Also related to Outpost (Forpost)

Russian components of Israeli drones

Oboronprom plans to continue producing Outpost (Forpost) systems

Oboronprom plans to continue producing drones in Russia for the Israeli company IAI, according to Vedomosti, citing a source in the Russian Defense Ministry.

Oboronprom was asked to consider producing an upgraded Outpost M drone system after its current contract with the Israeli company concludes in 2014. The Outpost M drones would feature greater flight duration, altitude, and speed and include many Russian components, according to the newspaper.

The current contract for drone assembly was signed in 2011 at a cost of $400 million. Under the Russian name Outpost (Forpost), the assembly of the very costly Searcher MkII systems took place at the Ural Factory for Civil Aviation (UZGA), which is a subsidiary of Oboronprom. The contract calls for the assembly of five Outpost systems, each of which includes a control station and three drones. Each system is valued at around $30 million.

In addition, the contract calls for training Israeli personnel to use the system, as well as warranty service and the delivery of several small, unmanned Bird Eye 400 drones, known by their Russian name Zastava.

http://frontierindia.net/indian-navy-ldp-to-feature-electric-propulsion-upbeat-on-drdo-fuel-cell-aip#ixzz2gX3F6PBw

As reported earlier, the Indian AIP would not store hydrogen on board, but will produce it on the go.

http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/drdo-working-on-system-to-cut-submarine-vulnerability/article1016372.ece

Regarding the LPD….. I dont know why this guy have to make it sound sensational as if the info came just recently. Mistrals & Juan Carlos, both of which are being promoted for IN for few years, are electric propulsion so any future IN LPDs are to be electric propulsion.

On the AIP option……signs of delay, technical difficulties and finally never ending loop of development cycle is faintly written on the wall from the statements from DRDO of going it alone on this “new” AIP. I would say join the Russians in JV so that a ToT can be had.

The Russians have been been working on this onboard hydrogen development for many years and is not any “new” and “exclusive” stuff that Indian press is terming it to be. Back in 2006, Russian institute/persons working on the AIP had presented their paper on onboard hydrogen concept for submarines based on their R&D in Alternative Energy journal. Due to lack of priority & funds, 7+ years down the line, the unit have not reached production. But as we heard recently, it will be ready by 2015-16 as they have finally received the required priority and funding and is a definite for the Russian Navys future Pr.677 Lada class.

Option for India is simple – join the project and get a working unit in a defined period or 5 years down the line we will most likely be talking about the AIP project in a different light….

Hope this has not been posted earlier.

Zhuk-AE/FGA-35 modified radar with AESA, from Vitaly Kuzmin.

Below quote on the radar from AI article by Piotr Butowski. Thanks Austin.

Radar: New, Newer, the Newest

The basic radar system for the Russian Air Force MiG-35S version is the N041R mechanically scanned, slotted-array radar. The export version is fitted with the Zhuk-ME (FGM229) variant. The Zhuk-M radar is not the latest, but a perfected and more economic design. A more advanced variant – the FGA35 Zhuk-AE with active electronic scanning – has already been flight tested on the MiG-35, tests that have included the
launch of missiles.

At MAKS 2013, the Phazotron company showed another variant of the Zhuk-A radar, initially designated FGA35 (3D), with new transceiver modules made from LTCC (low temperature co-fired ceramics) technology. The array is much thinner and lighter than the Zhuk-AE variant. Each module is 13mm (0.5in) deep, several times less than those used on the Zhuk-AE. The array is air-cooled (the Zhuk-AE is – liquid-cooled) while the impulse power of each module is 5W. Yuri Guskov, Phazotron’s designer general promises the handover of the new radar for evaluation on the MiG-35 in 2014.

^^^ Really good. The only downside is the rate of construction being very low due lack of proper modular construction. Even the Pr.22350 suffers from the same. I cant believe they are constructing the whole hull, keel up, it in that closed yard.

The earlier the monopoly of building Pr.22350 is broken and a 2nd or 3rd line is opened, the better. Else, it is going to be messy and will only suck the precious funds by one single yard. This same situation is awaiting Indian naval shipbuilding by opening it to private yards who want to take the least risky & high profit margin route by grabbing the captive market for Indian Navy ships.

None of the private yards have ever competed in International competition and have any experience & record for on time or on budget delivery…. but they get into the loop through backdoor politics and and are on the way to grab & leach upon the safe captive market. In contract, the best yard in India (CSL, sometimes called by morons as “Red yard” due to the trade unions) is a professional yard & with proven record in management & delivery. They started off their major naval ship (IAC-I) building activity only out of necessity but not before they sweated it out and proved themselves catering to international orders over past decades. It is this extremely difficult phase that the private yards want to skip & avoid and instead want to rest their ar$e safe on the Indian Navy’s orders.

The Indian Govt can avoid this trap by bringing Indian peoples own PSU yard, CSL fully into the loop. But CSL’s biggest enemy & backstabbers would be the current PSU yards who would not want to share their orders to a professional PSU yard, there by highlighting their own lack of management & inefficiency. But these guys wouldn’t mind sharing “excess orders” with private yards coz it will keep pockets of people concerned always filled.

I think too much of IN stuff in Rus thread.