Home

March 30, 2016

Israeli, Indian Defense Companies Announce $10 Billion Joint Venture

 
Israeli defense firm Rafael Advanced Defense Systems reached a cooperation agreement worth $10 billion with the Indian giant Reliance Defense, Globes reported on Tuesday.
The companies will produce air-to-air missiles, air defense systems, and surveillance balloons or aerostats for the Indian military over the next ten years. The venture is projected to employ some 3,000 people at a campus in the Indian state of Madhya Pradesh. Government-owned Rafael is slated to hold 49% of the joint venture, with Reliance holding the remaining 51%.
The deal was signed at the Defexpo India 2016 exhibition in Goa, which is taking place this week. Israel’s Ambassador to India Daniel Carmon and Rafael CEO Yoav Har-Even were both in attendance.
Ties between Israel and India have been improving in recent years, particularly following the election of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi two years ago.
India chose to purchase the Israeli Spike anti-tank missile system in October 2014, picking it over the competing American Javelin system. India and Israel conducted a successful joint test of a Barak-8 surface to air missile a month later. India announced in December that it was reconsidering its automatic support of the Palestinians at the United Nations.
Israel’s Ministry of Defense produced a video, embedded below, highlighting some of the technologies that would be presented in the Defexpo exhibition

 thetower

Russia-India draft agreement on supply of S-400 missile systems ready — official

 
Russia’s Federal Service for Military-Technical Cooperation (FSMTC) has prepared a draft agreement on the supply to India of the S-400 antiaircraft defense missile systems and now is awaiting a response from the partners, FSMTC deputy head Vladimir Drozhzhov told reporters on Tuesday. “The Federal Service has prepared a draft intergovernmental agreement on the supply of the S-400 systems to India and passed it to our partners, so we are awaiting a response,” the official said at the Defexpo India 2016 exhibition.
 At the end of 2015, Indian media reported that the Indian government’s Defense Acquisition Council approved the purchase of the S-400 systems. According to the local press, the contract cost may reach 400 billion Indian rupees ($6 billion). S-400 Triumph (NATO reporting name: SA-21 Growler) is Russia’s newest long-range anti-aircraft missile system that went into service in 2007 and is designed to destroy aircraft, cruise and ballistic missiles, including medium-range missiles.
The systems can also be used against ground objectives and can reportedly carry three different types of missiles. The S-400 range is 400 km. China has become the first international customer of Russia’s most advanced medium-and long-range antiaircraft missile system. In April 2015, China made an advance payment under a contract for the procurement of four to six Russian-made S-400 Triumph, Rostec CEO Sergei Chemezov told TASS then. Compared with the S-300 (SA-10 Grumble), the S-400 Triumph can destroy a much wider range of threats travelling at a speed of 4,800 m/s, e.g. intermediate-range ballistic missiles with a range of 3,000-3,500 km. It also can handle pinpoint targets and stealthy threats at a range extended by 50% owing to an increase in the power generation capabilities of the 91N6E radar system and 92N6E multirole radar.
The introduction of advanced electronic countermeasures (ECM) resistance solutions has boosted the system’s ECM immunity by several times. Finally, its reliability has grown and its size and power consumption have dropped owing to its cutting-edge electronics, sophisticated self-contained power supply and advanced vehicles. The Defexpo India 2016 international exhibition is held in Quitol in the state of Goa in India on March 28-31. During the exhibition, the Russian arms exporter Rosoboronexport is planning to hold talks with Indian partners to discuss joint projects for the Indian Armed Forces’ further upgrade

Tass
Russia’s Federal Service for Military-Technical Cooperation (FSMTC) has prepared a draft agreement on the supply to India of the S-400 antiaircraft defense missile systems and now is awaiting a response from the partners, FSMTC deputy head Vladimir Drozhzhov told reporters on Tuesday. “The Federal Service has prepared a draft intergovernmental agreement on the supply of the S-400 systems to India and passed it to our partners, so we are awaiting a response,” the official said at the Defexpo India 2016 exhibition. At the end of 2015, Indian media reported that the Indian government’s Defense Acquisition Council approved the purchase of the S-400 systems. According to the local press, the contract cost may reach 400 billion Indian rupees ($6 billion). S-400 Triumph (NATO reporting name: SA-21 Growler) is Russia’s newest long-range anti-aircraft missile system that went into service in 2007 and is designed to destroy aircraft, cruise and ballistic missiles, including medium-range missiles. The systems can also be used against ground objectives and can reportedly carry three different types of missiles. The S-400 range is 400 km. China has become the first international customer of Russia’s most advanced medium-and long-range antiaircraft missile system. In April 2015, China made an advance payment under a contract for the procurement of four to six Russian-made S-400 Triumph, Rostec CEO Sergei Chemezov told TASS then. Compared with the S-300 (SA-10 Grumble), the S-400 Triumph can destroy a much wider range of threats travelling at a speed of 4,800 m/s, e.g. intermediate-range ballistic missiles with a range of 3,000-3,500 km. It also can handle pinpoint targets and stealthy threats at a range extended by 50% owing to an increase in the power generation capabilities of the 91N6E radar system and 92N6E multirole radar. The introduction of advanced electronic countermeasures (ECM) resistance solutions has boosted the system’s ECM immunity by several times. Finally, its reliability has grown and its size and power consumption have dropped owing to its cutting-edge electronics, sophisticated self-contained power supply and advanced vehicles. The Defexpo India 2016 international exhibition is held in Quitol in the state of Goa in India on March 28-31. During the exhibition, the Russian arms exporter Rosoboronexport is planning to hold talks with Indian partners to discuss joint projects for the Indian Armed Forces’ further upgrade

..http://idrw.org . Read more at India's No 1 Defence News Website and not at Copycat Websites , We lead others follow us. http://idrw.org/russia-india-draft-agreement-on-supply-of-s-400-missile-systems-ready-official/#more-91149 .

Modi government has applied enormous energy to knock down issues in ease of doing business: Lockheed Martin


