Su 34 Fullback

The Su-34 Fullback, also known as Su-27IB or export code name Su-32, was developed by OKB Suhogo/Sukhoi Joint Stock Company. Russian Air Force ordered in first rate 32 jets in 2008., and later place order for 92 jets in 2012.
Russian Air Force received first two Su-34 in December 2006.

Serial production started in January 2008. Until today (February 2015), Russian Air Force received 65 multi role fighter jets Su-34 Fullbacks, and will not stop on that number. Russian Air Force are in modernization status. Few more years will use Su-24 Fencer as main jet for this role, but plan is that Su-34 take Fencers place here.


Su-34 is a two seater and designed primarily for tactical deployment against ground and naval targets, on solo and group missions in daytime and at night, under favorable and adverse weather conditions and in a hostile environment with counter-fire and EW counter-measures deployed, as well as for air reconnaissance. Because it is based on the Su-27 family, it can also carry out air-to-air missions (interception/air superiority/dogfight), as a secondary role.

The Su-34 replaces for Tu-23M and Su-24 aircraft. Su-34 is one of a number of Russian aircraft, Su-30, Su-33 and Su-35, which are based and developed from the Su-27 Flanker.
The Su-34 design retains the basic layout and construction of the Su-27 airframe, with a conventional high-wing configuration and a substantial part of the onboard equipment. The Su-34 has a changed contour of the nose section to accommodate an advanced multi-mode phased array radar with terrain following and terrain avoidance modes. It has a two-seat rather than single-seat cockpit. The capacity of the internal fuel tanks has been increased with a resulting increased take-off weight. Changes have been made to the central tail boom for a rear-facing radar.

The Su-34’s most distinctive feature is the unusually large flight deck. Much of the design work went into crew comfort. The two crew members sit side by side in a large cabin, with the pilot-commander to the left and navigator/operator of weapons to the right in NPP Zvezda K-36dm ejection seats. An advantage of the side by side cockpit is that duplicate instruments are not required for each pilot. Since long missions require comfort, the pressurization system allows operation up to 10,000 metres (32,800 ft) without oxygen masks, which are available for emergencies and combat situations. The crew members have room to stand and move about the cabin during long missions. The space between the seats allows them to lie down in the corridor, if necessary.A toilet and a galley are located behind the crew seats.Entrance into the cockpit is from below, using a ladder attached to the nose landing gear and a hatch in the cockpit floor. The cockpit is a continuous capsule of armour.

Maximum detection major range for the forward radar is 200–250 km (to review the rear another, aft-mounted, radar is used). The main radar can simultaneously attack the 4 targets (in the air, on land or on the water). The rear warning radar system can warn of attack from behind and it can also attack from behind, without turning the aircraft. Radar defence the rear as claimed unofficially this N-01 radar.

IAF negotiating with BAE to weaponise Hawk

The Indian Air Force (IAF) is in negotiations with BAE Systems to weaponise its fleet of Hawk Mk 132 advanced jet trainers (AJTs) so they could be deployed on strike co-ordinated armed reconnaissance and close air support missions.

BAE Systems officials told IHS Jane’s at Aero India 2015 that the IAF is evaluating the feasibility of integrating its largely licence-built Hawk Mk 132s with a range of weapon systems that are fitted onto its SEPECAT Jaguar fighters.

According to Dave Corfield, head of Hawk India, this included MBDA’s Advanced Short Range Air-to-Air Missiles, Rafael Litening targeting pods, and a range of smart weapons.

Indian Airforce has a total of around 120 BAE Hawk on order, also Indian navy operated them. With around 80 already in use. They could prove effective in attack role. Highly maneuverable, small and legit.

China's FC-31 has yet to prove itself a match for the US F-35 it copied

German newspaper Der Spiegel cited claims from former US intelligence contractor Edward Snowden earlier this month that China stole key design information on the US-built F-35 stealth fighter and used it to build their J-20 and FC-31 fighter jets.

