black eagle‘New Naval chief strong supporter of indigenous systems’
Defence Research Development Organisation (DRDO) Chief Controller A S Sivathanu Pillai expressed happiness over the appointment of Vice Admiral Sureesh Mehta as the new Chief of Indian Navy saying that he was a strong supporter of indigenously developed systems in the Navy.
“I met Admiral Mehta recently when we handed over the BrahMos missiles to be inducted in the Eastern Naval Command. He is enthusiastic and looking forward to induct new indigenously developed systems in the naval force,” he said.
Interacting with the media after delivering a lecture on ‘Emerging technologies’, at R V College of Engineering, Dr Pillai said DRDO had developed various systems and weapons for the Indian Navy.
Recently, it had provided sonar systems, used for anti-submarine warfare, had been inducted in warships and submarines of the Indian Navy. It was in the process of developing ultra low frequency sonars that can be used in the naval helicopters. He said the light-weight torpedo developed by the DRDO that could be used on different platforms had been accepted for production.
The navy has asked the DRDO to work on anti-submarine corvettes.
Four corvettes would be built and it will be totally indigenous. “We have finalised the programme jointly working with Navy. The process has started, following the green signal given by the government for the scheme. In the next four to five years we will complete production of all the items required for corvettes,” he said.
Underwater painting
DRDO had also developed a technology to take up underwater painting of ships. This would help save a lot of time and money for the Naval force as it would eliminate taking the ships to dry docks for such works. This was developed at NMRL in Ambarnath, he said. DRDO was also developing other modern systems for the Indian Navy like electronic warfare systems, underwater communications and radars, he added.
black eagleRussia to deliver Sukhoi warplanes ahead of schedule
In a move to save costs and speed up delivery of Sukhoi fighter aircraft to Indian Air Force from Russia three-years ahead of schedule, Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) has scrapped initial plans for full indigenisation of the warplane at its facilities in India, media reports said today.
An agreement signed recently between Russian arms firm Rosoboronexport and Indian Defence Ministry has changed the timeframe of the completion of USD 3.5 billion contract for the licensed production of 140Su-30MKI fighters by HAL, ‘Kommersant’ daily said.
The original Sukhoi license production deal signed in December 2000 ,the largest single Indo-Russian defence contract in 40 years, had provision for full indigenisation of the multi-role fighter planes at HAL facilities in India and last of the 140 Su-30MKI was to be delivered in 2017.
The amendments in the initial deal provide for the completion of delivery of 140 fighters in 2014 three years ahead of schedule with India declining to shift the whole production cycle to HAL facilities as the cost of the indigenously-produced fighter would have doubled, it said.
Russia, which has so far supplied 26 kits to HAL for the assembly of Su-30MKI, would earn an additional USD 350 million through the supply of components by its companies, which otherwise would have been produced by HAL.
Sources in Russian supplier of Su-30MKI fighters Irkut Corporation have said that the deal could be closed even by 2012.
black eagle`Aero Space Command likely in capital’
Thiruvananthapuram: The capital stood a good chance of hosting the headquarters of the proposed Aero Space Command of the Indian Air Force (IAF), Air Marshal S.Y. Savur said here on Wednesday.
Interacting with media persons, the Southern Air Command chief said a committee of Chief of Staffs was considering the matter. Proximity to international sea-routes and various facilities of the Indian Space Department gave the capital an edge over other cities. The Union Government would take the final decision on the matter after considering all angles. The chances of establishing a tri-services command in the capital as a pre-cursor to a full-fledged aerospace command were also high.
The IAF has sought more land from the Airports Authority of India for expanding the Air Force Station at Shangumugham. There was a proposal to build a VIP reception area there. The G. V. Raja School, which the IAF acquired, would be used for housing IAF staff members. The airbase at Thanjavur was being expanded. The IAF has operational plans to tackle sea-pirates and hijackers of oil tankers, the Air Marshal said.
