Indian Air Force News & Discussions

[KS]

Here is how data linked missiles may or will work.

Lets suppose, a fighter has a 100KM range active guided missile which has data link and fighter's own radar is off and its being guided by the AWAC where ever required. All of a sudden the AWAC picks up an enemy fighter which is around 80KM away from the fighter which has the missile but as its radar is off due to any of the reason. So now the AWAC may provide the fighter the coordinates of the target and direct it to fire, as the fighters own radar is off, so it can now take over the guidance of the radar through data link and provide it updated coordinates of the target and guide the missile to reach the target close enough from where the missile's own seeker or its own radar in the nose cone takes over and goes for the target.

Other scenario can be, the fighter locks on a target with its own radar which is 90KM away, fires its missile, but to save itself from any possible launched missile from the targeted aircraft, it takes a U-turn and goes for its own safe airspace or outrun the incoming missiles, so if the aircraft takes a U-turn, the launched missile will lose its mid course guidance from the aircraft which had launched it and whose radar had locked on the target, so here the data link of the missile and AWAC can play a role. The fighter when launched the missile, can hand over the or the AWAC can take over the missile and give it mid course guidance towards the target aircraft, while the friendly aircraft would have U-turned and running away from the incoming enemy missile.

"The first option is command link guidance. In this instance the launch vehicle's or site's radar would accurately track the target and launched missile, a computer would find the required flightpath corrections for the missile, which would then be transmitted via a data link to the missile's flight control system. When in range for an effective lock on with the onboard radar, the weapon would initiate its terminal guidance phase using its own radar and computer, no longer requiring guidance commands. This type of system is often used in surface-to-air missile systems. "

A good read to understand the types of missiles and how they work.

ACTIVE AND SEMIACTIVE RADAR MISSILE GUIDANCE

But the important question is even though it maybe feasible is it OPERATIONAL in PAF or IAF..?

 

[Dash]

Thanks Taimi khan for that update.

transmitted via a data link to the missile's flight control system

I never denied the data link capability.

See my last post - Why METEOR is so talked about , bcoz it can update information in back-channel to jet/AWACS even in terminal phase.

and Lt Prateek.

You said what I said in my post too.
I said the data link can work before missile locks on to target on its own.

 

[Lankan Ranger]

IAF: New Air Base At Phalodi, Rajasthan

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[gubbi]

Interesting to see the Jaguars. So the base is catered for hosting strike aircraft only?

 

[Justin Joseph]

Thales to upgrade IAF's MiG-29s with IFF system

NEW DELHI (PTI): French defence major Thales will provide the sensors complaint with NATO standards for Identifying Friend or Foe (IFF) on MiG-29 fighter aircraft of the Indian Air Force to be upgraded in Russia.

"Russian Aircraft Corporation, MiG (RSK-MiG), has chosen Thales to provide the IFF-1 Combined Interrogator Transponder (CIT) and Cryptographic National Secure Mode (NSM) as part of the retrofit for the Indian Air Force's MiG-29 multi-role fighter aircraft," a press release from the French firm said here Thursday.

The IAF has three squadrons of MiG-29, numbering about 60 aircraft, which are currently under the upgrade programme.

The IFF CIT will allow the IAF's MiG-29 fighter aircraft to be interoperable with Western military aircraft so as to avoid friendly fire.

The cryptographic mode will equip India with the first national secure identification capability for protecting its own assets.

Under the latest contract, Thales would deliver the first IFF CIT to MiG this year and the initial building block of a comprehensive secure identification capability in mid-2011.

The 'TSB 2500' IFF CIT is an advanced system compliant with the latest NATO standards.

Some 16,000 units of IFF equipment have been installed on board more than 100 types of platforms worldwide including airborne, ground and naval platforms, the Thales said.

Thales will supply the IAF's MiG-29 fighter aircraft with 'TOTEM-3000' new generation Inertial Navigation and Global Positioning System.

Thales, in addition line-fit, supplies the Indian Navy's newly built MiG-29KUB aircraft with the Topsight E helmet-mounted sight and display (HMSD), for which it successfully completed integration phase in November 2009.

"This decisive phase marks the end of qualification for the Topsight-E HMSD, which is now fully integrated to the MiG-29K/KUB cockpit, including ejection seat and weapon delivery and navigation system," it said.