The United States’ airline industry also said that the FC-31 jet, displayed for the first time during the 10th China International Aviation & Aerospace Exhibition in Zhuhai in November 2014, is a copy of the F-35.

Regardless of whether the FC-31 is a copy or the result of stolen designs, various airplane manufacturers and countries often produce jet models that highly resemble one another, which makes the FC-31’s remarkable resemblance to the F-35 far from unusual.

However, China’s choice to display the FC-31 at the Zhuhai Air Show has many implications.

Firstly, the decision was a move to demonstrate the country’s aerospace capacity to the world. The display of the FC-31’s excellent flight maneuverability during the exhibition demonstrates China’s capability in creating a stealth fighter.

Secondly, China aims to establish its reputation in the area to help boost aircraft sales at home and abroad. Stealth technology is important to meet the combat readiness requirements of new-generation military aircraft. Some stealth fighters, such as the F-22 and F-35, are expensive which precludes poorer nations from obtaining one.

China’s launch of the FC-31 could help build its reputation in the industry and attract potential international customers such as the Pakistan Air Force.

Thirdly, the air show will show the development of China’s aerospace industry. The industry’s technological roots can be traced back to the 1950s, when it began building copies of Russian MiG-19s and MiG-21s. It then rolled out improved versions of the original A-5, J-7M, and FC-1 types after several years of development.

The country has also launched the J-10 and the J-11, copies of the Lavi and Su-27 jets, in recent years.

China’s ability to launch the FC-31, which bears a striking resemblance to the F-35, in such a short period of time also shows its strength in the aerospace sector.

Fourthly, the FC-31’s ability to meet China’s combat readiness requirements remains to be seen.

The key to demonstrate the combat abilities of a military airplane lies in its electronic systems or avionics. Therefore, the success of the FC-31 in the future will depend on its engine and weapons systems.


                                                                    SOURCE : http://idrw.org/

Russia ready to offer India the MiG-35 to replace the Rafale fighter jet

The Russian arms industry is ready to offer India, according to media reports, not only the Su-30MKI, but also the MiG-35, if the country refuses to purchase the French jet Rafale.

RIA Novosti learned this on Wednesday at the Aero India-2015 Exhibition from the head of RSK MiG, Sergey Korotkov, who was expressing his company’s desire to participate in new tenders and competitions in India.

“We have everything that is needed to compete. We have not lost hope that a new tender or competition will be announced,” said Mr. Korotkov, adding that RSK is ready to offer India the more advanced version of jet fighters – the MiG-35.

Earlier, Indian media reported that the Indian Ministry of Defense might refuse to purchase 126 fighter jets for its Air Force from Rafale, which won the tender in 2012, and instead buy the Russian Su-30MKI.

Shortly after that, the Business Standard, citing sources in the Indian Ministry of Defense, reported that New Delhi would not be buying the Rafale jets, because of the high prices. At the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of India, they said that, in terms of price attractiveness and reliability, the Russian multi-role Su-30 fighters are comparable to the Rafale.


                                                                SOURCE : http://idrw.org/

JV on 5th Gen fighter jet to India was offered 15 years ago : Sukhoi Design Bureau

Speaking to idrw.org on sidelines of Aero India 2015 official from Sukhoi Design Bureau revealed that Joint venture on development of 5th generation fighter aircraft which would eventually replace Su-30 and Mig-29 was offered to India for first time in year 2000, almost 15 years back when the Sukhoi Design Bureau was only conducting preliminary design study for development of 5th generation fighter aircraft.

First T-50 Prototype designed by Sukhoi had its first flight in 2010, almost a decade after such offer was made to India informed official. India had enough time to take a call and it could have helped at design stage to factor in requirements of India if they had entered into the joint venture in the development of 5th-generation fighter aircraft much earlier, but after a point we could not wait any longer and had to start developmental work for the project to move forward , Russia Defence ministry awarded Sukhoi Design Bureau contract to built 5th generation fighter jet in 2002 as informed to idrw.org .

