danrhTher F100 design was judged inferior to the modified Arleigh Burke class design from Gibbs and Cox, which was selected as preferred tenderer for the AWD.
Inferior is rather a strong word. Here is an excerpt from a story I posted a couple of days ago from the Australian newspaper
When the Government is set to make a major defence capability acquisition decision it requires a set of options be put up for consideration. The first of these is an “off-the-shelf option” — defined as “a product that is available for purchase and will have been delivered to another military or government body or commercial enterprise in a similar form to that being purchased at the time of the approval being sought”.
The second option is characterised as an “Australianised off-the-shelf” and allows for “modifications to meet the particular requirements of the Australian and regional physical environments, and the ADF’s particular operational requirements”. The final option is one that fully meets the identified capability need, even if the cost of that option exceeds the defence capability plan’s (DCP) budgetary provision for that capability.
The current DCP lists a budget of up to $6 billion for the new AWDs, but some observers have been citing a cost of up to $8 billion if the full wishlist is to be fulfilled. So while Gibbs & Cox has been selected to design option three (the all-singing, all-dancing AWD evolved from the US Navy’s Arleigh Burke Class destroyers), there is no guarantee at this stage that the Government will choose, or be willing to afford, it.
According to the Defence Materiel Organisation’s AWD program manager, Warren King, a couple of key areas in the Spanish design will require some modification, such as fitting the very latest version of the Aegis combat system, but overall the Australianised F100 will involve “minimal change”.
danrhSo a question will the CVF be nuclear powered?
I am just wondering what will happen when in a situation similar to yester years where due to operations over seas a lot of the NAVY had to sit in dock because the UK MOD could not afford to put fuel in the tank.
With oil becoming more expensive in 10-25 years time have they thought about this ?
No the ships will not be nuclear powered. The cost of accquisition would make the ships a non-starter. PLus the cost of nuclear re-fueling ain’t cheap either nor is the process of dealing with the waste.
Daniel
danrhhttp://www.defencetalk.com/news/publish/article_004524.php
Summary of Report on Future Carrier and Joint Combat Aircraft Programmes
UK MoD
Wed, 21 Dec 2005, 07:32The Ministry of Defence plans to replace the Royal Navy’s current strength of three aircraft carriers with two larger, more versatile carriers capable of carrying a more powerful force, including new carrier borne aircraft to replace the Harrier. This report analyses the progress of the Future Carrier and related Joint Combat Aircraft programmes.
On the Future Carrier programme, there is a serious risk that the two carriers will not enter service in 2012 and 2015 as originally planned. The main investment decision (Main Gate), which precedes the Demonstration and Manufacture phases, was originally planned to be taken in December 2003, but there is now no target date for this decision, although it is possible that an intermediate decision may be imminent that will serve as a partial Main Gate. Further delays are likely to impact upon the original In-Service Dates for the new carriers.
Procurement of the aircraft carriers is being undertaken under a novel ‘Alliance’ approach consisting of MoD and three commercial companies. This approach was announced almost three years ago, but some fundamental issues still remain to be resolved before the Alliance Agreement can be finalised.
The optimum shipbuild strategy for the carriers has yet to be decided. Delays to the letting of construction contracts for the two carriers are already impacting upon UK shipyards: this is threatening jobs and the survival of some UK shipyards. If work on the carriers is significantly delayed, it will coincide with a number of other naval shipbuilding programmes, putting pressure on the UK’s naval shipbuilding capacity and perhaps forcing work abroad. We will need to know that the Ministry of Defence has addressed capacity issues in its Defence Industrial Strategy, which we have not seen when finalizing this report.
On the Joint Combat Aircraft programme, the Joint Strike Fighter, a US-led programme, has been selected as the aircraft to operate from the new carriers. Weight problems on the variant of the Joint Strike Fighter which the UK is procuring have been mitigated, but risks remain and must be monitored closely.
The target In-Service Date for the Joint Strike Fighter was 2012 to coincide with the entry into service of the first new carrier. This has now been revised to 2014. If the first new carrier enters service in 2012, there is a risk that the Royal Navy will have a new carrier but no new aircraft to operate from it.
It is vital that the UK gets all the information and access to technology it requires from the US to have ‘Sovereign Capability’—the ability to maintain the Joint Strike Fighter aircraft and undertake future upgrades independently. The UK must receive adequate assurances that it will get all the information and access to technology it requires before the programme is too far advanced. If these assurances are not given, it is questionable whether the UK should continue its involvement in the programme.
Key issues remain to be resolved on both programmes. Delays to one or both programmes could result in a capability gap for the Royal Navy. In order to bridge the gap, it is likely that the lives of the current carriers and carrier aircraft will need to be extended. For this reason, decisions on the programme are needed as soon as possible.
Full Report consisting of 101 pages is available here in PDF format.
danrhFrom JDW 7 Dec 2005
Reliability concerns delay US mini-sub
JOSHUA KUCERA JDW Staff Reporter
Washington, DCAdditional reporting Nick Brown Jane’s Naval Desk Editor
The ASDS programme has been restructured to direct all the funds allocated for the next two submarines into developing the first one SOCOM officials say they are still committed to having a miniature submarine
A US Navy mini-submarine programme is being curtailed to concentrate on fixing problems with the first prototype, US military officials have said.
The first of a planned six Advanced SEAL (SEa, Air and Land commando) Delivery Systems (ASDS) was scheduled to undergo an evaluation in January to pave the way for a decision on whether to enter low-rate initial production in April. However, officials from US Special Operations Command (SOCOM), which is funding the submarine, said that the prototype was not ready for the test.
“Given the reliability concerns over Hull 1, it was not apparent that we were going to get to that point,” said Vice Admiral Eric Olson, SOCOM’s deputy commander.
Now the programme has been restructured to direct all the funds allocated for the next two boats into developing the first one. The second was scheduled to be completed by Fiscal Year 2008 and the third the year after. When these versions will be built is now unclear, Vice Adm Olson said.
The SOCOM decision was made based on recommendations of a panel that it convened of industry and defence experts.
While the exact financial details have yet to be worked out, it is likely that some of the money from the programme will now go into other Department of Defense (DoD) priorities, Vice Adm Olson said. The DoD has spent USD446 million on the programme so far.
The programme – SOCOM’s largest maritime acquisition – is intended to carry US Navy SEALs from a larger submarine to the shore and has long been troubled and is the subject of congressional scrutiny. The craft has had problems with its battery and propeller, but SOCOM officials said these problems were being dealt with. However, a new problem with the propulsion motor has more recently arisen.
There have also been problems with the ASDS making too much noise, though contractor Northrop Grumman says these have been largely solved. The acoustic stealth developments that SOCOM had been working on for the second craft will now go into the current prototype.
