Defence Aviation News

After been Cleared for Export by Ministry of Defence with firm backing of Indian air force which too has given its blessing, DRDO is working on exploring possibilities to hard sell its indigenous Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) Tejas to prospective buyers from overseas in 2016 on wards. Sources close to the programme told idrw.org that after formal list of defence items which can be exported has been endorsed by the ministry of defence, which also included LCA-Tejas, DRDO and IAF are working on plans to work together in exploring potential buyers for the aircraft. DRDO believes that long-delayed LCA-Tejas project which is finally inching towards its final FOC Certification and at the price point of around 30 $ million equipped with Modern Radar, digital fly-by-wire system, flight control systems and open architecture computer, LCA-Tejas can be easily termed among best aircraft currently in its type. Earlier in Aero India 20015  held in India many Prospective buyers...

SRINAGAR:  A MiG-21 fighter jet of the Indian Air Force crashed in the fields in the Budgam district of Jammu and Kashmir, with the pilot managing to eject safely. The aircraft had taken off from Srinagar airfield and was on a "routine" training sortie. Defence Spokesman Colonel S D Goswami told PTI that "A MiG-21 Bison of IAF crashed in Soibugh area of Budgam district at around 10.59 AM but there was no loss of life reported in the incident." The pilot managed to eject from the plane "just in time" and he was retrieved from the crash scene by an army helicopter. A court of inquiry has been ordered to ascertain the cause of the crash, the spokesman added.                                                                        SOURCE : www.ndtv.com

Undoubtedly, the PAK FA fifth-generation fighter will be armed to the teeth with the latest weapons Russia has to offer. One of these is a modernized version of Russia’s best highly maneuverable short-range missile crucial for winning quick-action close-range aerial battles. The Vympel R-73 (NATO reporting name: AA-11 Archer) is an infrared heat-seeking air-to-air missile with an operational range of up to 19 miles. It was designed to engage virtually any type of aircraft – from cutting-edge jet fighters to drones and cruise missiles. What makes the R-73 so deadly is a unique targeting and guidance system. The missile has a passive infrared homing head capable of locking the missile on a target before launch. It is capable of tracking and hitting targets at large off boresight angles even if the enemy is using electronic warfare systems. “Their exceptionally high accuracy is ensured by the missile’s main secret, the so-called transverse control engine, which rules out misses...

China successfully carried out the fifth test of its WU-14 hypersonic glide vehicle from the Wuzhai missile test range in northern China’s Shanxi province on Aug. 19, reports the Washington Free Beacon. Pentagon officials said the WU-14 — as it has been designated by the Pentagon — not only traveled along the edge of the atmosphere but also demonstrated evasive maneuvers during the latest test, the report said. This information indicates that the hypersonic glide vehicle was designed particularly for a potential war with the United States, the report said. US missile defense systems are developed to intercept missiles that follow predictable flight paths. They are unable to counter maneuvering warheads and glide vehicles, said the report. A defense official said the WU-14 is viewed as a serious emerging strategic threat that could complicate US nuclear deterrent efforts. Richard Fisher of the International Assessment and Strategy Center said that the best defensive response ...

On Contrary to popular beliefs, that production line of F-16 is closing down, Lockheed Martin Corp has enough orders to keep its F-16 fighter jet production line humming through the third quarter of 2017, with hopes of getting further orders from 26 Airforces around the world which operates them, Lockheed Martin is upbeat in keep the line running through 2020. Lockheed has produced over 4,500 F-16s since the program began in 1975, making the F-16 the best-selling fighter jet in history after Legendary Mig-21 which had a production run for more then 8000 airframes. With reduced orders at hand Lockheed has dramatically scaled back production of the F-16 at its sprawling facility in Fort Worth, Texas, to about one plane a month now – from a peak production rate of 30 planes a month in June 1987. With Collapse of Orignal tender for MMRCA tender which involved purchase of 126 aircrafts,new renewed efforts have been made to refloat a new tender for 90 aircrafts under “Mak...

India’s own fighter, the Tejas Light Combat Aircraft (LCA), is playing a growing role in protecting Indian airspace. On December 20, when the Tejas was cleared for operational service in the Indian Air Force(IAF), Defence Minister A K Antony declared 200 Tejas fighters would eventually enter combat service. Today, that figure quietly swelled to well above 300, with the government indicating the IAF would have at least 14 Tejas squadrons. Each IAF combat squadron has 21 fighter aircraft; 14 squadrons add to 294 Tejas fighters. The 21 comprise 16 frontline, single-seat fighters, two twin-seat trainers and three reserve aircraft to make up losses in a war. In a written statement tabled in the Lok Sabha on Monday, Antony’s deputy, Jitendra Singh, stated, “The MiG-21 and MiG-27 aircrafts of the IAF have already been upgraded and currently equip 14 combat squadrons. These aircraft, however, are planned for being phased out over the next few years and will be replaced by the LCA.” ...