Officials from Irkutsk Aircraft Production Organisation (IAPO) who were in India in late 2000 to sign an agreement with HAL for License production of 140 Sukhoi Su-30MKI to be manufactured in India, was when for first time IAPO officials had expressed willingness to develop 5th generation fighter aircraft with India . India agreed to be part of the project only in 2007 and agreed to a preliminary design contract in 2010 since then both countries have struggled to resolve their differences over work share agreement and technological shortcomings.

Recently both have agreed upon the amount and division of work during the research and development (R&D) stage of the fifth-generation fighter aircraft (FGFA) project to be based on Pak-Fa variant of which IAF will have committed order for 144 aircrafts . Both are still working on resolving issues related to HAL’s work share which has been on a decline over last few years and was limited to development of non-critical technologies.

                                                             SOURCE : http://idrw.org/

Effectively dead : Media speculate on India’s purchase of $20bn French Rafale jets

Three years of negotiations between France’s Dassault and the contract negotiation committee of the India’s Defense Ministry on the purchase of 126 Rafale fighter jets may be about to collapse. Sources mostly blame the exorbitant price.

According to Business Standard, citing an anonymous source at the CNC, Dassault’s proposal turned out to be much more expensive than presented in the commercial bid, making it far from being the cheapest one, as announced on January 31, 2012.

If true, the reaction of India’s military is expected to deliver a hard blow to Dassault. The order has already decreased from 310 to 180 due to budget cuts.

This news may also make Cairo the first and only overseas buyer for Dassault’s Rafale. On Monday, France was announced to sign a 5.2 billion euro deal on export of 24 Rafale fighters to Egypt.

Rafale’s true cost for India turned out to be even higher than second-placed bid of Eurofighter Typhoon, which costs approximately €90 million.

“An inexperienced MoD, working off incomplete and sketchy details provided by Dassault, had incorrectly adjudged the Rafale cheaper. Now, after three years of obtaining clear figures from the French, we find India would be paying significantly more than had been initially calculated,” CNC official told Business Standard.

India’s MoD reportedly explains the confusion as due to an incorrect assessment of Life-Cycle Cost (LCC), which includes total expenses of overhaul and maintenance of the fighter during its 30-40 years in service.

So far, the Indian MoD has not issued any official statement on the situation with the Rafale contract.

The Dassault Rafale is a French twin-engine, multirole fighter aircraft. It was first introduced in 2011 for France’s Air Force and Navy.

France’s Dassault Aviations won the MMRCA contract in 2012. The original conditions implied production of the initial 18 Rafale fighter jets in France, with the remaining 108 to be manufactured at the state-owned Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd. (HAL) facility in India under a technology transfer agreement. The license for 108 aircraft to be produced in India envisaged that 74 Rafales would be rolled out in a single-seat version and 34 aircraft would be twin-seaters.

In late December 2014, Indian Defense Minister Manohar Parrikar for the first time admitted that negotiations with Dassault were stalling.

India’s Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi refused to fly in one of the three Rafale jets that arrived to the Aero India 2015 air show at Bangalore.

“It is clarified that there is no plan for the Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi to fly in any fighter jet. The news item is incorrect, misconceived and is not based on facts,” stated the MoD last week thus distancing away from the deal even further.

India’s Defense Minister has also disillusioned Eurofighter GmbH, saying that procurement procedures do not allow to reassign the “preferred vendor.”

As the Rafale deal is dying off, Parrikar said the Russian-designed Sukhoi Su-30MKI fighter jet that have been produced in India since early 2000 offer a viable alternative.

“The Sukhoi 30 choice is always there. What I mean to say is: upgrade the Sukhoi 30, make it more capable,” Parrikar said.

The average cost of a Sukhoi Su-30MKI fighter jet is approximately $56 million.

“The Sukhoi-30MKI is an adequate aircraft for meeting the air force’s needs,” Parrikar said.