Thales' cooperation with MiG started in 1993 when Sextant decided to design and supply a full avionics suite for the Russian Advanced Trainer MiG-AT. This opened up new cooperation on programmes such as the MiG-21 and MiG-29 upgrades.

Thales to upgrade IAF's MiG-29s with IFF system :: Brahmand.com

 

[deepakaviator]

India's Light Combat copter makes first flight.

As the helicopter taxied slowly along the airstrip, a little knot of designers and executives from Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd (HAL) watched silently, the sweat beads on their foreheads from more than just the Bangalore heat. March 29 had been selected for a landmark attempt: The first flight of the indigenous Light Combat Helicopter (LCH).
Attack helicopters involve the most complex aeronautical, stealth, sensor and weapons technologies. HAL’s state-of-the-art LCH aims to gatecrash an exclusive club of light attack helicopters that includes Eurocopter’s Tiger and China’s ultra-secret Zhisheng-10 (Z-10). In high-altitude performance, the LCH will be in a class by itself: Taking off from Himalayan altitudes of 10,000 feet, operating rockets and guns up to 16,300 feet, and launching missiles at UAVs flying at over 21,000 feet.
At 3.30 pm, the twin Shakti engines roared to a crescendo and the LCH pilots, Group Captains Unni Pillai and Hari Nair, lifted off the ground. The futuristic helicopter, all angles and armoured sheets, flew for a distance just a few feet above the runway; then cheering and clapping broke out as it climbed to 50 feet. Over the next 15 minutes, Pillai and Nair put the LCH through its first flight test, doing a clockwise and then an anti-clockwise turn, hovering motionless and circling the airport four times.
“It is a big day for all of us, especially those involved in the LCH’s design and fabrication,” Ashok Nayak, chairman and managing director of HAL, told Business Standard. “We were going to have the first LCH flight in December but, for one reason or another, it kept getting delayed.”

A feared predator in the modern battlefield, the attack helicopter is a key weapon system against enemy tanks. Once an enemy tank column is detected, attack helicopters speed to confront them, flying just 20-30 feet high to avoid radar detection with enemy rifle and machine-gun bullets ricocheting off their armoured sides. Hiding behind trees or a ridgeline, they pop up when the tanks are about 4 kilometres away to fire missiles that smash through a tank’s armour.

Excess weight has been the main reason for the delay in the LCH programme. The heavy armour needed for protection against enemy fire conflicts with the need for a light, highly mobile helicopter that can twist and dodge and hover stationary to allow pilots to aim and fire their missiles. The LCH was supposed to weight just 2.5 tonnes when empty; but the design team found that it actually weighed 580 kg more than that.

At lower altitudes, this would not be a significant drawback. But, at the LCH’s flight ceiling of 6,000 metres (almost 20,000 feet), this would significantly reduce the LCH’s payload of weapons and ammunition.

Last September, the chief of HAL’s Helicopter Complex, R Srinivasan, told Business Standard that the LCH’s weight would be progressively reduced over the first three Technology Demonstrators (TDs) of the LCH. “We will find ways of cutting down TD-1 by 180-200 kg; TD-2, will be another 100 kg lighter; and TD-3 will shave off another 65-75 kg. That would leave the LCH about 200 kg heavier than originally planned, but the IAF has accepted that.”

HAL chief Ashok Nayak today confirmed to Business Standard that this schedule was on track. “The weight reduction that we had targeted for TD-1, which flew on Monday, has been met. The second prototype, TD-1, which will make its first flight by September, will be lighter still.”

The Indian Air Force (IAF) has said that it needs 65 LCHs; the army wants another 114. If the development programme is not delayed further, the LCH will enter service by 2015-2016. To meet its needs till then, the Ministry of Defence floated a global tender for 22 attack helicopters. With only three companies responding, that tender was cancelled last year.

But HAL remains confident since most of the key technologies in the LCH — e.g., the Shakti engine, the rotors and the main gearbox — have already been proven in the Dhruv Advanced Light Helicopter, 159 of which are being built for the army and the air force.

Simultaneously, the LCH’s weapons and sensors are being tested on a weaponised version of the Dhruv. These include a Nexter 20 mm turret-mounted cannon, an MBDA air-to-air missile, and an EW suite from SAAB, South Africa. India’s Defence R&D Organisation (DRDO) is developing an anti-tank guided missile (ATGM) for the LCH. Based on the already developed Nag ATGM, the HELINA (or HELIicopter-mounted NAg) missile can destroy tanks from a distance of seven kilometres.