There are no plans to take the programme away from Northrop Grumman. “There’s no reason to re-compete at this point since we’re still trying to fix Hull 1,” said Dale Uhler, SOCOM’s acquisition executive. However, SOCOM officials did not rule out the possibility of eventually holding a new competition. “We’re open-minded about where the programme might take us,” Vice Adm Olson said.
Adm Olson said that SOCOM and the US Navy remained committed to acquiring the miniature submarine. “Given the importance of the mission and the need to ensure the safety of our personnel, SOCOM and the navy must be completely confident in the reliability of the craft before committing to build additional hulls to a specific design,” he said.
Northrop Grumman said it expects to continue to work with SOCOM: “Although we’re disappointed with the US Special Operations Command’s decision to delay the procurement of long lead material for Boat 2, the additional enhancements originally planned for Boat 2 will add capability, advanced technology, improved performance and greater reliability to Boat 1, making it an even more valuable asset to the warfighter.”
danrhFrom JNI Dec 2005
UK study outlines Type 45’s potential as BMD platform
Nick Brown
The UK Royal Navy’s new Type 45 destroyer could form the basis of a new ballistic missile defence platform.* Trials show the Type 45’s existing Sampson radar can detect and track ballistic missile targets with minimal system upgrades.
A UK/US study has articulated a three-step path to the UK fielding a ballistic missile defence (BMD) platform based on the Royal Navy’s (RN’s) Type 45 destroyer.
Although the RN currently has no defined BMD requirement, the study was carried out by BAE Systems’ Insyte under the auspices of the joint Ministry of Defence and industry-run Missile Defence Centre in partnership with Lockheed Martin as part of the US Sea-based Ballistic Missile Defense (SBMD) programme.
It concluded that the Type 45’s Sampson radar ‘as is’ can feasibly detect and track ballistic missile targets with minimal software upgrades. A second-phase study looking at a heavily upgraded version of the radar is due to begin imminently, and a future third step would be to investigate developing a mid-course interceptor for the vessel.
David Jones, Insyte’s strategy and business development executive, presented the report at the Royal United Services Institute’s seventh Missile Defence Conference in London on 3 November. He explained that the study was an attempt to develop “stepping stones to how the UK can get involved with SBMD in a not too expensive way”.
As such, the study focused on an incremental approach, exploiting the Type 45’s Sampson solid-state active S-Band radar and overlaying that data onto a generic threat map. Jones stated that the Type 45’s combat management system can already accept external cueing and that a software upgrade to the existing phased array radar could enable ‘stop and stare’, long pulses, ‘fence search’ and BMD track algorithms.
In this new fence search function, the radar would enter a staring mode with a single-beam azimuth scan to pick up climbing missiles, which would then be passed to a new BMD tracking mode to monitor the missile’s path with a narrow beam while maintaining the fence search, long-range surveillance.
Integrating this into the US SBMD setting, the first phase study advocated using the Type 45 in a deployed sensor trip-wire mode, passing the data back to US assets for the shoot phase. This investigated providing cue and launch data between the Type 45 and Aegis vessels over the Link 16 datalink, with the Aegis ship completing the engagement on its own organic sensor data and also via engage-on-remote modes, with kill vehicles launched and guided in purely on external sensor tracks from the Type 45.
In conclusion, the study noted that the Sampson ‘as is’ outfit provided 1,500 km coverage, demonstrating “significant stand-alone capability to detect and track launched missiles and cue mid-course sensors” in a forward Sector Cue role, with sufficient capability to also cue them, in a Forward Single Beam Cue role.
Furthermore, it is “capable of initiating and refining track from a single beam cue” from external mid-course sensors.
The next study phase proposes revisiting Sampson’s capabilities, adding a hardware upgrade in the 2015 timeframe – transitioning the radar’s apertures from the existing 8 sq ft (2.4 m2) to around 12 sq ft (3.6 m2). Jones believes this could translate into expanded performance in excess of 2,000 km.
It will also expand to cover target discrimination in a cluttered environment and advanced engagement support, including modelling radar-missile combinations.
Jones told JNI that the second phase of the study is being funded by Lockheed Martin and is due to receive funding – subject to US government approval – and begin on 1 December, or early in 2006 at the latest.
BAE Systems prepares bid for next Astute
Richard Scott
BAE Systems Submarines expects to submit a bid to the UK Defence Procurement Agency (DPA) in mid-2006 for the build of the fourth Astute-class nuclear-powered attack submarine (SSN), with the company looking to start manufacture work at its Barrow-in-Furness facility in November 2006.
Three Astute-class boats are currently being built for the UK Royal Navy under a contract placed in early 1997. First-of-class HMS Astute was originally due for handover in mid-2005. However, problems in detailed design, which led to significant cost and schedule overruns, resulted in the original prime contract award being substantially renegotiated.
A contract amendment re-baselining the programme was signed in late 2003. Astute is now planned for handover in August 2008, with sister boats Ambush and Artful to follow in 2010 and 2011 respectively.
A total of seven Astute-class SSNs are presently funded under the Ministry of Defence’s current equipment programme, with production transitioning to a two-year ‘drumbeat’ cycle from boat four onwards. Some long-lead items for a fourth submarine have already been placed in order to sustain critical parts of the industrial supply chain and ensure production continuity. According to BAE Systems’ in-house naval business magazine Wavelength: “the key issue for the programme is finding an affordable solution for boat four onwards”, and “the main driver for that is the growth in material costs that is being anticipated”.
BAE Systems expects to submit its commercial proposal to the DPA by June 2006, with work already in progress to ascertain pricing and technical specifications from across the industrial base. Studies are also in hand to assess the health of the supply chain, and to identify mitigation strategies in areas where legacy suppliers are no longer available.
This means that all previous assumptions about the manufacture of specific components or structures are being revisited. Dome manufacture is one example, with production being brought into Barrow because the previous source of supply is no longer available.
Further work is examining the product build strategy in order to identify a more affordable design and to factor in anticipated evolution between boat four and projected follow-on submarines through to Astute boat seven. Furthermore, while the proposal will focus on boat four, BAE Systems Submarines is considering the potential for part of the bid to offer pricing on a batch of four boats in order to offer savings from batch construction.
danrhfrom JMR Dec 2005
Ghibka SAM system nears service in Russia
Yevgeniy Letunovsky
The Russian Project 21630 patrol vessel Astrakhan is the first naval craft to be armed with the Ghibka multiround launcher for the Igla surface-to-air missile systems, writes Yevgeniy Letunovsky. Laid down on 30 January 2004 and launched on 7 October 2005, it is the first of a class of heavily armed gunboats designed for littoral operations.
The only armament currently installed is a single Ghibka multiround launcher. Developed by the Ratep Joint Stock Company, the system differs from a pre-production model shown during the International Maritime Defence Show (IMDS 2005) held earlier this year in St Petersburg (see JMR September 2005, p10). For example, the elevating arms that carry two missile launchers are of different configuration to that shown at the exhibition.
