Indian Navy News & Discussions

[sudhir007]

Russia’s Nerpa nuclear sub to be ‘fine-tuned’ next month idrw.org

Russia’s Nerpa nuclear attack submarine, which entered service with the Navy in late 2009, will undergo additional adjustments in February, the Defense Ministry said on Tuesday.

The submarine was put into service despite a fatal accident during its sea trials in November 2008. Earlier reports said it had passed final tests successfully.

“Additional adjustments are planned for the Nerpa in February 2010 to rectify the flaws revealed during the latest tests,” a ministry official said.

On November 8, 2008, while the Nerpa was undergoing sea trials, its onboard fire suppression system activated, releasing a deadly gas into the sleeping quarters. Three crewmembers and 17 shipyard workers were killed. There were 208 people, 81 of them submariners, onboard the vessel at the time.

Following repairs, which cost an estimated 1.9 billion rubles ($65 million), the submarine was cleared for final sea trials.

The submarine will be subsequently leased to the Indian Navy under the name INS Chakra. India reportedly paid $650 million for a 10-year lease on the 12,000-ton K-152 Nerpa, an Akula II class nuclear-powered attack submarine.

Akula II class vessels are considered the quietest and deadliest of all Russian nuclear-powered attack submarines.

 

[RPK]

Govt approval to Gorshkov final price awaited: Navy

New Delhi: With the completion of protracted talks between India and Russia to fix the cost of Admiral Gorshkov aircraft carrier, the Navy on Saturday said it was waiting for the government's approval to the final price.

"I cannot speak anything about the final pricing till the government's approval is announced," Navy Chief Admiral Nirmal Verma told reporters here.


"But, yes, for any of these major induction programmes, we have a price negotiation committee, which has done its job and a mutually agreed price has been arrived at," he said after a visit to the NCC's Republic Day Parade Camp.

During Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's visit to Moscow last month, the two countries finalised the price for the repair and refit work on the aircraft carrier that was bought by India in 2004 and rechristened INS Vikramaditya.

Though the ship was bought for USD 974 million at that time, the Russian shipyard Sevmash hiked its costs for the repair and refit work to demand an additional 2.9 billion in a two-year period since 2007.

However, after working out the costs of repair and refit, India was willing to pay only about USD 2.2 billion. The discussions between the two sides ended during Singh's visit and a "mutually agreed" final price has now been arrived at, though none in the government or the Navy is willing to hazard a guess on the figure at the moment.

 

[sudhir007]

INS Airavat Sails Out After Commissioning, On Exercise, Leaves For Port Blair.

 

[RPK]

India-Aussie bonding in solitude of high seas


The relationship between Indians and Australians may be a bit strained Down Under but on the high seas a friendship between an Indian Navy officer and an Australian teenaged sailor is going strong. Dilip Donde, the first Indian attempting a solo around-the-world sail has struck up a warm camaraderie with Jessica Watson, a young Australian student who is attempting to be the youngest sailor ever to circumnavigate the world, non-stop and alone.


Navy officer Commander Dilip Donde is now halfway around the world after having rounded Cape Horn and the nearest person to him is Australian school girl Jessica Watson, who at 16 is attempting to be the youngest person to sail solo across the world.


The two got in touch after reading about each other while blogging on the internet and since then have been exchanging notes on the weather, encouraging each other for the long journey ahead and warning each other for dangers.


While Jessica started off being a few hundred miles ahead of Dilip, earlier this week, the Indian Navy officer on his larger boat ‘ Mhadei’, surged ahead to cross the southern tip of South America to make his way to Africa. Donde left Mumbai on August 19, 2009 while Jessica left Sydney on October 19, 2009.


On New Year’s eve, the two even managed to talk to each other over the phone. “Finding it a bit odd to receive a phone call close to midnight, I picked up the phone and what a pleasant surprise! Jessica calling to wish me a happy New Year! Amongst all the New Year wishes I have received in all these years and at various places, I think I will cherish this one from this gutsy girl 350 Nm away and the nearest human being to me, as the most special,” Donde writes in his blog Indian Navy Solo Circumnavigation where he posts regular updates on his journey.


