UMS Minye Theinkhathu

UMS Minye Theinkhathu is a Sindhughosh -class submarine owned by the Myanmar Navy. It is the first of two submarines procured by the country's navy, followed by the UMS Minye Kyaw Htin. Before being acquired by Myanmar, it served in the Indian Navy as INS Sindhuvir .

Background

Beginning in the 1980s and ending in 2000, the Indian Navy acquired ten Kilo-class submarines from the Soviet Union and its successor state Russia. Within India, they are known as the Sindhughosh class.

Myanmar Navy service

Myanmar acquired Sindhuvir in 2020. The ship was refitted by Hindustan Shipyard before the handover.
The submarine was first seen publicly as a Myanmar Navy ship, as UMS Minye Theinkhathu, on 15 October 2020 as part of a naval fleet exercise. The submarine was formally commissioned along with other six new ships at the 73rd Navy Day ceremony on 24 December 2020. The ceremony was attended by the Indian and Russian ambassadors to Myanmar, which the military intelligence company Jane's believes could indicate Russian involvement in the submarine's transfer to Myanmar.
It appears to be named after Minye Theinkhathu of Toungoo, who was the father of King Bayinnaung and served as viceroy of Toungoo from 1540 to 1549.
The Minye Theinkhathu was in naval exercises alongside the Minye Kyaw Htin on July 6, 2022 in the Bay of Bengal.