India To Attempt Local Overhaul of Troubled An-32 Fleet

[$@rJen]

India To Attempt Local Overhaul of Troubled An-32 Fleet

PublishedFebruary 26, 2016

SOURCE: AINONLINE

The Indian Air Force (IAF) will issue a request for proposal (RFP) next month for the overhaul of 20 Antonov An-32 airlifters to independent Indian maintenance repair and overhaul providers. The move follows problems with an upgrade by the OEM in Ukraine, on the heels of deteriorating relations between that country and Russia. Meanwhile, a long-planned Indo-Russian project to eventually replace the IAF’s 105-strong fleet of An-32s has stalled.

The former IAF maintenance commander Air Marshall P. Kanakraj set the scene for the RFP two years ago when he said, “We are expecting the MRO Industry to partner for reclamation, refurbishment and re-equipping of our aviation assets…both fighter and transport aircraft.” AIN has learned that an RFI was issued a few months ago to Air India Engineering Services, Air Works India, Taneja Aerospace and GMR Aero Technic. The RFP will be for 11 packages, including repainting, wing structure modification and aging fleet and ultrasonic inspection.

The work performed on the 40 IAF An-32s that were upgraded in Ukraine before the crisis with Russia halted progress included air collision avoidance system, ground proximity warning system, satellite navigation system, distance-measuring equipment, upgraded radio altimeters and new radar with two multifunctional indicators. Engineers from Antonov were sent to the IAF repot in Kanpur to oversee work on the remaining 65 An-32s. But they left midway through the effort, even as the IAF started working with private manufacturers for indigenization of components such as nuts, bolts, washers, pipelines, rubber seals unions, joints, harnesses, filters and electronic items.

India’s largest MRO, Air India Engineering Services Ltd. (AIESL), would do this work at the recently completed Boeing overhaul facility in Nagpur. The company has already been selected to do future overhauls on the Indian Navy’s Boeing P-8I Poseidons. “Our new six narrow-body hangars are unlike any other in India, and we can work on three An-32s at a time. We estimated it will take 206 days to complete each aircraft,” chief executive officer ofAIESL H.R Jagannath told AIN. But he warned that reliable supply of spare parts is essential. Last April, AINreported that Antonov was unable to obtain any Russian-made An-32 components. An Indian vendor told AINrecently that more than 40 aircraft in the IAF fleet had been cannibalized.

According to recent media reports in both India and Russia, the Multi-Role Transport Aircraft (MTA) project to replace the An-32s has foundered on choice of powerplant and cost. Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd. (HAL) and United Aircraft Corporation (UAC) supposedly signed a contract in 2012 for the twinjet, high-wing, T-tail design. The IAF would take 45 with another 100 going to the Russian air force. UAC believes that the Aviadvigatel PS-90A turbofan is the best solution, whereas HAL wants a new powerplant that includes Fadec.

 

[PARIKRAMA]

@Abingdonboy This is as per your forecast
Look at the pathetic condition we are in.. An32 in Kanpur depot by Ukrainian folks left midway (most probably crisis back home)

The MIC of Ukraine is gone.. We should forget anything we were expecting beforehand..

AIESL is a good bet and should help us for the future part.. Perhaps the first 20 is a good test plan..

I say again.. as i said before.. 0.7 be the ratio of An32 replaced by stipped down version of C130 knows as C130 XJ

For 105 An32, buy around 70 C130 XJ and ask Lockheed to make all the planes under Make In India program

You remember the 12 C130 order
First IAF has six C-130Js tactical airlift aircraft, ordered for $962 million in 2007
Second IAF ordered for $1.01 billion one for six additional C-130J "Super Hercules" aircraft

So 12 jets for approx $1.973 Bn or per Jet approx USD 164 Mn

Now we dont require so many systems with it as those jets are for special ops.. These jets are strip down versions and thus will carry minimal of stuff as required in basic set up as specified by IAF...

In such a case we might get the deal at around approx USD 70-80 Mn per Jet

So a fleet of 70 should cost us max USD 5-5.6 Bn and we can ask USA and LM to show their commitment for MII by making it In India without we asking for offsets and inflating the price much..

 

[Abingdonboy]

@Abingdonboy This is as per your forecast
Look at the pathetic condition we are in.. An32 in Kanpur depot by Ukrainian folks left midway (most probably crisis back home)

What an absolute mess- more than 1/3rd of the fleet (40 units) cannibalized, OEM (Anotov) teams departing India halfway through work, failure to meet contractual norms, inability to source quality parts etc etc.

