Indian Air Force News & Discussions

[Screaming Skull]

IAF Jaguars to conduct military exercise with Oman​

The Indian Air Force’s (IAF) deep penetration strike aircraft Jaguar will fly down to Oman this month for a military exercise.
“To further military diplomacy and for addressing issues of inter-operabililty, IAF will be conducting a series of international exercises. Our fighters will be going to Oman for a bilateral exercise,” IAF chief Air Chief Marshal P.V. Naik told IANS.

The Royal Omani Air Force is the only other force in the world which still flies the British-built Jaguar, known as Shamsher in the IAF.

About half complement of the squadron, about five or six jets, are likely to go for the exercise to be conducted in the third week of October. The IAF’s ‘Flaming Arrows’ Jaguar squadron will be participating in the exercise.

“With only two air forces flying the combat jets, there have been training exchange programmes with Oman on this front,” a senior IAF official said Saturday, requesting anonymity.

India and Oman have agreed to step up cooperation by upgrading their joint military exercises and already have a memorandum of understanding on defence in place. Last year, Oman offered to provide berthing facilities for Indian Navy’s warships patrolling the piracy-hit waters off the shores of Somalia.

Oman military personnel are already being trained in Indian military training institutions.

Oman has also been seeking assistance from the Indian armed forces to set up credible supply systems for their defence equipment.

IAF Jaguars to conduct military exercise with Oman

 

[sudhir007]

NEW DELHI - India is negotiating the purchase of three more Airborne Early Warning and Control Systems (AWACS) from Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI), a Defence Ministry official here said.

The news arrived just days before the expected delivery of the first of three AWACS ordered in 2004 for $1.1 billion, the official said. The Indian Air Force AWACS planes will be Russian-built Ilyushin Il-76s equipped with Phalcon radars made by Elta, an IAI subsidiary.

New Delhi wants to buy three more Phalcon radars for mounting on aircraft, but IAI is asking for 30 percent more money than the first batch, the official said. IAI officials were not available for comment.

The Indian Air Force plans to beam data from the AWACS through a dedicated satellite under the nascent joint Aerospace Command.

The Phalcon radar can track 60 targets simultaneously out to 350 kilometers, an Air Force official said.

The AWACS' electronics must include a Multi-role Electronically Scanned Array radar system that can simultaneously handle fighter control, and air, sea and area search; 300-nautical-mile Identification-Friend-or-Foe system; electronic warfare defenses; and electronic support subsystems, a senior Air Force official said.

The aircraft should have a payload of 9,831 kilograms, an empty weight of 46,606 kilograms and a maximum takeoff weight of 77,564 kilograms. The aircraft should also have a cruise speed of 853 kilometers per hour, a range of 7,000 kilometers and a service ceiling of 41,000 feet.

While awaiting the AWACS planes, the Air Force has been relying on UAVs, including the Searcher-I, Searcher-II and Heron.

Where is the link of this news ?????

 

[Screaming Skull]

Indo-Oman Air Exercise -- 'Eastern Bridge' to Foster Defence Cooperation Ties​

Wednesday, October 14, 2009

Indian Air Force (IAF) and Royal Air Force of Oman (RAFO) will conduct a week-long bilateral Air Force exercise codenamed - Eastern Bridge - at the RAFO Base, Thumrait, Oman, from Oct 22-29. This will be the first-ever air exercise between the two countries.

Six, single-seat, Darin-I Jaguars from the Indian side will participate alongside RAFO Jaguars and F-16s. Incidentally, the two Air Forces are among the only ones that continue to operate the twin-engine Jaguar aircraft till date.

The IAF will also involve two IL-78 MKI air-to-air refueler aircraft for tanking the Jaguars enroute to Oman. Meanwhile, an IL-76 will airlift the IAF air warriors to Oman.

The main IAF contingent comprises 33 officers and 65 personnel below officer rank (PBOR). The support team of IL-76 and IL-78 MKI additionally comprises 12 officers and 26 PBOR.

Group Captain V Dedgaonkar is the team leader, while Group Captain K Kale is the Exercise Director for the IAF. The Jaguar Detachment will be led by Wing Commander A Mathur. The pilots belong to the two Jaguar squadrons - 16 (Cobras) and 27 (Flaming Arrows) that are based at IAF’s Gorakhpur airbase under Central Air Command.

A senior Air HQ observer along with one staff officer will also visit the IAF contingent during the period of the exercise.

The exercise in the Gulf region will enhance understanding of operational, maintenance and administrative procedures between RAFO and the IAF. The bilateral exercise would also be cost-effective in terms of benefit realization of operational and tactical preparedness over an unknown mixed terrain of land and desert.

