Endangered

IAF may follow US Air Force

October 27, 2005

NEW DELHI: The IAF is now thinking big. It wants to evolve into an "expeditionary force", on the lines of the US Air Force, with "a strategic reach" far beyond national frontiers.

The IAF, though the fourth largest air force in the world after US, Russia and China, knows the concept of an expeditionary force, with the ability to rapidly deploy and operate anywhere in the world, is slightly premature at this juncture.

But, IAF believes the time is soon approaching when it will have to be ready to deploy and operate at least in the geographical extent of India’s national security environment extending from the Persian Gulf to the Malacca Straits.
IAF chief Air Chief Marshal S P Tyagi last week itself told his top commanders the Force needed to strive towards its objective of "strategic reach" and "network-centric operations".

And on Monday, vice-chief Air Marshal Ajit Bhavnani said IAF was refining its doctrine in terms of "strategic reach" and "out-of-area contingencies". "As India grows in economic strength, the government may call the IAF to assist a country diplomatically, in disaster management or UN contingencies etc...We have to be prepared. We have done it in the past, like in Maldives," said Air Marshal Bhavnani.

"We need to look at how to build airpower in the future as a national requirement. IAF is probably a leaner but definitely a meaner force," he added. Though the vice-chief talked only about what can be called "military operations other than war", IAF has certainly acquired some potent strategic capabilities by inducting "air-dominance" Sukhoi-30MKI fighters, which have a range of 3,200 km at cruising speed.

Their already-considerable range, incidentally, can be more than doubled with mid-air refuelling by the six IL-78 tankers acquired from Uzbekistan. The IAF is now actively pursuing six more such air tankers. "We are also looking at air-to-air refuelling for our transport aircraft and even helicopters," said Air Marshal Bhavnani.

While the proposed Aerospace Command and the $6.5-billion contract to acquire 126 new multi-role combat aircraft are still some years away, IAF is going in for massive upgradation of its combat fleet, radars, surface-to-air missiles and the like.

"The upgrade will include MiG-29s, Jaguars and Mirage-2000s, with new avionics and sensors, as also Mi-17 helicopters, AN-32 transport aircraft. It will take 5-6 years," said Air Marshal Bhavnani.

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Wild Wild Web

Endangered

Flying to a new high

Women as flying officers are doing an ace job, even outperforming the men. Madhu Prasad finds out more.

Today, women have excelled in every field and it holds good with the case of the Indian Air Force (IAF) too.

History tells us that the first licensed woman pilot was the Harriet Quimby of United States who flew in 1911 but her actual induction into the U S air force was decades later. In India too, the induction of women in the IAF was cleared in 1990 but the actual induction process started in 1992.

Training is the key to the IAF’s secret weapon: the quality of its people, claims the IAF. By investing in young men and women, the IAF maintains a decisive edge over potential enemies. “Hard in training - easy in battle” is an IAF motto. And women are IAF’s most valuable resource says, Air Force Technical College, Commandant, Air Commodore, Kamal Singh. Quite satisfied by the performance of the women officers during the last decade, Singh says in certain cases they outperform men.

The entire women officers under technical branches are trained at Air Force Technical College in Bangalore. “They are treated at par with their male counterparts and women in IAF have proved themselves,” he added. “We believe in equality and the Indian women officers are second to none, ” Air Commodore says adding that, “There is no gender bias in the IAF.”

“Today, women are in every branch of the IAF except for the combat pilots. Giving their best in every mission, women officers are present in all the branches of Air Force both technical and non-technical,” Mr Singh said.

For Flying Officers Neha Puri, Limna Narayanan, Manpreet Kaur and a host of other, apart from offering you a career opportunity that is exciting and fulfilling. “Air Force offers you an unparalleled way of life. As an officer with the Indian Air Force, you will lead and manage, and will be posted either as a pilot, or a navigator, or a technical or a ground duty officer in any one of the Air Force bases,” they say.

