What's new

Indian Air Force News & Discussions

Rafale over Ladakh!
The journo also captures the first armed fighter we have seen so far up there?
The Mirage-2000I with two MICA missiles and 3 bags.
For ORP duties, the Mirage 2000I would be armed similar to below:
76a1cb6504ccb033bdcf012fad420e7c.jpg

I would like to see the Jaguars there as well preferably with the overwing AIM-132s.
The last flying shot of the A2A armed Jag that I remember is this:
31096_1344708407.jpg

Very easy to spot the Magic-2
 
Last edited:
The Jaguar introduced some scary weapons into service, one of them was the BAP 100
6ac343d63abe6bb2932bfaf92e93641e.jpg

was even qualified on the MiG-23BN
1j0j7ktct4011.jpg

and the BL-755 Cluster bomb
WRBMnKqKA_Rn9i729xjOZ24dzb-LiIKgr-EvBANG9Tw.jpg

Devastating in Anti Personnel roles:
img_1594.jpg

bl-755_138.jpeg

Although replaced by the CBU 105 now
main-qimg-a77a2c104173a9a4807d1ef1c582784b
 
India is preparing to go in for 6 armed MQ-9 Reaper drones from the US in a fast-tracked G2G deal. Options clause will extend the numbers to 30.

Article link

The Ministry of Defence (MoD) is preparing to acquire 30 General Atomics MQ-9A Reaper drones from the United States, in a deal valued at approximately $3 billion (Rs 22,000 crore). A recent series of meetings within the MoD have cleared the way for the procurement of an initial lot of six Reaper Medium Altitude Long Endurance drones. These six drones—two each for the army, navy and air force—are to be procured immediately from the US, indicating the urgency of the acquisition.

Sources tell INDIA TODAY that an ‘acceptance of necessity’ (AON) for 30 drones will be put before an upcoming meeting of the Defence Acquisition Council (DAC), headed by defence minister Rajnath Singh. The contract is being broken up into two parts—six MQ-9s worth approximately $600 million (Rs 4,400 crore) are to be purchased outright and delivered in the next few months. The remaining 24—eight drones for each service—will be acquired over the next three years under an ‘option clause’ in the contract. The deal has been in the pipeline for the past three years, first as the sale of 22 Sea Guardians (an unarmed maritime variant of the MQ-9) for the Indian Navy in 2017. This was then converted into a tri-services acquisition by the government in 2018 when the armed version of the MQ-9 was cleared for sale to India by the US.

An AON is formally the first step in hardware procurement by the MoD. It usually takes several years for AON cases to turn into contracts. The Reaper acquisition, it is understood, will be concluded in a far shorter timeframe. It is being processed as a fast-track, government-to-government deal with the United States and will be swiftly concluded by the MoD. The six drones are to be delivered immediately by the US, and could possibly be units already produced for the US armed forces or its allies. It is not clear if the initial batch of drones will be armed with Hellfire missiles and other air-to-ground munitions.

...
 
The IAF's CSAR helicopter, The Dhruv Mark-3 entered service in 2012, best in class Super Hi Alt performance.
Replaces the simple Chetak.
Equipped with the Saab IDAS EW system for self defence.
Can carry 2 Stretchers(Su-30MKI occupants for ex) for evac.
The Elbit CoMPASS and a superb cockpit for superior situational awareness.
Dhruv Mark-3 CSAR.jpg

Dhruv Mark-3_cockpit.jpg
 
Just saw Sam(Sam Chui) walk us through the An-22 and thoroughly enjoyed it.
Jogging memory lane. The IAF in the 80s specifically asked for a transporter that would work in SHAA.
USSR re engined the An-26 with the mighty An-12 Engines(PAF operates a version of this bird to this day with an AEW role).
The An-12 in IAF service was also graced by his holiness the Dalai Lama!
The An-32 was born.
Called the Sutlej(Named after the mighty Sutlej herself) in IAF service and procured in massive numbers(100+).
Now upgraded(modestly) to the RE variant, she can lift a max of 7.5T.
Here is a Sri Lankan An-32Bcockpit:
1783779.jpg

And the RE:
2134706.jpg

The absolute backbone of IAF logistics in Hi Alt areas:

DBO1-696x464.jpg

Taking off from an Airfield at 16700Ft(Even walking at 8-9K feet is a chore!)
Here is the Sutlej carpet bombing the "enemy":
shwqtvndsom41.jpg
 
Nothing surprises me as much as shocking neglect of force multipliers in the IAF at the expense of new fighters, which they seem constantly on the search for. This fundemental weakness will lead to rival air forces being able to fully exploit their fighter force more efficiently and enhanced situational awarness.

For an air force the size of IAF to have only 5 AEW, 6 refuelling planes and 2 dedicated EW planes is shocking. This combined with a lack of a dedicated ACMI range indicates the IAF top brass have still not really understood how future wars maybe fought.....
 
1602073528772.png

1602074910027.png

Seen too many similar flight paths by IAF recently. Kolkata (not sure if Gaya is a station for IAF) to somewhere in Himachal Pradesh?
 

Latest posts

Country Latest Posts

Back
Top Bottom