The path or the trajectory is absolutely right to make things better for doing business in India, says Phil Shaw, Chief Executive of Lockheed Martin India. In an interview at Defence Expo 2016 with Economictimes.com, Shaw says that the government has applied enormous energy to knock down some of the issues in ease of doing business. Shaw also adds that the company is eyeing ‘Make in India’ deals for its products like Javelin and F-16.
 Edited excerpts: Both PM Modi and Defence Minister Parrikar have visited US and the government says it is working to enhance ease of doing business in India. In that context, what are the hurdles that you recommend should be removed?
The real positive over the last 18 months has been the willingness to enter into a dialogue with everybody, domestic and foreign companies, to get everybody’s point of view on what some of the challenges are with doing business in India. It is well recognised that India is not where it wants to be on the ease of doing business index, but I think the government has applied enormous energy to knock down some of the issues in ease of doing business, and we have seen the results of that. India has moved up the ease of doing business list. I wouldn’t want to pick on any specific area, I think whichever country you operate in around the world, there are challenges in certain areas. The encouraging thing here is the focus of the government to make ease of doing business a lot easier. We have seen some positive results in that regard. The path or the trajectory is absolutely right to make things better for doing business, and that’s not just for a foreign OEM, but for everybody doing business. That’s necessary to encourage the levels of investment that the government wants and needs. The government is taking on the challenge, and that is good.
Lockheed has been pitching to sell its Javelin missile system to India for some time now. What is the progress on that front?
If a deal comes through, will critical technologies of the missile be manufactured under ‘Make in India’? The Javelin is an offer by the US government to the government of India. The dialogue is between the governments. As a company along with Raytheon, we are fully in support of that dialogue and Javelin is also included in the Defense Technology and Trade Initiative (DTTI) between the two governments, which essentially underpins the willingness of the US government to share technology, and to co-produce and co-develop future weapon systems in India. So to answer your question briefly, yes, we are very willing to share technologies, and we are very willing to co-produce and co-develop future versions of the weapon system in India.
India’s indigenous missile systems are good; how does Lockheed look at the country as a market for its own missile systems?
You are right, the Indian missile systems are good and there are certain missile systems of Lockheed which are complementary to the weapons that are already manufactured here in India. So we believe that there is a market, for some of our capabilities, such as Javelin for example. Anything we do in India, particularly with ‘Make in India’ and being in partnership with Indian companies, whatever technologies we bring will be in partnership with probably one of those existing missile manufacturers to bring additional capabilities. So we see India as a good market for some of the capabilities that we have got and we will be very keen to partner with Indian companies to bring those capabilities to the country.
 Does the company see India becoming a hub for manufacturing its major defence projects?
 We have some experience of this already, for the joint venture activity that we have in Hyderabad, both with Sikorsky on the helicopter side and also Lockheed Martin Aeronautics with the C-130J, where we manufacture significant aerostructures…we have built up experience over the last six or seven years in manufacturing in India to give us confidence to go to the next stage. So, you would have heard that we have offered to build the F-16 here in India. So we are ready to move to the platform level. I think that once we are able to do that, the ecosystem around that builds up over time which will enable the manufacturer of that platform to not just offer it for consumption in India, but also any other country which wishes to procure it. So, yes, I can see that there is a roadmap for India to be a major manufacturing hub in aerospace and defence and it doesn’t happen overnight, it takes some time to build up the ecosystem.
 But if the current trajectory is maintained by the government, then there is a good opportunity to do that. Are there any other ‘Make in India’ deals in the pipeline?
 Lots! We are continually looking for partners. If the Javelin deal happens, it will be a Make in India project. F-16 will be a ‘Make in India’ project, more helicopter programs for the Navy will be Make in India projects. Everything that we are looking at recognizes what the Indian government wants to do. We are very willing to do it, if we have the right partners. The decision needs to be made to go with our product and then we will do it.

economictimes

India's defence security space can grow like its automotive and service sector: BAE Systems

 
Pitching India’s capability to become a manufacturing hub for defence products, Alistair Castle, Vice President of BAE Systems India, said, “Automotive sector and service sector grew really quickly and demonstrated to the world what India is capable of. My observation is that similar growth will be seen in India’s defence security space.” Applauding the government for changing the business scenario of India, Castle told Economictimes.com, “An incredible change descends to the industrial base in India, which is nice. Moreover, India’s GDP growth levels also give confidence for doing business here.” Castle also appreciated the new defence procurement policy (DPP) that was unveiled at the Defence Expo by saying,
“My observation of the DPP is that there has been lot of thoughtfulness in terms of gathering information around that document. The new policy gives a great incentive to companies like BAE systems who want to do a long term business in India.” Speaking on BAE Systems’ ‘Make in India’ plans, Castle said, “We have selected Mahindra to be our partner for assembly, integration and test for M777 howitzer deal. We are now waiting to execute the deal.”
He also said that BAE’s products that were showcased at the Defence Expo were related to ‘Make in India’. Elaborating upon company’s future ‘Make in India’ plans, Castle said, “We have plans to develop Hawk fighter with our partner HAL for India, in India.” Castle went on to say how the company was eyeing the futuristic combat vehicle (FICV) programme, “BAE Systems have extremely high capability in FICV.
We will be using our Swedish business unit Haggulands for bidding that. The product will be something around CV90 vehicles. In that case, we will be looking to partner with large industrial entities here to actually bring out the technology.” On being asked about the company’s cyber security expansion plans in India, Castle said, “Cyber space and applied intelligence system is one of the fast growing divisions under BAE Systems. For India, we recognize there is a lot of raw potential for products of cyber security space.” Any message for the government then? Castle says, “The new defence procurement policy 2016 is very encouraging. My message would be to continue doing the same as it is a very positive signal for international business.

economictimes

Towards military self-reliance


The Defence Procurement Policy 2016 made public this week is a step forward in increasing the participation of India’s private sector in military manufacturing. It replaces the last DPP unveiled in 2013, and has several recommendations for improving indigenous procurement. 
The DPP, the governing manual for all defence procurement, was part of a set of military reforms undertaken to address the many deficiencies noticed during the 1999 Kargil war. Since the first one in 2002, the DPP has been revised periodically. The new policy places the highest preference to a newly incorporated procurement class called ‘Buy Indian-IDDM’, with IDDM denoting Indigenous Designed Developed and Manufactured. This category refers to procurement from an Indian vendor, products that are indigenously designed, developed and manufactured with a minimum of 40 per cent local content, or products having 60 per cent indigenous content if not designed and developed within the country.
 The policy has also liberalised the threshold for offset liabilities for foreign vendors — now the obligation to invest at least 30 per cent of the contract value in India will kick in at Rs.2,000 crore, a significant increase from the previous Rs.300-crore mark. The policy lays stress on micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs), and on “Make in India”. A 10 per cent weightage has been introduced for superior technology, instead of selecting the lowest bidder only in financial terms.
DPP 2016, however, falls far short of the expectations raised by the Narendra Modi government’s ambitious “Make in India” push that aims to transform the country into a global manufacturing hub.
 India is the world’s largest importer of defence equipment, and indigenising production is key to such a plan. The DPP is noticeable for the absence of Chapter VII, titled ‘Strategic Partners and Partnerships’, which the Defence Minister said would be notified separately. Under Strategic Partnerships, select Indian private companies were to be given preferential status in major defence projects. The inability of the Centre to finalise a credible policy to radically increase indigenous military manufacturing is a sure sign that India will remain heavily dependent on defence imports.
 Given the country’s robust financial growth, one of its greatest leveraging points is the annual spend on procurement. India has all the necessary prerequisites for a robust military-industrial complex: a diverse private sector, a large base of engineering institutes, and a growing defence budget. The fact that India faces a combination of security threats from both state and non-state actors is an obvious reason why it needs to be self-reliant in military equipment. 
There is another important reason why India needs an indigenous military-industrial complex: it will significantly reduce the potential for corruption in military procurement. However, the new procurement policy does not inspire hope that domestic defence production will grow sufficiently. It may not be just an irony that the policy has been released as India hosts yet another Defexpo event, in Goa, where global vendors are hawking their war machines to a technologically famished Indian military. 