Flight Lieutenant Bismi Devaseey, who is a transport pilot with the IAF, believes in, “Live for today, plan for tomorrow and party tonight.” She is currently posted at the Yelahanka Air Force base and loves every moment of flying. When on the ground, she likes to unwind with a game of tennis. “For me, to be a pilot is more than just a career option. My husband is also an aviator, and seeing him in his flying gear always fascinated me. If asked about my ambition in life, I would always say, the culmination of everything I had ever wished for.”

For Administrative Officer, Shilaja, life in the Air Force is a unique combination of discipline and excitement. But one thing is for sure, there is never a dull moment. We begin work as early as 7:00 am to prepare for our briefing and mission. After the mission and de-briefing sessions are over, a game of tennis and a social evening with colleagues is the perfect way to relax.

But there are always times when one is required to be on duty almost around the clock. “One such instance was during the emergency situation when I was ordered out on a CASEVAC (Casualty Evacuation) at 1 am. The casualty had occurred in the adjoining village where I was posted. Missions like these are routine. But every mission brings with itself a new challenge and a new thrill. I guess that’s the best part of being in the Air Force,” she said.

According to Indian Air Force Spokesperson, Wing Commander Raghunath, because of the women who broke barriers in the field of flight, there exists one more way for women to dare. The first woman who reached the top of the world by climbing Mt Everest was Junko Tabei in 1975. Without the tenacity of women such as these, surely more boundaries would still be in place. One would see far fewer women standing in the ration line than before lifts in corporate offices and even fewer women elected to political office, he added.

Endangered

Indian Army was on the process of evaluating the Light Reconniance Helicopter (LRH) of the US based Bell Helicopters, Bell Company's Chief Executive Officer Michael Redenbaugh said today.

Mr Redenbaugh was speaking to newsmen after receiving the first tail rotor blade manufactured by Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) from HAL officiating Chairman A K Saxena.

He said that Indian Army, after the evaluations, were expected to place a firm order for the supply of about 200 LRH. "The army has to take a decision on this and his company was expected to receive the orders probably at the end of this year or early next year", he added.

Under the co-production agreement signed between Bell and HAL first 60 LRH would be supplied by Bell and the rest will be manufactured and supplied to the army by HAL, he said.

Mr Redenbaugh said that Bell Helicopters having a 24 per cent market share in the global market. Fifty per cent of this was outside us, he added.

He said helicopter world over has been considered best mode of transportation especially in a situation of major natural calamities like Tsunami and earthquakes. Comparing to Western countries usage of helicopter for various purposes in India, despite of its its vast population and terrain, was very less. Helicopter would serve as the safest mode of transportation for the Corporate sector in the country, in view of the difficult road conditions and traffic jams, he added.

He said Bell accounted for supplying 37,000 Helicopters, including 7000 Bell 206 Helicopters world over so far. The first interaction between Bell and HAL took place in the year 2003 with his meeting the then HAL Chairman Mohanthi, which resulted in inking of a Memorandum of Agreement (MoA), a 5.36 million dollar pact to manufacture and supply 5,265 blades over a period of six years by HAL.

Mr Saxena said that Bell is a world major in the manufacture of Helicopter. The present order for roter baldes in terms was of a meagre one. But this would lead in fruitful tie up and cooperation in the years to come.

ajaybhutani

cant the ALH do the job.. or this helicopter is in a different class

Endangered

Kochi, Oct 28. (PTI): Mauritius will purchase an indigenously developed Advanced Light Helicopter (ALH) and an offshore patrol vessel from India.

"Mauritius has its own Exclusive Economic Zone and to protect it, we are going in for the purchase of an ALH and an offshore patrol vessel," Mauritius Prime Minister Navinchandra Ramgoolam told reporters after visiting the Southern Naval Command here on Thursday morning.

The chief Test Pilot of Hal, Wing Comander (Retd) Upadhyay made a presentation on the ALH 'Dhruv'.

The 13-member delegation, led by Ramgoolam then witnessed a demonstration by the ALH, which included underslung cargo operations and some manoeuvres by naval pilots of the intensive Flying Training Unit.