And whilst the local option is helpful it will only be a band-aid on what is now a crisis in the backbone of the IAF's airlift fleet. The biggest issue is this:

But he warned that reliable supply of spare parts is essential. Last April, AINreported that Antonov was unable to obtain any Russian-made An-32 components. An Indian vendor told AINrecently that more than 40 aircraft in the IAF fleet had been cannibalized.

It doesn't matter how good the MRO facilities are in India if they can't source the correct parts from OEMs in Ukraine or Russia, this will cripple the overhaul efforts and affect the fleet's operational capacity.

And compounding all of this? The fact that the An-32's replacment is nowhere to be seen and effectively DOA. It is a mess of collossal proportions and its significance cannot be overstated- the An-32 is the workhorse of the IAF and its 100+ fleet is essential to day to day missions across India and specfically in the North and NE, couple this with the fact that the strategic fleet (C-17) is also below projected capacity (10 vs >22) the very ability of India to sustain its military efforts in peacetime, let alone full scale war, are highly questionable.

You remember the 12 C130 order
First IAF has six C-130Js tactical airlift aircraft, ordered for $962 million in 2007
Second IAF ordered for $1.01 billion one for six additional C-130J "Super Hercules" aircraft

So 12 jets for approx $1.973 Bn or per Jet approx USD 164 Mn

Now we dont require so many systems with it as those jets are for special ops.. These jets are strip down versions and thus will carry minimal of stuff as required in basic set up as specified by IAF...

Also, don't forget, the Special Mission Hercs the IAF has (and has on order) are the "stretched" C-130J-30 versions, the C-130XJ are based on the standard versions and stripped of all non-essential luxeries so would be considerably cheaper.

The XJ is by far the best option on the table and if the US is that keen to take part in MII then they should put their money where their mouth is and go for full scale production in India- the figure you have projected @PARIKRAMA (70 or so units) is more than enough to justify its own production line in India.



Aside from that, what a pathetic state of affairs @anant_s @MilSpec @nair @SpArK @AUSTERLITZ @Echo_419 @Koovie @Levina @SRP @Parul @Taygibay @janon @knight11

 

[MilSpec]

What an absolute mess- more than 1/3rd of the fleet (40 units) cannibalized, OEM (Anotov) teams departing India halfway through work, failure to meet contractual norms, inability to source quality parts etc etc.

And whilst the local option is helpful it will only be a band-aid on what is now a crisis in the backbone of the IAF's airlift fleet. The biggest issue is this:


It doesn't matter how good the MRO facilities are in India if they can't source the correct parts from OEMs in Ukraine or Russia, this will cripple the overhaul efforts and affect the fleet's operational capacity.

And compounding all of this? The fact that the An-32's replacment is nowhere to be seen and effectively DOA. It is a mess of collossal proportions and its significance cannot be overstated- the An-32 is the workhorse of the IAF and its 100+ fleet is essential to day to day missions across India and specfically in the North and NE, couple this with the fact that the strategic fleet (C-17) is also below projected capacity (10 vs >22) the very ability of India to sustain its military efforts in peacetime, let alone full scale war, are highly questionable.





Also, don't forget, the Special Mission Hercs the IAF has (and has on order) are the "stretched" C-130J-30 versions, the C-130XJ are based on the standard versions and stripped of all non-essential luxeries so would be considerably cheaper.

The XJ is by far the best option on the table and if the US is that keen to take part in MII then they should put their money where their mouth is and go for full scale production in India- the figure you have projected @PARIKRAMA (70 or so units) is more than enough to justify its own production line in India.



Aside from that, what a pathetic state of affairs @anant_s @MilSpec @nair @SpArK @AUSTERLITZ @Echo_419 @Koovie @Levina @SRP @Parul @Taygibay @janon @knight11

I have often said, Ukriane irrespective of the turmoil going on there, has been a a very untrustworthy service provider. The quality is shoddy, rework is extensive.
I wish the private sector would step up here, make no mistakes, AN32's are very capable platforms.

 

[anant_s]

offtopic: Any idea what platform will replace of C17 in USAF in future?
@Abingdonboy @MilSpec @Oscar

 

[Indika]

What an absolute mess- more than 1/3rd of the fleet (40 units) cannibalized, OEM (Anotov) teams departing India halfway through work, failure to meet contractual norms, inability to source quality parts etc etc.