thehindu

MBDA in talks with DRDO, Bharat Dynamics for making missiles

 
MBDA has also started initial discussions with Indian officials to co-develop and locally produce the fifth generation anti-tank guided missile.
European missile manufacturer MBDA is in talks with the state-run Defence Research and Development Organization (DRDO) and public sector firm Bharat Dynamics Ltd (BDL) to co-develop and manufacture a short-range surface-to-air missile (SRSAM) for the Indian Navy through extensive technology transfer, said Loïc Piedevache, India head of MBDA Group.
SRSAM will also have significant export potential—an added incentive for the government’s Make in India project, said Piedevache in an interview. “SRSAM will be designed by DRDO, made by Bharat Dynamics assisted by MBDA’s longstanding and recognised expertise and know-how.”
Piedevache said MBDA Group has been working with India for more than 50 years. “The company started its make in India strategy even before the Modi government started its Make In India campaign,” he added.
The Make in India programme is now more than 18 months old. Launched on 25 September 2014, it was the brainchild of Prime Minister Narendra Modi to promote India as the world’s next manufacturing destination and attract Foreign Direct Investment (FDI). Twenty-five sectors were identified—from automobiles to aviation to pharmaceuticals to tourism and wellness.
Under the programme, the government has awarded 56 defence manufacturing permits to private sector entities in the past one year, after allowing 49% FDI in the defence sector in August 2014, compared with 47 granted in the preceding three years.
“We sell products to all around the world. But India is the only country where we are offering co-development and ToT (transfer of technology) of cutting edge missile technology. MBDA’s office in Delhi is growing and is already the company’s largest overseas set up,” Piedevache said.
On the new defence procurement procedure or DPP 2016 , he said that already the government is clearly aiming at making the procurement process quicker and easier. The DPP 2016 aims to bring into effect measures to promote indigenization and self-reliance in defence. DPP also has enabling provisions for utilization and consolidation of design, development and manufacturing infrastructure available in the country are included in the proposal.
On the lower defence allocation in the Union Budget 2016-17, Piedevache said the group is in India for the long term, and its strategy is not based on annual budgets.
Piedevache said MBDA has started initial discussions with Indian officials to co-develop and locally produce the fifth generation anti-tank guided missile (ATGM), drawing on some of the highly advanced technology already being developed for the French army’s new Missile Moyenne Portée or medium range missile.
He did not disclose more details but added that the ATGM will be suitable for India’s own operational requirements.

livemint

Enough of Akash, says Army as it opts for Israeli missiles

 
The Army is likely to go for Israeli quick-reaction surface-to-air missiles (QR-SAMs) to take on enemy fighters, helicopters and drones after firmly rejecting any further induction of the much-touted indigenous Akash missiles.

Defence ministry sources said the Army has made it clear that it does not want any more Akash regiments after it gets the first two ordered earlier for Rs 14,180 crore, with six firing batteries and hundreds of missiles each.

This marks a major blow to the 'Make in India' policy, especially since the Navy is turning to France for similar requirements after dumping the Akash missiles for its warships due to "stabilisation problems".

"The Army holds Akash area defence missile systems do not meet its operational requirements for defending its strike corps against enemy air attacks in forward areas. Instead, it wants the global route for procurement of four QR-SAM regiments," said a source.
 While missile systems from Israel, Russia and Sweden have undergone extensive field trials conducted by the Army, sources said the Israeli Spyder QR-SAMs has virtually emerged the winner in the race.

IAF, incidentally, is already on course to induct four Spyder units from February 2017 onwards. But the force is also progressively inducting 15 Akash missile squadrons, worth around Rs 10,900 crore, six of which are meant for the northeast to counter China's build-up of military infrastructure across the Line of Actual Control, as earlier reported by TOI.



But the Army contends IAF is inducting Akash squadrons to guard its airbases that are located in "depth areas" inside the country, while it wants QR-SAMs to defend its formations in the "forward tactical battlefield area".
 "Neither does Akash have the requisite 360 degree coverage, nor the 3-4 second reaction time the Army wants. Moreover, Akash has a large radar ground signature with several vehicles required for its missile launchers, multi-function radars and the like," said a source.

With an interception range of around 25 km in all weather conditions, Akash is the first advanced tactical (non-nuclear) missile to be made almost fully indigenously. Both the BrahMos supersonic cruise missile developed with Russia as well as the Barak SAM systems with Israel have an import content of 60-65%.

 timesofindia

March 29, 2016

Likely to tie up with Humvee; keen on JVs: Baba Kalyani


Almost a year after the government introduced the Make in India programme, Kalyani Group has four artillery platforms that are fully designed and manufactured in the country, says Group’s Chairman & Managing Director, Baba Kalyani. Speaking from the sidelines of Naval and Homeland Security Exhibition, Defence Expo 2016, Kalyani says the company will be launching new products including American company AM General’s Humvee for the domestic market. The industrial group will tie up with AM General, he says, adding: ”We need to produce it at a price point, which is suitable for the Indian market.” The 2016 Defence Procurement Policy (DPP) is a good policy platform to work with, says Kalyani.
 The newly-introduced Indigenously Designed, Developed & Manufactured (IDDM) category is a certain positive move, he added. The major challenge for the Defence Ministry is adopting the new framework quickly, he said. The company is keen on joint ventures (JVs) and will announce atleast 2-3 JVs this year, he added. The company will also target an opportunity of 4,000 guns needed by the Army in next 20-25 years, Kalyani said. Below is the transcript of Baba Kalyani’s interview with CNBC-TV18’s Rituparna Bhuyan.
 Q: It has been about one year of Make in India. What is the Kalyani Group doing as far as defence is concerned? Why don’t you start with this platform which is at display?
A: First of all as a company hardly any company hardly any company has done what we have been doing. We believe in Make in India, we have now four artillery platforms that are 100 percent designed and manufactured in India. You can see all of them including the Ultra Light Howitzer and we have some newer products which is the famous American HUMVEE which AM General wants to now manufacture in India for the armed forces in India as well as for exports. So, yes, there is a lot of excitement.
Q: Will you be tying up with HUMVEE for their platforms in India?
A: Yes, certainly. It is their product, it is not our product. But we need to produce at a price point which is suitable for the Indian market and for the South East Asian markets. I think we can make that happen.
Q: If you can also give us some idea about the kind of platforms that is under development as of now because indigenous design development and manufacturing (IDDM) that is a new category which has been introducing Defence Procurement Procedure (DPP). What is your comment on DPP and IDDM?
A: We are very happy that we have a category called IDDM. Designed and developed and manufactured in India. We have four platforms right there, we have the 105 light gun which is 100 percent indigenous. We have the Ultra Light Howitzer which is 100 percent indigenous. We have the 52 calibre 155 millimetre gun which we made out of the first platform we made and even exhibited during the last defence expo which is 100 percent indigenous.
Now that platform has undergone firing trial and firing test and come out with flying colours. Now we will give a product to the army for field trial. So, this is what the new category will provide us and if what is written in the DPP that indigenously designed and developed products they are talking about 40 percent indigenous content, our is 100 percent indigenous content. It also makes us very competitive because when we manufacture everything our costs are much lower and it makes us very competitive. We have now a good policy platform to work with. We have products ready, we just have to find a way to test them and take them to the market.
Q: Does it mean that we could see more capital expenditure (capex) from the Kalyani Group as far as the defence is concerned?
 A: Yes, capex will be related to orders that we get. We have already spent a lot of money and built capabilities, built the manufacturing capabilities. We now have manufacturing capabilities to manufacture 100 guns a year of 155 calibre and we can make them ultra light, we can make them 52 calibre, we can make them truck mounted, we can make them towed. We have all the designs ready with us. So, that is something that will happen pretty quickly.
 Q: From your side you were ready as far as design and development part is concerned. So, going forward what kind of programs will you be targeting, if you can give a brief idea of the kind of programs that you will targeting?
A: The army requires 4,000 plus guns in the next 20-25 years. That is what is in their perspective plan. So, obviously even if we were to do half of them or one third of them it is a lot of guns and a lot of value. So, we are going to be there.
Q: The new defence policy explicitly says that if foreign guys want to come into India they will have to tie up with Indian companies like you. Going forward are you exploring joint ventures and tie ups with foreign companies?
A: We have joint ventures. We have a joint venture with Rafael, we have a joint venture with Elbit Systems, we are talking to three four other companies, AM General for example. The next thing we want to do is ammunition. So, yes, the days of imports are over for India. That is clear from the Prime Minister’s Make in India policy and defence minister’s new DPP 2016.
The import regime is over. We have a lot of things in the pipeline from the previous processes and now we have a new procurement policy. The challenge in front of the ministry of defence is how quickly they adopt themselves to the new policy.
Q: So, do we see the new joint ventures this year itself? A: Yes, you will see at least two or three new joint ventures announcements this year and formation this year.
Q: This is the platform, it has obviously got me excited. So, as far as the HUMVEE is concerned what can you tell us, when do we see production, will there be a new production line that will be set up here?
A: Yes, once we pass through the process of meeting qualitative requirements (QR) etc and that is all done and we get a cost number which we feel is competitive we will set up a production line

moneycontrol
The company will also target an opportunity of 4,000 guns needed by the Army in the next 20-25 years, says Group's Chairman & Managing Director, Baba Kalyani.

