Indian Air Force News & Discussions

[MirageBlue]

https://twitter.com/x/status/1608381164959707138

IAF fighter and transport aircraft carried out practice flying including circuit, approach and overshoot on newly constructed Emergency Landing Facility on NH-16 at Bapatla District in Andhra Pradesh on 29 Dec 22.

 

[SQ8]

https://twitter.com/x/status/1608381164959707138

That MKI is just not suited for highway ops even though it has decent short field capabilities with particular TVC takeoff procedures - FOD threat is too much for those AL-31s unless FOD walks are conducted after every second sortie.

The Jaguars excel at these dispersed airfields - although the Rafale has seen these tested as well.

 

[MirageBlue]

Su-30MKI with the Brahmos-ER ALCM that was fired in a test against a ship target in the Bay of Bengal

No.224 'Tigersharks' squadron based in Tanjavur in Tamil Nadu are tasked for this role.

 

[Super Falcon]

Indian airforce signed a deal with İAİ for 6 older B 767 MRTT for aerial refueling role retiring soon older IL 78 Due to it's availability rate and cash crazy upgrades from Russia

These will give India airforce more needed support for air fleet and be force multipliers for İAF

Pak uses İL 78 as tanker aircraft recently upgraded but these can not paf backbone F 16 due to boom refueling in f 16 can paf modify boom refueling on İL 78 which is highly impossible what option do paf has given the number of paf fighter jet fleet these 4 are not enough for aerial refueling support

 

[GiantPanda]

Indian airforce signed a deal with İAİ for 6 older B 767 MRTT for aerial refueling role retiring soon older IL 78 Due to it's availability rate and cash crazy upgrades from Russia

These will give India airforce more needed support for air fleet and be force multipliers for İAF

Pak uses İL 78 as tanker aircraft recently upgraded but these can not paf backbone F 16 due to boom refueling in f 16 can paf modify boom refueling on İL 78 which is highly impossible what option do paf has given the number of paf fighter jet fleet these 4 are not enough for aerial refueling support

India can't build anything on its own. lol

 

[MirageBlue]

Indian airforce signed a deal with İAİ for 6 older B 767 MRTT for aerial refueling role retiring soon older IL 78 Due to it's availability rate and cash crazy upgrades from Russia

These will give India airforce more needed support for air fleet and be force multipliers for İAF

Pak uses İL 78 as tanker aircraft recently upgraded but these can not paf backbone F 16 due to boom refueling in f 16 can paf modify boom refueling on İL 78 which is highly impossible what option do paf has given the number of paf fighter jet fleet these 4 are not enough for aerial refueling support

There has been no such agreement as yet. HAL has signed a MoU with IAI for work packages related to MRTT conversions to be taken up by HAL, but the IAF hasn't yet signed up for conversions of ex-civil B-767 freighters or airliners into B-767 MRTTs.

 

[Super Falcon]

Y

There has been no such agreement as yet. HAL has signed a MoU with IAI for work packages related to MRTT conversions to be taken up by HAL, but the IAF hasn't yet signed up for conversions of ex-civil B-767 freighters or airliners into B-767 MRTTs.

Agreed but once HAL completes the deal and tot İAF definitely going to sign the deal with HAL under make in India by purchasing directly from Indian contractor HAL

HAL and Indian govt not fool to invest handsome money on project without it's outcome and HAL is a Indian govt entity

Indian govt already rejected A 330 MRTT procurement which is more expensive than İAİ B 767 MRTT

 

[MirageBlue]

Y

Agreed but once HAL completes the deal and tot İAF definitely going to sign the deal with HAL under make in India by purchasing directly from Indian contractor HAL

HAL and Indian govt not fool to invest handsome money on project without it's outcome and HAL is a Indian govt entity

Indian govt already rejected A 330 MRTT procurement which is more expensive than İAİ B 767 MRTT

That's possible, but the IAF has always had it's eyes set on the A-330 MRTT. They have already been planning to wet lease an A-330 MRTT from France to train operators and technicians prior to a larger lease or buy of A-330 MRTTs.

link

What will really happen is truly hard to predict. There have been 2 earlier tanker contests where the A-330 MRTT won against the Il-78MKI Midas tankers and both were scrapped due to the huge cost associated with the A-330 MRTT versus the Il-78MKI tankers.