The Prime Minister was shown around the cockpit and the helicopter. He was also presented a model of the ALH. He said he was "very impressed" by the facilities at the Command.

Asked about his Kerala visit, he said this was his first visit to the state. "Unfortunately, it is a very short one."

Discussions would be held later on tourism promotion between Mauritius and Kerala, he said.

Ramgoolam then visited INS Sharda, an offshore Patrol vessel, where he was received with full naval ceremonials by the ship's commanding officer Commander Yogesh Dutt.

The delegation attended a presentation on the role and capabilities of the Vessel and went round the ship.

The Prime Minister also met Naval officers and sailors from his country who are undergoing training at the command.

Earlier, on arrival, he was received by the Flag Officer Commanding in Chief, Vice Admiral S C Bangara. He was presented a coffee table book 'A Shared Destiny'.

Endangered

India wants to collaborate with Russia in developing new weapons, Indian Foreign Minister Natwar Singh said Thursday during a visit to Moscow.

We should aim at joint action in military matters and the creation of new weapons, Singh told students during a presentation at the prestigious Moscow Institute of International Relations, Itar-Tass news agency reported.

He cited the development of the Bramos anti-ship cruise missiles for the Indian navy is a good example of their cooperation.

Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh was due to visit Russia in December, said the foreign minister.

Russian President Vladimir Putin, who met with Singh at the Kremlin on Thursday, said the prime minister's visit would be "the key event of the year".

Endangered

India ready to export BrahMos

India has finally cleared the high-tech supersonic cruise missile, BrahMos, and Chile could be among the first buyers.

"The export of military hardware is no longer an issue, and we have started exporting the BrahMos," Vice-Admiral Madanjit Singh, Flag Officer Commanding-in-Chief, Western Naval Command, said on Thursday. He was addressing a seminar on "Navy-Industry Convergence: Challenges and Opportunities" here.

Later, he told reporters that Defence Minister Pranab Mukherjee and the CEO of BrahMos Aerospace, A. Sivathanu Pillai, were in Chile and finalisation of the missile deal was on the cards. Other countries were also in the process of placing orders for the missile, a result of Indo-Russian joint research. He did not name any country but said some in South-East Asia could be among them.

Missile capabilities

The BrahMos, with a range of 290 km, is capable of delivering an over 300-kg conventional warhead at twice or even thrice the speed of sound. It is the only supersonic missile of its class. The Navy has armed several of its warships, notably the Rajput class destroyers, with the BrahMos, essentially a long-range anti-ship weapon, for a coastal attack role.

The missile is multi-platform capable and a plan is afoot to arm Su-30 multirole aircraft with it for air-to-land combat. Its Army version for land-to-land combat was tested last year.

At the seminar, jointly organised by the Naval Dockyard, Mumbai, and the Confederation of Indian Industry to mark the 270th anniversary of the dockyard, Vice-Admiral Singh told industry that the Navy did not like to depend on foreign suppliers, particularly after the post-Pokhran II sanctions that resulted in its helicopters and fixed-wing aircraft grounded for want of spares. He called upon industry to join the indigenisation process.

20 more warships

The Navy, with 20 warships under construction at different shipyards, offered many an opportunity to the private ship building industry.

Even in large weapon procurement deals, for instance the recently-signed French submarine agreement, there were offset clauses requiring the suppliers to buy Indian components and systems. Industry could avail itself of these opportunities. Foreign suppliers were being encouraged to find an Indian industry partner.

Vic-Admiral Singh told reporters that the offset clause got lost in the documents until recently and the domestic industry did not benefit from it. Now the offsets were being pursued attentively. The implementation of the clause could be linked to the payment stages. Industry could also have tie-ups with the Defence Research and Development Organisation and defence public sector undertakings. He wanted an institutionalised approach to such partnerships.

The Navy was keen on a submarine programme, besides the just-concluded Scorpene deal. "We have operated several types of submarines all the time and now also we are having Russian and German submarines in our inventory." Other submarines were being evaluated for the second programme. To a question, Vice-Admiral Singh said the Navy examined and found the Russian Amur a good submarine but it all depended on the offer.