And whilst the local option is helpful it will only be a band-aid on what is now a crisis in the backbone of the IAF's airlift fleet. The biggest issue is this:


It doesn't matter how good the MRO facilities are in India if they can't source the correct parts from OEMs in Ukraine or Russia, this will cripple the overhaul efforts and affect the fleet's operational capacity.

And compounding all of this? The fact that the An-32's replacment is nowhere to be seen and effectively DOA. It is a mess of collossal proportions and its significance cannot be overstated- the An-32 is the workhorse of the IAF and its 100+ fleet is essential to day to day missions across India and specfically in the North and NE, couple this with the fact that the strategic fleet (C-17) is also below projected capacity (10 vs >22) the very ability of India to sustain its military efforts in peacetime, let alone full scale war, are highly questionable.





Also, don't forget, the Special Mission Hercs the IAF has (and has on order) are the "stretched" C-130J-30 versions, the C-130XJ are based on the standard versions and stripped of all non-essential luxeries so would be considerably cheaper.

The XJ is by far the best option on the table and if the US is that keen to take part in MII then they should put their money where their mouth is and go for full scale production in India- the figure you have projected @PARIKRAMA (70 or so units) is more than enough to justify its own production line in India.



Aside from that, what a pathetic state of affairs

It only points to poor planning and inability to recognize the issues that might arise in future.
Whatever happened to MTA program started by HAL? It seems only the fighter aircraft gets all the hype and hoopla.
There needs to be drastic change in requirements planning of air force. They simply seem to wait until the things blow over.

 

[PARIKRAMA]

offtopic: Any idea what platform will replace of C17 in USAF in future?
@Abingdonboy @MilSpec @Oscar

As of now no plans are mooted for a new transport plane for replacing C17s

Transport fleet replacement program is not given a high impetus mainly bcz these jets will easily serve 3 more decades.. And secondly not much money has been poured to find a new revolutionary design which exceeds performance of C17 yet operational cost wise better..

Perhaps PAK TA a transport version may make USA take it as a challenge to prove a point.. But then again designs wise R&D is not much.. some concepts were planned but no serious exploring to see its thorough potential...

Btw latest article on USAF TRAINING needs for C17 states the following, I quote

We’re still in the business,” Sisco, of Boeing global services and support, tells Flightglobal. “The same competition is rolling back around again and we fully intend to go after that to help the US government get their training centres and systems back up to where we feel they should be.”

Sisco expects C-17 to keep serving in its strategic airlift role through 2060 and the aircrew and maintenance training system will need to be refreshed as those aircraft are updated.
Unquote

Boeing seeks to recapture prime USAF C-17 training spot

 

[Taygibay]

Why not hire a base of qualified engineers out of Ukraine ( some could be tempted under circumstances )
or from other origins ( Israel, South Af etc ) and give the An-32 refurb to a private player ( say Tata )?
That would kick start MII and fix your bug. You'd also be surprised how much great work some in-house
maintenance units do in many top AFs. Maybe they could take a bit of the load?

As for anant_s' Q. :
A- A400 M . . . in a couple years when Airbus has smoothed out the present kinks!

Great evening all, Tay.

 

[Blue Marlin]

Why not hire a base of qualified engineers out of Ukraine ( some could be tempted under circumstances )
or from other origins ( Israel, South Af etc ) and give the An-32 refurb to a private player ( say Tata )?
That would kick start MII and fix your bug. You'd also be surprised how much great work some in-house
maintenance is in many top AFs. Maybe they could take a bit of the load?

As for anant_s' Q. :
A- A400 M . . . in a couple years when Airbus has smoothed out the present kinks!

Great evening all, Tay.

really bro the a400m!? common pla its a good plane in terms of technological advancements but its way to expensive. heck they cant swallow the rafale never mind the a400m the german governmnet prefered the an-70 but they chose the a40 m due to political reasons and the work it would bring to the country. personally i like the c17 and the c130-30j
and the c27 a good transporters. also i dont see the need to overhaul the an-32's as the c295 are being built by tata right?

 

[Taygibay]

No Blue Mate, you missed anant_s post #5!
Considering the suggested client, one buy by them would lower production cost a lot due to series effect!

As for the C-295, yes but still, India can't just throw away its Antonovs my man!
They have like a hundred of them! Mighty recycling bin, require it would young Jedi!

Cheers, Tay.

 

[Abingdonboy]

It only points to poor planning and inability to recognize the issues that might arise in future.
Whatever happened to MTA program started by HAL? It seems only the fighter aircraft gets all the hype and hoopla.
There needs to be drastic change in requirements planning of air force. They simply seem to wait until the things blow over.