Highly decorated officer
The Air Marshal will retire on August 31. He joined the IAF in the Flying Branch on October 29. He has flown several VIPs, including the late Prime Ministers, Indira Gandhi and Rajiv Gandhi. The Air Marshal is a highly decorated officer and recipient of the Param Vishisht and Ati Vishisth Seva Medals for distinguished service of the most exceptional order. His wife, Asha Savur, is a dental surgeon. They have two children.
black eaglethat’s a good news
Defence procurement policy revised
Procedures to reduce delays
# Defence Acquisition Council to take all decisions
# Generic requirements to be placed on Internet
NEW DELHI: The Union Government on Wednesday announced radically revised defence procurement procedures to reduce delays and eliminate corruption in vendor selection.
The new policy comes as the country is poised to procure defence equipment worth over Rs. 1 lakh crore in the next five years.
The new norms seek to involve Indian companies in designing and producing hard-to-obtain equipment, allow closure of dead-end projects and ensure that the cascading effect of local taxes does not make the companies’ products costlier than foreign equipment.
“Personal satisfaction”
“It is a moment of great personal satisfaction for me as it marks the completion of the policy reforms process initiated by me two years ago,” said Defence Minister Pranab Mukherjee at a news conference.
Outlining the salient features of the policy that will take effect from September 1, he said the Defence Acquisition Council (DAC) would take all major decisions collectively and generic requirements for equipment would be placed on the Internet. Vendors can register themselves online.
There would be joint meetings with vendors before and after field trials. They would be told about shortcomings, if any, in their products.
The policy would address the need for a procedure to acquire equipment based on local research and development.
Two companies would be identified and encouraged to develop prototypes and one would be selected for induction into the armed forces.
“This would pave the way for increased participation of industry in the defence sector and for attaining the goal of self-reliance in defence production,” said Mr. Mukherjee.
The previous Government’s fast track procedure, framed after the Kargil War, had been revised by adopting a “top down” approach and the DAC would take all critical decisions.
The procedure for warship building had also been reviewed, so that companies could integrate foreign systems with indigenous ones. This would minimise time and cost overruns in the construction of naval ships, he said.
The new norms take into account observations by the Central Vigilance Commission and the Comptroller and Accountant-General of India.
“The Defence Procurement Policy-2006 and Defence Procurement Manual-2006 is now a comprehensive document. The Offset Policy is firmly in position. The long pending request of industry for a level playing field has been addressed. With these measures, we have effectively opened the doors for industry to participate in defence research, development and production,” said the Minister.
black eagleEuro fighter 2000 Typhoon is the best plane for Indian airforce
Government of India might have not yet send the request for proposal (RPF) yet but in the Race for Mrca programme under which India may buy 126 aircrafts for the Indian airforce are some of the best aircraft manufactures that includes Boeing with their F/A-18 E/F and Lockheed martin with next generation F-16NG (block 70) and Sweden with their Saab Grippen, Russia with their Mig-29/35(ovt), French with Rafale and BAe systems with Euro fighter 2000 Typhoon ,The M-mrca programme is already heating up and Euro fighter 2000 Typhoon which can have a important role to play in Indian airforce plans ,it will provide a credible European alternative for Indian airforce more then 100 plus typhoons are already serving in four partner countries who developed it Germany ,Italy, Spain and uk ,and Saudi Arabia have recently ordered 72 of this jets , only euro fighter and F-22 have scored a victory rate in excess of 80% against all comparable competition ,General jumper of the united states airforce has confirmed a close relationship between F-22 and Eurofighter After flying both of them in 2004 , he went on to say that in terms of smoothness of controls ,thrust to weight ratio and ability to pull are very impressive ,General Jumper even believes that both aircraft run neck to neck ,the delta wing is ideal for high speed and it also provides euro fighter to fly at supersonics speed with out using its after burners ,this makes it fly at Mach 1.6 with its full weapon pay load of four BVRAAM and Two SRAAM ,it can carry most of the American and European weapons ,it recently fired a Meteor missile on Dec 2005 ,India should pick euro fighter 2000 has it will allow Indian airforce to get more access of European and American systems
black eagleIAF keeps tabs on China AWACS at Pak airbase
