COM BREAK: F-18 with two AGM-84s made short takeoff from Indian carrier

[Abdul Rehman Majeed]

Navy has to fund for 6 Missile Corvette, 8 Multi Role Corvettes, 11 OPVs and 6 SSN along with 40-50 Dhruvs and 6 P8I too in coming immediate future. Cannot afford to have 2 different types.

If you are selecting F/A-18 then you are already adding new fighter to the mix. Adding Rafale-M is just an add-on to your Airforce's Rafale. I do not see a big difference.

 

[Two banks of the River]

If you are selecting F/A-18 then you are already adding new fighter to the mix. Adding Rafale-M is just an add-on to your Airforce's Rafale. I do not see a big difference.

Navy has its own full fledged training program and spares/servicing. Rafale or Super Hornet. Both will have to create new infrastructure and supply chains.

Supply chains of IAF cannot be diverted to IN. If the 114 deal would have happened, that would have been a different story. But as of now only 36 Rafales are in service, not 114.

 

[Abdul Rehman Majeed]

Navy has its own full fledged training program and spares/servicing. Rafale or Super Hornet. Both will have to create new infrastructure and supply chains.

Supply chains of IAF cannot be diverted to IN. If the 114 deal would have happened, that would have been a different story. But as of now only 36 Rafales are in service, not 114.

I see. So your Navy and Airforce do not work as team but work in silos.

 

[Two banks of the River]

I see. So your Navy and Airforce do not work as team but work in silos.

Some areas overlap, like near Gujarat coast where IAF maintains a Jaguar Maritime strike squadron. But otherwise Navy's deployment areas are very different from IAFs. So their supply chains are different.

Once theaterisation happens, the operations over the peninsula and islands will fall under IN, so all supply chains of IA and IAF there will then be consolidated.

But as of now not much overlap is there between IAF and IN.

 

[kaykay]

I think Navy would go for Super hornets along with some Growler like platforms while IAF would choose more Rafales in MRCA.

 

[kaykay]

A couple of years ago US navy had the mission capable rates of only about 46 percent for F/A-18Es and 49 percent for F/A-18Fs. They later increased them to between 63 and 76 percent.

If the Indians get 65% availability rates with their F/A-18s like US navy then it would be a big jump from their current Mig-29Ks which are only available at 15-20%.

70% is pretty much standard serviceability rate for modern aircrafts and should be fine. By the way Mig-29Ks are now clocking similar serviceability rate.

Military Watch Magazine

militarywatchmagazine.com

 

[SQ8]

Some areas overlap, like near Gujarat coast where IAF maintains a Jaguar Maritime strike squadron. But otherwise Navy's deployment areas are very different from IAFs. So their supply chains are different.

Once theaterisation happens, the operations over the peninsula and islands will fall under IN, so all supply chains of IA and IAF there will then be consolidated.

But as of now not much overlap is there between IAF and IN.

The GE 414 overlap can be done with LCA variants - but eventually the IN should consolidate on one platform - regardless of whether the IAF even goes for the follow up Rafale order or not

 

[Two banks of the River]

The GE 414 overlap can be done with LCA variants - but eventually the IN should consolidate on one platform - regardless of whether the IAF even goes for the follow up Rafale order or not

Personally feel this will be a political deal for super hornet. Which will eventually grow to add atleast 10 more airframes for a total of 36.

Let's see , in a couple of months official offers should be made by both.

 

[INDIAPOSITIVE]

According to a Boeing report, number for IN could rise to over 50

 

[Black Tornado]

Rafale-M can fit on Vikrant’s lift as it doesn’t have foldable wings, so F/A-18 Super Hornet Block-III is the only option left.

 

[Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam]

Rafale-M can fit on Vikrant’s lift as it doesn’t have foldable wings, so F/A-18 Super Hornet Block-III is the only option left.

F/A-18 Super Hornet can fit into both elevators of IAC-1 with folded wings. A maximum of eight two-seater F-18 fighters are capable of launching from the deck of both Vikrant or Vikramaditya unlike Rafale-M two-seaters, which can only operate from shore-based facility and thus losing one-third of its combat capacity. This means while F-18 twin-seater fighters can be launched from carrier deck during war, the twin-seater Rafale-M fighters can only be launched from the shore.
the F/A-18 Hornet can carry up to four anti-ship missiles as compared to one by the Rafale-M fighter. Super Hornet can fire 6,000 rounds per minute against Rafale's 2,500 RPM. Rafale is equipped with a primary missile as the multi-target, fire-and-forget, air to air MBDA MICA missile, while Super Hornet has semi-active radar homing Air Intercept Missile (AIM-7 Sparrow) missile.Rafale has combat-proven better manoeuvrability as compared to Super Hornet.
In BVR air-to-air missile, Rafale has MBDA Meteor, while Super Hornet has AIM-120 AMRAAM.
The range of Rafale is 150+ kms in BVR ratings and Super Hornet holds at 75 kms.

https://twitter.com/x/status/1549005291404292097

 

[Black Tornado]

F/A-18 Super Hornet can fit into both elevators of IAC-1 with folded wings. A maximum of eight two-seater F-18 fighters are capable of launching from the deck of both Vikrant or Vikramaditya unlike Rafale-M two-seaters, which can only operate from shore-based facility and thus losing one-third of its combat capacity. This means while F-18 twin-seater fighters can be launched from carrier deck during war, the twin-seater Rafale-M fighters can only be launched from the shore.
the F/A-18 Hornet can carry up to four anti-ship missiles as compared to one by the Rafale-M fighter. Super Hornet can fire 6,000 rounds per minute against Rafale's 2,500 RPM. Rafale is equipped with a primary missile as the multi-target, fire-and-forget, air to air MBDA MICA missile, while Super Hornet has semi-active radar homing Air Intercept Missile (AIM-7 Sparrow) missile.Rafale has combat-proven better manoeuvrability as compared to Super Hornet.
In BVR air-to-air missile, Rafale has MBDA Meteor, while Super Hornet has AIM-120 AMRAAM.
The range of Rafale is 150+ kms in BVR ratings and Super Hornet holds at 75 kms.

https://twitter.com/x/status/1549005291404292097

We can integrate our BVRs with hornets, maybe even Meteors.

 

[Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam]

We can integrate our BVRs with hornets, maybe even Meteors.

We have already ordered 50 of them for the Mig 29ks

 

[kaykay]

We can integrate our BVRs with hornets, maybe even Meteors.

Also Aim-120Ds are already equipped with Super Hornet now.

 

[Windjammer]

C17, C130J and P8I all have actually very good availability of more than 85%. And given the investment going in for GE F414 series maintenance and building up reserves, the operations of Super Hornet, "if purchased" should be fine.

There's a world of difference between land based aircraft and carrier based operations, which are often described as controlled crash landings. Both the sea air and deck landings and take offs take toll on the airframes and engine and instruments.
Recall that before the MiG-29K debacle, the IN had to retire its Sea Harriers after over 50% of the fleet was written off in accidents.