Ghibka uses hardware adapted from the land-based Strelets air-defence missile system, and can fire Igla-S (or Igla-1M) missiles against aircraft and helicopters. Astrakhan is also armed with a 122 mm UMS-73 Grad-M multibarrelled rocket launcher, a 100 mm A 190 main gun and two six-barrel 30 mm AK-306 cannon.
Astrakhan is expected to become operational in the Caspian Sea. The second vessel of the class is Kaspiysk, which was laid down on 25 February 2005. Under current plans, 10 will be built by 2015.
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Doug Richardson
[/b]Yugoimport-SDPR has shown the configuration of its LRSV M-1996 Orkan-2 multiple-launch rocket system, writes Doug Richardson. Currently in service with the armed forces of Serbia and Montenegro, this is based on the wheeled 9P113 transporter/erector/launcher (TEL) of the Soviet-era 9K52 Luna-M artillery rocket system. It retains the elevating launch rail used by the original Russian rocket but uses this to carry four barrels for smaller-calibre unguided rockets.
In its original form, the TEL carried a single R-65 or R-70 unguided artillery rocket. This was about 9.4 m in length, 0.544 m in diameter and weighed 2,432-2,450 kg (depending upon warhead type). The new tubes are for the locally developed M-87 Orkan solid-propellant rocket. Smaller and lighter than the Russian rockets, this is 4.656 m long and 262 mm in diameter.
The M-87 is unusual in being a two-stage rocket. The booster stage burns for only 200 ms, generating 8,000 kg of thrust to power the round out of the launcher tube. The main motor then ignites, producing 18,000 kg of thrust for five seconds and giving the rocket a maximum velocity of 1,200 m/s. Four selectable aerodynamic brake assemblies are used to provide four different ballistic range trajectories with maximum ranges of 24 km, 28 km, 37 km or 50 km. (The R-60 and R-70 have a maximum range of 68 km.)
The warhead weighs about 90 kg and is available in unitary armour-piercing high-explosive, cluster munition (288 bomblets) and minelaying (24 KB-2 anti-tank mines) forms. The warheads of a four-round salvo will weigh a total of about 360 kg, compared with the 200-457 kg of the various patterns of R-60 and R-70 warhead.
Originally developed under a joint project with Iraq, the M-87 Orkan was fielded by Iraq under the designation Ababeel 50. The launch vehicle was a Yugoslav FAP 3235 heavy-duty (8×8) cross-country truck.
The complete M-87 Orkan system has 12 launch tubes and a combat weight of 32,000 kg. By re-using the 9P113 TEL of the Luna system, engineers in the former Yugoslavia were able to create a lighter four-round system with a combat weight of about 17,000 kg.
On the original M-87 Orkan system, a TV camera mounted on top of the left side of the launcher is used to monitor the flight of a single round that is fired and then prematurely detonated in order to obtain the meteorological data needed to calculate a firing solution for the ensuing salvo. This does not seem to be present in the Luna-based LRSV M-1996 Orkan-2 version.
danrhfrom JNI Dec 2005
RSM-54 firings confirm reliability
David C IsbyAn RSM-54 (SS-N-23 ‘Skiff’) submarine-launched ballistic missile (SLBM) was launched from the Russian Pacific Fleet Project 667 BDR Kalmar-class (‘Delta III’) ballistic-missile submarine (SSBN) Syvatoy Giorgiy Pobedonosets (Saint George Victorious) on 30 September 2005, writes David C Isby.
The missile was fired while the submarine was submerged in the Sea of Okhotsk and the re-entry vehicle was reported to have impacted in the Chizh range on the Kanin peninsula in the White Sea.
The successful test firing led to a statement by fleet commander Admiral Viktor Fyodorov that the launch had shown that the RSM-54 is capable of remaining in service for the foreseeable future. Adm Fyodorov told the Russian press that the service life and reliability of the RSM-54 were such that it could successfully serve until the introduction of the new Bulava (SS-NX-30) SLBM, and then overlap with it in service.
The Syvatoy Giorgiy Pobedonosets, currently under the command of Captain 1st Rank Valeriy Kravchenko, is considered to be among the most operationally capable SSBNs in the Pacific Fleet. Recomissioned in 2003 after more than a decade in dock, its previous successful SLBM launch was in 2004.
Another successful test of an RSM-54 was conducted from the Northern Fleet Kalmar-class SSBN Borisoglebsk on 7 October. It was the fifth successful test of this type of missile this year.
danrhFrom JDW 7 Dec 2005
Russia’s first Lada-class boat on sea trials
Richard Scott Jane’s Naval ConsultantThe first Project 677 Lada-class diesel-electric submarine for the Russian Federation Navy has begun a month-long period of sea trials.
Designed by the St Petersburg-based Rubin Central Design Bureau for Marine Engineering, it was built by the Admiralty Shipyard. The submarine – named Sankt Peterburg in honour of the 300th anniversary of the founding of its namesake city – sailed through the Morskoy Canal on 29 November under its own power to commence testing at a range in the Baltic Sea.
Trials will evaluate the boat’s operability and manoeuvrability at a range of depths. Onboard systems will also be subject to test.
On completion of the trials programme, Sankt Petersburg will berth at Kronshtadt naval base for the remainder of Russia’s winter months.
Project 677 (known as Amur 1650 in its export derivation) represents the fourth generation of Russian conventional submarine.
Laid down in December 1997, Sankt Peterburg’s completion was repeatedly delayed by funding shortages and, more recently, by equipment acceptance issues and revision of the whole-boat safety case.
A first follow-on unit for the Russian Federation Navy, named Kronshtadt, was laid down in July 2005, while another partly-built Amur 1650 export variant is awaiting funds for its completion as a speculative demonstrator model at the Admiralty Shipyard.
Russian design bureau offers new cruise missile-armed SSK (jni.janes.com, 05/10/05)
Lada class, Jane’s Fighting Ships (jfs.janes.com)
danrhfrom JDW Dec 7 2005
Russia details Middle East export strategy
HENRY IVANOV JDW Correspondent
MoscowRosoboronexport has outlined confirmed and potential defence sales to Middle East customers These include the first sale of Russian weapons to Morocco
Russia’s state defence export agency Rosoboronexport detailed potential export sales to the Middle East, including the confirmed sale of 2S6M Tunguska self-propelled air-defence systems to Morocco, at the Dubai 2005 Air Show from 19-23 November. This marks the first sale of Russian weapons to this country.
Saudi Arabia is also a potential customer, with the Saudis submitting requests for information (RFI) on a number of Russian systems, including jet trainers, helicopters, missiles and naval equipment.