 

[Super Falcon]

That's possible, but the IAF has always had it's eyes set on the A-330 MRTT. They have already been planning to wet lease an A-330 MRTT from France to train operators and technicians prior to a larger lease or buy of A-330 MRTTs.

link

What will really happen is truly hard to predict. There have been 2 earlier tanker contests where the A-330 MRTT won against the Il-78MKI Midas tankers and both were scrapped due to the huge cost associated with the A-330 MRTT versus the Il-78MKI tankers.

I heard Israel AF ordered Boeing made pegasus tankers rejection A 330 MRTT

I heard Israel AF ordered Boeing made pegasus tankers rejection A 330 MRTT

Agreed but A 330 MRTT with boom could be feasible than il 78 what is a point when you need a capability and you can't get it's full outcome and you buy cheap midas for not getting you half airforces F 16 Air refueled

 

[walterbibikow]

The Jaguar fighter aircraft of the Indian Air Force was taken from France. But its maintenance and overhauling of its engine etc. is done in India only. Over a period of time, many engine parts are replaced. MIDHANI indigenized the Jaguar engine. In technical tests, the engine developed by MIDHANI was found to be superior to the original Jaguar engine. Today, Jaguar engines use parts from MIDHANI and are now in regular supply. MIDHANI’s components are flying regularly in Jaguar fighter aircrafts

J&K Police will soon get BP jackets, head-gears from MIDHANI

‘JKP vehicles getting fully armoured’ Prabhat Ranjan Deen Hyderabad, Jan 8: Bullet Proof armouring of Mi-17 helicopters of the Indian Air Force is being done by Mishra Dhatu Nigam (MIDHANI), an undertaking of the Ministry of Defence so that the movement of security forces by helicopter can be...

www.dailyexcelsior.com

@Skull and Bones @Raj-Hindustani @VkdIndian @Hellfire2006 @INDIAPOSITIVE

 

[datafreak]

That MKI is just not suited for highway ops even though it has decent short field capabilities with particular TVC takeoff procedures - FOD threat is too much for those AL-31s unless FOD walks are conducted after every second sortie.

The Jaguars excel at these dispersed airfields - although the Rafale has seen these tested as well.

Specific stretches of highways are 'hardened' to support the heavy jet landings. Plus there are some protocols to be followed before takeoff/ landings. construction The materials are changed for these stretches too.

 

[Skull and Bones]

The Jaguar fighter aircraft of the Indian Air Force was taken from France. But its maintenance and overhauling of its engine etc. is done in India only. Over a period of time, many engine parts are replaced. MIDHANI indigenized the Jaguar engine. In technical tests, the engine developed by MIDHANI was found to be superior to the original Jaguar engine. Today, Jaguar engines use parts from MIDHANI and are now in regular supply. MIDHANI’s components are flying regularly in Jaguar fighter aircrafts

J&K Police will soon get BP jackets, head-gears from MIDHANI

‘JKP vehicles getting fully armoured’ Prabhat Ranjan Deen Hyderabad, Jan 8: Bullet Proof armouring of Mi-17 helicopters of the Indian Air Force is being done by Mishra Dhatu Nigam (MIDHANI), an undertaking of the Ministry of Defence so that the movement of security forces by helicopter can be...

www.dailyexcelsior.com

@Skull and Bones @Raj-Hindustani @VkdIndian @Hellfire2006 @INDIAPOSITIVE

‘Mishra Dhatu’ is Sanskrit for Alloys.

 

[MirageBlue]

The Jaguar fighter aircraft of the Indian Air Force was taken from France. But its maintenance and overhauling of its engine etc. is done in India only. Over a period of time, many engine parts are replaced. MIDHANI indigenized the Jaguar engine. In technical tests, the engine developed by MIDHANI was found to be superior to the original Jaguar engine. Today, Jaguar engines use parts from MIDHANI and are now in regular supply. MIDHANI’s components are flying regularly in Jaguar fighter aircrafts

J&K Police will soon get BP jackets, head-gears from MIDHANI

‘JKP vehicles getting fully armoured’ Prabhat Ranjan Deen Hyderabad, Jan 8: Bullet Proof armouring of Mi-17 helicopters of the Indian Air Force is being done by Mishra Dhatu Nigam (MIDHANI), an undertaking of the Ministry of Defence so that the movement of security forces by helicopter can be...

www.dailyexcelsior.com

@Skull and Bones @Raj-Hindustani @VkdIndian @Hellfire2006 @INDIAPOSITIVE

Given that the Jaguar is now retired from service in all other countries, except India, it would not be possible to keep them in service without MIDHANI, HAL and other suppliers and agencies working on indigenising parts of the engine as well as most of the other LRUs. Already more than 70% of the Jaguar was indigenous when HAL was building them. That content has only gone up now.

