Teej-
I don’t think you gave a fair comparison between Gripen and Tejas. Obvious stuff like pylon count substituting an argument concerning range is ignoring the obvious. Tejas is a lightweight fighter relabeled as a medium. Its internal fuel tank squarely leaves it in the light category, regardless of carrying external fuel. The drag index will eat up any significant fuel gains underwing due to their choices for being an overly short design like you would expect out of a light fighter. And marketing garbage doesn’t alter takeoff distance while carrying its big tanks creates a dangerous combination of overweight, underpowered, and too little control surface while operating from its intended deployment points with a significant bomb load. Tejas will be kept light or suffer in obvious ways. Then you compare the RWR and SPJ between the two as equal. Thales and Saab subcontractors have Cadillac systems compared to secondhand export models being proposed for Tejas. It reminds me of the bogus invulnerability of Bison with their internal SPJ in international exercises. Elderly F-16 or unproven JF-17 technology is being claimed to have done one in. (I still believe it was a SAM, but none of us will get the truth for decades.) The Tejas will get a slightly better generation compared to the Bison’s, but its doubtful it will perform any better. You brought up the small ground footprint and its mobility as being some sort of standard. Not at all. And currently Tejas has a slim if not non-existent supply chain that has ti be established. Not comparable at all.
I don’t understand what the issue is with internal fuel. The MWF is to carry 3300 kg of internal fuel. That is at least 1000 kg more than the Tejas Mk1, ~100 kg more than Mirage-2000 and ~100 kg less than Gripen NG. So how is the MWF going to be in the light category?
See the table below for comparative figures. Table courtesy of Indranil Roy and Nilesh Rane’s excellent analysis of the Tejas Mk2 MWF fighter
The MWF is now longer than a Mirage-2000, and about 0.6m less than the Gripen NG. Plus, a whole lot of studies were going on through 2015 till 2018, on ways to reduce the drag on the Mk1 design. There are plenty of design improvements that have been brought into the Tejas Mk2 MWF design as a result.
As can be seen from the table above, the Tejas Mk2 MWF is firmly a Mirage-2000 replacement now, whereas the Tejas Mk1 was a MiG-21 replacement with specs based on that requirement.
Regarding the IRST for the Tejas Mk2 MWF, there was a report that it may be a variant of the indigenous IRST being developed to replace the Russian OLS-30 IRST on a part of the IAF’s Su-30MKI fleet. Looks like the DRDO labs will tie up with Samtel for the IRST.
News report from May 2018
The Defence Acquisition Council (DAC), chaired by Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, on Monday approved the procurement of equipment for the Defence Forces valued at over Rs. 6,900 crore including the development of the IRST for Su-30MKI. “The DAC also accorded approval for undertaking Design and Development of the Long Range Dual Band Infrared Imaging Search and Track System (IRST) for SU-30 MKI aircraft under ‘Make II’ sub category and subsequently, for procurement of at least 100 IRSTs under ‘Buy (Indian–IDDM) category. The system will be able to operate in day and night conditions and will substantially enhance the capabilities of the aircraft,” the government press release said.
IRST on the Tejas Mk2 MWF
Samtel CEO interview- SP’s Aviation
SP’s Aviation (SP’s): How would you describe the journey of Samtel from business of picture tubes for television market to the challenging defence electronics?
Puneet Kaura (Kaura): Samtel was set up in 1973 and is today the leading manufacturer of advanced displays in India. The journey from picture tubes to avionics started in 2001 with the takeover of Thales Germany by Samtel to form Samtel Electron Devices GmbH at Ulm, Germany. Later, in 2004, Samtel got its first order from the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) to develop multifunctional displays (MFDs)—the ones which are flying on Su-30MKIs today. That gave the impetus to Samtel to set up a defence avionics division—Samtel Display Systems in India. Today Samtel Display Systems has two strategic joint ventures (JVs) in defence avionics; one with the Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) and another with Thales Avionics. There are also strategic tie-ups with global aviation majors such as SAAB and Honeywell.
SP’s: Can you elaborate on the USPs of Samtel?
