xanaduhttp://www.bharat-rakshak.com/NEWS/newsrf.php?newsid=5950
India leading in digital avionics, says expert
Special Correspondent
“The country has achieved 70 to 80 per cent indigenisation”
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We have bridged the gap between quality of products in other countries and in India, DRDO official
“Miniaturisation is only area where we still have to work”
We have to translate the R & D into main products, says Dr. Saraswat
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VELLORE: “Indian avionics is headed for good times and we are becoming self-reliant in the field with 70 to 80 per cent indigenisation in aerospace systems,” said Vijay Kumar Saraswat, Chief Controller (R & D), distinguished scientist and Programme Director of the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), Hyderabad.
National seminar
Talking to newspersons at the Vellore Institute of Technology (VIT), where he was the chief guest at the National Seminar on “Advanced Aerospace Manufacturing” here on Thursday, Dr. Saraswat said India was leading in digital avionics, while also developed fibre optic systems. About 20 to 25 major industries in the private sector were able to manufacture digital components for aviation equipment.
“As a result, fly-by-wire control systems are being used today in missiles and launcher vehicles, which we need no longer import. We have bridged the gap between the quality of the products available in other countries and in India.” Miniaturisation is the only area where we still have to work. It is cost intensive.
Unless we produce large volumes, establishing major foundries for indigenous use, miniaturisation will not be cost-effective.
Financial provisions
“We can become competitive only when we take a step in this direction.
Miniaturisation can be done only through micro and nano systems,” he said, adding, that the Indian Government has made financial provisions for the same.
Asked whether the DRDO was not going in for 100 per cent indigenisation, Dr. Saraswat said some components were cheaper when imported and be content with 70 to 80 per cent indigenisation.
Dr. Saraswat said that a large number of our private industries, which were manufacturing components, had graduated into sub-system manufacturing recently
Asked about the contribution of academic institutions to the indigenous development of avionics, he said, “We have produced some of the best aeronautic engineers and experts who have contributed not only to India but also to the development of avionics in several other countries such as Germany.
Indian institutions
We have 15 national institutions such as the Indian Institutes of Technology, Indian Institute of Science and the National Institutes of Technology, and many of these institutions have done excellent work in the design and development of sub-systems. We have to translate the R & D into main products,” he noted. Earlier speaking at the seminar organised by the School of Mechanical and Building Sciences (SMBS) of the VIT, Dr. Saraswat stressed the need for bringing down the cost of launcher vehicles.
For this to be done, the technology of the large and small systems should co-exist. Presiding, G. Viswanathan, Chancellor of VIT said that the objective of the seminar was to make aerospace manufacturing in India on par with that of the U.S. and Russia. The time has come for us to manufacture our own aircraft on par with the developed countries. S. Narayanan, Dean, SMBS welcomed the gathering.
xanaduWolverine
Rank 5 Registered User Join Date: Oct 2003
Posts: 715
No it was always supposed to be the top configuration. This is a more efficient design.
Either way I don’t why such retarded comparisons keep coming up again and again. We have already had this one before. Those are two different classes of AEW/Cs which ever way you look at it.
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Wolly chill will ya!! 😉 :dev2:
xanaduWell now its the F-16 :diablo: :diablo: :diablo:
http://www.telegraphindia.com/1060406/asp/nation/story_6063902.asp?headline=F- :
F-16 ahead in race for order
OUR SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT
New Delhi, April 5: The US with its F-16 fighter aircraft is leading the race to win an Indian Air Force order for 126 medium multi-role combat aircraft — one of the biggest single military orders up for grabs globally — after the first round in the competition saw the Mirage 2000-V from France and the Russian MiG 29M/M2 out of contention.
The value of the order after the shortlist was drawn up could be anywhere between $7 billion and $12 billion at current prices. It is estimated that the actual selection of aircraft, not accounting for political pulls and pressures, will take till early 2008.
The global tender — called request for proposal (RFP) — will be issued by the end of April, sources said today. Manufacturers of six aircraft who will be given the RFPs will have till October to respond.
The Eurofighter EADS’s Typhoon, Dassault Aviation’s Rafale and the Russian MiG 35 now enter the fray formally. The original four contenders were F-16 (Lockheed Martin), MiG 29M/M2 (RSK MiG Corporation), Jas 39C Grippen (Saab) and the Mirage 2000-V (Dassault Aviation).