While Jessica has become somewhat of an international figure with thousands of people following her on the internet, Donde’s journey remained low key till she blogged about him on her popular website.


“Lately I’ve been keeping in touch with another solo sailor Dilip Donde who is from India and part way through his own circumnavigation. It’s been great to talk to him and compare conditions as he’s not far to the west of us and also heading for Cape Horn,” she wrote on December 27, 2009.


Since then, Donde has got an international fan following with hundreds of fans from Australia and other parts of the world commenting on his blog.


“Since Jessica mentioned my blog on hers, there seems to be a sudden increase in comments and questions. While it may be difficult to answer all from a bouncy boat, here are answers to a few common ones¿ My boat Mhadei was named after the old name of the river she was built on,” Donde writes. Donde has now completed over 14,000 nautical miles of voyage and arrived at Port Stanley in the Falkland Islands on Friday. His next port of call will be Cape Town in South Africa.

 

[RPK]

India, Russia to ink $1.2 bn deal for 29 more MiG-29Ks - India - The Times of India

NEW DELHI: Russia is all set to reassert its numero uno status in the Indian defence market with another mega arms deal. The two nations are now
poised to ink the around $1.2 billion contract for 29 more MiG-29K fighter jets for Indian Navy.

A Russian team will arrive in New Delhi this week to finetune the contract after it got the approval of Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS), chaired by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, top defence sources said.

"The defence ministry is also now also seeking CCS approval for the fresh contract for aircraft carrier Admiral Gorshkov's refit, with the renegotiated price of slightly over $2.3 billion," said a source.

The two new contracts will further consolidate Russia's position as the largest defence supplier to India, having notched defence sales worth over $35 billion since the 1960s.

Though Israel is now nipping at the heels of Russia, and the US too has bagged some big defence deals in recent times, Moscow will continue to retain its lead for the foreseeable future.

India, after all, already has over $15 billion worth of ongoing arms contracts and projects in the pipeline with Russia. Bitter wrangling over the huge cost escalation in Gorshkov's refit had led to a distinct chill between India and Russia.

But with matters resolved now, India is also on course to formally join the $10 billion Russian project to build the Sukhoi T-50 PAK-FA fifth-generation stealth fighter.

The 29 new MiG-29Ks will be in addition to the 16 jets already contracted in the initial $1.5 billion Gorshkov package deal in January 2004. Incidentally, only $974 million had been earmarked for Gorshkov's refit at that time.

Rechristened INS Vikramaditya, Gorshkov will now be delivered to India by early-2013 or so. But three of the 16 original MiG-29Ks have already arrived at the Goa naval airbase to constitute the 303 `Black Panthers' squadron, with the next three slated to follow shortly.

MiG-29Ks will operate from the 44,570-tonne Gorshkov as well as the 40,000-tonne indigenous aircraft carrier being built at Cochin Shipyard, which should roll out by 2014-2015.

Armed with eight types of air-to-air missiles, including extended range BVR (beyond visual range) missiles, as well as 25 air-to-surface weapons for land-attack missions, MiG-29Ks will provide Navy with a lethal punch on the high seas.

While 12 of the first 16 fighters will be the single-seat 'K' variants, the other four will be twin-seater 'KUB' trainer versions. Similarly, four of the next 29 jets will be 'KUB' trainer versions.

Mega Defence Deals with Russia:

• Admiral Gorshkov for about $2.3 billion. Induction in 2013.
• 45 Mig-29Ks for about $1.7 billion
• 230 Sukhoi-30MKI fighters for about $8.5 billion. Over 105 already inducted. India likely to order another 50 jets
• Six Talwar-class stealth frigates for Rs 8,514 crore. Talwar, Trishul and Tabar inducted. Deliveries of Teg, Tarkash and Trikand from 2012
• 657 T-90S main-battle tanks for Rs 8,525 crore. Over 310 already inducted. Another 1,000 T-90S tanks to be manufactured in India

 

[Hulk]

India, Russia to ink $1.2 bn deal for 29 more MiG-29Ks - India - The Times of India

 

[RPK]

Second Indian Aircraft Carrier will be larger, says Indian Naval Chief

December 02, 2009, - The second indigenously built aircraft carrier, IAC-2, will be larger and feature heavier fighter aircraft.