The Su-30MKI fighter was specially developed for India by Russia’s Sukhoi Design Bureau and 200 aircraft has already entered IAF service as of August 2014.

Russia Angles to Snatch $20Bln Indian Fighter Jet Deal From France

Russia may be leveraging India's anger at French aerospace firm Dassault to kill a $20 billion aircraft deal, after allegations that the company seriously misled New Delhi on pricing its Rafale fighter jets.

After three years in limbo, Indian newspaper Business Standard reported on Monday that India's defense ministry now considers the contract "essentially dead."

Moscow lost out on the contract in 2012, when India chose Dassault's Rafale fighters over Russia's MiG-35 multi-role aircraft. With tensions between Russia and France high following Paris' decision last year to delay the delivery of two Mistral-class warships over conflict in Ukraine, analysts said that politics may have played a role in the demise of the French aerospace deal.

"Obviously, Russia is working to kill the French contract and they are [attacking] from all directions," Ruslan Pukhov, director of the Moscow-based Center for the Analysis of Strategy and Technology, a defense industry think tank, told The Moscow Times by phone on Monday.

But Petr Topychkanov, a military expert at the Carnegie Moscow Center, said that although Russia may be influencing India's position, "it does not mean that Russia will automatically get the deal," as the U.S. aerospace industry is also aggressively targeting the Indian market.

A Massive Tender

India's air force is aging, but New Delhi's strategic ambitions in Southeast Asia are rising. With its aging fleet of Soviet-era MiG-21 fighter jets fast approaching retirement, India's defense ministry announced a $10 billion tender for 126 foreign fighter jets in 2007.

One of the largest fighter jet tenders in history, India's call drew the attention of some of the world's largest aircraft manufacturers — such as France's Dassault, the U.S. behemoths Boeing and Lockheed Martin, and Russia's RSK MiG.

In 2012, India named Dassault the winner of the tender, which called for the localized production of all but 18 of the 126 aircraft under the arm of India's largest aerospace firm, Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL). Rafales were chosen in part because they were thought to be cheaper to produce and operate than other options.

But Dassault based its bid on incomplete pricing information that did not take into account the cost of outfitting and operating the fighters over their entire operational lifetime.

Over the course of three years of negotiations, the value of the contract has since swollen to $20 billion, and is now threatened by allegations surfacing in the Indian press that Dassault intentionally misled the defense ministry over the price.  

Canceling the deal with France would be a reasonable next step, said Topychkanov,

"[Dassault] has not demonstrated any progress, and for India this deal was extremely important for the innovation of their aerospace industry — they cannot wait for years to get new warplanes."

Neither Dassault nor the Indian defense ministry could be reached for contact by The Moscow Times.

Russian Stopgap

Russia's RSK MiG, designer of some of the country's most famous fighter jets, was one of the major aerospace firms to bid for India's $10 billion tender back in 2007.

At the time, it proposed that India purchase its MiG-35 multi-role fighter, an aircraft that was and still is stuck in development. India's military leaders expressed little interest in the deal, though, as their tender required a fighter that had already proven itself and was in serial production.

Still, India's need for capable fighters in the near-term may open a window of opportunity to sell them Russia's long-produced Sukhoi Su-30.

According to Pukhov, "the longer they continue to postpone their decision on [Rafale], the more they need something to bridge the gap. That something is more batches of the Su-30."

India is familiar with the aircraft, having over 200 Su-30s already in service.  

New Delhi so far appears to be responding favorably to Russian pressures to buy the Su-30.

In December, Manohar Parrikar, India's defense minister, said that negotiations with Dassault had run into unspecified complications, and that "[Russia's] Sukhoi Su-30MKI is an adequate aircraft for meeting the air force's needs."

Russia's Irkut Corporation, a subsidiary of the United Aircraft Corporation and the manufacturer of Sukhoi's Su-30, announced its intention to present a prospective modernization program for India's Su-30 fleet at the opening of the Aero India 2015 air show on Wednesday, the TASS news agency reported Monday.