Russia is preparing to deliver two Ilyushin Il-76MF strategic transport aircraft to Jordan: the first export contract for the aircraft. Jordan holds an option for two more Il-76MFs and is firming up a preliminary agreement with Sukhoi signed in August for two Su-80 utility aircraft in a customised lightweight tactical airlifter configuration.
Undisclosed customers in the region have placed orders for redundant Russian Air Defence S-200 Angara low-to-high-altitude surface-to-air missile systems after restoration and upgrade, while system operators Syria and Iran are being offered upgrades to the level of the newly ordered variant. Russia has also secured a Middle East order for the NPO Mash Yakhont M3.0 300 km anti-ship and ground-attack missiles.
Newly fielded proposals to Algeria, Egypt, Iran, Libya, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) for the creation of joint venture maintenance and repair centres in those countries for specific equipment present in the region (including aircraft, missiles, armoured vehicles and trucks) signal a new Russian sales tactic in the region.
In particular, MMPP Salyut General Director Yuri Eliseev told JDW that the company is close to reaching agreements with Su-24 and MiG-25 users on joint ventures to address maintenance and repair of the types that feature Salyut-built AL-21F and R-15 engines, including the conversion of those into ground machinery for the oil/gas and power generation industries. Salyut is offering trade-in deals to the air forces of the region that would see decommissioned aeroengines converted locally into ground machinery, while the air forces would, in turn, receive newly built or overhauled engines for their aircraft.
Sukhoi Deputy General Director Boris Bregman said the company has responded to RFIs from Libya and Algeria on Su-30 series multirole fighters and the upgrading of in-service Sukhoi aircraft. This year, Algeria should receive the last batch of seven ex-Russian Air Force Su-24MK interdiction aircraft after a major upgrade. These will supplement 15 Algerian Su-24s upgraded in 2002-2004 at Sukhoi’s NAPO plant in Novosibirsk. A tentative agreement for a Su-24 upgrade has also been reached with Libya. Tripoli, which earlier sought a deep upgrade on its vast Su-22 and small Su-24 fleets, has finally opted for relatively simple mid-life upgrade and restoration work.
Regarding the Su-24, it is described as “a simplified Algerian variant with some recent technology insertions”. At the same time, Tripoli is shifting focus to the acquisition of new Russian fighters. It is yet to make a choice between the Su-30MKK, Su-30MKI, Su-34 and Su-35.
Iran has recently procured three Su-25UBT twin-seat attack aircraft from Russia. In-service Su-25s are receiving in-country upgrades, including lifetime extension and installation of new electronic warfare and jamming systems. Similar work is being scheduled for Iran’s Su-24s. Tehran is also close to reaching agreement with RSK MiG on a lifetime extension and upgrade programme, presumably for Iran’s MiG-29s.
NPK Irkut Vice-President for International Marketing Vladimir Sautov confirmed to JDW interest from Algeria (and Thailand) in the Su-30MKI multirole fighter.
Sautov said the Indian Air Force (IAF) Su-30Ks won eight out of 10 simulated air combats with US Air Force F-15Cs during a joint exercise and that IAF Su-30MKIs subsequently won all 10 engagements with Republic of Singapore Air Force F-16s during a similar joint exercise. He said these victories had “contributed greatly” to restoring the image of the Russian fighter image in the Gulf countries operating F-16s.
The UAE, the sources said, has now resumed talks begun in 2001-2002 with Russia for the lease of Russian Air Force MiG-29s to meet a standing requirement for “high-energy” trainers for in-country training of its fighter pilots. RSK MiG, the sources said, submitted “some new proposals of that kind” at the Dubai Air Show to address “the pressing UAE need for intensive and cost-effective training of fighter pilots”. The sources also confirmed that discussions were also held with Egypt, Saudi Arabia and the UAE on joint production of Franco-Russian MiG-AT jet trainers.
RSK MiG General Director/General Designer Aleksei Fedorov confirmed to JDW that “Yemen and Eritrea have taken delivery of MiG-29SMTs”, marking the first open acknowledgement of MiG-29SMT deliveries to that country. To date, 16 MiG-29SMT/UBTs have been delivered to Yemen since September 2004 and two aircraft to Eritrea. United Yemen Air Force (UYAF) pilots have made over 100 flights and, with the help of Russian Air Force and RSK MiG personnel, have conducted precision ground-munitions firing tests locally, sources say. In one test UYAF pilots scored a 100 per cent hit rate using four Kh-31A anti-ship missiles.
The company is continuing deliveries of its newly developed STBP-29 full-flight/ weapons-use simulators to the region, with Sudan and Yemen already operating them and three other regional customers awaiting deliveries. Demand in the region for newly built and upgraded MiG-29SMT/UBT multirole fighters is estimated at 200-250 units, the sources noted. Algeria, Egypt and Libya are seen as intended new customers for the aircraft, while Syria, Iran, Eritrea and Yemen would take an additional quantity. Algeria alone is looking to buy 42 single-seat MiG-29SMTs and seven twin-seat MiG-29UBTs.
RSK MiG plans to produce 60-70 new MiG-29SMTs before production shifts to the MiG-29M/M2 and the newly announced MiG-35 with vectored-thrust and active-array radar. Contracts are being finalised with five undisclosed countries for a total of 120 MiG-29SMT/M/M2s, of which 50 would be new and 70 upgraded.
“The Middle East is packed with MiGs, from MiG-21s to MiG-29s,” Fedorov said. To facilitate sales, RSK MiG is offering a trade-in option: a used MiG-21, -23 or -25 would be taken as partial payment for a new MiG-29SMT.
Separately, MiG-25 users Algeria, India, Libya and Syria are being offered a trade-in that would see their old MiG-25s being replaced with new MiG-31s.
danrhfrom JDW 7 Dec 2005
In Brief – Bulava missile to enter Russian Navy inventory in 2007
The SS-NX-30 Bulava submarine-launched strategic missile system will enter the Russian Navy’s inventory in 2007, Navy Commander-in-Chief Admiral Vladimir Masorin told Interfax on 16 November in Astrakhan. Developed by the Moscow Institute of Thermal Technology, the Bulava missile is a solid-fuel weapon capable of a range of more than 8,000 km and able to carry up to 10 multiple independently targetable re-entry vehicles. According to Adm Masorin, “tests of the missile will continue this year” and Bulava is expected to enter the inventory of Project 955 Borey-class ballistic missile submarines, the first two of which are under construction at the Sevmashpredpriyatie yard in Severodvinsk.
From JMR Dec 05
Bulava SLBM makes successful first flight
Doug RichardsonRussia has successfully completed the first submerged test launch of the new Bulava (SS-NX-30) submarine-launched strategic missile system, writes Doug Richardson. The missile was launched from the trials submarine Dmitriy Donskoy at 1722 h Moscow time on 27 September 2005 from a location in the White Sea.