The IAC-2 could undergo some design changes, Naval Chief Admiral Nirmal Verma indicated while speaking to the press on Wednesday, December 2, ahead of Navy Day on December 4, 2009.

"We are re-looking at the design. It won't be a copy of what we have today," he said

He said a concept study by the Directorate of Naval Design is currently underway 'for more capable carrier-borne aircraft' for the IAC-2.

The Navy is leaning towards a 50,000 tons carrier capable of launching heavier aircraft using a steam catapult, rather than the ski-jump on the Gorshkov / Vikramaditya.

The Navy has earlier indicated it prefers the Electromagnetic Aircraft Launch System (Emals) on its new aircraft carriers.

The Navy issued an RFI (request for information) to several global aviation majors, including American Boeing, French Dassault and Russian MiG companies, for 'an alternate deck-based aircraft' in November.

"Information is being sought to acquire over 40 fighters for the 40,000-tonne IAC-1 (indigenous aircraft carrier), being built at the Cochin shipyard and expected to roll out by 2014-2015 now, and IAC-2, which will follow later," a source told TOI.

 

[ssheppard]

$1.2bn Indian Navy contract for 29 additional MiG-29Ks

With bonhomie between the United States and India cooling off perceptively, Russia may well stage a strong comeback in India's flourishing arms market. Earlier reports in the Russian media that India may contract for atleast 28 more MiG-29K fighter jets now appear to be coming true with sources in India's ministry of defence suggesting that both nations are all set to formalise a $1.2 billion contract for 29 of these aircraft for the Indian Navy.


The MiG-29K (NATO designation: Fulcrum-D) is a naval variant of the MiG-29 Fulcrum fighters.

Sources in the Indian MoD have let it be known that a Russian team may soon arrive in New Delhi, probably this week, to detail the contract. It is also being suggested that the contract has received clearance from the cabinet committee on security (CCS), chaired by prime minister Manmohan Singh.

It is also being given to understand that the defence ministry is seeking CCS approval for the fresh contract for aircraft carrier Admiral Gorshkov's refit programme, with the renegotiated price of slightly over $2.3 billion.


The 29 new MiG-29Ks are over and above the 16 jets already contracted for with the initial $1.5 billion Adm Gorshkov package deal in January 2004.

The refurbished Adm Gorshkov is now expected to be ready for delivery to the Indian Navy only by early-2013, nearly five years behind schedule. It will be inducted into the navy as INS Vikramaditya.

Any enhancement of the MiG-29K contract has ramifications for the Indian Air Force's $11 billion medium range multi-role combat aircraft (MMRCA) contract, as foreign companies desperately seek to offer synergies.

The American defence contractor Boeing's F/A-18 Super Hornet offering is primarily a naval fighter which has entered the MMRCA race more to try its luck than with any serious hopes of bagging the contract. But if the Indian Navy had shown any inclinations for the Super Hornet, Boeing's chances to bag the MMRCA contract would have been strengthened as it could have argued for synergies between the air force and the navy contract.

Other contenders, Dassault's Rafale, Saab Gripen's JAS-39 are also offering naval variants.

The Russian contender for the MMRCA contract, the MiG-35, is a heavily upgraded, thrust vectoring variant of the MiG-29 family of fighters. This 4++ generation fighter carries so many new features that MiG RAC re-designated it as the MiG-35.

Its chances to bag the MMRCA contract are now boosted manifold as the IAF already operates 80 MiG -29 fighters and Russia has an agreement in place with India's Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd (HAL) to manufacture an advanced variant of the RD-33 engine.

With so many synergies in place, and an enhanced Indian Navy contract to boot, the chances of the MiG-35 fighter bagging the MMRCA contract are considerably strengthened.

Meanwhile, the first four of the original lot of MiG-29Ks have already arrived in a knocked-down form and are being assembled. Till delivery of the Gorshkov, these fighters will remain land-based at the navy's Goa base, INS Hansa.

These fighters will now become part of the 303 `Black Panthers' squadron. Another batch of four fighters is expected to arrive shortly.

