Was the Bangladeshi MIG 29's necessary?

[Zabaniyah]

As I said earlier we should not be here to poke nose on what weapons our defnse ministry would buy. Only they know what are the good and important weapons. About purchasing of Mig-29s, it seems the decision was far ahead of time.

What India or Burma will do in the future, it is theirs to decide. No one come here and start talking like a Prophet, India will not attack us. People should understand that a weakness is an invitation of an attack. As a sovereign nation we have the right to equip ourselves and fight back with whatever weapons we have if attacked.

And Mig-29s are one of the bests defensive weapon in the sky. This being the reason, we are again thinking of buying one or two new sq. of Mig-SMTs. But, the latest news is our military will prefer SU-30s this time.

Why SU-30? Maybe that is the wishlist, but not actually procuring them.

Procuring them is one thing but keeping them and making use of them is an entire different issue. Whats the point in having one of the best operational air-to-air fighter when all they can afford is say 50 hours of training on it for the pilots? Because the maintance and cost of flying is outside the realms of the annual defnce allotment. As a rule of thumb, the procurement cost is only 1/3 of the total lifetime cost of the aircraft.

For example, fighters like the MKI which are deep penetrators are only useful if u have the entire set up going. Like the IAF does with all sorts of weapons integrated, this justifies their high maintenance cost when u have a top air-to-air fighter also capable of launching precision-guided munition deep into enemy territory or launching Brahmos at time critical and high value targets.

With little training and no infrastructural setup all you're gonna end up is loosing to say a viper pilot or a Mig-29 pilot which is constantly clocking 200+ hours in his bird. And then you realize that the SU-30 is a not so great fighter if we can't afford it.

It would have been better served with something like F-16s. The T/A-50 or something similar are really cheap to maintain and getting quality flying and training time in these aircraft would leave air-defences better protected then getting little or no training in something like the SU-30. The JF-17 is also a good option.

The bottom line is, the SU-30 is expensive to run. Same applies to the MIG-29. They require a lot of training and maintenance.

 

[Raquib]

As we can see, apart from the Liberation war of Bangladesh, no major war has taken place in Bangladesh which is of any threat. It is true that Bangladesh participated in many major wars (like the gulf war and UN mission) but regarding the airforce, was those MIG 29's really necessary? I think the navy should be modernised than the airforce....

The defense sector should be prioritized according to its requirements. Be it the Army, Navy or Air Force. Without the MiG 29 jets, the airspace of Bangladesh would remain much more vulnerable to any external threat. And talking of modernizing the Navy, during war it will need sophisticated air support which can only be provided by the Air Force. I'm not sure about a possible war, but both of our neighbors have been showing their aggressive attitude toward us, which is certainly not a sign of friendship. So, Air Force deserves priority as well. Hope you understand what I mean.

 

[eastwatch]

The defense sector should be prioritized according to its requirements. Be it Army, Navy or Air Force. Without the MiG 29 jets, the airspace of Bangladesh would remain much more vulnerable to any external threat. And talking of modernizing the Navy, during war it will need sophisticated air support which can only be provided by the Air Force. I'm not sure about a possible war, but both of our neighbors have been showing their aggressive attitude toward us, which is certainly not a sign of friendship. So, Air Force deserves priority as well. Hope you understand what I mean.

I have joined this forum after you, iajdani, al-zakir and leon. But you and leon do not contribute now-a-days. I am happy and iajdani will be very happy to see you posting. Please keep on posting. Thanks.

 

[Raquib]

Here on this forum we're talking about the possible fighter jets BAF will go for. Many think we should buy cheap aircrafts in large number(which I personally don't agree with). But don't forget that Uncle Sam wants us to buy American jets like F-16 or F-18(which I think is very likely to pan out as BAF received one of these fighters as a gift from the US govt.). And there's no reason to think that we can't afford them since both our economy and defense budget are larger than ever.

 

[Raquib]

I have joined this forum after you, iajdani, al-zakir and leon. But you and leon do not contribute now-a-days. I am happy and iajdani will be very happy to see you posting. Please keep on posting. Thanks.

Thanks bro. I'm very happy to learn that you guys have remembered me for such a long time.

 

[integra]

Another old member, long time no see. Do try to contribute more dude.

 

[Zabaniyah]

Here on this forum we're talking about the possible fighter jets BAF will go for. Many think we should buy cheap aircrafts in large number(which I personally don't agree with). But don't forget that Uncle Sam wants us to buy American jets like F-16 or F-18(which I think is very likely to pan out as BAF received one of these fighters as a gift from the US govt.). And there's no reason to think that we can't afford them since both our economy and defense budget are larger than ever.