1. North American XF-108 Rapier The XF-108 Rapier was designed by the North American Aviation Company in direct response to the ever increasing fleet of Soviet bombers. Though the North American Aviation Company had some very successful aircraft from its stable like the P-51, F-86, B-26 and the T-6, this revolutionary aircraft was to be the company’s last. In the early 1950s, the USAF conducted studies and found that the greatest threat to Continental USA was from the new nuclear capable, high speed Soviet bombers. The USAF concluded that the only effective way to combat this threat was to use high speed interceptor aircraft to intercept these bombers before they could get close to the American mainland. Though the F-102 Delta Dagger was already in service with the USAF, it lacked the range to be able to intercept Soviet bombers far from the mainland. The specifications put forward by the USAF on the 6 th  of October, 1955 included an interceptor capable of flying at a...

In mid-2008, Sikorsky unveiled a revolutionary technology demonstrator. They called it the X2. Just two years later, the very same aircraft was performing unbelievable maneuvers and had unofficially dethroned the Westland Lynx to become the world’s fastest rotorcraft. The secret behind the X2’s speed and agility was the presence of a set of composite, four bladed, coaxial rotors. Though this area demanded a high level of expertise, Sikorsky had been working on this specific area for decades on different rotorcraft, starting with the X-69 followed by the UH-60 Black Hawk and the RAH-66 Comanche. What the coaxial rotors meant was that a separate tail rotor was not required. This freed up some real estate on the tail for the addition of the pusher propeller. The pusher propeller produced a considerable amount of thrust and played a major role in increasing the top speed of the rotorcraft. A single LHTEC T800 LHT 801 turbo shaft engine powered both the coaxial rotor blades as w...

The Chengdu J-20 is a stealth, twin – engine, fifth generation fighter aircraft which is being produced by the Chengdu Aerospace Corporation for the Chinese People’s Liberation Army Air Force (PLAAF). The J-20’s first appearance was made on 11 January 2011 after which six prototypes were produced with various modifications. The latest two prototypes of the J-20 are equipped with active electronically scanned array radar. Three of the six J-20 prototypes were delivered for test flights in the year 2014. Chengdu Aircraft Company has produced J-10 and JF-17 for overseas markets, but China has made a decision not to export the J-20 overseas. This news is likely to disappoint the manufacturer of the fighter aircraft. The J-20 is expected to be operational during 2017-2019. China wants to keep the J-20’s high-end military equipment all to itself. The ban on export of the Chengdu J-20 was revealed in an interview with the China’s Phoenix TV news program. “The export of advanced Ch...

The ongoing negotiations with France to buy 36 Rafale fighter jets has hit an air-pocket with the French negotiators refusing to accept changed technical specifications from the Indian Air Force (IAF) for integrating the indigenous Astra missile to the French platform. The IAF wants certain changes in the platform configuration to integrate the DRDO-made air-to-air, beyond-visual-range Astra missile, which was successfully test-fired from a Su-30 MKI aircraft. The missile was tested twice on consecutive days in March. Following the success, IAF wants modification and reconfiguration of some of the avionics and weapon systems to keep an window open for integration of Astra at a later date. The French side objected to the idea because a change in the configuration means going through the aircraft certification process once again, which would lead to an increase in cost. Instead, Paris wants to supply its own air-to-air missiles, which New Delhi will have to purchase...

The Indian Air Force has halved its demand for a new Russian-built advanced stealth fighter jet in a move to cut costs and reduce imports, India’s Tribune News Service reported Tuesday, citing unidentified Indian military sources. With about 18 planes in each Indian fighter squadron, New Delhi’s purchase of the developmental Sukhoi T-50 aircraft has been downgraded from a promised 127 aircraft to just 65, plus a handful of additional T-50s for training pilots to fly them, according to Tribune. The new Sukhoi stealth fighter was co-developed by Russia and India, and has a reported price tag of $100 million per unit, according to Tribune. India and Russia finished development of a two-seat version specifically for the Indian Air Force in 2013, but have yet to finalize a contract for manufacturing and delivery of the new planes. The T-50 fighter is Russia’s answer to the U.S. F-22 stealth fighter jet, and is the first new Russian fighter aircraft designed since the fall of the ...