Asked about the indigenous Trishul surface-to-air missile, he said the Navy needed missiles four times more powerful in terms of range and strike capability. Unlike the BrahMos, the Trishul could not hit a supersonic cruise missile.

lemontree

Its different ....
Bell ARH (modified for Recce & Svl)

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Cheers!...on the rocks!!

Monk

I have a question. Which of the two is a better missile, the Sunburn SS-N-22 or the Brahmos?

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"Many forms of Government have been tried, and will be tried in this world of sin and woe. No one pretends that democracy is perfect or all-wise. Indeed, it has been said that democracy is the worst form of Government except all those others that have been tried from time to time. "

"Although prepared for martyrdom, I preferred that it be postponed."

Sir Winston Churchill

DC Katoch

"The Daily Excelsior"

The 27th October is one of the most historic days for the Indian Army, as on this day in 1947, it undertook the first military operation in J&K and prevented Pak raiders from capturing the Kashmir Valley.

Infantry Day is celebrated to commemorate this glorious action of Indian Infantry Post Independence era. It was on this day that first Battalion , the Sikh Regiment landed at Srinagar Air Field . Tiger Division celebrated the Infantry Day with paying of tributes to the brave soldiers who have fought gallantry and made the supreme sacrifice, with defending the unity and integrity of the country.

At the War Memorial at Jammu,serving and retired officers, JCOs and Jawans paid homage to the brave soldiers who laid down their lives for the country. The ceremony began with GOC Tiger Division, Major General Jasbir Singh, laying wreaths at Amar Jawan Jyoti and followed by other serving, retired and civil officials. The ceremony revived the memories of the supreme sacrifices of gallant Infantry soldiers,who have valiantly fought the external aggressors and the militants to safeguard the integrity and unity of the country.

The War memorial ceremony was followed by Barakhana in various cantonments and units where all ex-servicemen from Infantry were invited. The retired officers , JCOs and other ranks were impressed with the hospitability and honour given to them. In the evening a social evening was organised by Tiger Division for all serving and retired infantry officers and distinguished guests.

The Infantryman has come a long way and his fearless gallantry, dedication and devotion to duty has made the entire nation proud. Be it Saichen Glacier or the burning deserts of Rajasthan or dense jungles of Northern Eastern, the Infantrymen has defended the nation’s territorial integrity and won accolades from all.

Sameer

Tne Brahmos is better than the Sunburn since it was designed later and its prppulsion is and update to the sunburn design. The Brahmos has some extended RCS reducing measures and has the land attack option and its electronics are an update to the Sunburns and the Brahmos is a bit bigger and can carry more electronics and ECCM suites. The range of the Brahmos is also greater but remember both missiles are drawn from the same philosophy while one is much more nept at land attack and is better in electronics etc...

Sameer

The Sunburn was the first supersonic missile to operate in wolfpack mode, it each missile working together in order to hit target, one goes left, the other goes right and the other goes high and one becomes a decoy etc type tactics, the Brahmos uses that sae tech.

Endangered

Air Force choppers flex their wings

By Sachin Gogoi, Sarsawa (Uttar Pradesh), : Terrorist hideouts were blown off and paratroopers swooped down from the skies as eight chopper units of the Indian Air Force battled it out at the first helicopter aircrew competition here.

The four-day competition was organised to promote competitive spirit and professionalism amongst the helicopter aircrew. The intra command competition of the Western Air Command, named Ex-Chakravyuh 2005-06, concluded Thursday at the Sarsawa air force station here.

"This first ever helicopter aircrew competition was meant to check operational readiness and response of our helicopters and the aircrew. Such exercises would help improve the learning curve and perform better in the days to come," said Air Marshal A.K. Singh, air officer commanding-in-chief Western Air Command, after the concluding ceremony.

During the competition, eight helicopter units were put to gruelling tests in five categories - hovering, search and rescue, under-slung operations, low land navigation and spot paradropping.

