Indian AWACS thread

[Adux]

Air Force all set to acquire AWACS

Published: Wednesday, 14 March, 2007, 08:29 AM Doha Time


Air Chief Marshal S P Tyagi addressing the press conference
By Ashraf Padanna
THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: India’s Southern Air Command would be developed in tune with the country’s robust economic growth, according to Chief of the Air Staff S P Tyagi.
Sulur and Thanjavur bases under Southern Air Command would be expanded soon and Sulur would be developed to make it as Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) base.“Indian Air Force (IAF) is playing a major role in protecting the country’s interests outside its borders and Southern Air Command would be in the forefront in achieving this task,” he told reporters here.
Tyagi said the IAF is in touch with the civil authorities to acquire some small spaces of land in Thiruvananthapuram so that IAF can utilise the airfield for its operational purposes. Presently, 19 IAF airfields in the country are being used by the civil authorities.
The proposed Aerospace Command would be a tri-services command and several agencies related to space would be part of this command. Regarding the location of the proposed command, he said it is still being debated.
Providing an overview of expansion of its assets, the Air Chief Marshal said Indian Air Force would acquire 66 new hawks from UK by the middle of this year. Out of this, 24 hawks would be directly acquired from UK while the rest would be manufactured in the country.
Three Airborne Warning and Control Systems (AWACS) would be acquired by the end of this year or early next year, he said.
Eighty new helicopters would be inducted into IAF by the year 2008 and IAF is in the process of signing contract for 40 additional Sukhoi Aircrafts. Indigenously built Light Combat Aircrafts (LCAs) would be inducted into Air Force by the year 2009-2010, he said. Apart from this, 126 fighter aircrafts would be acquired soon and the process of negotiation is still on.
“Indian Air Force is celebrating its platinum jubilee this year and IAF is increasingly playing military-diplomatic role. No country has grown economically without strong armed forces. Trade interests are increasing with the country’s growing economic strength and to protect these interests, the role of southern peninsula would increase tremendously,” he said.
Some combat assets would be transferred to the southern peninsula very soon, he said.
Listing out examples of IAF reaching out to Sri Lanka and Maldives after tsunami disaster, to South Korea and Pakistan after earthquake and to Philippines after floods, he said the role of IAF was increasing beyond its traditional mandate.
IAF is conducting joint exercises with France, South Africa and Singapore in the coming days and with Royal Air Force of UK in July.
Terming his experience in the IAF as the most satisfying, the Air Chief Marshal said he was proud of being part of one of the oldest air forces of the world.

 

[Khalsa]

Indian AWACS Moving Forward on 2 Fronts



In February 2006, “India’s Air Force Looks to Enhance Its Reach With Upgrades & Force Multipliers” discussed India’s growing shift toward aircraft that would give it the ability to patrol and act at extended ranges. In January 2004, India and Israel signed a $1.1 billion contract for 3 Phalcon airborne warning and control system (AWACS) aircraft, as part of a $1.5 billion tripartite agreement with Russia. The Prem PS-90 engines in the upgraded IL-76TD aircraft will make operation in India’s hot climates easier, and the system will also reportedly make heavy use of Russian electronics, including a partial glass cockpit.

Israel Aerospace Industries’ Phalcon system is built around an ELTA EL/M-2075 AESA L-band radar, then adds electronic and communications intelligence gathering (ELINT and COMINT) capabilities. The system can also receive transmissions from other air and ground stations, and uses sensor fusion to provide a complete picture of the battlespace. IAI had already delivered an earlier-model 707-based “Condor” system to Chile, and has created a Phalcon variant for Israel and Singapore that fits into a Gulfstream 550 business jet. India already operates the IL-76 as its strategic transport aircraft and aerial refueling tanker (IL-78), however, and made its decision accordingly.