The IAF is keeping close tabs on the recent arrival of a much-hushed Chinese aircraft prototype at the Chaklala airbase in North Pakistan. The aircraft, which flew in with a group of Chinese aeronautical scientists late last month, is Beijing’s indigenous Y-8 Airborne Warning And Control System (AWACS) aircraft. The Chinese AWACS, a typically secretive project that Beijing began after its efforts to acquire Phalcon AWACS jets from Israel was blocked by the US in 2000, will provide the country a light, cheap airborne early warning and detection aircraft that can be produced and deployed in large numbers. Islamabad is expected to sign up to join the project and place orders after the operational demonstrations at Chaklala are over. AWACS platforms, basically advanced radars mounted on aircraft, provide greater detection and coverage range than ground radars simply by virtue of their altitude, and provide a capability that both India and Pakistan are already in line to acquire. In June, Pakistan signed up to acquire six Swedish Saab-2000 Erieye AWACS, more than two years after India ordered three Israeli Phalcon jets. But these are both expensive, limiting the numbers that can be acquired by either country. A point of concern to the IAF is that the Chinese AWACS is near test readiness, which means Islamabad, when it chooses to buy them, will be in a position to deploy it in large numbers far before the Indian homegrown airborne early warning project, under development by DRDO’s Centre for Airborne Systems (CABS) in Bangalore, actually takes off. A senior IAF officer said, Historically, decisions between China and Pakistan happen much faster. That means, they could have a greater density of airborne radar coverage before we do. Long-range airborne radar coverage will be principal factors in ensuring that no air violations take place on either side.
black eagleAir force to induct BrahMos missiles by 2007
The Indian Air Force will induct the air-to-ground version of the BrahMos cruise missile and integrate them with its Sukhoi-30MKI combat jets by December 2007, a top defence official said on Saturday. Speaking to reporters in Tiruchirapalli, BrahMos Aerospace CEO A Sivathanu Pillai said the production of the supersonic missile by his company had been completed and the procedure to fit them to the Su-30 jets was “under progress.” Static and dynamic test on the ground were in progress and various flight tests would have to be done subsequently, he said. No structural changes would have to be made to the Su-30 to make it capable of carrying the BrahMos as the jet already had a hook and loader assembly in its belly. A team of experts from the IAF, BrahMos Aerospace, Hindustan Aeronautics Limited and Sukhoi Design Bureau had been formed to evolve an integrated hook assembly in the jet so that it could carry two BrahMos missiles on its wings. Apart from the mechanical assembly of hooks and straps to house the long and heavy version of the missile, a suitable electronic system or a fire control system linked to the cockpit avionics would have to be designed and engineered, he said. Since the BrahMos has a longer range of up to 290 km, unlike other missiles with shorter ranges of 10 to 20 km, the electronic systems for controlling it were more complicated. However, Pillai was confident that all procedural wrangles would be overcome soon and the BrahMos would be fitted on the Su-30 jets in a successful manner before the targeted date of December 2007. He said the BrahMos version meant for the army had already gone into commercial production. The army has placed a substantial order for the missiles that would be inducted in the froce from 2007. The land-to-land version is designed to be mounted on a Tatra vehicle produced by Bharat Earth Movers Limited and the command post has been designed by Hyderabad-based Electronic Corproration of India Limited. Similarly, the navy has begun deploying the ship-launched version of BrahMos in its warships in a phased manner. Pillai brushed aside reports that his company was facing a financial crunch. He said the Russian and Indian governments were providing the required investment for this joint venture without any hassle or hesitation. On the outsourcing of components by his firm, Pillai said 20 large and medium-scale industries had been promoted for supplying different components and auxiliaries. Besides, 40 small industries across the country were playing a role in the final assembly of the missile. A consortium of industries has been lined up and stringent quality controls have been clamped on them. Apart from Indian Industries, seven firms from Russia were supplying various components. There was strict adherence to the same quality specifications, as the inter-changeability of components was an important criteria. The assembly of the BrahMos would be rigidly uniform and common for the all users of the missile, he said. The assembly unit and outsourcing wings have been provided adequate cushioning so that expansion in production would be possible any time to keep pace with an increased demand. The company’s research and development department was engaged in developing hypersonic missiles. Currently, the BrahMos can cruise with a velocity of three times the speed of sound. Hypersonic versions would be capable of operating at five times the velocity of sound.