Atleast eight of the 45 MiG-29K fighters are expected to be the two-seater KUB version, with four in each contract, and the rest single-set fighters.

The MiG-29Ks will operate not just from the 44,570-tonne Adm Gorshkov/INS Vikramaditya but also from the 40,000-tonne indigenous aircraft carrier (IAC) being built at Cochin Shipyard. The, as yet, undesignated IAC is expected to be ready for induction in the period 2014-2015.

The Russian Navy too has opted to induct MiG-29K fighters in larger numbers, thanks to cost benefits arising from the India deal. It currently operates the heavier, longer range, Su-33 (Flanker-D) naval fighters. Operating the Su-33 is no longer cost effective because of small production volumes.

Correspondingly, the 45-aircraft order from the Indian Navy coupled with a 24-aircraft order form the Russian Navy allows per unit costs to come down substantially. The Russian Navy will take delivery of the first lot of MiG-29Ks later this year.

Russian media reports estimated the Russian Navy contract for 24 fighters at $1 billion, which matches the figure of $1.2 billion now being quoted for the fresh Indian order of 29 of these fighters.

The Su-33s will undergo a refit programme to extend their service life from 2015 to 2025.

Armed with eight types of air-to-air missiles, including BVR (beyond visual range) missiles, as well as a host of air-to-surface weapons for land-attack missions, the 4+ generation MiG-29K is a force multiplier for the navy.

domain-b.com : $1.2bn Indian Navy contract for 29 additional MiG-29Ks

 

[ejaz007]

India To Sign New MiG Deal With Russia: Official
By AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE
Published: 18 Jan 2010 10:42


NEW DELHI - India and Russia are set to agree a $1.2-billion deal for 29 MiG-29 fighter jets which will cement Moscow's role as New Delhi's principal arms supplier, an official said Jan. 18.

A senior Indian defense ministry official said the deal was likely to be finalized this week during a visit to New Delhi by a Russian military team. He declined to say when it would be signed.

"The contract has already been negotiated and just some finishing touches are now awaited," the official, who did not want to be named, said.

He put its worth at $1.2 billion and said the planes would be handed over to the Indian navy.

The deal has already been cleared by the cabinet of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, who paid a state visit to Russia last month.

The official said the deal would be in addition to 16 MiG-29 planes New Delhi will acquire for deployment on an aircraft carrier it also hopes to obtain from Russia, which supplies 70 percent of Indian weaponry.

The Russian embassy in New Delhi did not respond to queries on the deal.

Relations between India and Russia, currently negotiating arms contracts worth over $15 billion, hit a low following wrangling over the cost of refurbishing the retired aircraft carrier.

Russia in 2004 promised to gift the "Admiral Gorshkov" to India, provided Delhi paid a Russian shipyard $974 million to revamp the vessel.

Since then, the price has skyrocketed for fixing up the 27-year-old ship.

Last year, Russia startled India with a demand for $2.9 billion.

"Now we are closer to an understanding on Gorshkov," the ministry official said without elaborating.

During Singh's trip to Russia in December the countries signed two agreements on arms, one on their two-way weapons trade in the years 2011-2020 and another on servicing Russian-made arms sold to India.

India plans to spend tens of billions on dollars to modernize its military.

India To Sign New MiG Deal With Russia: Official - Defense News

 

[sudhir007]

Navy's SOS: Submarine force depleting: India Today - Latest Breaking News from India, World, Business, Cricket, Sports, Bollywood.

A security nightmare stares the nation in the face with the Indian Navy's submarine arm in danger of losing its strength and ability to keep enemies off the country's backyard.

Headlines Today has access to an internal note sent by the navy to the government, which warns of unthinkable scenarios for national security if corrective action is not taken quickly.

The navy admits in the document that it's almost at its lowest ebb in terms of submarine force levels in history. And this when the Chinese seem bent upon undermining India's maritime edge.

Former chief of naval staff Admiral Arun Prakash said the navy had been warning the government about the crisis since the early part of this decade. He said that while the government has cognizance of the matter it would be something to be very sorry about if no action was taken.

