SOC, I was mistaken earlier that the Akash has 4 missiles per TEL, whereas it carries 3 only. So, to achieve 100% kill by firing 2 missiles per target, a Akash battery will have engaged 6 targets before a single TEL reload.

This figure is the same as that of Buk’s, which has 4 missiles per TELAR and 6 TELARs per battery. One can discount the loader which you mentioned, because it takes 15 minutes to load the loader itself and many minutes to load the TELARs. Such delay is high. They are probably used in emergencies only.

It is true that Buk has a higher range than Akash, i.e. 42 kms vs 27 kms. However, as per a recent news report, the Akash’s range may be extended to 50 kms for the Army. Buk can also engage 6 targets simultaneously (1 per TELAR), whereas Akash can engage 4 simultaneous targets only.

One feature of Akash, of which I’m not aware is present on Buk or not, is the track-on-jam and lock-on-jam features. This means that any attempt to jam will result in the jammer entity itself being tracked and locked onto by Akash — a sort of counter-HARM.

A flexibility of Akash is that 2 missiles from different TELArs can be guided to a single target; and 2 or more missiles from the same TELAR can be guided to different targets. The latter is impossible in Buk.

I agree that both have their positive points.

Firing HARM means that it locks on radar and it does not use jamming… So what do you mean with anti HARM? Besides that… If jamming is used that will not mean that the jammer comes within the range of the SAM. Besides that it is an option that the opponent uses cruise misiles (750-1000km range) to destroy the SAM…

It is not all about Rafale Globalexpress,

Maroc went for F16 instead follow up for the Mirage F1. They did a very nice upgrade though cause some parts were right out of the Rafale…

Algeria did not like the Fenec-deal. So the follow up was Agusta.

Pakistan gradually moves away from the Mirage 3/5. There are at the moment the largest user in the world. Yet they will replace them with JF17.

Saudia wanted something but the French wanted a bigger deal with tanks and vessels but that was not the way to talk to the Saudi’s.

About India… Well let me not react on that cause Arthur is ready to warn if something is written about it that which could be more negative then adoration…

Well, the French lost Marocco, Algeria, Pakistan, KSA… And we will see more customers walking away. I do not think India would go for another M2K while knowing that there is no real upgrade possible. Some more MRCA.

Reminding the text of Alan Warnes in the latest AFM…

The French have lost their customers cause they take them for granted… Unbelievable that they do this to a huge market like India. Will it be degrading Rafale chances in the MRCA competition? It surely will have raised a few eyebrows here and there. If India scraps the Mirage 2000 then it will also not go for second hand in the market… Why getting the French involved if they keep thinking that they are monopolist. How can one ask that much for an upgrade.

You are confusing intellectural capacity with expertise. Sweden has a much better aviation and technological pedigree, you cannot achieve it easily, but slowly I think China, India and others will get there. 😉

I agree with that added part. India will be a lot faster then Pakistan. No question about it. More money, more manpower, better infrastructure, more links internal and external… No suprise. China is a little different cause they tend to copy everything. Makes you go faster but in the end you will have more opponents. Making the latest there is a bigger problem cause suppliers tend to think about their future rather then getting little marketshare at this moment. India is more open but indeed it will need time to get there and eventually it will get there cause it is huge market with anyone intrested to get there. But I think at this moment we need to see in which fields cause it is expensive to be there with all parts. Surely they will have no problems in lot of IT fields. But e.q. the engine would be an headache, certainly if it has to be better then let say AL31… It is a lot cheaper for them to get a better one from Russia. Hence PAKFA projects etc. So, we agree that it will take time and I just add that India will be smart not to go with everything. It learned that after LCA developments where it bought a second engine and even upgraded that to a better one… There is no negative thing to see in this. I do have some ideas about how much India is doing at the moment. No nation will come to that numbers… 200+ MKI inducting. Mig19K in the pipeline. Awacs inducting. Tankers imducted and follow up. Transporter in planning for development or buy (USA). P8. MRCA. LCA. Naval LCA. Druv. Brahmos I and II… Trainers IJT, external plans… C’mon. That is such an huge list that I need to see another nation doing the same. Still not negative but suprised.

Glad we can talk it this way.

They ordered 18 pairs (36 in total) for the 18 planes and as you can seen they are not showed in the presentation. This is normal cause by roll-out of some other nations it happened the same. The CFT are attached later during the testing. There is no reason to deny and without the CFT they would not have ordered the Block52+… The extra available hardpoints are extremely handy to get some real air to ground material for the terrorists.

If India failed with LCA (a few decades time) and Indian ACM just said that there is hardly any indigenous industry then how can India design, manufacture without assistance a MCA?