Oman features among IAF’s priority-one country listed for defence cooperation. IAF-RAFO defence cooperation was initiated in 2006, and has increased substantially in the current year. The defence cooperation is characterized by high-level visit exchanges, training and bilateral exercises between the two air forces.

Oman has also been availing courses in India on a self-financing basis. Oman has also been providing turn-around facilities to our transiting military aircraft. Several rounds of Air Force Staff Talks with RAFO have now provided the necessary framework to expand defence cooperation with RAFO and rest of the GCC (Gulf Cooperation Council) countries. Oman is geographically India’s closest neighbor among the Arab countries in the strategically vital Persian Gulf region. The presence of over 3, 50,000 expatriate Indians and centuries of people-to-.people contact further enhances its importance in India’s security mosaic.

PIB Press Release

 

[Screaming Skull]

IAF preparing to join anti-piracy operations in Gulf​

New Delhi, Oct 14 (PTI) The IAF is gearing up to join future anti-piracy operations in Gulf of Aden and is holding the first-ever exercise with Omanese Air Force this month to get experience in operating fighter aircraft there.

"The IAF may be called upon to conduct aerial surveillance of the swathe of the Gulf of Aden region, where pirates are widening their area of operations fast," IAF vice chief Air Marshal P K Barbora told reporters here.

Joining the anti-piracy operations would not mean the IAF would unleash an offensive against the sea brigands, but would carry out surveillance of the vast area that the Navy would be unable to cover due to "speed and manpower" constraints, Barbora said.

"With our (IAF) surveillance capability, we can help the comity of nations fighting the piracy menace there.

fullstory

 

[sancho]

ZHUK-ME




VS. Phazotron

vs. Zhuk AE :



http://img291.imageshack.us/img291/4484/zhukaemj2.jpg

Tracking of 30 targets and engaging of 6, instead of 10 and engaging 4.
Target detection range of 130Km for targets of 3m², instead of 120 Km and 5m² targets.

I came to know in an other forum, that this is the brochure of the small Zhuk AE with 600 - 700 TR modules. The new Zhuk AE which was offered for Mig 35 a few weeks ago, with a radar range of 200Km, should be the bigger one. It has an estimated diameter of 700mm and ~ 1000 TR modules.

 

[sancho]

Nice pics of IAF Jags and their pilots on the way to Oman:

LiveFist - The Best of Indian Defence: FIRST IMAGES: IAF Jaguars Leave For Oman

 

[Locked]

vs. Zhuk AE :



http://img291.imageshack.us/img291/4484/zhukaemj2.jpg

Tracking of 30 targets and engaging of 6, instead of 10 and engaging 4.
Target detection range of 130Km for targets of 3m², instead of 120 Km and 5m² targets.

I came to know in an other forum, that this is the brochure of the small Zhuk AE with 600 - 700 TR modules. The new Zhuk AE which was offered for Mig 35 a few weeks ago, with a radar range of 200Km, should be the bigger one. It has an estimated diameter of 700mm and ~ 1000 TR modules.

lolz, isn't that a Suck ME Radar?

 

[sancho]

Some weeks ago I asked what role the new C130J will have in IAF and if they are meant for special operations (like it is often mentioned in reports), what kind of and what modifications they will have?
These are some infos I found in the net so far:

In keeping with IAF requirements, the US Government has offered a unique C-130J configuration modified for special mission roles. Equipped with an Infrared Detection Set (IDS), the aircraft will be able to perform precision low-level flying, airdrops, and landing in blackout conditions. Self protection systems and other features are included to ensure aircraft survivability in hostile air defence environments. In addition the aircraft is equipped with air-to-air receiver refueling capability for extended range operations. Lockheed Martin will integrate this equipment and other capabilities into the Indian configuration as agreed between the governments.

The Indian Air Force’s new Super Hercules will be the longer fuselage or "stretched" variant of the C‑130J, similar to those being delivered to the U.S. Air Force. Deliveries to India will begin in 2011. India joins the growing number of nations with C-130J fleets including the United States, Australia, Canada, Demark, Italy, Norway and the United Kingdom. The C-130J carries eight 463L pallets, 97 medical litters, 24 CDS bundles, 128 combat troops and 92 paratroops.