Western Competition

A Russia-India joint project to develop a next-generation fighter aircraft, the Sukhoi PAK FA, may complicate Russia's bid.

"The fact is that India is no longer willing to give all of the expensive arms contracts to one single supplier," Topychkanov said.

Because of its engagement on the PAK FA project, India is more likely to favor bids for replacing the Dassault contract from U.S. Aerospace giants Boeing and Lockheed Martin — who offered up their F/A-18 Super Hornet and F-16 Falcon, respectively.

The United States also last year overtook Russia as India's number one arms supplier, and U.S. President Barack Obama and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi recently negotiated a sweeping military-industrial cooperation agreement that is due to be signed later this year — a development that Carnegie's Topychkanov says heralds even greater arms trade between India and the United States.

Pukhov noted, though, that India may eventually use the fighter jets to counter regional adversary Pakistan — a U.S. ally. If India were to attack Pakistan with U.S. jets, there is the possibility that Washington might refuse to supply spare parts, making the United States unlikely to receive the contract, he said.

                                                      SOURCE : http://www.themoscowtimes.com/

Time for India to have its own Medium Combat Aircraft

The question of what airplanes the Indian Air Force will be flying in 2030 is not easy to answer. The important factor is how the Indian economy grows in the next decade which determines how much money is spent on defense. And even when there is money to spend, previous Governments had the lazy attitude that “lets just buy it from another country”. At least Narendra Modi is the first Prime Minister to push “Make in India” even for defence purchases.

The Indian Government always seems to approach defence procurement in a very sensible manner i.e. the Air Force (for example) has to convince the politicians that (a) there is a need for an aircraft (b) that there is a reason to make it in India instead of just buying it from another country (c) that it meets all the possible needs of the Air Force so that you get maximum value for your money and finally (d) it is urgent, so India has to start work on it right away. Of course, all Governments do exactly the same thing, but at least recognising a problem is the first step to solving it.

Right now the project called the MCA or Medium Combat Aircraft is not being actively pursued. Because there are purchases going on right now and because there are many other urgent priorities for HAL to work on, there appears to be no incentive to assign anyone to work on the MCA. For one thing, LCA Tejas and the LCA Mark II are urgent and so, there is no time for anything else. Yet, if you look at other countries you will see that being able to handle many projects concurrently is what makes a dense industry successful.

To get a rough idea what the MCA should look like, you can use teachings of the F-16 and the F-18 to extrapolate the single-engine LCA to the twin-engine MCA. The starting point is the LCA Mark II which is expected to have length of 47 ft, wingspan of 27 ft, and use the F-414 engine with thrust of 58/98 kN. Now using the comparison of F-18 to F-16 the expected MCA length is 54 ft, wingspan is 33 ft and required thrust is 75/126 kN. So that means if you use two GE-404 engines you will have 98/158 kN to work with which is way more than the estimated requirement. Another way to say this is that the F-18 is much heavier than the MCA is expected to be, so the MCA will have more thrust/weight to work with. Happy outcomes of the extra thrust/weight could be higher climb rate, higher top speed, super-cruise ability, higher ceiling. Of course, the shape of the LCA wings is not that of the F-16, but still, the comparison gives a rough idea of what the MCA could be and that is definitely a lovely picture.

People really believe that if you spend a few thousand crores developing a working prototype of the MCA and then do not use it in the Air Force, then the project is a waste. That is not the attitude that winner countries take. There were dozens of combat aircraft developed in the US that never made it into service, or which made it into service but in only very few numbers. Indeed research money in the US was so plentiful and the aerospace industry had so many players that the US Government gave money for pilot projects to two companies at a time to develop prototypes and then the Air Force would select the winner after flying the prototypes. That does not apply to India because (a) there is currently only one aircraft company i.e. HAL which knows how to make combat aircraft and (b) India has just barely enough money to make one working prototype, let alone making two prototypes and selecting the winner.