Do you have any source for the bold part? The F-18 is very expensive. A brand new one might cost around $50 million. That, and coupled with recurring costs in its life-time.

 

[Raquib]

Replace them?? Utter nonsense.. Where did you hear that?? F-18 till happens to take the highest priority over all the fighter jets of US Marine.

---------- Post added at 06:26 PM ---------- Previous post was at 06:26 PM ----------

Do you have any source for the bold part? The F-18 is very expensive. A brand new one might cost around $50 million. That, and coupled with recurring costs in its life-time.

This F-18 fighter is the one left by US navy for BAF. Take a look at the background carefully, its from Kurmotilla air base. Hope this clears your doubt.

 

[eastwatch]

1) US airforce had a joint airforce exercise with the BAF. US airforce left one F-18 hornet or Superhornet for the BAF after their mission was complete. I have seen the photograph of ths hornet while it was exhibited to the common people somewhere in BD.

2) BAF airforce pilots were also sent to take training to fly these hornets. Location could be USA Miami or somewhere in the Phillipines.

 

[Raquib]

1) US airforce had a joint airforce exercise with the BAF. US airforce left one F-18 hornet or Superhornet for the BAF after their mission was complete. I have seen the photograph of ths hornet while it was exhibited to the common people somewhere in BD.

2) BAF airforce pilots were also sent to take training to fly these hornets. Location could be USA Miami or somewhere in the Phillipines.

I've seen it too. Probably on bdmilitary.

 

[integra]

The one recoding in kurmitola probably left this January
after being trialed for 2 yrs. Had a friend who resides
in Kurmitola, he told about the departure, Still can't confirm
though if it was for maintainance or just gone.

 

[Ammyy]

1) US airforce had a joint airforce exercise with the BAF. US airforce left one F-18 hornet or Superhornet for the BAF after their mission was complete. I have seen the photograph of ths hornet while it was exhibited to the common people somewhere in BD.

2) BAF airforce pilots were also sent to take training to fly these hornets. Location could be USA Miami or somewhere in the Phillipines.

US airforce not operating hornet.

 

[Zabaniyah]

Replace them?? Utter nonsense.. Where did you hear that?? F-18 till happens to take the highest priority over all the fighter jets of US Marine.

Have you not heard of the Joint Strike Fighter Program?

The replacement of the F-18s are part of the F-35 program with the United States as the primary user. There are other participant countries in the JSF Program as well.

The F-35 would also replace the F-16s and F-18s of the USAF, USN and USMC.

As far as the US is concerned, there will be three main variants of the F-35. One for USAF, Navy and Marines.

The main intention of the F-35 program is to replace 4th generation jets with the 5th generation F-35 and complement with the F-22 of the USAF.

This is what is similarly happening within much of the NATO (and some non-NATO) forces. But due to budget constraints and delays, that will take some time.

Please, read it up.

F-35 Lightning II Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) - Air Force Technology

The F-18 in Bangladesh's perspective is a decent choice. But considering the budget and infrastructure constraints to support them, it is no walk in the park in today's context. Also, cabinet and public might oppose procuring such expensive aircraft.

However, IF...IF they have money and approval, they might even want to consider the F-18 Super Hornet (better than the standard Hornet) and the Growler (F-18 version for electronic warfare, something the BAF don't have).

US airforce not operating hornet.

They still do for now.

 

[kobiraaz]

I have joined this forum after you, iajdani, al-zakir and leon. But you and leon do not contribute now-a-days. I am happy and iajdani will be very happy to see you posting. Please keep on posting. Thanks.

i miss khaled m ali. He was military expert. . .

 

[asad71]

1. Mig 29 is an old story. It was needed and not out of the class when acquired. It is best to cease discussing this.

2. BAF is now looking for a new fighter. Obviously they will wait till IAF has decided on its MRCA selection. As explained by posters above, F 18 is the front runner although BAF pilots have been flying F 16 with TuAF for sometime. Russians want to sell their best. MIG 35 is on offer. They are more desperate after being jilted by IAF.

3. BD is not as cash-starved as some may imagine. Def always gets the top priority which may also surprise many. We have the very best fliers in the world. And we will give them the best we can afford. Quality, not quantity matters in air war. BD also does not neglect ground based air def.

4. Now that IAF has almost decided to buy Eurofighter, it will make sense for BAF to go for either F18, which some of its pilots have flown with RSAF, or MIG 35. My bet is that BAF's selected pieces will arrive before the Eurofighters because the Indian def procurement regime is infested with corruption, bureaucratic hurdles and general lethargy of the system.