Read more at: http://www.moneycontrol.com/news/business/likely-to-tie-uphumvee-keenjvs-baba-kalyani_6029201.html?utm_source=ref_article

India Willing To Export Tejas, Akash, BrahMos: Manohar Parrikar


India is willing to export Tejas fighter jets, Akash missile system and even the BrahMos missile, Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar said on Monday, but added that it will happen only after the Indian Air Force’s (IAF) requirements are met. On defence exports, the minister said: “Once IAF requirements are taken care of, we can export Tejas, Akash, BrahMos.” Tejas is an indigenously developed light combat aircraft.
The Akash missile system is a mid-range surface-to-air missile developed by DRDO, and BrahMos is a short range supersonic missile, jointly developed by Russia’s NPO Mashinostroeyenia and Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO). Mr Parrikar said clearance can be given for exporting up to 10 percent of what is manufactured.
 On the Tejas aircraft, the minister said it was likely to be inducted into the Indian Air Force by the end of 2016 or early 2017. He said the fly-by-wire system — an electronic control system that replaces conventional mechanical flight — of Tejas was one of the best. “Its manoeuverability is superior,” he said.

ndtv

India's New Stealth Fighter to Get Mach 3 Super Missile?

 
India’s version of the Sukhoi T-50 PAK-FA stealth fighter will likely be armed with the Russian-Indian BrahMos supersonic cruise missile. However, the weapon—which is based-on the P-800 Oniks anti-ship missile—will have to be modified to be carried onboard the fifth-generation warplane. “We are presenting BrahMos to many Indian public and private defense companies, from some of them we get a technical job,” Sudhir Mishra, the head of BrahMos Aerospace, told the Russian media outlet RIA Novosti.
“We presented it also to developers of the FGFA — they asked to adjust the size of the missile, so it can be placed on board the aircraft. Such work is ongoing.” While the Indians and Russians have been having disagreements on work share and the price tag of the Fifth-Generation Fighter Aircraft (FGFA)—as the Indian PAK-FA is known—the addition of the BrahMos to the jet would afford New Delhi a potent new capability. One the stealthy new aircraft has completed development, the FGFA—assuming the project materializes—would enable the Indian Air Force to penetrate into hostile airspace and strike at even the most heavily defended targets.
 The jet would use its stealth and speed to get into launch position and launch the BrahMos from standoff ranges. With its Mach 3.0 speed and 180-mile range, the BrahMos missile used in combination with the PAK-FA would enable India to hit Chinese and Pakistani targets with relative impunity. A Mach 3.0-capable cruise missile is difficult to counter. According to U.S. Navy sources, the BrahMos has a particular terminal phase that makes it particularly difficult to intercept.

nationalinterest
India’s version of the Sukhoi T-50 PAK-FA stealth fighter will likely be armed with the Russian-Indian BrahMos supersonic cruise missile. However, the weapon—which is based-on the P-800 Oniks anti-ship missile—will have to be modified to be carried onboard the fifth-generation warplane. “We are presenting BrahMos to many Indian public and private defense companies, from some of them we get a technical job,” Sudhir Mishra, the head of BrahMos Aerospace, told the Russian media outlet RIA Novosti.“We presented it also to developers of the FGFA — they asked to adjust the size of the missile, so it can be placed on board the aircraft. Such work is ongoing.” While the Indians and Russians have been having disagreements on work share and the price tag of the Fifth-Generation Fighter Aircraft (FGFA)—as the Indian PAK-FA is known—the addition of the BrahMos to the jet would afford New Delhi a potent new capability. One the stealthy new aircraft has completed development, the FGFA—assuming the project materializes—would enable the Indian Air Force to penetrate into hostile airspace and strike at even the most heavily defended targets. The jet would use its stealth and speed to get into launch position and launch the BrahMos from standoff ranges. With its Mach 3.0 speed and 180-mile range, the BrahMos missile used in combination with the PAK-FA would enable India to hit Chinese and Pakistani targets with relative impunity. A Mach 3.0-capable cruise missile is difficult to counter. According to U.S. Navy sources, the BrahMos has a particular terminal phase that makes it particularly difficult to intercept.

..http://idrw.org . Read more at India's No 1 Defence News Website and not at Copycat Websites , We lead others follow us. http://idrw.org/indias-new-stealth-fighter-to-get-mach-3-super-missile/#more-91102 .
India’s version of the Sukhoi T-50 PAK-FA stealth fighter will likely be armed with the Russian-Indian BrahMos supersonic cruise missile. However, the weapon—which is based-on the P-800 Oniks anti-ship missile—will have to be modified to be carried onboard the fifth-generation warplane. “We are presenting BrahMos to many Indian public and private defense companies, from some of them we get a technical job,” Sudhir Mishra, the head of BrahMos Aerospace, told the Russian media outlet RIA Novosti.“We presented it also to developers of the FGFA — they asked to adjust the size of the missile, so it can be placed on board the aircraft. Such work is ongoing.” While the Indians and Russians have been having disagreements on work share and the price tag of the Fifth-Generation Fighter Aircraft (FGFA)—as the Indian PAK-FA is known—the addition of the BrahMos to the jet would afford New Delhi a potent new capability. One the stealthy new aircraft has completed development, the FGFA—assuming the project materializes—would enable the Indian Air Force to penetrate into hostile airspace and strike at even the most heavily defended targets. The jet would use its stealth and speed to get into launch position and launch the BrahMos from standoff ranges. With its Mach 3.0 speed and 180-mile range, the BrahMos missile used in combination with the PAK-FA would enable India to hit Chinese and Pakistani targets with relative impunity. A Mach 3.0-capable cruise missile is difficult to counter. According to U.S. Navy sources, the BrahMos has a particular terminal phase that makes it particularly difficult to intercept.

..http://idrw.org . Read more at India's No 1 Defence News Website and not at Copycat Websites , We lead others follow us. http://idrw.org/indias-new-stealth-fighter-to-get-mach-3-super-missile/#more-91102 .
India’s version of the Sukhoi T-50 PAK-FA stealth fighter will likely be armed with the Russian-Indian BrahMos supersonic cruise missile. However, the weapon—which is based-on the P-800 Oniks anti-ship missile—will have to be modified to be carried onboard the fifth-generation warplane. “We are presenting BrahMos to many Indian public and private defense companies, from some of them we get a technical job,” Sudhir Mishra, the head of BrahMos Aerospace, told the Russian media outlet RIA Novosti.“We presented it also to developers of the FGFA — they asked to adjust the size of the missile, so it can be placed on board the aircraft. Such work is ongoing.” While the Indians and Russians have been having disagreements on work share and the price tag of the Fifth-Generation Fighter Aircraft (FGFA)—as the Indian PAK-FA is known—the addition of the BrahMos to the jet would afford New Delhi a potent new capability. One the stealthy new aircraft has completed development, the FGFA—assuming the project materializes—would enable the Indian Air Force to penetrate into hostile airspace and strike at even the most heavily defended targets. The jet would use its stealth and speed to get into launch position and launch the BrahMos from standoff ranges. With its Mach 3.0 speed and 180-mile range, the BrahMos missile used in combination with the PAK-FA would enable India to hit Chinese and Pakistani targets with relative impunity. A Mach 3.0-capable cruise missile is difficult to counter. According to U.S. Navy sources, the BrahMos has a particular terminal phase that makes it particularly difficult to intercept.