A related discussion at BR here
http://forums.bharat-rakshak.com/viewtopic.php?t=2074&start=80
xanaduIAF to seek bids soon for 126 fighter planesPublished: Thursday, 6 April, 2006, 10:00 AM Doha Time
NEW DELHI: Tenders inviting bids for 126 fighter jets for the Indian Air Force (IAF) will be floated later this month, a senior official said here yesterday.
Air Vice Marshal S Mukerji, the assistant chief of air staff for concepts and doctrine, said the bids would be sought from the makers of six jets – the F-16 and F-18 of the United States, France’s Rafale, Sweden’s Gripen, the Eurofighter Typhoon and Russia’s MiG-35.
The deal when clinched will be the single largest weapons purchase by India, which has emerged in recent years as one of the world’s largest buyers of frontline military hardware as it modernises the ageing Soviet-era equipment held by its armed forces.
“The RFPs (requests for proposals) will be floated in the third or fourth week of this month. Everything has been cleared,” Mukerji said.
The Mirage 2000-5, which was one of the jets earlier shortlisted by the IAF, is no longer in the race as it was withdrawn by its makers, Dassault.
Mukerji, however, admitted that the Mirage was one of the cheaper jets considered by the IAF and its withdrawal could increase the value of the deal.
“It is a setback in terms of monetary considerations,” he said.
Mukerji said the fighter finally selected for the purchase would depend on two key factors – the lowest bid and the highest level of capability. “It will have to fit in with our requirements for security and budget,” he said.
Some reports have, however, suggested that the Indian government might delay floating the RPFs till the India-US civil nuclear deal is cleared by the US Congress.
This would be done, sources said, to send out a message that the F-16 and F-18 could be dropped from the shortlist if the nuclear deal was not cleared.
The US has stepped up its efforts to pitch the two jets to India as an order for one of them would come as a significant boost to the American military industry, which has yet to win a sizeable deal from India.
Mukerji meanwhile said the IAF will limit the exercises it conducts with its foreign counterparts to two a year due to budgetary constraints and to keep such interactions at a sufficiently high level of sophistication.
He said joint exercises with the air forces of countries like the US, France and Singapore had been a “big thrust” area for the past years.
The IAF had gained the “respect of a lot of air forces” that wanted to come and operate in India, but at the same time, the force had realised that such exercises were a “costly affair” involving a lot of effort in terms of use of aircraft and airspace, Mukerji said.
“We have now decided to have one joint exercise within the country and another outside the country every year,” he said. – Indo-Asian News Service
:dev2:
xanaduOriginally Posted by xanadu
Isnt jsf better than whats on offer for MRCA? MRCA is purely waste of monies on 4/4.5 gen AC, when 5 gen AC like jsf is/could be available. And jsf @ 50-60 M* is way better VFM than european MRCA AC.
Better? Quite possibly, but it isn’t yet available! As I said, when do you want these planes? Because if you think the F-35 is the best choice, then you have to decide what to do for the next 10 years or so – a point which you haven’t addressed.
Let’s assume the IAF decides to buy F-35s. What’s its short to medium-term procurement strategy, until the F-35s can be delivered? Accelerate Su-30 deliveries? Buy more of an existing type like the Mirage 2000 or MiG-29? Buy some F-16s or Gripens? Oh! We’re back to the MRCA debate.
Now do you understand?
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That was posted by Indianbond4u not by me >:)
xanaduIsnt jsf better than whats on offer for MRCA? MRCA is purely waste of monies on 4/4.5 gen AC, when 5 gen AC like jsf is/could be available. And jsf @ 50-60 M* is way better VFM than european MRCA AC.
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The Russian 5th Gen aircraft is not in competition for the MMRCA . It still hasnt been developed.
xanaduWhy was it locked in the first place and y are the army one missing.I missed that part.
xanaduIts fine talking of 5 gen russian AC, but we should be really looking at f35s which will get online b4 any russian AC.