During an earlier test launch in 2004, the missile had been unpowered, but the 27 September launch used a missile with live stages. It carried only a single warhead, which reached its designated target at the Kura range in Kamchatka. There are no reports of decoys being released.
A video sequence of the launch was shown on the Russian weekly current affairs television programme Vesti Nedeli on 9 October. Viewers were told that the missile was “faster than all other equivalent missiles” and able to release individually targeted warheads along with “dozens” of decoys. Russian Defence Minister Sergei Ivanov has announced that the new missile will enter service by the end of 2007.
Dmitri Donskoy was laid down at the Sevmash plant in Severodvinsk on 30 June 1976. Lead ship of the Project 941/941U Akula (‘Typhoon’) class, it was commissioned on 12 December 1981. In its original configuration, the submarine had 20 launch tubes for Makeyev RSM 52/3M20 (SS-N-20 ‘Sturgeon’) ballistic missiles.
An extensive modernisation process started in 1994 was intended to convert the vessel to act as a trials submarine for the Bark (SS-N-28) submarine-launched ballistic missile (SLBM), but development of this weapon was cancelled in 1998 following several unsuccessful test flights. Further modifications were made to allow the boat to carry and fire the follow-on Bulava missile. The submarine was finally relaunched on 26 June 2002 and started sea trials in August 2004.
Developed by the Moscow Institute for Thermal Technology, Bulava was intended to have a high commonality with that organisation’s Topol-M (SS-27) land-based intercontinental ballistic missile. It has a maximum range of more than 8,300 km.
On 7 October, General Yuri Baluyevsky, Chief of the General Staff of the Russian Armed Forces, was reported as saying that Bulava was “capable of being used either at sea or on land”, but it was not clear from published reports whether a land-based version was currently planned.
The new state defence programme due to be submitted to President Vladimir Putin in 2006 would cover a 50 per cent increase in the procurement of military hardware, said Baluyevsky, who noted that the Russian military’s desire to have larger numbers of modern weapons took into account the fact that the country faced other problems that would require large financial resources.
An Internet website maintained by Pavel Podvig, author of the book Russian Strategic Nuclear Forces, has released the first publicly available technical data for the Bulava. Citing information released to the US government in the latest exchange information on strategic weapons, Podvig said that the Bulava, “which was designated RSM-56 for the purposes of the [START] treaty”, is about 12 m long, 2 m in diameter and has a launch weight of almost 37 tonnes.
Like the Topol-M, Bulava is a three-stage solid-propellant missile. The Bulava is about a third shorter than Topol-M, but the first-stage diameter has been increased. While Topol-M has upper stages of decreasing diameter, Bulava uses the same diameter for all three stages.
The Russian designation is reported to be R-30. According to Podvig, the industrial index for the missile is 3M30.
Podvig is sceptical of claims that Bulava will be able to carry 10 warheads. On his website, he estimates that the operational payload will be “more like three or four. The missile is just not big enough to carry 10 warheads (unless they are really small and low-yield)”.
If Russian claims that the missile will carry large numbers of decoys are correct, Podvig’s assessment may be realistic. Bulava is the same size and weight class as the RSM-54/R-29RM/3M27 Shetal (SS-N-23 ‘Skiff’) carried by Delfin (Delta IV)-class (Project 667 BDRM) submarines. This was tested with a payload of 10 multiple independently targetable re-entry vehicles (MIRVs), but was deployed with only four and may also carry decoys. The RSM-52/R-39/3M65 (SS-N-20 ‘Sturgeon’), which arms the Akula (Typhoon)-class ballistic-missile submarines (SSBNs), carries 10 MIRVs, but this missile is more than twice the weight of the Bulava.
Bulava is intended to arm the new Project 955 Borey-class nuclear-powered SSBNs. Probably developed by the Rubin Central Design Bureau for Marine Engineering, the Borey class will carry 12 SLBMs rather than the 20 installed in the Akula class. It has a length of 170 m, a submerged displacement of 7,000 tons and a crew of 130. Based on a single-shaft power plant designed around an OK-650-type reactor, it will have a maximum submerged speed of 26 kt.
According to Admiral Vladimir Kuroyedov, commander-in-chief of the Russian Navy, the Borey class will have “substantially better hydrodynamic characteristics and acoustic parameters” than current Russian SSBNs.
Lead ship of the class is the Yuri Dolgoruky. This was laid down at the Sevmash plant on 2 November 1996, but construction was slowed and then halted following cancellation of the Bark (SS-NX-28) missile. Work was under way once more by 2002 and the vessel is due to be launched this year. It will be handed over to the Russian Navy in 2006 and be fully operational in 2007.
Alexander Nevsky, the second of class, was laid down on 19 March 2004 and a third may be under construction at the same facility. A class of at least six is expected.
In August 2003, Deputy Defense Minister Alexei Moskovsky, who is responsible for defence procurement, announced that the Alexander Nevsky would be commissioned in 2009 and the third yet-unnamed example in 2010. If sufficient funding is allocated, these are intended to enter service in 2009 and 2010 respectively. These timings would depend on the availability of funding. Moskovsky has warned that underfunding could delay these deployments by one-and-a-half to two years.
Given the slow progress with the Borey-class SSBNs, the trials submarine Dmitriy Donskoy is expected to assume an operational role with the new missile once Bulava trials have been completed. It is unclear whether all of the vessel’s launch tubes have been modified to fire the Bulava.
Bulava Topol-M
Length (without payload) 11.5 m 17.9 m
Length (in launch container) 12.1 m 22.7 m
Diameter (first stage) 2 m 1.86 m
Diameter (second stage) 2 m 1.61 m
Diameter (third stage) 2 m 1.58 m
Diameter of launch canister 2.1 m 1.95 m
Launch weight 36.8 tonnes 47.2 tonnes
danrhThe Brazilian Navy (Marinha do Brasil) received four Type 22s, of which three are operational and one was decommissioned due to budget cuts. They are locally known as “Greenhalgh class”.
Operational:
F-46 GREENHALGH
F-48 BOSÍSIO
F-49 RADEMAKERDecom: F-47 DODSWORTH
Dodsworth is decommed? Why is that? Are the other vessels decomming anytime soon as well? Looks like I need to go and do another edit on my scenario:)
Daniel
danrhone of Chile’s neighbours
From JNI Dec 2005
Peruvian Navy bolsters frigate force
Luca Peruzzi
Peru is to receive another two ex-Italian Navy Lupo-class frigates, Sagittario and Perseo, to bolster the six already in service as the Carvajal class.
Under the deal, signed in Lima on 28 October 2005, Fincantieri will now take receipt of the vessels to regenerate and upgrade them before delivery to the Peruvian Navy (Armada Peruana) in the second half of 2006.