India's C-130J | Lockheed Martin

The Government of India has requested a possible sale of:
6 Lockheed Martin C-130J United States Air Force (USAF) baseline aircraft including USAF baseline equipment
4 Rolls Royce AE 2100D3 spare engines
8 AAR-47 Missile Warning Systems (two of them spares)
8 AN/ALR-56M Advanced Radar Warning Receivers (two of them spares)
8 AN/ALE-47 Counter-Measures Dispensing Systems (two of them spares)
8 AAQ-22 Star SAFIRE III Special Operations Suites (two of them spares)
8 ALQ-211 Suite of Integrated Radio Frequency Countermeasures (two of them spares)
2 spare AN/ARC-210 Single Channel Ground and Airborne Radio Systems (SINCGARS)
8 spare Secure Voice Very High Frequency/Ultra High Frequency Radios
4 spare Secure Voice High Frequency Radios
3 spare AN/AAR-222 SINCGARS and Key Gen (KV-10) Systems
1 KIV-119 Non-standard Communication/COMSEC equipment
2 ARC-210 Non-standard Communication/COMSEC equipment

http://www.dsca.osd.mil/pressreleases/36-b/2007/India_07-33.pdf

Also interesting and gives a hint for what missions this aircrafts could be used is that:

Israel’s request to buy 9 stretched C-130J-30 aircraft, which will replace some of the aging C-130 aircraft that Israel made famous in its 1976 commando raid at Entebbe, Uganda.

Israel Orders ‘Special’ C-130J-30s

Operation Entebbe - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

 

[Iggy]

lolz, isn't that a Suck ME Radar?

Forebidden fruits always sucks..just like Su-30 Mkis

 

[booo]

Defunct Humanity: OLS-35 IRST option for Su-30 family

 

[Born In The USA]

IAF may use fighters against pirates

The Indian Air Force (IAF) may deploy fighter jets for carrying out anti-piracy operations in the Gulf of Aden, a top IAF official revealed on Wednesday.

IAF Vice-Chief Air Marshal P.K. Barbora said the air force could be called upon to support anti-piracy operations off the Somalian coast to deal with the expanding footprint of the pirates.

“If the swatch becomes any bigger, the navy may not be able to cover the entire area due to constraints of speed and vessels. This is when the IAF may be asked to offer help,” said Barbora, on the first-ever Indo-Oman air exercise, codenamed Eastern Bridge, from October 22-29.

He said, “We may not necessarily employ firepower... we can send fighters to carry out patrols (over pirate-infested waters). The Sukhoi-30 has great endurance.”

He said the war games could prove beneficial with regard to any future deployment in anti-piracy operations, taking into accounting Oman’s geographical location.

The IAF is flying six Jaguars, two IL-78 midair refuelers and 136 personnel to the Thumrait airbase in southern Oman for the exercise.

The ambit of the exercise will encompass live firing, operations in desert terrain and integrated air-to-ground missions.

The Royal Air Force of Oman is the only other air force in the world to operate the Jaguars. It also operates F-16s.

IAF may use fighters against pirates- Hindustan Times

 

[marcos98]

TWO MORE ALH DHRUV FOR ECUADOR
Ecuador's Defence Minister Javier Ponce is expected in India shortly on an official visit to sign a few defence agreements with the country. Among them will be Ecuador exercising its option to buy two more Indian ALH Dhruv helicopters, taking its Dhruv fleet to nine choppers. Earlier this year, the Ecuadorian Air Force (Fuerza Aérea Ecuatoriana) purchased seven Dhruvs for the logistical role, including one kitted out as a VIP transport for the country's President. The fleet is currently based in the military area of José Joaquín de Olmedo International Airport in Guayaquil, in the heart of Ecuador.
great going dhruv......
http://livefist.blogspot.com/2009/10/two-more-alh-dhruvs-for-ecuador.html

 

[marcos98]

The photos above show Indian Air Force officers in February this year getting a hands-on tour of the Boeing C-17 Globemaster III at Hickam AFB, Hawaii. IAF personnel are getting a far more personal experience with the Globemaster-III right now (from the same squadron above) as part of the Cope India 09 airlift and airdrop special missions exercise. According to sources, the government will shortly kickstart Foreign Military Sale (FMS) procedures to procure a fleet of ten C-17 Globemaster-IIIs from Boeing.

US and Indian forces will "exchange airlift, airland and airdrop delivery techniques, participate in aeromedical and disaster management exercises, conduct cooperative flight operations, to include aircraft generation and recovery, low-level navigation, tactical airdrop, and air-land missions; and conduct subject matter expert exchanges in the operations, maintenance, and rigging disciplines."

 

[mrwarrior006]

Indian Air Force to meet future needs indigenously

Delhi, Oct 15 (IANS) The Indian Air Force (IAF) will fully back indigenous enterprises to develop critical technologies to not only meet its future needs but also to reduce dependency on external sources, its top commander said Thursday.