Everyone understands the proverb “haste makes waste” and yet time and again, India waits until it desperately needs something before the Government starts to spend money to develop it (hastily, I might add) and thereby wasting a lot of money and obtaining substandard results. So, the bottom line is, the Government should start development on the MCA before the need is urgent, otherwise, you will have all the problems that you had with the LCA. Even if the MCA is never inducted into the Indian Air Force, perhaps because India buys the Russian PAK FA in large quantities, it is still worthwhile to develop the MCA because it means that a credible backup plan is already available, and this will provide incentive to the Russians to provide better technology to India for a reasonable cost. Thus the money you spend on the backup plan, may be compensated by the improved terms of the purchase that you do eventually make.  And if for any reason the purchase of the PAK FA falls through, at least you will have an alternative to fall back on.

One design concept that is taken for granted in the West, but which India has never managed to master is the ability to make a flexible design i.e. designing with more than a single supplier in mind. It seems as if India likes to cast it’s design in stone before they will actually build a prototype. Before procuring supplies you need a dozen signatures on the design document all the way to the CMD of the company. Almost any deviation from the design is unplanned and possibly catastrophic to the project. The West uses contingency planning which means that when you make your design you have have to consider the possibility that essential components may not be available in stock and that you may have to use a component from a different vendor.

In the early 190, the LCA program was progressing steadily and depended on the American vendor General Electric for the F-404 engine. However, the delivery of the engines was halted in 1998 by the US government. The Kaveri engine by the GTRE was not ready and the project halted. Meanwhile many components in the eventual prototype were overweight and the currently available LCA is considered underpowered. An upgraded F-414 engine with more thrust is being sourced from the same supplier, but it is heavier and larger, so the engine housing has to be re-designed for the Mark II version which will take a few years. So the LCA is not fully functional.

At least for the MCA then, it might be prudent to design with the possibility of using engines from different vendors. After all the willingness of Russia to sell jet engines to India is different from the willingness of the US to sell jet engines to India. The Russian Klimov RD-33 has similar performance to the GE F-404 and is slightly larger in size, so why not develop the MCA to have the capability to use either engine ? Of course naysayers will point out that if you don`t optimize the design for a specific engine, you will not get the most out of the aircraft, and that there is high overhead in designing for two engines.  But this is the price you pay if you use contingency planning, and this is offset by the ability to bring the project in on time.

The other thing India can do is to be realistic and not to paint too rosy a picture of the future aircraft or its components. There is a tendency in India that design documents tend to describe what the management wants to hear, rather than the reality. If a designer is realistic about the capability of the components, management would simply replace that designer with someone else who says what the management wants to hear. And when the LCA is overweight and underpowered, it is accepted as politics as usual. At least for the MCA the design document should rely on technological prowess which has already been demonstrated, rather than an assurance thatsab teek ho jaye ga.

It took India 34 years to reach the point where the single-engine LCA is inducted into service with the IAF.  The LCA is a good design, different from the competition by it’s wing design and India needs to use that knowledge to start work on the twin-engine MCA. The MCA should be a lot easier, because much has been learned from the LCA already, because with two engines the MCA will have a much high thrust/weight ratio, because improved relations with the US may mean the reliable purchase of F-404 engines, because the improved and surging Indian economy provides more money to spend wisely on defence and because India now has a PM Modi pushing “Make in India” even for defence procurement. India has come a long way in 20 years, now it is time to prove your capability.

What's the Status of the Indian-Russian Fifth Generation Fighter Jet?

India and Russia agreed in early 2007 to jointly develop a fifth generation fighter program. Ever since then, the Sukhol/HAL Fifth Generation Fighter Aircraft (FGFA) or as it is called in India, the Perspective Multi-role Fighter (PMF) project, has been plagued by delays, costs overrun, and unsteady technology  In 2014, a prototype of the plane even caught fire during a demonstration flight for technical evaluation, causing heated arguments between India and Russia.