..http://idrw.org . Read more at India's No 1 Defence News Website and not at Copycat Websites , We lead others follow us. http://idrw.org/indias-new-stealth-fighter-to-get-mach-3-super-missile/#more-91102 .

March 25, 2016

IAF plans to acquire aerial target drones soon


The IAF is planning to acquire “manoeuvrable expendable aerial target” drones with flares at the tail-end that will serve as targets for laser-guided bombs and missiles fired from fighter aircraft that will give a more visibly accurate account of the outcome of firing at exercises such as the one that was held last week over the deserts of Pokhran in Rajasthan.
 Sources said the IAF wants these drones to be acquired so that it can move to a more modern system of hitting targets from the current “archaic” system of firing at flares. They said the IAF had moved a proposal before the ministry of defence about six months ago for the acquisition of these drones that can be used as targets during an air-exercise. Sources said that currently if a missile explodes even very near a flare instead of hitting it directly, it can be counted as a success since the missile would have hit the target had it been an aircraft instead of just a flare.
The IAF said that it was looking into one incident in which a laser-guided bomb malfunctioned during the recent exercise that had been dropped from an indigenous “Tejas” light combat aircraft.

 asianage

India keen to buy F/A 18 Super Hornet fighter jets for IAF

 
India is keen to consider Boeing’s offer to supply F/A-18 Super Hornet fighter jets to the Indian Air Force (IAF). Sources said that New Delhi will take a hard look at the proposal in April when a high-level delegation will engage the Indian officials on the construct of the offer. US Defence Secretary Ashton Carter will be in India on April 10 in a visit that is expected to take lift cooperation to a new level. Boeing has offered F/A-18 Super Hornets under the “Make in India” framework of the Indian government. Sources said the proposal is worth considering as IAF is facing acute shortage of fighter jets.
The IAF has already made it clear that the 36 Rafale fighter jets that are being negotiated with France are inadequate to meet its operational requirement. There is a view emerging in the Indian security establishment that F/A-18 Super Hornets can also negate the sale of F-16 fighter jets to Pakistan by the US. Super Hornet is a carrier based multi-role fighter which can be used by the Indian navy as well. Sources said the aircraft can meet both the IAF and Indian navy’s operational requirement. India had considered F-18 Super Hornet during the earlier hunt for 126 medium multi-role fighter jets.
But the US entry lost out to the French Rafale. With the government scrapping the proposed contract which could not be sealed even after prolonged discussions with the French side, it opened doors for other fighter makers to make fresh bids. Defence minister Manohar Parrikar has said the government is working out the best deal with the French.
The contract, said to be in the final lap of negotiations is stuck over the price of 36 jets being sought by the French side. Sources said the deal is working out to be worth Rs 60,000 crore. There is a sense of urgency in acquiring new aircraft as IAF’s force levels are depleting due to an ageing fleet. Sources said the “Make in India” proposal of F-18s will solve the problem on the long term basis. Boeing’s proposal also involves significant transfer of technology with a substantial indigenous content.
The proposal will also benefit the indigenous Light Combat Aircraft “Tejas” programme which needs to be resurrected after prolonged delays. Sources said the acquisition can be put on fast track considering the urgency. The government has already stressed on going for direct military sale the route which is faster instead of inviting global bids.

indiatoday

March 18, 2016

India may not buy Rafale? 'Build F16s, supply to Pak,' taunts French official

 
Paris is beginning to acknowledge the possibility that India might not buy the Rafale fighter because of sharp differences over the price, and New Delhi’s insistence on enforceable guarantees regarding the fighter’s delivery, performance and availability. 

A senior French official with a close view of the on-going negotiations between New Delhi and Paris for 36 Rafale fighters told Business Standard on condition of anonymity: “If some people in the MoD do not want to allow the Rafale deal to go through, so be it. We are currently building it for Egypt and Qatar, and we could have another customer in Malaysia.”
 
Underlining the irritation at repeated US offers to set up an assembly line in India to build the American F-16 Super Viper, the French official taunted: “If you don’t want the Rafale, go ahead and build the F-16 here. You can build it in India and supply it to Pakistan also.”

He was referring to Washington’s announcement last month of the sale to Pakistan of eight advanced Block 50/52 F-16 fighters for $699 million. Simultaneously, a senior Lockheed Martin official had publicly offered to “move our [F-16] production line from the US to India.”

Reminded that France too was supplying submarines to both India and Pakistan (DCNS is building six Scorpenes submarines with Mazagon Dock, after earlier selling Pakistan three advanced Agosta-90B submarines with air independent propulsion), he retorted, “That is different. Pakistan is getting a different submarine from what we are providing to India.”

The official dismissed the notion that an Indian order was critical for Dassault to break even in the Rafale project, in which tens of billion Euros have been spent on developing the fighter and establishing a production line. The official claimed, “The Rafale project is commercially viable based on the numbers that the French military requires, even if there is not a single export order.”

In fact, defence budget cuts have forced the French military to slash Rafale orders from over 300 originally planned to just 180 ordered so far. That is a small order, given that the Eurofighter Typhoon has over 700 aircraft on order; while more than 4,500 F-16s have been built over the years.

On New Delhi’s demands for sovereign guarantees from the French government, or a bank guarantee from Dassault, to cover the possibility of delivery or performance shortfalls in the Rafale, the official declared that the two countries would soon sign an inter-governmental agreement (IGA), which would function as a sovereign guarantee.

“The government of France is standing behind the sale. Surely India is not asking for a bank guarantee when it has the word of the French government?” asked the official.

When it was pointed out that the IGA would only outline a supply agreement in broad terms, without detailed binding clauses and penalties, the official responded that the IGA was a strategic agreement between Paris and New Delhi, and that “a phrase here or a sentence there would make no difference.”

“In 1917, when the United States abandoned its isolationism and sent a division of troops to France to fight in World War I, it was not because there was some document with a clause that required them to fight. It was because of a common strategic aim. New Delhi and Paris must have a common strategic aim on the Rafale.”

French officials argue that, if Dassault is required to provide a bank guarantee against possible shortfalls in delivery and performance, India should cover that cost, which is normally 3-4 per cent of the guarantee amount.

Meanwhile, the Cost Negotiation Committee on the Rafale has made little headway in bridging the gap between the French demand and Indian counter-offer, which are believed to be around Euro 12 billion and Euro 9 billion respectively. Issues of liability are further complicating the likelihood of a deal soon.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi, while visiting Paris last April, had requested for 36 Rafales, after a breakdown in negotiations for a much larger order for 126 Rafales. The Indian Air Force had chosen the Rafale on January 31, 2012, after an exhaustive evaluation of six fighter aircraft.
 