Kaura: Samtel has always been a technology focused company and we have achieved the singular status of being the only company in India which indigenously offers the complete package of LCD ruggedisation, electronic hardware designing, development of embedded systems along with associated software, mechanical packaging and thermal management under one roof. Our JV with HAL was India’s first public-private partnership in avionics domain in India, and has now achieved the unique position of having a primary cockpit display qualified for induction on Su-30MKI. We are now working towards building a centre of excellence for state-of-the-art cockpit displays which would help the Ministry of Defence (MoD) to become self-reliant in this domain.
SP’s: Are your offerings compatible with Russian platforms?
Kaura: The MFDs designed and produced by us have been qualified for induction on Su-30MKI aircraft. The next generation large size smart multifunction display is also ready, and has given us the unique distinction of being the only company in India to have an avionics display at par with the global suppliers in this domain. Discussions are on with some key customers on upcoming Russian platforms for LRUs, infrared search and track (IRST), and other avionics systems as well.SP’s: Can you tell us about the Mirage fleet upgrade deal and particularly in view of the JV that seems to be in place between Thales and Samtel?
Kaura: The Indian Government has signed the deal worth $2.4 billion ( Rs. 10,800 crore) with Thales and Dassault Aviation for upgradation of its ageing Mirage fleet. As 30 per cent of the worth of the deal needs to be invested back into the Indian defence sector as offsets, a large part of the offsets should be expected to be fulfilled through us. As per the JV’s mandate, Samtel Thales Avionics will provide the basis for all future aerospace development for Thales in India.
SP’s: What challenges do you foresee in your journey?
Kaura: Challenges never end; they just get replaced by newer challenges. Ten years back when we took over Thales Germany and set our first footsteps in avionics, it was a new area for us. Conventionally, the cockpit displays were either imported or were assembled in India by suppliers using foreign-made components. There was a huge void and need for these products to be developed and produced in India indigenously. However, since the technology was never developed in India earlier, there was initial scepticism from the industry, which we believe, we have just not been able to overcome, but also surpass.
We now see ourselves moving ahead of cockpit displays and proving our capabilities in avionics. Our JV with Thales already encompasses manufacturing of HMDSs, which are a complete system in themselves; sensors such as IRST, which will be a first-time-in-India product and other modern avionics systems. Besides that, we are also setting up capabilities in obsolescence management, automated test equipment and built-to-print solutions. Going forward, our original strength—cockpit displays will be just one segment of our complete suite of offerings. From picture tubes to cockpit displays, and from here to a complete avionics house, is what I see Samtel emerging as.
Found a decent image of the LCA Navy Mk2 design with the new stabilator control surfaces and the vortex flaps in place of the LEVCONs on the LCA Navy Mk1
Interesting stuff, turning the Hawk into a viable light attack aircraft.
Integrating a radar would not be so simple though. There is no space in the nose for a radar let alone provisions for cooling and power supply. Look at the Hawk 200 – the added avionics basically occupy the front seat area.
Such a modification would not only be pretty expensive but also extensive, resulting in a different aircraft, and defeat the purpose of having combat-ready trainers for war-time emergencies.
The Hawk was already being used with rocket pods and even dumb bombs. See the image below from Vayu Shakti 2019
But, the ability to use stand-off PGMs will be a big capability jump and will allow the Hawk to be used without exposing it to the kind of danger that a CAS mission would. Or even when using dumb bombs right over the target and running the risk of exposing itself to supersonic fighters. Being a sub-sonic jet, it would be vulnerable, even when protected by escorts, so limiting its utility in highly contested environments.
I agree with you that adding a new radar would not be simple, but it can be done. Question is whether there is enough value associated with doing that, versus the cost of the upgrade. A small Elta 2052 radar, similar to what is on the Jaguar DARIN III could possibly be integrated I guess, if such a requirement were to be put forth by the IAF. The Jaguar’s nose was also modified to fit that AESA radar in place of the Elta 2032 on the Jaguar IM and to replace the LRMTS on the earlier Jaguar IS DARIN II. Hawk 200 was from an earlier generation when radars were heavier and bulkier.