“What added to the controversy … was Russia’s refusal to share any details of this failure, to the extent that a technical evaluation team of the Indian Air Force that reportedly was present at the site was refused access to inspect the damaged platform,” Monika Chansoria, senior fellow at the Centre for Land Warfare Studies think tank in New Delhi, was quoted as saying in a Defense News article.

Yet in January of this year, Indian Defense Minister Manohar Parrikar stated that many of the differences have now been set aside: “We discussed all issues, including the FGFA, and have decided to fast-track many of them as there are apprehensions about the slow pace in their execution.” This was confirmed by his Russian counterpart, Sergei Shoigu, who emphasized his desire for more regular “interactions” to avoid further delays.

Andrey Marshankin, the regional director of international cooperation at the united Russian-Indian aircraft manufacturing company Sukhoi/HAL, set to produce the jet,  further stated that, “as of now, we and our Indian colleagues have completed the creation of the export version of the [Sukhoi] PAK FA, known in India as FGFA. We already have documents and understanding of the scope of the next phase of design, the scale of future production.”

The Russian version of the plane will be a operated by one pilot, whereas the Indian Air Force prefers a two-seater plane. “In difficult conditions of modern warfare it is extremely difficult to simultaneously maneuver and attack the enemy. Currently, the Indian side suggests that the Indian version of the fifth generation fighter will be made for two pilots,” Marshankin elaborates.

Yet Jane’s Defense Weekly notes that despite of this, many problems remain: “Enduring Indian reservations over the FGFA program include those over the fighter’s AL-41F1 engine and its stealth and weapon-carrying capability. India is also insistent on Russia restoring its workload in the USD10.5 billion developmental program after recently reducing it from 25 percent to 13 percent without consulting Delhi.” India Today notesthat New Delhi is paying 50 percent of the projected costs.

The Russian Air Force is set to receive the derivative version of the FGFA, the Sukhoi T-50 PAK FA, this year. According to International Business Times, Russia will field 55 T-50 jets over the next four years. According to other media reports, the PMF will include combat avionics, stealth, super-cruise, and sensors improvements over the T-50 PAK FA.

Without additional delays, the PMF will be introduced into the Indian Air Force by 2022. Russia is expected to build 250 FGFAs, while India downgraded its initial purchasing size from 200 to 144 planes in 2012 at an estimated total cost of $ 30 billion. However, this number may rise due to China’s development of the J-20 and J-31 fifth generation fighters. More than 60 percent of India’s military platforms are Russian in origin.


                                                                    SOURCE : http://idrw.org/

LCA Navy NP2 heads to Goa next month

The first LCA Navy single-seat fighter prototype that made its debut flight few days back, will join the existing carrier compatibility test schedule at INS Hansa, Goa from next month. The platform, designated NP2 took to the air just weeks after the first prototype, a twin-seat fighter trainer, made its first launch from the ski-jump at the shore-based test facility (SBTF).

The NP2 is the last of the Mk.1 prototypes and together with NP1 will be the only platforms available for the Mk.1 programme towards operational clearance. The Indian Navy has been satisfied with the performance of the NP2 during its first flight, with preliminary data indicating that the aircraft exceeded expectations across several parameters.

The next two prototypes, namely NP3 and NP4, will both be Mk.2 fighter variants that involve a multiplicity of improvements and enhancements. Team LCA-N will gradually look to expand the flight envelope of the NP1 and NP2 through a carefully planned series of manoeuvers from Goa. The Indian Navy, which funds 40% of the LCA-N programme, has already ordered six Mk.1 types and intends to procure at least 40 aircraft in total in a mix of variants, though it is of course keen on the Mk.2, powered by the GE F414 turbofan engine.

                                                                  SOURCE : http://idrw.org/

Indigenous 5th Gen fighter plane on track: ADA

India’s ambitious plan to further expand its fighter jet development programme is making steady progress, with the design of the Advanced Medium Combat Aircraft (AMCA) frozen now.

