shehbazi2001
SENIOR MEMBER
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The future air defence program is about JF-17 and FC-20.
The radar, weapons ,mission computers and other avionics do not seem to be finalised. I dont know of a deadline when first fully-equipped and armed JF-17 squadron shall be inducted, not the ones without BVRs or other advanced tools.
But the decision to fit these aircrafts with western systems should be taken once we are satisfied with the flight performance of airframe like range, turning performance, climb rate, short take-off and landing, ceiling, acceleration, payload capacity etc. This performance should be better than F-16A because these are going to be future fighters of Pakistan and they should beat a 1970s design in performance.
However lets look at other chinese aircraft that Pakistan acquired earlier.
A-5, F-6 and F-7.......PAF managed to fit AIM-9s on them and installed italian radars on F-7s. Lately perhaps added some defensive suits. I am just limiting myself to weapons, radar and defensive suits, not other things like radio, ejection seats etc. Thus it means that there is some experience and bold decisions can be taken.
At the same time, its good to study and monitor these programs continuously to determine whether they would neutralise the threat. Three important elements are radar, weapons and countermeasures (Thinking that engine is not an issue).
JF-17 and FC-20......The company that shall be chosen to install the radar will also be charged of the integration of various missiles be WVR or BVR. If its a french company, the french missiles can be easily integrated but the client may also demand the integration of other missiles like ASRAAM or IRIS-T or some South-African.
The same process can be done with an Italian radar. Thus any radar provider should be told of the requirements of weapons integration work too. Not only A2A, but A2G and anti-ship weapons too need to be integrated with radar.
The same is the case when choosing IRST(A2A) and FLIR systems (A2G). The provider of IRST/FLIR should integrate these sensors with the weapons too like IRST to cue the A2A missiles and FLIR to cue A2G ones like Mavericks.
The provider of A2A missiles should also integrate these weapons with a Helmet-mounted sight at least if not helmet-mounted display.
Then is the integrated electonic warfare system to counter the growing technologies of the SAM systems. Close support to the army may become a very risky and costly mission keeping in view the latest SAMs that are better than earlier systems. SAMs......like SPYDER (18 systems to be produced by Bharat Dynamics), Barak 8 joint-development program, Tunguska etc
The 4-barrel 23mm ZSU-23 Shilka is being replaced by Tunguska system that combines short range missiles with guns. The Shilka was effective till 7,000 feet and one needed to be above 7,000 feet to avoid these guns. In simulator Israeli Air Force, I flew in an F-4 at low level over an area covered by Shilka and this gun was simply devastating. But with AGM-88, the gundish radar of shilka was always destroyed in the simulator. India is also using the twin-barrel manual AA ZSU-23 guns. With 30mm guns of Tunguska, I dont know whats the safe altitude against it.
So an EW system comprising of warning elements and counter-action elements is vital. The warning element may be an Advanced Warning Receiver, which not only gives the warning of radar search, tracking, locking but also of missile launch and calculates the bearing and range of those radars.
The counter-action elements may consist of various kinds of chaff, at least two types of flares, fitted/fixed RF and IR jammers, podded jammers and towed decoys. RF Jammers shall be required till advanced AESA radars having themselves the jamming capability are installed in JF-17/J-10.
To counter the double-band Imaging Infra-Red seekers like that of Python-5 AAM, the flare dispenser needs to carry two types of flares, each flare reproducing a different Infra-red band. Thats what I think......correct me if its wrong.......
The usual wavelengths are 5-8 micro meter (figures basically for an IRST system), but the flares should be tailored according to the seeker of the WVR missile. If the seeker is looking for 8 micro-meter wavelength radiations and flare represents 5 micro-meter wavelength radiations, the missile shall not be fooled.
Thats why the Python and the new heat-seeker dont rely on a single band. They are dual-band and fighter aircraft need to carry at least two types of flares each representing a different IR band. The evolution of heat-seeking missiles is an interesting but lengthy story and it shall be nice if a member can post this evolution.
But in short, the early heat-seekers like AIM-9B looked for the hottest spots on the aircraft and evidently it was the engine exhaust. Thats why a shot was possible from rear quarter only. Then the technology advanced and the missiles were not necessarily looking for the hottest spot. They were more tuned to spot the hot airframe like leading edges of wings etc. This was possible through Imaging IR technology.
So I dont know how much time shall be needed for the integration of these three principal systems (radar, weapons, countermeasures suit).
One questiong for the members......what should be the best direction of dispensing flares.......simple backwards or some other direction.....what about the different flare throwing pattern of Flanker......which pattern is better and why......????