black eagleProduction of AJTs on schedule
Bangalore: The production of Advanced Jet Trainers (AJTs) is on schedule and the first one would be out by March 2008, said Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) Managing Director A.K. Saxena on Wednesday.
Speaking to presspersons after the inaugural session of a seminar on “Small and Medium Entrepreneurs-Opportunities for Strategic Growth” organised by Federation of Karnataka Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FKCCI), Mr. Saxena said that the delivery of the aircraft would not be delayed as work was progressing well.
In 2004, the Union Government entered into a deal worth Rs. 6,600 crore with the United Kingdom. According to the deal, HAL is to produce 42 AJTs with assistance from British Aerospace. The Government is to acquire another 24 aircraft directly from British Aerospace.
Mr. Saxena also said that countries such as Bolivia, Chile, Turkey and Venezuela had shown interest in procuring Advanced Light Helicopters (ALHs), also called Dhruv. He said that Israel, which had expressed interest in the ALHs earlier, had not backed off.
The recent force landing of an ALH near Hyderabad was a temporary setback and the minor problems in Dhruv had been overcome, Mr. Saxena said.
black eagleAir Force’s MiG 29’s, Mirage 2000’s to be upgraded
The Indian Air Force has decided to upgrade its MiG 29 and Mirage 2000 fleets in the 11th and 12th plan periods while the Jaguar and MiG 27 arecurrently being upgraded.
Modernisation of fighter and transport aircraft is an ongoing process undertaken from time to time to meet the operational requirements of the Air Force.
Earlier India Defence reported that the upgradation of MiG-21 Bison fighter aircraft has been carried out. Upgradation of Jaguar and MiG-27 aircraft is underway at Hindustan Aeronautics Limited.
The Air Force has identified aircraft including MiG-29, Mirage 2000 for upgradation during the 10th and 11th plan periods. This information was given by the Defence Minister Shri Pranab Mukherjee in a written reply to Shri Jai Parkash Aggarwal in Rajya Sabha today.
black eagleNo time for customization of new fighter planes —- Senior Iaf official
A senior Iaf official (Name withheld on request ) have told Idrw team exclusively that looking at the decline in the airforce fleet and slow procedure of government of India in the procurement of new fighter jets ,Indian airforce may not go for full customization of newer jets which will be brought under mrca programme and instead buy them in their original configuration made by the manufactures but he did added small customization will be done to suit the Indian airforce requirements and iaf will later after the jets are acquired will go for small size customization with the active involvement of hal and the manufacture concerned ,he also said full or part customization of newer jets will delay the programme for two to three years as newer systems have to be tested on the aircraft but the whole deal is upto higher senior official recommendation and government of India , customization of sukhoi su 30mki with French ,Israeli , Russian and Indian systems lead to delays in the introduction of the jets but the final product was excellent, government of India is yet to issue a RfP (request for proposal ) for the mrca programme under which Indian airforce will acquire 126 fighter jets for which in the race are some of the key aircraft manufacture that includes Lockheed martin with their f-16 ,Boeing with their F-18 super hornet ,Swedish with their Saab Gripen and Russia with their mig-29/35
black eagleThrust vectoring nozzles for Indian naval mig-29k?