While frontline attack helicopters were kept away from the competition, the event focused on surveillance and transport helicopters - the Chetak, Cheetah, MI-17 and MI-17 1V variants.

The newly inducted Dhruv advanced light helicopter (ALH) also displayed its agility and manoeuvrability.

The first squadron of this helicopter became operational earlier this month with the Western Air Command receiving six of these flying machines, developed at the Hindustan Aeronautic Limited (HAL) in Bangalore. The command is waiting for delivery of another four helicopters to complete the squadron.

"We have not included frontline attack helicopters here. The aim of this exercise was not to check the firepower of our helicopter units, but to see their effectiveness in other small scale operations that become crucial during wartime and situations like natural calamities," said Singh.

"However, we plan to include our attack helicopters in such exercises in the coming days. 'Ex-Chakravyuh' will provide a platform for that," he said.

The air marshal pointed out that helicopter units of the air force had played a major role in saving lives and providing the public all kinds of help during emergencies.

"Our helicopter units have proved to be the lifeline in many emergency situations in the recent past. We have done excellent work during the tsunami, floods in various parts of the country, and most recently the earthquake in Jammu and Kashmir. Many lives would have been lost, had we not reached those remote areas on time," said Singh.

Endangered

Kalaikunda set for Indo-US exercises

Oct. 28. — “Cooperative security” will be the main mantra behind the joint air exercises by the Indian Air Force and US Air Force at Kalaikunda air base between 7 and 19 November. Cope India 2005 — a joint air exercise between United States Air Force (USAF) and Indian Air Force (IAF) harps on the same tune of “Con-Ops” or co-operative operations.’’

“These joint exercises would help our pilots cooperate with forces of other countries and share modes of operation tactics, logistic, technical and administrative concepts,” said Air Commodore A Saikia, Air-Officer-Commanding, Kalaikunda Air Force station. He said USAF pilots and fighter aircraft would be coming from Misawa Air Base and Kadena Air Base in Japan to take part in the joint air exercises. One squadron F-16 fighter aircraft of USAF will participate in the joint exercise while IAF’s frontline fighter aircraft like Jaguar, Mirage, Bison, MiG-27, MiG-29, Sukhoi-30 will be in the exercise, the AOC said. He said apart from the US and Singapore Air Force, UK has entered into a dialogue with the Centre for conducting joint air exercises. Other countries like France and Germany have shown great interest to participate in the joint air exercises.
On the joint exercises, Group Capt. TK Chatterjee, Chief Operations Officer, Kalaikunda Air Base, said: “Our pilots would be greatly benefited by this exercise... if the situation so arises we can function as a joint force. For the first time, the USAF is bringing AWACS where air-borne warning and controlling systems will be received.”

Endangered

India, Chile discuss helicopter deal

New Delhi, Oct 29. (PTI): Bidding for the largest-ever arms sale, top Indian Defence officials on Friday held high-level talks with Chilean armed forces personnel on the proposed sale of 20 to 30 Advance Light Helicopters to Chile.

"The Chilean side showed interest in acquiring Advanced Light Helicopters manufactured by the Hindustan Aeronautics Limited as also about other weapon systems and ordnance products," an official statement said on talks held between Defence Minister Pranab Mukherjee and his Chilean counterpart Jamie Ravinet in Santiago.

In a deal under finalisation, India is bidding to sell between 20 and 30 ALHs to the Chilean armed forces. New Delhi has also offered technology-transfer to make these choppers in Chile, officials said.

During the talks, India and Chile agreed to raise the defence relationship to a new level by exploring the possibility of posting defence attaches at their respective embassies.

If this materialises, Santiago will be the first South American capital to have an Indian defence attache.

Mukherjee also called on Chilean President Ricardo Lagos Escobar with the two countries agreeing to work towards more bilateral and production investment and avoidance of double taxation.

The Defence Minister, who is currently on a four-day visit to Chile, will travel tomorrow to Punta Arenas, the southern-most city, on his way to Chile's Eduardo Frei Base on King George's Island in Antarctica.