businessstandard

L&T plans to step up defence equipment exports to Southeast Asia


Larsen & Toubro plans to step up export of defence equipment to Southeast Asian countries and is hopeful of bagging a deal soon in Vietnam, even as the engineering conglomerate sees its domestic order book for defence equipment reach Rs 50,000 crore in three years, a top official said. “India has potential for Rs 4.5 lakh crore for defence orders over the next decade and typically we should get more than half of it,” said Jayant D Patil, head of defence and aerospace at L&T. “In the short term, we hope to book orders worth Rs 20,000 crore in the next 12-18 months,” he told ET. L&T pegs potential of the Indian defence market at Rs 1.5 lakh crore by 2021 and Rs 4.5 lakh crore by 2016, driven by the current government’s thrust on local sourcing.
The company is currently manufacturing and supplying different components for missiles to Indian armed forces and has the capability to make missile. To meet the country’s growing demand for defence equipment locally, L&T invested heavily in a portcum-shipyard unit that is capable of building submarines. It also set up a nuclear forging unit.
These new businesses are yet to see the orders that justifies the investment and like L&T’s other fledgling business of power equipment they continue to be a drag on the company. But L&T is upbeat on the defence sector, thanks to the central government’s policy and proactive stance. Patil said that there is also $3-billion export opportunity for Indian defence equipment makers to tap in Southeast Asia.
He said the firm is in talks with the government to smoothen the process and offer financing to these countries. “We bid for projects earlier and lost because Chinese makers also offered low-rate financing. This is a big challenge because the capital cost in India is high and we can’t, on our own, offer low rates,” Patil said.”This will help India achieve exports target as well.” L&T is close to bagging a project to supply interceptor boats in Indonesia.
These boats were developed by it in-house after the government ordered a series of offshore patrol vessels and interceptor boats in response to the terrorist attack on Mumbai in 2008, when the gunmen entered the city through sea.

 economictimes
Larsen & Toubro plans to step up export of defence equipment to Southeast Asian countries and is hopeful of bagging a deal soon in Vietnam, even as the engineering conglomerate sees its domestic order book for defence equipment reach Rs 50,000 crore in three years, a top official said. “India has potential for Rs 4.5 lakh crore for defence orders over the next decade and typically we should get more than half of it,” said Jayant D Patil, head of defence and aerospace at L&T. “In the short term, we hope to book orders worth Rs 20,000 crore in the next 12-18 months,” he told ET. L&T pegs potential of the Indian defence market at Rs 1.5 lakh crore by 2021 and Rs 4.5 lakh crore by 2016, driven by the current government’s thrust on local sourcing. The company is currently manufacturing and supplying different components for missiles to Indian armed forces and has the capability to make missile. To meet the country’s growing demand for defence equipment locally, L&T invested heavily in a portcum-shipyard unit that is capable of building submarines. It also set up a nuclear forging unit. These new businesses are yet to see the orders that justifies the investment and like L&T’s other fledgling business of power equipment they continue to be a drag on the company. But L&T is upbeat on the defence sector, thanks to the central government’s policy and proactive stance. Patil said that there is also $3-billion export opportunity for Indian defence equipment makers to tap in Southeast Asia. He said the firm is in talks with the government to smoothen the process and offer financing to these countries. “We bid for projects earlier and lost because Chinese makers also offered low-rate financing. This is a big challenge because the capital cost in India is high and we can’t, on our own, offer low rates,” Patil said.”This will help India achieve exports target as well.” L&T is close to bagging a project to supply interceptor boats in Indonesia. These boats were developed by it in-house after the government ordered a series of offshore patrol vessels and interceptor boats in response to the terrorist attack on Mumbai in 2008, when the gunmen entered the city through sea.

..http://idrw.org . Read more at India's No 1 Defence News Website and not at Copycat Websites , We lead others follow us. http://idrw.org/lt-plans-to-step-up-defence-equipment-exports-to-southeast-asia/ .
Larsen & Toubro plans to step up export of defence equipment to Southeast Asian countries and is hopeful of bagging a deal soon in Vietnam, even as the engineering conglomerate sees its domestic order book for defence equipment reach Rs 50,000 crore in three years, a top official said. “India has potential for Rs 4.5 lakh crore for defence orders over the next decade and typically we should get more than half of it,” said Jayant D Patil, head of defence and aerospace at L&T. “In the short term, we hope to book orders worth Rs 20,000 crore in the next 12-18 months,” he told ET. L&T pegs potential of the Indian defence market at Rs 1.5 lakh crore by 2021 and Rs 4.5 lakh crore by 2016, driven by the current government’s thrust on local sourcing. The company is currently manufacturing and supplying different components for missiles to Indian armed forces and has the capability to make missile. To meet the country’s growing demand for defence equipment locally, L&T invested heavily in a portcum-shipyard unit that is capable of building submarines. It also set up a nuclear forging unit. These new businesses are yet to see the orders that justifies the investment and like L&T’s other fledgling business of power equipment they continue to be a drag on the company. But L&T is upbeat on the defence sector, thanks to the central government’s policy and proactive stance. Patil said that there is also $3-billion export opportunity for Indian defence equipment makers to tap in Southeast Asia. He said the firm is in talks with the government to smoothen the process and offer financing to these countries. “We bid for projects earlier and lost because Chinese makers also offered low-rate financing. This is a big challenge because the capital cost in India is high and we can’t, on our own, offer low rates,” Patil said.”This will help India achieve exports target as well.” L&T is close to bagging a project to supply interceptor boats in Indonesia. These boats were developed by it in-house after the government ordered a series of offshore patrol vessels and interceptor boats in response to the terrorist attack on Mumbai in 2008, when the gunmen entered the city through sea.

..http://idrw.org . Read more at India's No 1 Defence News Website and not at Copycat Websites , We lead others follow us. http://idrw.org/lt-plans-to-step-up-defence-equipment-exports-to-southeast-asia/ .

March 16, 2016

What will the Indian Navy’s new carrier look like?


The Indian Navy has sought tenders from Russia, France, Britain and the United States to build its new, nuclear-powered aircraft carrier, the ‘Vishal’. Reports suggest that Russia is a leading contender for the contract.

Russia, France, Britain and the United States have been asked by the Indian Navy to participate in a tender and compete for a contract to develop a new aircraft carrier for it. According to some media reports, Russia and France have made it to the short list of bidders, while India is inclined towards the Russian version.
Announcing the beginning of design work on a new Indian aircraft carrier, the ‘Vishal’ in 2010, then Navy Chief Nirmal Kumar Verma said the Indian Navy wants a “large aircraft carrier” from which they will be able to launch fighters, radar surveillance aircraft, and tactical tanker aircraft. Officially, the new Indian aircraft carrier ‘Vishal’ is the second ship of the ‘Vikrant’ type. However, given requirements for the project promulgated by the Indian military means building a fundamentally new ship.
 To implement all these requirements, the ‘Vishal’ will need to have a nuclear power plant, and a displacement of 65,000 tons.
Such a ship is obviously not needed for the country’s traditional confrontation with the Pakistan Navy. The appearance in India’s naval fleet of a large nuclear-powered aircraft carrier, with a developed air group, presents a direct challenge to Beijing, a long-standing military and political partner of Islamabad.
Since the early 2000s, China has been putting in place the so-called “string of pearls strategy”, which implies the deployment of a chain of military bases in the Indian Ocean (including the potential use of Pakistan’s deep-water Gwadar Port leased to the Chinese in 2013), to place a strangle-hold on India.
The many requirements for the ‘Vishal’ virtually excludes the possibility of construction by India alone, and has created a bidding situation for foreign designers and component suppliers.
Very few shipbuilding schools have the capability to compete to become the leading contractor for this new Indian aircraft carrier project.
It is important to eliminate the Americans from the possibility of participating in this project. All that Washington can really do under these circumstances is to try to push India to abandon the idea of using a nuclear power plant, and then attempt to sell New Delhi a converted boiler and turbine aircraft carrier of the ‘Kitty Hawk’ variety.
The option is possible, especially if India decides it needs to save money. Another issue is that, by tradition, the American military-industrial complex usually refuses to work in consortiums with competitors, especially when it comes to Soviet-Russian companies. The situation, in which India suddenly would place MiG-29K fighter jets on an American-built carrier, is almost impossible.
The French PA2 nuclear ship project, which was supposed to enter the French fleet after the Charles de Gaulle, almost meets all the parameters of the Vishal. After downsizing, its displacement would be about 62,000 tons, and it could carry more than 40 aircraft.
The third and final participant in this race for the “first nuclear” ship for India is the Russian Neva Design Bureau, whose work the Indians know well from their other aircraft carrier, ‘Vikramaditya’.
It can be assumed with a high degree of probability that, in accordance with the long-standing tradition of the Indian military, none of these bidders will be chosen as the “sole” contractor. Rather, a multilateral consortium will be built, in which each participant will play a well-defined role. What might this look like?
Playing a part in narrowing the range of options can be the Indian Navy’s requirement for harmonization of the new ship’s air wing with the existing aircraft already serving in the Indian Air Force and Navy. The Russian MiG-29K, among carrier-based fighter jets, is already in use on the aircraft carrier ‘Vikramaditya’ and is proposed for use on ‘Vikrant’ now being completed, and the French Rafale M. Both these meet the conditions required.
When it comes to the construction of the hull, taking into account the above-mentioned US restrictions, the real contenders for cooperation are the British, French, and Russians. A significant limitation for the British and French is their inability to supply a power plant with the capacity required for Indian conditions. Installation of the necessary capacity, on the basis of the Rhythm-200 reactors, can only be done by Russia.
As a “result” we arrive at the four most realistic versions of what the new Indian aircraft carrier will comprise:
1. A French hull with Russian power plant, Russian aviation-technical complex and a Russian air group.
2. A French hull with the Russian power plant, French aviation-technical systems and a mixed air group.
3. A Russian hull with the Russian power plant, French aviation-technical systems and a mixed air group.
4. A Russian hull with the Russian power plant, mixed Russian-French aviation-technical systems and a mixed air group.