Now reports are surfacing that India intends to extend its AWACs capabilities on 2 fronts, even as its original order will be delayed again…



India was supposed to receive the first A-50I/IL-76TD Phalcon in December 2007, but Uzbekistan’s Tashkent Aircraft Production Organization (TAPO) was late customizing the airframes. India’s first A-50I Phalcon underwent maiden flight tests in November 2007, and again in January and February 2008. India’s Phalcon will use a conventional AWACS radome mounted on top, rather than the front and side structural modifications made to Chile’s Condor and the G550 Gulfstream jets. Because the Elta radar scans in 360 degrees automatically, however, the radome will be fixed rather than rotating. Mission sensors and electronics are now being fitted, and IAI officials now believe flight certification will begin in May 2008, with first delivery set for September 2008. Follow-on deliveries are expected in April 2009 and August 2010.



On April 14/07, India Defense reported that India is pleased enough to pick up the option for 3 more IL-76 Phalcon AWACS aircraft, in a deal worth up to $2 billion. Jane’s Defence Weekly issued a concurring report later in the week, but placed the deal’s value at $1 billion. Assuming that the equipment sets are the same and inflation is 3% per year, note that repeating 2004’s $1.5 billion deal works out to about $1.7 billion by 2008. Delivery of these 3 additional planes would be expected to take place in 2011-12.

The second report was carried in The Hindu. India has a great deal of territory to cover, and even 6 AEW&C aircraft can easily mean just 4 operational aircraft at any given time. The Indian Air Force appears to be taking the “brittle swords lesson” to heart, and is looking for another 3 small-mid size surveillance aircraft to act as counterparts to the larger Ilyushin Phalcons. While a G550 Phalcon would provide fleet commonality, India’s platform of choice has been Embraer’s ERJ 145 business/ regional jet. The Hindu reported that a contract is expected later in April 2008, with aircraft delivery beginning in 2011 and full operational capability by 2013. The 3 aircraft together are expected to cost around $300 million total when fully equipped.

The militarized ERJ 145 comes in several versions, including maritime surveillance and electronic intelligence versions. The most common variant, currently operated by Brazil and Greece, is the EMB 145 Erieye airborne early warning and control (AEW&C) aircraft1. It uses the same Saab Erieye AESA radar that will be mounted on Pakistan’s new Saab 2000 turboprop AEW&C fleet. There are some blind spots with its “dorsal blade” configuration, most notably to the front, but flight patterns can be planned around those gaps to ensure good coverage of the area in question.

The Hindu report did not specify the radar involved, except to say that it is “from the [Indian] Electronics and Radar Development Establishment”. A September 2005 ACIG report claimed that the radar would be similar to Saab’s Erieye, and the accompanying illustration from India’s DRDO Centre for Airborne Systems (CABS) certainly looks very similar.

India’s state-owned DRDO research and development agency will be heavily involved in a number of areas. According to The Hindu, the Bangalore-based Centre for Airborne Systems (CABS) is responsible for overall integration of the electronic systems, mission computer, display and data handling. CABS is reportedly working with the private sector firm Astra Microwave Products of Hyderabad to develop transmit-receive multimodules [JPG format] for the radar; doing so at a reasonable cost is always a challenge for AESA radars, however, and India’s experience with the type is limited. DRDO’s Defence Avionics Research Establishment will be involved with the jet’s self-protection systems, electronic warfare suites and communication support systems; their Defence Electronics Application Laboratory will be involved with the primary sensors, communication systems and data link; and DRDO’s Defence Electronics Research Laboratory will be involved with “counter-support measures.”

The Hindu report did say that under the agreement, Brazil’s Embraer will act as the overall system integrator, supplying the jets, mounting the radar and electronics on or into the EMB-145 fuselage, and ensuring that the altered jets retain acceptable performance, and handling flight recertification.