 

[DMLA]

HATSOFF to HAL & CAE: India's first hi-tech copter simulator park all set to go live in Bangalore; experts call it a pilots' delight

India’s first state-of-the-art helicopter simulator facility is expected to go live in Bengaluru next month. The Helicopter Academy to Train by Simulation of Flying (HATSOFF) is an 50/50 joint venture between Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd (HAL) and simulation technology company CAE, Canada.

Installation and integration work began in early March and infrastructure activities are now in full swing. “The first Bell 412EP cockpit will be ready for training by May after certification by European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) and Director General of Civil Aviation (DGCA). The Dhruv civil cockpit would be ready by December 2010, Dhruv military cockpit by April 2011 and the Dauphin 365N3 cockpit by June 2011,” Wing Cmdr. (ret.) C.D. Upadhaya, HATSOFF’s CEO, told Aviation Week.

The facility boasts a roll-on/roll-off (RO-RO) type, full-motion Level-D simulator, certified to EASA standards, with a common motion platform and interchangeable cockpit modules for Bell 412EP, Dauphin 365N3 and ALH civil and military variants.

“This facility is being established to provide training to different customers from the three services and also customers from private civil helicopter operators in India and abroad who have shown keen interest in the training facility. Once operational, this will be a showcase to Bangalore,” a senior HAL official said.

Capt. Singh Deo, MD Bell Helicopter, India, told Aviation Week that once HATSOFF goes live, pilots will not need to leave India for training.

“In India we are late in catching up with simulators, though it was long overdue. This simulator park is very advanced and now we need not send our pilots abroad for training. Now, pilots can practice handling emergencies however number of times they want, which otherwise was not possible,” said Deo, who is also the president of the northern chapter of the Rotary Wing Society of India.

 

[RPK]

Possible sale of 10 Boeing to IAF: US

This is an important step forward in the U.S. Foreign Military Sales process and is a necessary prerequisite to negotiations on the deal, said an official statement on Monday.

After hearing of the notification dated April 22, U.S. Ambassador to India Timothy J. Roemer said, “The potential sale of C-17s strengthens the growing partnership between our two countries, and demonstrates our enduring commitment to sharing the world’s best technology with India.

“This sale will offer economic benefits for both India and the United States and will likely include significant job creation in both countries. India is a leading partner in our efforts to promote regional stability, peace and economic growth.”

The C-17 is the workhorse of the U.S. Air Force transport fleet and has proven highly reliable in the harsh environments of Iraq and Afghanistan.

The Indian Air Force will use the C-17s to modernize India’s armed forces with new cargo capabilities. With a payload of 164,900 pounds, the C-17 can take off from a 7,000-foot airfield, fly 2,400 nautical miles, and land on a small, austere airfield in 3,000 feet or less.

In addition to the U.S. Air Force, the C-17 is currently in service with the British Royal Air Force, the Royal Australian Air Force, the Canadian Forces, NATO and Qatar, with C-17s on order for the UAE.

Although the official notification to Congress lists the potential value as $5.8 billion, this represents the highest possible estimate for the sale, and includes all potential services offered. The actual cost will be based on Indian Air Force requirements and has yet to be negotiated.

In addition to the C-17 airplanes themselves, at the discretion of the Indian Air Force, the purchase may include some or all of the following:

· Training for aircrew and maintenance personnel
· Training equipment
· Spare and repair parts
· Test equipment, ground support equipment
· Technical assistance
· Engineering services for India
· Unique modifications specific to the Indian Air Force
· Logistical and technical support

 

[sudhir007]

Possible sale of 10 Boeing to IAF: US

This is an important step forward in the U.S. Foreign Military Sales process and is a necessary prerequisite to negotiations on the deal, said an official statement on Monday.

After hearing of the notification dated April 22, U.S. Ambassador to India Timothy J. Roemer said, “The potential sale of C-17s strengthens the growing partnership between our two countries, and demonstrates our enduring commitment to sharing the world’s best technology with India.

“This sale will offer economic benefits for both India and the United States and will likely include significant job creation in both countries. India is a leading partner in our efforts to promote regional stability, peace and economic growth.”