Work will include an overhaul of the hulls, main and auxiliary propulsion plants, electrical and fire-fighting equipment, as well as modernisation of accommodation areas. The vessels’ existing weapon and combat-management systems will be checked and overhauled, but retained in their standard configuration to ensure commonality across the Carvajal class.
The vessels will join their ex-Italian Navy sister ships Lupo and Orsa (now renamed as BAP Aguirre and BAP Palacios), which Fincantieri delivered in May and June of this year following a period of repair and maintenance work at the company’s Muggiano shipyard in La Spezia.
Both parties have so far declined to disclose the exact costs for the second two ships. However, the Peruvian parliament approved funds totalling USD30 million for the first two-frigate deal and costs for the second are expected to be similar.
These deals were enabled by an Italian law enshrined in 2000, which permits the direct handover of defence assets to a foreign nation through the builder, opening up interesting prospects for the second-hand market.
This acquisition is part of the Peruvian Navy’s Estudio Estratégico para el desarollo de la Escuadra de Alta Mar 2002-10 procurement plan. It aims to provide the service with a total of eight Lupo-class frigates, six Velarde-class missile fast-attack craft (already in service), and two replenishment tankers by 2010, funding and personnel permitting. The Peruvian Navy also plans to upgrade its six Angamos-class Type 209/1200 submarines under the plan.
danrhFrom JDW 7 Dec 2005
Tomahawk buy cleared by Dutch parliament
JORIS JANSSEN LOK JDW Correspondent
The HagueAdditional reporting by Richard Scott Jane’s Naval Consultant
London
The Dutch parliament has approved the purchase of 30 Tactical Tomahawk cruise missiles for the Dutch navy The Netherlands would become the third country with Tomahawk after the US and the UK
The Dutch parliament has approved government plans to procure 30 Raytheon Tomahawk Block IV land attack cruise missiles from the US government for the Royal Netherlands Navy (RNLN).
According to Defence Minister Henk Kamp, the Tomahawk missiles will provide the Netherlands armed forces with the capability of “controlled, limited but effective power projection with minimal collateral damage and minimal risk for friendly personnel”. He said that the weapon, to be installed on two De Zeven Provincien-class LCF air defence and command frigates from 2008 under a EUR57 million (USD67 million) investment project, would provide “excellent support for land operations”.
The ruling coalition parties in the Dutch parliament approved the Tomahawk procurement on 17 November. This was despite opinion polls showing that 75 per cent of the population opposed the acquisition of cruise missiles.
Winning the parliamentary vote for the Tomahawk buy hinged on the backing of Prime Minister Jan Peter Balkenende’s Christian Democrat party – one of the three coalition parties. This was secured after Kamp obtained an extra EUR105 million of funding to replace two Boeing CH-47D Chinook medium-lift helicopters and a Boeing AH-64D Apache lost during recent operations in Afghanistan.
The Christian Democrats had said that it would agree to the Tomahawk plan on condition that “a full and adequate” solution was found for the replacement of the helicopters.
The two LCF frigates designated by the RNLN to receive Tomahawk will require the retrofit of a strike-length Mk 41 vertical launcher module (space exists for an additional eight-cell system alongside the five tactical-length Mk 41 modules already fitted) and the Tactical Tomahawk Weapon Control System to enable weapons flight planning and control.
The Tomahawk Block IV – otherwise known as Tactical Tomahawk – is entering service to succeed the Block III version currently in USN and RN service. Designed around a lower cost airframe, a new turbojet powerplant and a rationalised guidance and navigation hardware package, the Block IV missile affords longer range and enhanced tactical flexibility through the addition of a two-way UHF satellite communication link.
The US Navy (USN) and the UK Royal Navy (RN) are currently the only navies to use Tomahawk. Spain has also approached the US government about acquiring Tomahawk for its F-100 frigates and new S-80A submarines.
danrhfrom JDW 7 Dec 2005
Israel’s anti-ballistic missile test pushes altitude boundaries
ALON BEN-DAVID JDW Correspondent
Tel AvivIsrael’s Arrow II has successfully intercepted a medium-range ballistic missile target at a record low altitude The target missile simulated characteristics of an Iranian Shahab-3
Israel’s anti-ballistic missile Arrow Weapon System (AWS) successfully intercepted a target simulating an Iranian Shahab-3 medium-range ballistic missile (MRBM) in a test over the Mediterranean on 2 December.
The interception was conducted at a record low altitude, considered below the AWS’s performance envelope, and determined the operability of the Arrow II Block 3 interceptor, manufactured jointly by Israel Aircraft Industries (IAI) and Boeing Integrated Defense Systems.
“We have never before tried the Arrow against the Shahab characteristics, but we know now that we are capable of intercepting all existing ballistic missile threats in the region, whether conventional or non-conventional, and we are developing capabilities to deal with future threats,” Director of the Israel Missile Defence Organisation Arieh Herzog told JDW.
“The target during the test reflected some future capabilities of the Shahab,” he said.
The target, Rafael Armament Development Authority’s Black Sparrow, launched from an Israel Air Force (IAF) F-15 fighter, simulated the involuntary manoeuvres typical to the terminal trajectory phase of the Shahab-3, which separates the warhead and the spent booster upon re-entry to the atmosphere.
The AWS’s Green Pine radar detected and acquired the target after launch. The Citrus Tree fire-control system tracked the target and launched one interceptor from the IAF’s Arrow battery in Palmachim Air Force Base, south of Tel Aviv. The interceptor acquired the target using its photo-electric sensor and detonated the proximity warhead, spreading a cloud of fragments that destroyed the target. “We went for an extreme interception scenario, pushing the Arrow envelope,” Israel Livnat, chief executive officer of IAI’s subsidiary Elta, told JDW, but refused to provide specific details of the interception.
However, JDW has learned that the interception took place at an altitude considered to be extremely challenging, as the target was approaching at a speed of M5.0.
Following the interception, IAF’s MIM-104 Patriot low- to high-altitude air-defence batteries joined the test, simulating an additional interception at lower altitude. Israel’s ballistic missile defence concept is based on a two-tier layered defence in which the AWS constitutes the higher layer and the Patriot an additional, lower layer.
“The Arrow’s Block 3, which was tested, significantly expands the interception capabilities,” Boaz Levy, head of the Arrow Programme at IAI, told JDW. “It includes both software and hardware upgrades and will enter operational service in the IAF in 2006. The IAF is currently operating the Block 2 version of the Arrow II.”
During the previous test, conducted in August 2004 at Point Magu, California, the Arrow II Block 3 failed to intercept a target simulating a separating ‘Scud D’ MRBM. Following the failure, Arrow tests were suspended for 15 months but have now resumed in Israel. “We have identified the problem that occurred in the previous test and made the adjustment,” said Herzog. In another test conducted in the US in July 2004, the AWS successfully intercepted an actual ‘Scud B’ short-range ballistic missile.