DRDO’s radar record is cause for some concern – the multimode radar being developed for the Tejas lightweight fighter isn’t performing properly yet, for instance, and foreign radars like the Elta M-2032 in India’s Sea Harriers are reportedly under consideration as substitutes in order to keep the already-late program on track. DRDO was also responsible for “Project Guardian/Airawat,” which suffered a disastrous project failure in 1999 when the HS-748 turboprop AWACS testbed aircraft crashed, killing several engineers and scientists who were critical to the project. The ERJ aircraft are the proposed successors to that effort.

 

[godsavetheworld]

India to get Phalcon AWACS on May 18
23 Apr 2009, 1623 hrs IST, PTI



JERUSALEM: India will get its first 'eye in the sky', the Phalcon Airborne Warning and Control Systems (AWACS), aircraft on May 18, which will
provide the IAF means to track incoming missiles and look deep into the neighbouring countries without violating any air space.

The first Phalcon was inspected by top Indian Defence officials who came here to check the specially modified Russian IL-76 aircraft and set May 18 as the delivery date.

"The other two aircraft would be delivered by Mid or late 2010, if everything goes on schedule," Defence sources said here today.

The delivery of the aircraft bought at a whopping price of $1.1 billion is almost a year and a half behind schedule. As per the tripartite deal between India, Russia and Israel, the aircraft should have been delivered by the end of March this year.

India and Israel are reported to be in advanced negotiations for the purchase of three more Phalcon AWACS, which the IAF proposes to integrate with other air and ground assets.

All the six AWACS would be linked with the country's first military satellite proposed to be launched by mid next year.

India to get Phalcon AWACS on May 18 - India - The Times of India

 

[godsavetheworld]

AWACS to give an edge to IAF.

Awacs, or "eyes in the sky", will help IAF detect incoming hostile cruise missiles and aircraft much before ground-based radars, apart from directing air defence fighters during combat operations with enemy jets. For instance, an Awacs flying over Amritsar will be able to detect a Pakistani F-16 fighter as soon as it takes off from its Sargodha airbase. India, incidentally, signed a $210-million deal with Brazilian firm Embraer for three aircraft in July for its own indigenous miniature Awacs project.

The indigenous AEW&C systems being developed by DRDO will be mounted on the three Embraer-145 jets, with the delivery of the first one slated for 2011-2012. The project is worth around Rs 1,800 crore. India, incidentally, is also on course to acquire four more Israeli Aerostat radars, at a cost of around $300 million, to bolster its ability to detect hostile low-flying aircraft, helicopters, spy drones and missiles.

The IAF's case for the new Aerostat radars as a "follow-on" order to the two such EL/M-2083 radars, inducted from Israel in 2004-2005 for $145 million, has finally been cleared by the Defence Acquisitions Council, headed by defence minister A K Antony, now.

After being in a limbo for some time due to the Barak kickbacks case, the defence ministry has decided to go full steam ahead with procurements and projects with Israel, which has notched up arms sales worth around $8 billion to India since the 1999 Kargil conflict. The ministry will, however, take a final clearance from the Cabinet Committee on Security and the "competent financial authority" before the new procurement deals are actually inked.

 

[sancho]

Good to see our surveillance capabilities rising so quickly! AWACS, Spy satellite, drones, plus P8 and MRMR (Medium Range Maritime Reconnaissance) in future, giving us really a good advantage.

 

[asq]

Recently China took notice of satellites spying and blinded those satellites that flew over it which took pics of its installations.china using a lasers system to blind all those satellites passing over it, and that made their adversaries mad.

Pakistan could do the same and all that money spent on launching a satellite gone waste, and what a waste it is.

Those who think that being adversaries is the only way, think again making peace is a better way. It will not only save lives, it will also save money at the same time.

 

[zombie:-)]

Recently China took notice of satellites spying and blinded those satellites that flew over it which took pics of its installations.china using a lasers system to blind all those satellites passing over it, and that made their adversaries mad.

Pakistan could do the same and all that money spent on launching a satellite gone waste, and what a waste it is.