Indian navy is all set to receive Russian made mig-29k in the end of 2007, for which grounds works in dabolim airport (naval air base INS hansa) has already begun, Russian company Has revealed more details on the orders of the mig-29k from Indian navy, it say that “up to 46″ mig-29k and kub single and twin seaters will be produced for the Indian navy, all mig-29k will carry multirole radar Zhuk Me., flights test have been already taken to ensure that integrations of foreign equipment in mig-29k go on smoothly ,but the interesting thing that MiG official have made is that mig-29k will carry RD-33MK engines but it will not have thrust vectoring nozzles but company is ready to consider it if there is any Indian request for it ,mig-29k with Thrust vectoring nozzles will make mig-29k first naval aircraft in the sub continent with Thrust vectoring nozzles ,MiG company have shown that Migs can carry Thrust vectoring nozzles when they unveiled a demonstrator with vectored-thrust nozzles At the Moscow MAKS air show in 2001 designated the MiG-29OVT (Otklanyayemi Vektor Tyagi / Deflected Thrust Vector)”, and its RD-33 engines are to fitted with Klimov-designed nozzles that can rotate up to 15 degrees in any direction. It also has wingtip launch rails for short-range AAMs. The aircraft is being marketed under the designation MiG-35 for potential export. And it is in the race for Mrca programme of Indian airforce, it will be interesting to see if Indian navy or government of India will go for Thrust vectoring nozzles this will offer an advanced level of manoeuvrability for the aircraft
black eaglePilots hurt as IAF plane bellylands; flights hit
An Airforce Kiran Mark 1 aircraft encountered landing trouble and made a bellylanding at the Bangalore airport on Monday.
The pilot, Squadron Leader Beri and co-pilot Santosh, who is also a flight engineer, escaped with minor injuries after the plane bellylanded.
“The Kiran Mark 1 aircraft, attached to the Aircraft Systems and Testing Establishment (ASTE), is mainly used for training purpose and was on a routine sortie. After flying for nearly 45 minutes, at around 4.05 pm, due to oil leakage, the aircraft landed on its belly with the undercarriage up. The nose-wheels failed to open in time,” said sources in ASTE.
According to an Airports Authority of India official, “At about 4.15 pm, we were told that an IAF aircraft has been disabled on the runway and it needs to be towed. Our ground staff were not allowed close to the aircraft. They immediately cordoned off the area and sought an hour’s time to clear the runway”.
“Everything was under control and no technical failure reported during the course of the flight or at the time of landing. Anyway, the malfunction is under investigation.” added a senior IAF official.
Flights delayed
Due to the crash, the runway was closed for nearly one-and-a-half hours.
A few domestic flights were held up and passengers stranded at the airport. Many Mumbai- and Chennai-bound passengers were put to a lot of hardship as a result of this.
By around 5.40 pm, the runway was ready for resumption of operations.
WHAT IT’S ALL ABOUT
A bellylanding is an emergency landing procedure in which an aircraft lands without its landing gear fully extended. It does the landing virtually using its underside, or belly, as the primary landing device.
During a bellylanding there is normally extensive damage to the plane and if the speed is too high then the plane can flip over.
black eagleAgni III ballistic missile report to be tabled in two weeks
The committee, set up to go into the failure of the first ever test flight of the long-range Agni-III ballistic missile, will submit its report to the Central Government in two weeks, sources in the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) have said.
“We will overcome [this failure]. We have all the telemetry data. We have nothing to hide. The committee is in the process of analysing the data,” the sources said. The sequence of the flight was available in images as well.
The first test-flight of the missile from the Wheeler Island, off the Orissa coast, on July 9 failed. Agni-III is a two-stage missile. Both the stages are powered by solid propellants. The missile is 16 metres tall and weighs 48 tonnes. It can carry nuclear warheads and has a range of 3,500 km.
Asked whether the first-cut analysis of the flight showed that the failure was due to the non-separation of the second stage from the first stage, the sources said, “I don’t think one can come to such conclusions. From the first-cut, I may know something. It should be re-confirmed. It should be validated by analytical data.”
In any failure, it was not enough to look at what was visible. The primary and secondary data should be analysed. The missile had a large motor [first-stage] with a diametre of two metres. So anything could have happened.