The MTA project is falling apart- the Russian side have entirely ignored the IAF's requests for an engine with full digital FADEC control, IMO the MTA is headed for the dustbin. According to the orginal timeline it should have been in flight testing years ago but it remains a paper airplane and given Russia's current economic situation it will likely remain so for the forseeable future.

A- A400 M . . . in a couple years when Airbus has smoothed out the present kinks!

It's not as absurd as one might think:

IAF impressed with Airbus A400M
- SP’s Exculsive

Considering the IAF had projected a need for >22 C-17s but is limited to only 10 with the closure of the Long Beach plant and they have been mightly impressed by the C-17. The A400M would be a sub-optimal solution but I feel the IAF would be more inclined to take it over the IL-476.

also i dont see the need to overhaul the an-32's as the c295 are being built by tata right?

The C-295s are being procured as replacments for the Avros, the An-32 was to be replaced by the MTA in the long term but were being overhauled and upgraded to the "RE" standard to serve for another decade or so, I guess to cover any delays in the development of the MTA- the IAF were actually being sensible for once and look what happens- BOTH efforts blow up spectacuarly in their face @PARIKRAMA

offtopic: Any idea what platform will replace of C17 in USAF in future?
@Abingdonboy @MilSpec @Oscar

As far as I am aware there is no project running as of yet because the C-17 has a >40 year lifespan and the USAF's C-17 fleet if relatively young. If you look at the C-5 example though-new engines a fuselage plug to increase capacity and that zero-timing the airframe, the C-17 could have a very long service life indeed and it would require an emergence of a dramatically innovative technology to change this.

 

[Blue Marlin]

The MTA project is falling apart- the Russian side have entirely ignored the IAF's requests for an engine with full digital FADEC control, IMO the MTA is headed for the dustbin. According to the orginal timeline it should have been in flight testing years ago but it remains a paper airplane and given Russia's current economic situation it will likely remain so for the forseeable future.



It's not as absurd as one might think:

IAF impressed with Airbus A400M
- SP’s Exculsive

Considering the IAF had projected a need for >22 C-17s but is limited to only 10 with the closure of the Long Beach plant and they have been mightly impressed by the C-17. The A400M would be a sub-optimal solution but I feel the IAF would be more inclined to take it over the IL-476.



The C-295s are being procured as replacments for the Avros, the An-32 was to be replaced by the MTA in the long term but were being overhauled and upgraded to the "RE" standard to serve for another decade or so, I guess to cover any delays in the development of the MTA- the IAF were actually being sensible for once and look what happens- BOTH efforts blow up spectacuarly in their face @PARIKRAMA


As far as I am aware there is no project running as of yet because the C-17 has a >40 year lifespan and the USAF's C-17 fleet if relatively young. If you look at the C-5 example though-new engines a fuselage plug to increase capacity and that zero-timing the airframe, the C-17 could have a very long service life indeed and it would require an emergence of a dramatically innovative technology to change this.

whats MTA?

 

[Abingdonboy]

whats MTA?

UAC/HAL IL-214 Multirole Transport Aircraft (MTA):

------

@MilSpec @Taygibay would there not be issues for the Indian private sector to "go it alone' without OEM support to carry out such intensive overhaul and upgradation of these birds?

 

[Blue Marlin]

No Blue Mate, you missed anant_s post #5!
Considering the suggested client, one buy by them would lower production cost a lot due to series effect!

As for the C-295, yes but still, India can't just throw away its Antonovs my man!
They have like a hundred of them! Mighty recycling bin, require it would young Jedi!

Cheers, Tay.

you could have at least quoted it. i thought you were on your usual rants
fair point you cant dump them all at once. also i found that 20 of the older 80's frames are scrapped and the 105 of the later 80's and beyond to the 90's model's are still going about 105 of them. so a midlife upgrade would be usefull to keep them going for another 20 years or so.

UAC/HAL IL-214 Multirole Transport Aircraft (MTA):

------

@MilSpec @Taygibay would there not be issues for the Indian private sector to "go it alone' without OEM support to carry out such intensive overhaul and upgradation of these birds?

i thought russia is going for it alone due to disagrements?
Russia 'freezes' India out of MTA project, to proceed alone as Il-214 | IHS Jane's 360

 

[Abingdonboy]

i thought russia is going for it alone due to disagrements?
Russia 'freezes' India out of MTA project, to proceed alone as Il-214 | IHS Jane's 360

It's still unclear but yes, India has no real hope of getting the MTA.