 rbth

Techmash to produce ammunition with India



Russia’s largest ammunition manufacturer, Techmash, is likely to discuss setting up joint production facilities in India during the Defexpo India 2016, due to be held in Goa at the end of March.

Techmash, a member company of Rostec and Russia’s largest manufacturer of ammunition, will discuss setting up joint-production facilities with India during the Defexpo India-2016 Exhibition, TASS has learned from the Techmash press service.
“The business programme of the exhibition includes a working meeting with a delegation from the management group in charge of artillery manufacturing plants for the Indian Ministry of Defence. They will discuss the establishment of joint production facilities,” the press release stated.
At Techmash, they also stated that interest in the group’s joint-exposition has been expressed by more than 15 delegations from Asia, Africa, South America and West Asia.
“More than a month before the start of this exhibition, we have received a large number of proposals to hold working meetings within the framework of the exposition,” said Sergey Rusakov, General Director of Techmash, quoted by the press service.
It has been reported earlier that Techmash now supplies India with ‘Mango’ shells for the T-90S tanks. Around 66,000 such rounds of ammunition are expected to be supplied by the end of 2016. Also, the Rosoboronexport Company reported that their contract with India includes the organization of licensed production of such munitions in India.
The Defexpo India Exhibition has been held annually in different Indian cities since the year 2000. It will be held between March 28 and 31 this year in Naqueri Quitol in Quepem Taluka of South Goa, India.

 rbth

Russia may sell three Project 11356 frigates to India

 
Russia is holding talks with India to sell three Project 11356 frigates earlier destined for the Russian Black Sea Fleet, Vice-President of the United Shipbuilding Corporation for Military Ship Construction Igor Ponomaryov told TASS on Friday.
"So far, we are fulfilling the works under state defense order and building these ships. At the same time, we’re holding talks on the possibility of selling these frigates to the Indian side," the vice-president said after the ceremony of hoisting the St. Andrew naval flag on the Project 11356 lead frigate, the Admiral Grigorovich.
When asked by TASS about whether a decision had been made on selling the frigates, Ponomaryov said: "This has not been decided."
"We’re holding talks so far and working under a state contract. But such negotiations are under way," he said.
According to the corporation’s vice-president, the engines for these warships "have been fully paid for by the Ukrainian side. They are staying in Ukraine and therefore we’ll be resolving the issue related to these engines."
A total of six Project 11356 frigates were planned to be built for the Russian Black Sea Fleet. The first frigate has already become operational in the Russian Navy and another two will join it by May and in August, Ponomaryov said earlier on Friday.
These warships are equipped with the Ukrainian-made engines, which has caused uncertainty with the construction of the other three frigates of this series. The United Shipbuilding Corporation said last year that these warships would be built but would be equipped with domestic engines.
India operates six Talwar-class frigates, which are the Project 11356 predecessors developed for exports. The Indian warships entered service in 2003-2004 and 2012-2013.

 rbth

To match India’s defence purchases, Pak trying to get more F-16s from US: Report

 
Pakistan is trying to get more F-16s from the US as well as looking towards countries like Russia and France for new aircraft to replace old ones to match India’s defence purchases, according to a report.
Jane’s Defence Weekly reported this week that Pakistan would seek to purchase ten F-16 additional planes from the United States if the current deal for eight of these fighter jets is successfully concluded.
Dawn quoted the Jane’s Defence Weekly that Pakistan wants new 16C/D Block 52 multi-role fighters, which are equipped with precision strike capability, as it would enhance its capability to reduce collateral damage in the war against terrorists who often hide among civilians.
A “decision in principle has been made to buy 10 more F-16s,” a senior Pakistani government official told Jane’s, while adding that “the exact timing to place an order is yet to be decided”.

He said Pakistan Air Force needed to retire 190 planes by 2020, forcing the country to look for various options.
The official said that the strong resistance it faced in the US Congress for buying a small batch of eight planes was “discouraging”.
“That’s why we are looking at other options too, such as buying them from Russia or France.”
The official noted that while French planes were “very expensive, the Russians are not and they are equally good”.
Last week, the US Senate rejected a move to shoot down the proposed sale of eight F-16, which is now in its final stages.
On Saturday, the 30-day mandatory period, that allows Congress to block an arms sale to a foreign country, also passed.
Although some technical details are still being worked out, the deal for these eight aircraft is almost final, the report said.
In September last year, Russia offered to sell Su-35 planes to Pakistan, which are among the fifth generation aircraft, it said.
Pakistani officials say that India’s defence purchases also influence their search for a matching technology.
India is already working on a plan to replace its current fleet of planes with fifth generation aircraft by 2020, forcing Pakistan to do the same.
They say that while Pakistan is not looking to match the exact number of planes the Indians have but they would like to maintain a fleet of 350 to 400 aircraft.
Pakistani officials point out that they also have a large-scale defence collaboration with China, “which is a great source of strength” for the country.
The eight planes that Pakistan is buying from the United States include two single-seat F-16Cs and six twin-seat F-16Ds, along with associated equipment – for about $699 million.

 indianexpress

India to make additional Scorpene subs: Parrikar



India is trying to increase the number of Scoprene Submarines that the Mumbai-based Mazagon Docks Limited (MDL) is making. The MDL is tasked to produce six submarines in collaboration with French company DCNS. Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar, while answering a question on Defence shipyards in the Lok Sabha today, confirmed the stand of the government. When South Mumbai MP Arvind Sawant asked about the future orders of the MDL, Parrikar said: “The initial yard (MDL) where the submarine is being laid....is already vacant. 
We are trying to increase the number of submarines that they are making.” Though Parrikar has in the past mentioned that more number of Scorpene submarines could be built, his response in the Lok Sabha was a clear indication that more such vessels could be added. The first of six Scorpene diesel-electric attack submarines (SSKs), the INS Kalvari, was set afloat for sea trials in December 2015. 
The vessel is scheduled to be commissioned in September 2016. The 66-metre-long INS Kalvari is part of a $3.6 billion contract signed with DCNS in October 2005. While the first four subs are conventional submarines, the last two are to be equipped with the Air Independent Propulsion (AIP) system, which will enable the vessel to stay underwater for longer. In the past 15 years, India’s submarine arm is the slowest growing in the otherwise fast-growing war machinery. 
The submarine plan announced in 1999 had spoken of having 24 modern submarines by 2030. Half way through, the INS Kalvari will be the first submarine.  India currently has only 14 submarines: nine Kilo class (EKMs), four German-designed HDWs (SSKs) and one Akula class nuclear-powered submarine (SSN) on lease from Russia (since 2012).  The US Department of Defence, in its annual report to the US Congress, spells out the rise of China’s submarine fleet. ‘Military and Security Developments involving the People’s Republic of China 2015’ says the Peoples Liberation Army Navy has 68 submarines.