The navy has warned that in the next few years, its submarine strength could drop from 16 submarines to five - an unthinkable prospect for maritime security planners.

Of the 16 operational submarines currently, 10 are Russian Kilo-class submarines and four are German boats. The report warns that by 2012, only nine submarines could be active. If nothing is done to stem the tide, India could be left with just five active submarines in the coming years.

The navy has a 30-year plan to buy or build 24 submarines. But even 10 years after the Cabinet approved the plan, not a single new submarine has entered service. Meanwhile, the navy has already initiated cases to retire two of its old Foxtrot submarines very shortly. And the first of its deadly Kilo-class submarines could be retired beginning 2013.

Through the report, the navy's uncertainty about the Chinese is also out in the open. The document says it will not be long before extended Chinese patrols enter the Indian Navy's area of responsibility. The Chinese naval capability will prove to be a limiting factor to the other regional navies, especially the Indian Navy.

The navy has always been suspicious about China's long-term ambitions in the Indian Ocean region. But now, those anxieties have been laid bare. The navy report paints a highly disturbing picture of what China plans to do in the Indian Ocean.

Most ominously, these plans are already in motion. During 2009, 16 contacts were recorded with vessels suspected to be Chinese nuclear submarines on patrol outside their territorial waters.

The Indian Navy's own network of intelligence has corroborated three of these contacts - on February 16, July 23 and August 3 last year.

The navy report has made it clear that China has a proven deep-water ability and plans to flex more muscle in the years ahead.

Chinese nuclear submarines are currently only testing waters in the South China Sea, outside territorial waters. But in the next three years, the Indian Navy has warned that silent Chinese submarine patrols could begin crawling through the Indian Ocean with impunity.

China is aggressively ramping up command and control infrastructure in the Indian Ocean. This is being done to expand its influence in the zone most critical to Indian security, and in effect to encircle India.

 

[Iggy]

NEW DELHI - The Navy has started a $1.5 billion overhaul of its ageing Soviet-era fleet of aircraft, seeking to boost its air power in an Indian

Ocean region where a growing China is threatening its traditional dominance.

The investment is one of the biggest the Indian Navy has made in recent years and reflects New Delhi's urgency to modernise its military, a move that rival Pakistan says could spark an arms build-up and destabilise an already roiled South Asia.

India plans to buy 16 new MIG-29 fighter jets, half a dozen light combat aircraft, unmanned patrol planes and multi-role helicopters.

The Indian Navy is also upgrading its Sea Harrier fighter jets, IL-38 maritime anti-submarine warfare planes and acquiring five Kamov KA-31 patrol helicopters.

"We are acquiring new fighters and helicopters to ... supplement a new aircraft carrier we are getting soon," Commander PVS Satish, the navy spokesman said in New Delhi on Thursday.

Analysts said the upgrade of the Navy was long due.

"It is almost a matter of time before ships from China arrive in India's backyard," said Brahma Chellaney, professor of strategic studies at New Delhi's Centre for Policy Research.

India and China are locked in a battle to lead Asia. New Delhi fears China is creating an arc of influence in the Indian Ocean region, bolstering claims over what has traditionally been seen as India's backyard.

Indian officials said Pakistan, too, was modernising its navy.

Pakistan's National Command Authority (NCA), which oversees the country's nuclear weapons, said last week India's arms modernisation plans could destabilise the regional balance.

Indian Navy boosts its air fleet in $1.5 billion deal - India - The Times of India

 

[Iggy]

Before starting discussion i am telling the members here that its not a public toilet that every one can have their shittss on it..so as a thread starter i urge members to stick to the topic..

 

[Iggy]

My doubt is that what are the possible upgradation that can be done on Sea harriers??

 

[gogbot]

My doubt is that what are the possible upgradation that can be done on Sea harriers??

Standard stuff, Better avionics.

Capability to fire more types of weapons.

They still want the Harriers for INS Viraat (R22) and possibly the other Carrier as well.

 

[Iggy]

Standard stuff, Better avionics.

Capability to fire more types of weapons.

They still want the Harriers for INS Viraat (R22) and possibly the other Carrier as well.

What about BVR?can we do it in harriers?and is it too old for using in new carriers??