The recent test was the 14th flight test of the Arrow II and the ninth interception test conducted under the Arrow System Improvement Programme. For the first time the interceptor used was co-produced by IAI and Boeing under a USD78 million contract signed in March 2004, under which Boeing is manufacturing some 35 per cent of the Arrow II interceptor.
Other major subcontractors in the programme are Israel Military Industries, producing the interceptor’s first-stage engine; Rafael, manufacturing the second-stage engine and the warhead; and Tadiran Systems, which developed and produces the Citrus Tree fire- control system. In 2000 the AWS became operational with the IAF operating two Arrow batteries.
Israel recently decided to change the battery-form deployment of Arrow and instead create a scattered deployment, in which separate launchers will be dispersed. All the launchers will be connected and controlled through a national missile defence centre.
The Arrow test took place as the tension rises between Jerusalem and Tehran, following repeated declarations from Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad that Israel “should be wiped off the map”.
Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon said on 1 December that “Israel cannot accept nuclear weapons in the hands of Iran and is making all necessary preparations to prevent that”.
danrhFrom JNI Dec 2005
India commissions new coastguard FPV
Mrityunjoy Mazumdar
The first of the Indian Coastguard’s new fast patrol boats, CGS Kasturba Gandhi, was commissioned in Goa on 28 October 2005, six months ahead of schedule.
Designed by Goa Shipyard Limited (GSL), the Kasturba Gandhi-class Fast Patrol Vessel (FPV) is an evolution of the Sarojni Naidu class. The primary difference is the aluminum superstructure, with a sloped design and enclosed mast. The full load displacement has increased from 260 tons to 280 tons, with an overall length of 50.44 m, beam of 7.5 m and 2.10 m draft. Powered by three Rolls-Royce Kamewa Type 71SII water-jets, the design’s top speed is 35 kt.
A key feature of the vessel is its directional stability at high speeds. A 360 turn at 35 kt produces a roll angle of 8 , which settles to 6 with speed only dropping to 28 kt.
The vessel is fitted with a 30 mm CRN-91 Medak gun forward, two light machine guns, a navigation radar and SATCOM, a 4.7 m rigid inflatable boat and a 3.8 m Gemini craft that is launched and recovered with an electrohydraulic crane.
The second-of-class, CGS Aruna Asaf Ali, was launched on 19 October with commissioning scheduled for early December. The five-vessel programme should be completed by the end of 2006.
Congress notified of possible sale of P-3C Orion support to India
James Murphy, JDIN Reporter
THE US Defense Security Cooperation Agency (DSCA) has notified Congress of a possible Foreign Military Sale (FMS) to India of logistics support worth USD133 million for two leased P-3C Orion aircraft, as well as associated equipment and services.
India has requested a possible sale of logistics support for two leased P-3C aircraft, as well as training devices; support and test equipment; engineering technical services; supply support; and other related support elements.
According to the DSCA, the two leased P-3 Orion maritime patrol aircraft will replace two existing Indian Navy patrol aircraft (Soviet-built IL-38 May), which are quickly reaching the end of their operational service life.
To maintain security, it is necessary that India replace these fixed-wing aircraft with an airborne operational capability for land-based maritime patrol and reconnaissance, including: economic exclusion zone surveillance and protection; command and control (C2); Anti-Submarine warfare; and anti-surface warfare, according to a DSCA statement.
If the sale is agreed, the principal contractors will be Lockheed Martin Eagan, Minnesota; Lockheed Martin Aircraft Center, Greenville, South Carolina; and Logistics Support International, Jacksonville, Florida.
The DSCA said there are no known offset agreements proposed in connection with the potential sale.
Indian Navy regenerates its fleet air arm
Mrityunjoy Mazumdar
Carrier aviation in the Indian Navy is set to undergo a major transformation over the next decade with new ships and aircraft. Mrityunjoy Mazumdar takes a first-hand look at current operations aboard INS Viraat and examines the future of India’s carrier force.
The Indian Navy’s association with carrier aviation goes back to 1961 when the Majestic-class carrier INS Vikrant was commissioned into the fleet.
Originally laid down for the UK Royal Navy as HMS Hercules, Vikrant was equipped with an air wing of Sea Hawk fighter-bombers and Alize anti-submarine aircraft, and took part in operations in the Bay of Bengal in the 1971 Indo-Pakistan war. On 4 December of that year it launched successful air strikes against targets in and around the ports of Chittagong, Cox’s Bazaar and Khulna, which are still regarded as the finest hour for India’s carrier air arm.
A second generation of carrier-borne aircraft entered service in 1984 in the shape of the Sea Harrier FRS.51 short-take-off, vertical landing (STOVL) fighter and Vikrant was modified accordingly, losing its catapults and arrestor gear and instead receiving a ski-jump forward. With the acquisition of INS Viraat (ex-HMS Hermes) in 1986, the Indian Navy was — on paper at least — a two-carrier force. However, the ageing Vikrant was finally retired in January 1997 having been plagued by structural and mechanical problems in the latter stages of its career.
There is no doubting that India’s exploitation of carrier air power over the past three decades has been hamstrung by the limitations inherent in the operation of elderly carriers acquired second hand and equipped with fixed-wing aircraft widely considered obsolete. However, that is set to change over the next decade with the arrival of new ships and combat aircraft that will require the Indian Navy to turn away from STOVL and transition instead to a short-take-off but arrested recovery (STOBAR) operating cycle.
Currently, the Indian Navy operates a single carrier, the venerable Viraat. The ship’s materiel condition and the requirement for regular upkeep in recent years has meant it has frequently not been available for sea. Consequently, India’s fleet air arm has had to work hard to maintain proficiency and operational capability.
That said, since emerging from refit earlier this year, Viraat has managed more than 200 sea days with deployments lasting up to two months. Indeed, the ship’s commanding officer, Captain SPS Cheema, expected that the Indian Navy will keep Viraat operational for another decade or so, taking the ship’s life well beyond 50 years.
Furthermore, JNI’s recent embarkation aboard Viraat for the Indo-US Exercise ‘Malabar 05’ showed that the arts of carrier aviation have been kept very much alive.
This year’s exercise off the Goa coast, the eighth in the ‘Malabar’ series, saw the two navies deploy carrier groups together for the first time. Viraat’s air wing for ‘Malabar 05’ comprised five Sea Harriers from Indian Naval Air Squadron (INAS) 300 ‘White Tigers’ and a single T.4I trainer from INAS 552, three Sea King Mk 42B helicopters of INAS 330 ‘Harpoons’, and three SA 319B Chetak utility helicopters from INAS 321 ‘Angels’.Stretching capabilities
Although the Sea Harrier FRS.51 is primarily roled as an air-defence fighter, it retains secondary capabilities for reconnaissance, anti-shipping and ground attack. Accordingly, the majority of peacetime training comprises intercept and strike missions, weapon training and crew-proficiency training.