The C-17 is the workhorse of the U.S. Air Force transport fleet and has proven highly reliable in the harsh environments of Iraq and Afghanistan.

The Indian Air Force will use the C-17s to modernize India’s armed forces with new cargo capabilities. With a payload of 164,900 pounds, the C-17 can take off from a 7,000-foot airfield, fly 2,400 nautical miles, and land on a small, austere airfield in 3,000 feet or less.

In addition to the U.S. Air Force, the C-17 is currently in service with the British Royal Air Force, the Royal Australian Air Force, the Canadian Forces, NATO and Qatar, with C-17s on order for the UAE.

Although the official notification to Congress lists the potential value as $5.8 billion, this represents the highest possible estimate for the sale, and includes all potential services offered. The actual cost will be based on Indian Air Force requirements and has yet to be negotiated.

In addition to the C-17 airplanes themselves, at the discretion of the Indian Air Force, the purchase may include some or all of the following:

· Training for aircrew and maintenance personnel
· Training equipment
· Spare and repair parts
· Test equipment, ground support equipment
· Technical assistance
· Engineering services for India
· Unique modifications specific to the Indian Air Force
· Logistical and technical support

For me it is waste of money

 

[brahmastra]

PHOTOS: Indian C-130Js Under Build At Lockheed's Marietta Hercules Factory

Photos Courtesy Lockheed-Martin

 

[sudhir007]

http://www.kpmg.com/IN/en/IssuesAnd...pportunities_in_the_Indian_Defence_Sector.pdf

 

[Mr. cool]

For me it is waste of money

but why ??

 

[sirius4u]

For me it is waste of money

No i dont think so... IAF is definitely in need of this kind of aircraft... Reasons...

1. Low maintenance & life cycle costs...
2. Can easily operate out of short or under-prepared runways... which is very useful during war or natural calamities..
3. Has better range than our IL78s &can carry more payload...
4. Rugged & high resistance to FOD damage...
5. Drawback- Highly costly...

What i am trying to tell is IAF has opted the C-130s for special ops... & the globemasters for emergency supplies or evacs in border areas... We were in need of this kind of aircraft for a long time.. And now we are going to get these..

It is not that our whole cargo fleet is to be comprised of C17s... But these will definitely reduce the workload of ILs until say 2025 when we will have a full squadron of our own developed MTAs...

 

[sudhir007]

No i dont think so... IAF is definitely in need of this kind of aircraft... Reasons...

1. Low maintenance & life cycle costs...
2. Can easily operate out of short or under-prepared runways... which is very useful during war or natural calamities..
3. Has better range than our IL78s &can carry more payload...
4. Rugged & high resistance to FOD damage...
5. Drawback- Highly costly...

What i am trying to tell is IAF has opted the C-130s for special ops... & the globemasters for emergency supplies or evacs in border areas... We were in need of this kind of aircraft for a long time.. And now we are going to get these..

It is not that our whole cargo fleet is to be comprised of C17s... But these will definitely reduce the workload of ILs until say 2025 when we will have a full squadron of our own developed MTAs...

For me my favorite is AN-124-150 better payload then c-17 more range 1/3 of price. C-17 come around $500M per plane did you think it is worthy. it is better to for refueller from A-330 but MOD cancel that deal. I dnt understand why mod want FMS rout to purchase US product without realizing any RFP in global mkt. we dnt need this plane on ASAP. like other MRCA, howitzer, SUB. attack copter etc............

 

[sirius4u]

For me my favorite is AN-124-150 better payload then c-17 more range 1/3 of price. C-17 come around $500M per plane did you think it is worthy. it is better to for refueller from A-330 but MOD cancel that deal. I dnt understand why mod want FMS rout to purchase US product without realizing any RFP in global mkt. we dnt need this plane on ASAP. like other MRCA, howitzer, SUB. attack copter etc............

But will it be easy to maintain & rugged like the C-17...?

Can it operate in unprepared airstrips...? Certainly a big NO... Its as huge as it can be...

IAF dont need a big plane... It cant be used in borders and emergencies... That is why i say C-17 is handy for that role... We are just ordering 10... Like i said before, its not gonna be our main airlifter... Its a strategic, tactical airlifter... I think we definitely need it... Feel free to correct me...