Brunei, the Philippines, Vietnam, Cambodia, Thailand, Singapore, Malaysia, and Myanmar.
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It also became the first Indian Navy mission to use social media blogs regularly during a diplomatic sailing voyage. After that long trip, the ship came back to Kochi on March 25, 2013.
INS Sudarshini Journey
Since leaving Kochi in 2026, INS Sudarshini has kept moving across the seas. It first stopped at Salalah in Oman and Safaga in Egypt in February. It then moved through the Gulf of Aden and the Red Sea, crossed the Suez Canal, went to Valletta in Malta, then to Sète in France for the Escale à Sète maritime festival.
After that it visited Casablanca in Morocco and Mindelo in Cape Verde before crossing the Atlantic Ocean for 19 days to reach Antigua on May 27, 2026. This was the first trans-Atlantic voyage in the ship’s history, and the last Indian Navy sailing ship to do such a crossing was INS Tarangini.