But I doubt that the IAF will see adequate value in that to ever bother. This is a secondary attack role, and resources would need to be allocated to the primary fighters and strikers first for combat capabilities.
A few more images that were not posted earlier, from Vayu Shakti 2019
Jaguar
Su-30MKI
Upgraded Mirage-2000I
IAF Tejas Mk1 dropping 2 1000 lb dumb bombs during Vayu Shakti 2019. Posting here since the mods decided to can the Tejas thread due to a couple of trolls.
DRDO’s Smart Anti-Airfield Weapon (SAAW) to be tested from a modified Hawk AJT in April 2019. The Hawk-i program is meant to convert the Hawk into a light bomb truck and arming it with stand-off weapons is to keep it as far as possible from enemy fighters while engaging ground targets as far away as 80 kms. Of course, the Hawks would have to be escorted by fighters in any scenario, but what this will allow is the IAF to use its large Hawk fleet as additional light strikers.
And the ASRAAM will at least give them a decent self-defence capability. Putting a small AESA radar into the nose and changing the nose profile, as on the Jaguar DARIN III should have been explored as well, but the cost of the upgrade would have gone up significantly. But if the IAF wants that, it should be possible as well.
Courtesy of Livefist
HAL’s souped up Hawk all set to fire Indian SAAW weapons
In April over the Bay of Bengal, a stubby orange box-shaped weapon will separate from an aircraft flying at 20,000 feet, flip open a pair of angular wings from its sides, and glide over the sea towards a pre-designated spot 80 km away at sea. The weapon, called SAAW — short for Smart Anti-Airfield Weapon — is an in-the-works Indian munition designed to destroy runways at stand-off distances. The aircraft dropping the weapon will be a Hawk-i, on its first ever weapons run. The weapon will be in ‘fire and forget’ mode with inertial guidance.
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The Hawk-i program began in 2014 and is centered around replacing the baseline Hawk’s British mission computer with an Indian one, allowing its developers the flexibility to sling on weapons of choice and give the aircraft the ‘brains’ it needs to generate weapon solutions and fire those weapons. In the absence of a primary radar, to give pilots of the Hawk-i a point and shoot capability, they fly with Israeli Elbit Dash V helmets. Livefist learns that weapon algorithms from the DARIN II and III upgrades effected on the IAF’s Jaguar fleet have been used in the Hawk-i’s mission computer that also uses a HAL-developed real time operating system (RTOS).The idea is that when the IAF’s Hawks receive the Hawk-i upgrade, they’ll be able to join the battle if a war breaks out, and not have to sit on the ground. Since their straight wings don’t permit fighter-type speed to get away from a sticky situation, the Hawk-i is being kitted out for light strike missions at stand-off distances, including interdiction and close air support. But Hawks turn and climb very nimbly, therefore making their weaponised avatar suitable for operations close to the border or Line of Control for ‘hit and run’ missions. The SAAW test from the Kalaikunda air base in April will be the first of many flights to prove the Hawk for small offensive missions as a smart bomber.
Other weapons options on the Hawk-i will include high speed low drag bombs, sensor fused weapons (like the Textron CBU-105 operational now on IAF Jaguars) and laser guided bombs. Apart from the Litening laser designation pod, the platform will also be able to deploy an electro-optical tactical reconnaissance pod or an active phased array self protection jammer pod. The upgraded aircraft already gone ahead and integrated a CMDS (Counter Measure Dispensing System) and is shortly integrating a radar warning receiver (RWR).
Other add-ons in the Hawk-i program include a virtual training simulator and a 3D digital map generator to keep new generations of pilots abreast with the latest flying aids.
With the SAAW program gaining momentum, I’d expect the Tejas to be the next platform to be integrated with this precision guided glide bomb. The box shape and the light weight allows multiple bombs to be carried on a single rack. So, in a single sortie, a Tejas could possibly carry 4 to 6 SAAW PGMs. Su-30MKIs should be able to carry far more.
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