However, aircraft do not launch with Sea Eagle anti-ship missiles as a matter of routine because of vertical recovery limits (it is generally assumed that missiles would be fired in a war situation, so recovery is not therefore an issue).
The Sea Harriers’ radar and missile fit – comprising Blue Fox air-intercept radar and Magic/Magic 2 short-range infrared air-to-air missiles – is severely limited by current standards. Blue Fox lacks an effective look-down capability, while Magic is limited to visual-range ‘dogfights’, rendering the aircraft obsolete in the face of a beyond-visual-range (BVR) threat. These limitations have been borne out in dissimilar air-combat training (DACT) with the Indian Air Force.
Furthermore, given the Sea Harrier’s limited endurance and the prevailing hot and humid conditions of the Indian Ocean, fuel management is critical as reserve fuel states are much lower than with conventional fighter aircraft. Allowing for three minutes of combat manoeuvring and sufficient fuel margins for a vertical recovery, even with 190 gal drop tanks, the fighter’s range is only 450 n miles.
Indeed, since recovery margins are much lower, careful management of fuel state, engine temperature and sortie duration is essential for safe recovery, generating additional workload for the pilot.
To redress current shortcomings in the air-to-air role, a total of 14 Sea Harriers are to receive a substantive avionics and weapon systems upgrade that will see the introduction of the Elta EL/M-2032 pulse-Doppler radar and the Rafael Derby radar-guided medium-range air-to-air missile to confer a BVR capability.
The Sea Kings are primarily tasked for anti-submarine and anti-surface warfare and the chronic serviceability problems experienced from mid-1998 to 2001 – as a result of US sanctions – are now a thing of the past. Indeed, while spares supply from manufacturer AgustaWestland has now been reinstated, the effect of the sanctions was mostly to force the navy and local industry to develop alternate means of engineering support. Under this, a transmission overhaul facility at Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd (HAL) came online in late 2004.
A comprehensive upgrade programme for the Sea King fleet, starting in late 2004, is expected to see updates to avionics, the mission computer and radar, plus integration of an electro-optical surveillance system.
HAL’s Chetak – a license-built variant of the Alouette III – is very much the workhorse of the air group, employed for communications, logistics, liaison and helicopter delivery tasks.
This year’s ‘Malabar’ exercise was the most complex to date, with the US Navy (USN) deploying the aircraft carrier USS Nimitz, and its carrier air wing (CVW 11) for joint exercises between 25 and 28 September. DACT flying quickly evolved from one-versus-one to one-versus-two and two-versus-two. Rules of engagement precluded the use of BVR engagements as the Sea Harrier would have been totally outclassed by the opposing F/A-18E/F Super Hornet.
Nimitz then flew two simulated strike missions against Viraat, with Sea Harriers first providing defence against a Super Hornet strike, with the roles reversed in the next serial. After Nimitz left the exercise, Sea Harriers continued flying Combat Air Patrol and strike sorties, with aircraft being controlled by USS Chafee and USS Higgins, providing Indian aviators with exposure to the tracking capabilities of the SPY-1D radar.
Experience with the USN’s operating procedures and equipment provided valuable insights, especially for the Sea Harrier pilots, who found the F/A-18 Super Hornet an exceptional adversary. Additionally, while the IN’s Ka-31 airborne early-warning helicopter was not embarked aboard Viraat, an Indian Ka-31 controller flew aboard an E-2C Hawkeye 2000 to observe and control aircraft.
There are three foundation stones for the future of carrier operations and the attendant migration from STOVL to STOBAR: the purchase and modification of the former Russian Federation Navy Project 1143.4 heavy aircraft-carrying cruiser Admiral Gorshkov; acquisition of an air wing of MiG-29K ‘Fulcrum’ carrier-borne multirole fighters; and the go-ahead for Project 71, an indigenously designed and built aircraft carrier or Air Defence Ship (ADS).
In the longer term, the Indian Navy aspires to acquire a second ADS to develop a force structure based on three carriers. This would assure the availability of at least one, if not two carriers, with the third undergoing refit or workup.STOBAR conversion
To be named INS Vikramaditya, the ex-Admiral Gorshkov is currently undergoing an extensive regeneration and conversion to STOBAR, with a 14.30 ski-jump and three-wire arrestor system, and will eventually embark about 30 aircraft (typically 24 fixed-wing, plus six helicopters). The conversion package has been developed by the Nevskoye Design Bureau, with the major part of the refit being undertaken at the Sevmashpredpriyatie plant in Severodvinsk. The ship is scheduled for handover to the Indian Navy in late 2008.
The origins of Project 71 go back to the late 1980s. After a protracted and convoluted gestation, the ADS design has emerged as a 252 m-long, 37,500-tonne STOBAR carrier and first steel was cut at Cochin Shipyard on 11 April 2005. Due to enter service in 2012, the ADS is designed to embark an air group of up to 20 fixed-wing aircraft, plus 10 helicopters.
The move from Sea Harrier to MiG-29K will provide an equal challenge and capability step change, and Indian naval aviators are thus anticipating its arrival with enormous excitement.
A contract for 12 single-seat MiG-29K aircraft and four two-seat MiG-29KUB aircraft was signed in January 2004, with deliveries due to start in 2007. The contract also provides an option for another 30 aircraft for delivery by 2015. The two-seat variant will be used for training but is also capable of undertaking combat and support roles, including mid-air refuelling with UPAZ buddy packs.
The transition from STOVL to STOBAR will of course necessitate a new training pipeline for the Indian Navy’s fixed-wing aviators. Currently, naval pilots undertake initial training with the Indian Air Force, completing basic training on the HPT 32 before progressing to the Kiran Mk I.
As part of the transition programme, select batches of pilots are being sent to the Indian Air Force and the USN. Of the latter, 32 pilots will undergo an 18-month training programme for carrier-borne operations on T-45 Goshawks and possibly F/A-18 Hornets over a four-year period at a cost of USD26 million.
The first group of pilots has already arrived at the US naval air stations at Meridian and Kingsville.
For the direct MiG-29K training, it is expected that pilots will go to the Indian Air Force’s MIG-29 training facility pending the arrival of the Mig-29 KUB trainers. Additionally, Rheinmetall Defence Electronics is to supply a MiG-29K full-mission simulator in around 2007.
As a complement to the MiG-29K, the Indian Navy is also funding the development of a carrier-compatible variant of HAL’s Light Combat Aircraft (LCA). Major changes from the standard LCA include significant aerodynamic modifications offering improved low-speed handling, lower approach speeds and increased control at high angles of attack, a drooped nose for better visibility on approach, a strengthened airframe and undercarriage, a fuel dump system and an arrestor hook.
A pre-production naval LCA is due to fly in 2007, with a total requirement existing for about 30 aircraft.
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