Those who think that being adversaries is the only way, think again making peace is a better way. It will not only save lives, it will also save money at the same time.

hello ....

why bring up ASAT here ....and please note that satellite launches do not go in waste

will us or europe or japan stop sending satellites fearing the SUPPOSED TRUE ASAT capability of china...even we are not fearing it ...and that capability is just like nuclear bombs ...if you use it then there will be one hellava conflict.....

back on topic ...cant wait to see those beauties

 

[zombie:-)]

so whats the latest about you r awac ..indian awacs is coming on 18 may here you go

India to get Phalcon AWACS on May 18
23 Apr 2009, 1623 hrs IST, PTI



JERUSALEM: India will get its first 'eye in the sky', the Phalcon Airborne Warning and Control Systems (AWACS), aircraft on May 18, which will
provide the IAF means to track incoming missiles and look deep into the neighbouring countries without violating any air space.

The first Phalcon was inspected by top Indian Defence officials who came here to check the specially modified Russian IL-76 aircraft and set May 18 as the delivery date.

"The other two aircraft would be delivered by Mid or late 2010, if everything goes on schedule," Defence sources said here today.

The delivery of the aircraft bought at a whopping price of $1.1 billion is almost a year and a half behind schedule. As per the tripartite deal between India, Russia and Israel, the aircraft should have been delivered by the end of March this year.

India and Israel are reported to be in advanced negotiations for the purchase of three more Phalcon AWACS, which the IAF proposes to integrate with other air and ground assets.

All the six AWACS would be linked with the country's first military satellite proposed to be launched by mid next year.

India to get Phalcon AWACS on May 18 - India - The Times of India

 

[PeacefulIndian]

Recently China took notice of satellites spying and blinded those satellites that flew over it which took pics of its installations.china using a lasers system to blind all those satellites passing over it, and that made their adversaries mad.
Pakistan could do the same and all that money spent on launching a satellite gone waste, and what a waste it is.

Those who think that being adversaries is the only way, think again making peace is a better way. It will not only save lives, it will also save money at the same time.

Care to share the evidence, any link? And who were the adverseries who went mad?

 

[Patriot]

Care to share the evidence, any link? And who were the adverseries who went mad?

Beijing secretly fires lasers to disable US satellites - Telegraph
Chinese Lasers and U.S. Satellites | Union of Concerned Scientists

 

[sancho]

Those who think that being adversaries is the only way, think again making peace is a better way. It will not only save lives, it will also save money at the same time.

These are no offensive weapons to threat other countries, they are defensive weapons to secure our airspace, borders and costlines. So I think this money is we spent and will save lives!

 

[Moscow]

yeah people this was a phalcon thread i guess i found out here people describing asat good so why does pakistan need to shoot down an indian satellite for gods sake? pakistan can also launch its own satellite cant it? why is it that people always think that the other way round?
ok india is getting the phalcons is this new no its stale old news even pakistan is getting awacks both these systems will go a long way in increasing the capabilities of the air-force of either countries.
actually if you look the phalcon delivery is already delayed,so no need for such a blood rush its been there for the last 5 years

 

[maverick2009]

Quantum leap in Real time Intelligence for IAF.Israel is really boosting the technology in the region.

 

[ejaz007]

India to get its first AWACS from Israel on 20th

NEW DELHI: Indian Chief of Air Staff Fali Homi Major said on Thursday that his force would receive its first Phalcon Airborne Warning and Control System (AWACS) from Israel on May 20.

The AWACS will give the added capability to the Indian Air Force (IAF) to track incoming missiles and ‘look’ deep inside neighbouring countries including Pakistan. It is an all-weather system capable of logging 60 targets simultaneously with a range of 400 km, which will enhance the capability of the IAF to strike and surveillance, media reports quoting IAF sources said. app

Daily Times - Leading News Resource of Pakistan

 

[nik007]

lol....

it keeps getting delayed.

2 months back I read it wud arrive in 3 weeks.

I think we wont get it so fast(unless something happens)