India To Buy More Su-30sMKIs

The Indian defense ministry says it will buy 42 more Su-30MKI fighters, with deliveries to unfold between 2014-2018.

The total deal is valued at around $4.3 billion. India’s Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd. (HAL) would assemble the new Sukhoi fighters, which would bring the Indian Su-30 inventory to more than 250 aircraft and the number of HAL-assembled versions to close to 200 fighters.

Meanwhile, the government says that its third Il-76 airborne early warning aircraft with the Israel Aerospace Industries Elta radar will be inducted into service in December.

And the defense ministry also told parliament that it is ready to introduce into service the 3,000-km. (1,900-mi.)-range Agni-III ballistic missile into service.

Also, the short-range Nag anti-tank weapon being developed by India’s Defense Research and Development Organization has been deemed ready for production by Bharat Dynamics following operational trials. The helicopter-launched Helina version, an offshoot of the Nag, is ready to complete captive-carry trials by HAL, the government says.

India also plans to buy 124 Arjun Mk. II tanks following the purchase of the same number of Arjun Mk. Is this year.

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Teer thanks for the pdf.

Again, at best we can say the Rafale is no slouch at A2A but just taking 1 exercise to say its superior is as pointless as the claims by a certain journo that the Rafale was absolutely inferior in A2A.

The results spoke volumes and exchange ratio of 7:1 is simply too much. May be it is because the PIRATE is not operational but still even the Rafale matching the Typhoon in A2A is amazing as it is clearly the better A2G platform.

What do you say about Rafales superior range and Payload and survivability in a high threat environment as compared to the Typhoon ?

Thus while Rafale has more ‘stuff’ now, as long as BAE, EADS and Finnemecannica can show a definite upgrade path for the Typhoon in time for any Indian participation, then the technical factor is lessened.

Even if Typhoon gets all the ‘Stuff’ It cannot match the Rafale in Range and Payload capability.

Defence Min rejects proposal for Tawang airport

Itanagar: The Defence Ministry has rejected a proposal to construct an airport at the Buddhist town of Tawang as it is located close to the Sino-India border, the state government said today.

“They have rejected the proposal but I have taken up the issue with Defence Minister A K Antony and he has assured me to relook into the demand,” Arunachal Pradesh Chief Minister Dorjee Khandu told reporters here.

At present Tawang, the home district of Khandu, is linked by a daily helicopter service from Guwahati through Bhutan.

Meanwhile, the Chief Minister alleged that even though the clearance for a greenfield airport at Itanagar has been obtained, the Civil Aviation Ministry is delaying construction.

“I don’t know why the NCP, which is a coalition partner of the UPA government is taking a step-motherly attitude towards the Congress-ruled Arunachal,” he said.

The state govt has proposed airdropping of PDS items, especially in border areas to mitigate the hardships of the people, Khandu said adding that eight unused advanced landing grounds in different parts of the state have been handed over to the Defence Ministry for their revival.

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Daring IAF chopper pilots save 90 people in Leh

Six Cheetah helicopters of the Indian Air Force undertook over 60 sorties to evacuate 90 people from Skyu in Zanskar valley since sunrise, on Monday.

About 130 trekkers, predominantly foreigners from 12 different countries and a few Indian porters were reportedly stranded at Skyu, a location only reachable by Cheetah helicopters owing to flight through narrow constricted valley and not negotiable by the large rotor Mi-17 helicopters.

Others negotiated their way to safer places on their own.

Touchdowns were not feasible at Skyu, which had virtually transformed into a vast dissolving island where none existed earlier. However, IAF choppers pilots carried out the daring rescue efforts at low hover — a challenging flight manoeuvre of keeping the aircraft stationery — perilously close to the ground even as passengers boarded the flight.

Each Cheetah helicopter can only take in a maximum of three passengers at sea level, on board at a time.

The breakdown of the 81 foreigners rescued includes United Kingdom-17, France-17, Netherland-9, Czechoslovakia-8, Germany-7, Israel-4, Switzerland-4, Romania-4, Austrian-3, Australia-3, Italy-3 and Spain-2. Six local guides and three porters were also among those evacuated.

Three IL-76 sorties also airlifted two JCB (excavators) and one 22-Ton Bulldozer apart from 6 Ton load of BSNL equipment and 10 Ton load of Army’s communication equipment including cables from Chandigarh.

Six AN-32 also flew air maintenance sorties from Chandigarh replenishing stocks and relief materials for the Army in the region. IAF aircraft earlier on Sunday had already airlifted medical equipment, medicines and paramedical personnel to Leh from New Delhi and Chandigarh.

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Aurel, the Tiffy may not have AESA but its firmly promised for the T3 derivative aircraft to be supplied to the IAF for the MMRCA, and its current radar is quite formidable. In terms of range, its at best equivalent, or at worst inferior to only the APG-79. In trials, as you’d know, it tracked std aircraft (MiG-29s, Phantoms) at 180 km plus. The EF/EADS team would have not found it hard to sell the point that with an AESA array, its performance would only improve.

It may have a long range radar but it lags behind the Rafale in passive detection and attack. The longer range radar may not help it in many occassions may be it will give tis position away to enemy rwr.

The Rafale clearly showed its superiority over the Typhoon in recent exercises and is the better multirole platform, it can carry more load and go longer.

All things equal Rafale should win, but the points arthuro made makes typhoon the favourite.

EXCLUSIVE: The Proposed Indian Multirole Helicopter (IMRH) Detailed

The Indian Multi-Role Helicopter (IMRH), which should hopefully soon begin development with the selection of an international technology partner, finally has a set of final specs (they underwent a change last year). The image you see above is the first diagrammatic representation of the helicopter from official material being prepared for documents that will follow up the invitations for Expressions of Interest (EoI) sent out last year.

HAL has proposed that the platform needs to have an all-up weight of 13 metric tons, a maximum speed of 275-km/h and a service ceiling of 22,000 ft. The Indian military wants the helicopter to have a payload capacity of 3,500-kg and range of 500-km at sea level. The IMRH platform is to sport a five-blade composite main rotor with a four-bladed composite tail rotor, twin turboshaft engines with dual full authority digital engine controls. The powerplants would be required to have a 30-minute dry-run capable transmission system. All IMRHs will have glass cockpits — using equipment from Halbit Systems, DARE and Samtel.

The bid is stuck, however, at the EoI stage, with four companies wondering what is happening. Companies that have responded to HAL’s invitation include Eurocopter (EC725 Caracal), Sikorsky (S-92A), Agusta-Westland (AW101) and Mil (Mi-17-IV).

Officially the IMRH mission spectrum includes troop movement, high-altitude air maintenance, offshore operations, heliborne and amphibious assault operations, anti-submarine warfare and anti-surface warfare. An armed gunship version is also expected to be concurrently developed. Other proposed variants include civil transport, VVIP transport, and air-ambulance.

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