“The AMCA configuration has been frozen. Now, we have to have one last dialogue with the Air Force to decide how we go about the engine choice…. We will have a strategy for building the AMCA by the middle of this year,” said P.S. Subramanyam, Director of the Aeronautical Development Agency (ADA) under the DRDO, who heads India’s combat aircraft programme.

He was speaking to The Hindu on the sidelines of a workshop on ‘Embedded Systems for Defence Applications’ organised by the Naval Physical and Oceanographic Laboratory at Nedumbassery on Friday.

On the choice of the engine, Mr. Subramanyam said it would be prudent to procure and integrate an available engine into the aircraft so to ensure that the project was not held up. “Since the fighter has been designed to take on an engine with a higher thrust, we can integrate it as and when such an engine is available. This is what has been done by Dassault in the Rafael development programme.”

Mr. Subramanyam was confident of the Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) Tejas (Mk 1) obtaining final operational clearance by year-end.

Russia to offer new aviation communication system for Sukhoi 30

Russian company United Instrument Manufacturing Corporation will be having a planned meetings  with representatives from the Indian Air Force and aircraft manufactures from the corporation Hindustan Aeronautics Limited on sidelines of  Aero India-2015 exhibition which will be held from February 18-22.

Russian Company will discuss the possibility of upgrading the communication equipment of the Su-30MKI Indian fighter jets and also outfitting Russian-Indian aircraft such as the FGFA fighter jet and the MTA transport aircraft with communication equipment.

Sergey Skokov, Deputy CEO of UIMC will be offering  S-112 aviation communication system, which provides a new level of data transmission efficiency. In addition, we are presenting in India the NKVS-27 system for multi-voice communication and information exchange between command posts and tactical aircraft.”.

corporation will also present the on-board S-404 communication system developed by Polyot Research & Production Company, which features an integrated antenna system designed for the Ka-62 helicopter and other types of civilian aircraft. In comparison with similar products, the system has improved quality and range of communication. The system adheres to all international standards regarding radio communication equipment, including signal reception for selective calls. Its military modification provides anti-jamming protection and encryption of data and voice information on both the hardware and software levels.

India to get US military tech in 3 key areas

India and the US have agreed to jointly develop and produce cutting-edge military equipment to enhance the reach and muscle of the Indian military.

The Pentagon has agreed to share with New Delhi the electro-magnetic aircraft launch system (EMALS), hot engine and extended battery man pack technologies under the defence trade and technology initiative, government sources said Monday.

The world’s biggest importer of weapons, India is looking to promote its domestic arms industry and sharing of technology is a vital part of it.

The deal will be inked when US under secretary for acquisition, technology and logistics Frank Kendall arrives in the Capital on February 24. He was in India in January as well to give final touches to defence issues ahead of US President Barack Obama’s Republic Day visit.

Currently being developed by General Atomics, EMALS technology will replace the steam catapults used to launch jets from aircraft carriers. The technology was offered by Obama to Prime Minister Narendra Modi during his Washington trip in September.

EMALS will not only allow more sorties and reduce the thermal signature of an aircraft carrier but will also provide launch capability for unmanned aerial vehicles, sources said. The system is low on maintenance and energy consumption. India’s two aircraft carriers — INS Viraat and INS Vikramaditya — use steam catapults.

General Electric’s hot-engine technology permits fighter jets to operate in hot weather conditions without any possibility of an engine failure. This next generation technology is needed in the hot and dry climate of Rajasthan and Gujarat as well as parts of Haryana and Punjab.

Extended battery packs increase the survivability of ground troops and enhances their effectiveness as platoons remain in touch with commanders for extended periods of time without fear of batteries running out. The battery pack has been developed by General Dynamics, an American aerospace and defence company.

Boosting defence production through foreign investors and technology is part of Modi’s ambitious Make in India initiative.

India, which buys 65% of its weapons from abroad, is expected to spend an estimated $250 billion in the next decade to modernise its military. The US has edged out Russia and Israel to emerge as India’s biggest arms supplier in the last three years — 2011-14.