‘There are many critical technologies for which we still remain dependent on external sources. These are obviously very zealously guarded and their denial often impedes our indigenisation plans. We, as a nation, must concentrate on developing local expertise in these critical technologies,’ IAF chief Air Chief Marshal P.V. Naik said.

‘It is time for all to take some bold decisions and I assure you that the Indian Air Force will back indigenous enterprise fully. We have to emerge out of this dependence on foreign technology and develop self reliance,’ he added while inaugurating a seminar on aerospace technologies here.

‘At the moment, we are highly dependent on foreign vendors for a large proportion of our equipment, and changing this situation is the challenge before the Indian industry.’

‘Our country spends a very large amount of money on defence equipment procurements. If we could tap into a percentage of that outflow, it would greatly benefit our economy and of course, our overall technological infrastructure,’ Naik maintained.

He said this could be achieved by entering into partnerships and joint ventures involving the domestic industry, which would plough back its profits into the country.

About the future needs of the IAF, Naik said: ‘The future will see very localised forms of conflict with limited objectives, conducted at a very high intensity. The IAF would seek to dominate the realms of aerospace, information and cyberspace to create a transparent and pliant battle space with a high degree of situational awareness.’

‘I visualize that the IAF would become a responsive, net-centric force, proactive and capable of harnessing the enormous capabilities of space. I seek real-time control of satellites and greater synergy in joint operations,’ he added.

At the tactical level, Naik said networking of all assets on a secure data-link in near future would enable the commanders execute campaigns with quicker decision cycles.

 

[Ruag]

India keen to induct 5th-Gen stealth fighter by 2017

NEW DELHI: India and Russia, after protracted negotiations and some glitches, are now going full steam ahead to finalise the joint project for

the stealth fifth-generation fighter aircraft (FGFA), which will havesuper-manoeuvrability and supersonic cruising ability.

The FGFA, along with other R&D projects like the multi-role transport aircraft (MTA) as well as the BrahMos-2 `hypersonic' cruise missiles, will gain further momentum when PM Manmohan Singh holds a summit with President Dmitry Medvedev in Moscow this December.

India and Russia will then also ink the fresh inter-governmental agreement on military-technical cooperation to extend their "strategic partnership'' by another 10 years, as reported by TOI earlier.

The two countries will also sign an agreement on the "after-sales product support'' of Russian-origin equipment held by Indian armed forces to address New Delhi's long-standing concerns about technical problems and tardy supply of spares.

This was formally announced after the two-day talks between defence minister A K Antony and his Russian counterpart Anatoly Serdyukov ended in Moscow on Thursday.

While India has several ongoing multi-billion dollar military projects with Russia, which range from refit of aircraft carrier Admiral Gorshkov and lease of K-152 Nerpa Akula-II nuclear submarine to production of 230 Sukhoi-30MKI fighters and 1,657 T-90S main-battle tanks, the FGFA is the most futuristic of them all.

Though the Indian FGFA will be based upon the single-seater Sukhoi T-50 PAK-FA being currently developed by Russia, it will be built to IAF specifications. IAF, for instance, is also keen on a twin-seater version of the FGFA.

Antony, on his part, has already declared India wants the FGFA's development to be completed by 2016 to ensure IAF can begin inducting it by 2017.

"FGFA discussions with Russia are progressing quite satisfactorily...they are on track. The Russian FGFA prototype should make its first flight sometime early next year,'' said IAF vice-chief Air Marshal P K Barbora.

IAF, in fact, recently finalised the technical requirements for its FGFA, which will have long-range strike and high-endurance air defence capabilities, and submitted them to Russia.

An Indian team will also be leaving for Russia soon to decide the exact sharing of the technical work-load between Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd and Russia's United Aircraft Corporation.

IAF wants the FGFA to have "a very high degree of network centricity'' as well as multi-spectral reconnaissance and surveillance systems -- optical, infra-red, laser and radar sensors. Stealth, with a "minimal'' radar tracking signature, will be an important requirement.

The American F/A-22 `Raptor', each of which costs upwards of $140 million, is the only operational FGFA in the world at present. Another, the F-35 `Lightning-II', in turn, is still under joint development by US, UK and seven other countries.

IAF's most potent fighter is currently the Sukhoi-30MKI, which can be placed a little over fourth-generation, along with others like Eurofighter Typhoon, Rafale, Gripen and F/A-18 `Super Hornets'.

While fourth-generation fighters typically revolve around multi-role capabilities, FGFA takes it forward by incorporating stealth technology, composite materials, supercruise, thrust-vectoring and integrated avionics as well.

India keen to induct 5th-Gen stealth fighter by 2017 - India - The Times of India