The radar, weapons ,mission computers and other avionics do not seem to be finalised. I dont know of a deadline when first fully-equipped and armed JF-17 squadron shall be inducted, not the ones without BVRs or other advanced tools.
But the decision to fit these aircrafts with western systems should be taken once we are satisfied with the flight performance of airframe like range, turning performance, climb rate, short take-off and landing, ceiling, acceleration, payload capacity etc. This performance should be better than F-16A because these are going to be future fighters of Pakistan and they should beat a 1970s design in performance.
However lets look at other chinese aircraft that Pakistan acquired earlier.
A-5, F-6 and F-7.......PAF managed to fit AIM-9s on them and installed italian radars on F-7s. Lately perhaps added some defensive suits. I am just limiting myself to weapons, radar and defensive suits, not other things like radio, ejection seats etc. Thus it means that there is some experience and bold decisions can be taken.
At the same time, its good to study and monitor these programs continuously to determine whether they would neutralise the threat. Three important elements are radar, weapons and countermeasures (Thinking that engine is not an issue).
JF-17 and FC-20......The company that shall be chosen to install the radar will also be charged of the integration of various missiles be WVR or BVR. If its a french company, the french missiles can be easily integrated but the client may also demand the integration of other missiles like ASRAAM or IRIS-T or some South-African.
The same process can be done with an Italian radar. Thus any radar provider should be told of the requirements of weapons integration work too. Not only A2A, but A2G and anti-ship weapons too need to be integrated with radar.
The same is the case when choosing IRST(A2A) and FLIR systems (A2G). The provider of IRST/FLIR should integrate these sensors with the weapons too like IRST to cue the A2A missiles and FLIR to cue A2G ones like Mavericks.
The provider of A2A missiles should also integrate these weapons with a Helmet-mounted sight at least if not helmet-mounted display.
Then is the integrated electonic warfare system to counter the growing technologies of the SAM systems. Close support to the army may become a very risky and costly mission keeping in view the latest SAMs that are better than earlier systems. SAMs......like SPYDER (18 systems to be produced by Bharat Dynamics), Barak 8 joint-development program, Tunguska etc
The 4-barrel 23mm ZSU-23 Shilka is being replaced by Tunguska system that combines short range missiles with guns. The Shilka was effective till 7,000 feet and one needed to be above 7,000 feet to avoid these guns. In simulator Israeli Air Force, I flew in an F-4 at low level over an area covered by Shilka and this gun was simply devastating. But with AGM-88, the gundish radar of shilka was always destroyed in the simulator. India is also using the twin-barrel manual AA ZSU-23 guns. With 30mm guns of Tunguska, I dont know whats the safe altitude against it.
So an EW system comprising of warning elements and counter-action elements is vital. The warning element may be an Advanced Warning Receiver, which not only gives the warning of radar search, tracking, locking but also of missile launch and calculates the bearing and range of those radars.
The counter-action elements may consist of various kinds of chaff, at least two types of flares, fitted/fixed RF and IR jammers, podded jammers and towed decoys. RF Jammers shall be required till advanced AESA radars having themselves the jamming capability are installed in JF-17/J-10.
To counter the double-band Imaging Infra-Red seekers like that of Python-5 AAM, the flare dispenser needs to carry two types of flares, each flare reproducing a different Infra-red band. Thats what I think......correct me if its wrong.......
The usual wavelengths are 5-8 micro meter (figures basically for an IRST system), but the flares should be tailored according to the seeker of the WVR missile. If the seeker is looking for 8 micro-meter wavelength radiations and flare represents 5 micro-meter wavelength radiations, the missile shall not be fooled.
Thats why the Python and the new heat-seeker dont rely on a single band. They are dual-band and fighter aircraft need to carry at least two types of flares each representing a different IR band. The evolution of heat-seeking missiles is an interesting but lengthy story and it shall be nice if a member can post this evolution.
But in short, the early heat-seekers like AIM-9B looked for the hottest spots on the aircraft and evidently it was the engine exhaust. Thats why a shot was possible from rear quarter only. Then the technology advanced and the missiles were not necessarily looking for the hottest spot. They were more tuned to spot the hot airframe like leading edges of wings etc. This was possible through Imaging IR technology.
So I dont know how much time shall be needed for the integration of these three principal systems (radar, weapons, countermeasures suit).
One questiong for the members......what should be the best direction of dispensing flares.......simple backwards or some other direction.....what about the different flare throwing pattern of Flanker......which pattern is better and why......????