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The Indian Military Avition Industry isnt going to learn much from the JSF. Hell, the US isnt even willing to share that tech with its closest ally the UK.
xanaduThere is dark matter in space that travels faster than light isnt there?
xanaduIAF News & Discussion April 2006
All that stuff in here.
xanaduLooks like the Japanese are waking up to the chinese threat . With reports about China building aircraft carriers expect to see some good sized Japanese carriers in the not to distant future.
xanaduThe IN really needs a ship with AA as its primary role. Most IN ships dont dont carry much of an AA armament. Looks like the IN is finally waking up to this crucial lack of capability in its ships and has taken a concious decision to go in for long range AA missiles from now on. Maybe in future they will also sport an ABM defence capability.
xanaduhttp://www.bharat-rakshak.com/NEWS/newsrf.php?newsid=5800
Indian Air Force will buy 20 Mirages for now
Josy Joseph
Tuesday, March 28, 2006 00:03 IST
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NEW DELHI: Faced with an unprecedented depletion in its fighter fleet and a possible delay in the contract for 126 new fighters, the Indian Air Force is proposing to buy 20 new Mirage fighters from France and overhaul its existing Mirage fleet.
The entire contract would cost over Rs7,000 crores.
Sources told DNA that the Ministry of Defence conveyed its proposal to the top brass of Dassault Aviation, manufacturers of Mirage, when French President Jacques Chirac visited India in February. The decision comes at a time when the government has slowed down the procedure to acquire 126 new fighters, contracts for which could be gifted to the US, if the US Congress approves the nuclear deal. DNA reported on Monday the government is toying with the idea of using the fighter contract as a leverage and reciprocity with the US.
Each of the proposed new Mirage 2000-5 fighters would cost over Rs 200 crores. Mirage 2000-5 fighters are the latest version of the fabled French fighters, some 50 of which are in service with the IAF. The new version would carry Israeli and Russian avionics and ammunition, sources said. The IAF, which presently has three Mirage squadrons, would add a fourth squadron with the new Mirages, sources said.
The proposal seeks to overhaul the entire Mirage 2000 fleet of IAF to bring them at par with the Mirage 2000-5. The overhaul for each fighter would cost over Rs70 crores, and the entire overhaul budget for Mirages could be over Rs3,500 crores, sources said. The overhaul would be carried out at the Hindustan Aeronautics Limited.
“The fleet strength is going down. We are not looking at a very rosy future,” says a source involved in the deal. The IAF has an authorised strength of 39.5 squadrons but presently it has only around 35 in operation. “It has been depleting for quite sometime. The 126 fighters were projected in 2001 and approved by the government, but today the requirement is much more. When I retired the strength was already down by two or three squadrons. Now it would be more. The depletion is steady,” says former IAF chief Air Chief Marshal S Krishnaswamy.
The unusual and urgent proposal to acquire the 20 state-of-the-science Mirage 2000-5 comes at a time when its manufacturer Dassault Aviation is planning to stop production of Mirage 2000-5. They have already pulled out Mirage 2000-5 model from the race for 126 fighters, offering its new Rafale fighters instead.
Without commenting directly on the proposal, Krishnaswamy says the Mirages are “good aircrafts and the air force is very happy with it”.
xanaduhttp://www.bharat-rakshak.com/NEWS/newsrf.php?newsid=5797
India tempts US with $6bn aircraft deal
Josy Joseph
Monday, March 27, 2006 00:06 IST
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NEW DELHI: In a strategic shift that would have a huge impact on the future of the Indian military, the government is seriously considering the purchase of American fighters for the Indian Air Force, sources told DNA.
The caveat: US lawmakers must approve the Indo-US nuclear deal. The purchase of 126 Medium Range Multi-Role Combat aircraft, estimated to cost almost $6 billion (Rs27,000 crore) has been delayed so that it can be used as leverage with the Americans. The Request for Proposal for the contract is expected anytime.
Swedish Gripen fighters, Russia’s upgraded MIG-29s , American F/A-18s and F-16s and French Rafale fighters are also contenders.
Sources told DNA that the Request for Proposal to be issued to global military aviation giants for the fighters has now been delayed till US legislative bodies complete the process for the Indo-US nuclear deal.
Commenting on the strategy, additional director of the Centre for Air Power Studies Air Vice Marshal (retd) Kapil Kak said “defence relations between India and US are a component of a larger strategic partnership. I have no opposition to the proposal and it is an interesting line of thought in a complex process.”
If the government decides to use the fighter purchase as leverage, then New Delhi would opt for the Foreign Military Sales (FMS) route, where the US administration would ensure India gets the fighters at the same rates as the US military.
xanaduDon’t take me for a supporter of OIF right yet, but are you suggesting that the Hussein regime wasn’t oppressive?
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My point was freedom of speech. 🙂
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