First delivery in 7 years?? Guess its a good thing that we have 2 docks working on this project simultaneously - effectively making it 3.5 years per ship - not that bad.
We cant send soldiers to die for a fight thats not our own. But neither can we sit by and watch atrocities being committed all over the world. Send weapons to Iraq, train their troops and perhaps even give them some economic aid - but dont even consider sending Indian ground forces into that...
If he meant the Su-35BM then maybe it could be argued that the Rafale is inferior (and that too only in A2A mode), but as soon as the Rafale gets the meteor (which hopefully India will get too) it can go toe to toe with any fighter(4.5gen) in the world
All of which means their maintenance will be the same as western counterparts - meaning 30+hours of maintenance and $30,000 for every 1 hour of flight. That is if you believe the Russians - they do have a tendency to lie when it suits them.
I've been a member of this forum for 3 years - just...
Another factor you are not consedering is that we are not paying $18 billion just for the Rafale but we are also getting enormous ToT - all of which will be incredibly useful in developing and upgrading LCA mk2, mk3 and AMCA.
You are only considering the cost of induction - where they are similar. Russians make incredibly low priced planes compared to the west but they require much more maintenance - this is one of the reasons the IAF is shifting towards western machines.
Also 1 is 4.5 gen and the other is 5th gen...
You are dreaming if you think the FGFA will be flying at 6000$ per hour. The F-22(the only 5th gen we have to compare) goes at $30k and even if the Russians can half the flying costs of the FGFA - its still at a brutal $15k.
Not to mention Russian machines need much more maintenance as compared...
The cost of buying and maintaining a 5th generation aircraft is significantly higher than a 4.5 gen. Just look at the cost of maintaining the F-22. A huge fleet of 5th gen fighters needs enormous resources. Better to have a mix of 5th and 4.5 gen fighters - helps fill up the numbers, while still...
And what happens when this technology is abused by the government?? Can you trust Indian politicians with this much power??
Every email, every phone conversation, every sms, every personal message is read by these people. The internet is supposed to encourage free speech however we just saw...
Talwars are multi role as well if I am not mistaken. If their only role was ASW then the IN would not bother arming them with expensive missiles like the Brahmos and Klub.
What's wrong with the Talwar Class?? They are world class frigates and whoever underestimates them is in for a surprise. On top of that they are being built a lot faster than the Shivaliks( Indian shipyards delay more than even the Russians).
Can we use the C 17s even if the US slaps sanctions on us ?? I dont think so, and the chances of US putting India under sanctions are a lot more than Russia putting India under sanctions. On the other hand Russians don't need to put india under sanctions to stop or reduce the supply of spares -...
all single seaters?? I think he means 144 T-50s(MKI'd of course) and later some more (70-80) twin seater FGFA(which will take more time to develop- thanks to HAL)
DRDO talks too much - they should announce tests only when they are a week or so away from them and chances of delays are nil.
BTW - can this missile be fired from our warships - the Shivaliks or the Kolkatas?? Or can they be fired against ships(is there an anti ship version of this missile)?