As it is, the Jaguar DARIN 3 is so different compared to what any other Jaguar ever was, that it was obvious that almost all of the Jaguar parts are either indigenous or a suitable imported alternative exists.

Keep in mind, the Jaguar DARIN 3 is an AESA radar equipped strike fighter with ASRAAM, SAAW, LGBs, 1000 lb CBU-105 Sensor Fused Cluster bomb, Harpoon AShM, HSLD bombs, etc. Basically the Jaguar has sharp teeth and claws but now it's eyes and ears have been seriously upgraded.

Read this interesting report on the IAF successfully testing the CBU-105 Sensor Fused Cluster Munition from a Jaguar at the Pokhran range. India ordered over 500 of these cluster bombs for the Jaguar fleet.

IAF tests CBU-105 anti tank smart bomb

 

[SQ8]

Given that the Jaguar is now retired from service in all other countries, except India, it would not be possible to keep them in service without MIDHANI, HAL and other suppliers and agencies working on indigenising parts of the engine as well as most of the other LRUs. Already more than 70% of the Jaguar was indigenous when HAL was building them. That content has only gone up now.

As it is, the Jaguar DARIN 3 is so different compared to what any other Jaguar ever was, that it was obvious that almost all of the Jaguar parts are either indigenous or a suitable imported alternative exists.

Keep in mind, the Jaguar DARIN 3 is an AESA radar equipped strike fighter with ASRAAM, SAAW, LGBs, 1000 lb CBU-105 Sensor Fused Cluster bomb, Harpoon AShM, HSLD bombs, etc. Basically the Jaguar has sharp teeth and claws but now it's eyes and ears have been seriously upgraded.

Read this interesting report on the IAF successfully testing the CBU-105 Sensor Fused Cluster Munition from a Jaguar at the Pokhran range. India ordered over 500 of these cluster bombs for the Jaguar fleet.

IAF tests CBU-105 anti tank smart bomb

The ASRAAM actually gives them a quasi-BVR passive attack capability but they desperately need it because they have the turning radius of a locomotive. They are a great stable bombing platform with their short field capabilities but are even bigger sitting ducks than legacy mirages - hence the ASRAAM really provides them with survivability.

 

[MirageBlue]

The ASRAAM actually gives them a quasi-BVR passive attack capability but they desperately need it because they have the turning radius of a locomotive. They are a great stable bombing platform with their short field capabilities but are even bigger sitting ducks than legacy mirages - hence the ASRAAM really provides them with survivability.

ASRAAM was chosen for the Jaguar (and then the wider IAF fleet as the NG-CCM), in competition with the Python V, due to it's longer range (as you mentioned, almost BVR) and lower drag when mounted on the over wing pylons of the Jaguar.

ASRAAM integration is now going on in a more widespread way, including on the Tejas Mk1A and Su-30MKI.

There was news that India was developing an IIR seeker equipped Astra based missile, but there are no updates on it, so not sure of the status of it. Would be an ideal complement to the Astra Mk1 BVRAAM just as the MICA IR/EM are with primary difference being the different seeker and different algorithms for approaching the target.

As for the Jaguar, they are meant to be bomb trucks. Stable at very low altitudes with pilots regularly flying nap of the earth missions. I have personally once seen a 3 ship Jaguar formation fly literally 200 feet above me in what was not a rural area. The Jaguar DARIN 3 introduces a new autopilot with several modes, which is a huge boon for strike pilots, given that it frees them up to work on mission data than flying at least part of the way.

The Jaguar DARIN 3's Elta 2052 AESA radar and IDAS (Integrated Defensive Avionics Suite) EW suite with the EW jammer pod, offers them almost cutting edge air to air target tracking and threat approach warning as well as jamming. More than enough to allow them to fire their ASRAAMs in self defence from a long way out, and then light their burners, hit the 100 ft ASL mark (to make ground clutter a real issue) and then try to egress as fast as possible.

Of course the primary need for the Elta 2052 is to allow for the air to ground modes, enhanced SAR, Inverse SAR, ground mapping and target ranging. The number of targets the Jaguar DARIN 3 can now map accurately will see a quantum jump.

Plus, with the new INS/GPS the navigation will be far far more accurate. Put in the autopilot and you have missions that will be a LOT easier for pilots. Especially demanding night time missions.

Jaguar DARIN 3 cockpit with 3 Smart MFDs