After the committee, headed by a former Chief Controller of the Missiles and Strategic Weapons group of the DRDO, submitted the report, it might take at least four months for the next flight of the Agni-III, the sources said.
black eagleIndian airspace still not impregnable
The surveillance of Indian airspace is still far from becoming airtight, with tardy progress in induction of more high, medium and low-level radars as well as in implementation of projects like the satellite-based surveillance (SBS) programme.
Over a year ago, TOI had reported there were “many gaping holes” in the country’s radar network to detect intrusions by hostile aircraft or missiles.
The situation was particularly alarming in central and peninsular India since most of the existing surveillance systems were tasked to monitor the borders with Pakistan and China due to the higher level of “perceived threat” from there.
Since then, only a few tentative steps have been taken towards making the Indian airspace more impregnable, even though “terror from the skies” has once again popped up on global radar screens with British authorities recently preventing what they called “mass murder on an unimaginable scale”.
The IAF has somewhat enhanced its radar network, apart from gearing up to monitor all civilian aircraft, which will now be required to get “air defence clearance and code number”, within India.
“But much more needs to be done. For instance, there are many gaps in airspace surveillance at 10,000-feet all over the country. While surveillance along the western and northern borders is just about okay, it’s inadequate around many vital areas in the mainland,” says a senior defence official.
“The plan to establish a chain of coastal radars is also yet to take full shape. At the same time, it should be remembered that it’s not possible to have an air defence shield to cover India’s entire airspace due to its sheer vastness,” he adds.
Though the defence ministry holds “modern radars are being incrementally inducted as replacement for the older radars or as the initial fit on new platforms”, a lot more clearly needs to be done.
The IAF, for instance, requires 107 low-level surveillance radars but is making do with only around 40 full-operational ones at present. Similarly, it has just over 30 medium-level radars when around 50 are required.
“We also want at least a dozen Aerostat radars (sensors on blimp-like large balloons tethered to ground) but have got only two Israeli ones so far,” says an IAF officer.
Doubts are already been raised whether the SBS system, a Rs 1,050 crore joint project between ISRO and DRDO to augment surveillance over the country’s airspace, will be able to meet its already extended deadline of January 2007. Besides, the forces are still equipped with aging air-defence weapons.
black eagleOn Tyagi’s visit US to tell how to cut reaction time
When Air Chief Marshal SP Tyagi lands in the US tomorrow for a ten-day tour, the Pentagon will tell him that one of the immediate needs for the Indian Air Force is to work on its sensor-to-shooter time, that is the time taken in detecting enemy targets from the air and destroying them. Called closing the loop in technical terms, one of the IAF’s principal current efforts is directed at shaving off seconds from this sensor-to-shooter time. A US Embassy official said, The two air forces have held joint exercises twice and are very comfortable communicating with each other now. We have an institutionalised system of learning from each other, and letting the other know about possible improvements in technique or doctrine is part of that. Tyagi, who acknowledged in a recent interview to The Indian Express, that he absolutely must reduce the sensor-to-shooter time of his force, had made a request through military channels to have Washington give him a full-fledged tour of its network-centric operations (NCO) setup when he visits the country. When I go there, I will ask them to tell me all about NCO and space and how they conduct their operations, Tyagi said. Meanwhile, the IAF is soon to be armed with Phalcon airborne warning and control system (AWACS) aircraft, advanced beyond visual range (BVR) air-to-air missiles, loitering cruise missiles, and identify friend or foe (IFF) techniques critical to modern air warfare. The IAF is also looking to the US for a walkthrough on how these advanced technologies can be best combined to give fighter pilots and missile commanders the shortest possible detection and reaction time in scoring kills. On the agenda for Tyagi, but officially undisclosed, is a presentation on the progressive development and deployment of unmanned combat aerial vehicles (UCAVs) — pilotless aircraft designed to seek and destroy enemy targets — in current operational theatres, a capability that the Air chief admitted his force would have to soon acquire
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