 tribuneindia

March 9, 2016

US moves to harness India to anti-China “pivot”


The head of the US Pacific Command, Admiral Harry Harris, gave a highly provocative speech in New Delhi last week in which he laid out the “next steps” in Washington’s strategic agenda for India. Claiming to be “a bit moonstruck…by the opportunities a strategic partnership with India” provide, Harris said he envisioned the US and Indian navies jointly patrolling the Indian and Pacific Oceans in “the not too distant future.”
He also urged India to form a quadrilateral security “dialogue” with the US and its closest military allies in the Asian-Pacific region, Japan and Australia.
Later the same day, Admiral Harris proposed that the recently established annual trilateral Indo-US-Japanese naval exercise take place off the northeast shore of the Philippines, just outside the South China Sea—a contested region where the US has been encouraging its allies to press their territorial claims against China.
In sum, Harris urged India to become a “frontline state” in the US drive to strategically isolate, encircle and potentially wage war against China.
By virtually any measure, India is a poor country. But US imperialist strategists, including the Pentagon war planners, have been touting it as a “strategic prize” since the beginning of the 21st century. The efforts to harness India to US imperialism’s predatory global agenda, through a combination of threats and poison-chaliced inducements, have greatly intensified since the Obama administration announced its anti-China “pivot” in 2011.
US strategists covet India for multiple reasons. It is the second largest of the world’s “emerging economies.” It has a huge military, armed with nuclear weapons and a rapidly expanding blue-water navy. From a geostrategic standpoint, it dominates South Asia (the Indian subcontinent), providing a potential base of operations for projecting US power across much of Eurasia, including towards neighbouring China and the energy-rich Middle East and Central Asia.
Last but not least, India protrudes far into the Indian Ocean, providing easy access to the entire northern half of that ocean, which, as a recent US Naval War College-sponsored study notes, “has replaced the North Atlantic as the central artery of world commerce.”
The strategists of US imperialism view dominance of the Indian Ocean as essential to US global hegemony. First and foremost, because it is at the heart of US plans to impose an economic blockade on China through strategic maritime “chokepoints” in the event of war or war crisis. But also because the Indian Ocean is a key staging ground for US military operations in the Middle East and East Africa.
In pursuit of its own great-power ambitions, the Indian bourgeoisie has tilted ever more decisively toward Washington, even as the US has emerged as an incendiary power that wages illegal wars and otherwise violates national sovereignty and precepts of international law at will.
The Congress Party-led government that ruled Indian from 2004 to 2014 entered into a “global strategic partnership” with Washington, helped legitimize its efforts to isolate and bully Iran, and rapidly expanded ties between the Indian military and the Pentagon, including weapons purchases.
In the 22 months during which Narendra Modi and his Hindu supremacist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) have formed India’s government, New Delhi has integrated itself ever more fully into Washington’s strategic offensive against China.
This has included:
  •  Joining Washington in painting China as the aggressor in the South China Sea, although it is the US that, in the name of “freedom of navigation,” is arrogating to itself the right to patrol China’s shores and to have in place the naval might to quickly seize the Straits of Malacca and other strategic chokepoints;
  •  Expanding bilateral and trilateral military-security cooperation, including military exercises and strategic planning, with the US, Japan and Australia;
  • Collaborating across South Asia in countering Chinese influence, including in the January 2015 regime-change operation in Sri Lanka that saw Mahinda Rajapaksa replaced by a president ready to degrade Colombo’s ties with Beijing and launch a security “dialogue” with Washington.
Harris’s New Delhi speech was aimed at stoking suspicions and inflaming tensions between India and China, the better to bind New Delhi to America’s strategic agenda. It is part of an unrelenting campaign to force China to forgo any challenge to US global hegemony.
Earlier last week, Harris ordered an aircraft carrier-led US Navy strike force to enter the South China Sea. This week, the US and South Korea launched their largest ever Korean Peninsula war game, and did so on the basis of a new operational plan that provides for pre-emptive strikes on North Korea and the occupation of the North up to the Chinese border.
It took Indian Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar a full two days to respond to Harris’s speech, indicating that the BJP government was taken aback by the admiral’s public airing of Washington’s “asks” of India. Parrikar rebuffed the suggestion that India will mount joint navy patrols with the US, but in a manner that very much left the door open to such a possibility in the future.
The BJP has already reversed the decision taken by the previous government and supported by India’s military-security establishment to reject three agreements the Pentagon considers “foundational” for joint action with foreign militaries. The agreements had been rejected on the grounds that they threatened Indian sovereignty and security.
According to press reports, when US Defense Secretary Ashton Carter travels to India next month he will sign at least one of these—a Logistics Support Agreement (LSA) giving the US military routine access to Indian ports and naval bases, including for refuelling. The LSA’s importance is underlined by the comment of a high-level Indian official who last December said that the only remaining hitch in giving the US military access to Indian bases was, “What happens in the case of war?”
The burgeoning military-strategic alliance between US imperialism and the Indian bourgeoisie constitutes a huge threat to the masses of South Asia and the world.
Washington is drawing on the political and military support given it by New Delhi to recklessly pursue a confrontation with nuclear-armed China, a course which, whether deliberately or through miscalculation, threatens to ignite a world war.
The Indian bourgeoisie, for its part, is using the enhanced diplomatic, military and geopolitical power it derives from its junior partnership with Washington to pursue its longstanding goal of imposing itself as the regional hegemon of South Asia. Under the BJP, India has aggressively asserted its interests with all its neighbours, including building new military installations along the disputed border with Pakistan and instructing army commanders in the disputed Kashmir region to be more militarily assertive. Last year saw the worst border clashes between India and its nuclear-armed rival, Pakistan, in more than a decade.
Pakistan has repeatedly warned that Washington’s strategic embrace of India has overturned the balance of power in South Asia, fuelling an arms race—warnings the US has cavalierly ignored. These warning have become shriller in the past year due to the strengthening of the Indo-US alliance and Modi’s efforts to bully Pakistan. Militarily, Pakistan has responded by announcing the deployment of tactical nuclear weapons, and politically, by seeking closer ties to China.
Aware that the US was intent on harnessing India against it, Beijing long sought to avoid antagonizing India and attempted to enlist it as a partner in its land and sea Eurasian transport initiatives. But with Modi integrating India into Washington’s anti-China “pivot,” Beijing has moved to place Pakistan at the center of its plans to circumvent America’s “chokehold” strategy, announcing that it will invest $46 billion in a Pakistan Economic Corridor linking western China with the Pakistani Arabian Sea post Gwadar.
The US, which has used the Pakistani elite and Pakistani military as satraps in its geopolitical machinations for the past six decades, is not about to cede Pakistan to China. The axis between the Pentagon and Pakistan’s military is a source of continuing mistrust and friction between New Delhi and Washington.
Nevertheless, Washington’s strategic offensive against China and its drive to make India the south-western pillar of its anti-China “pivot” have an incendiary geopolitical logic: the US-China conflict is becoming ever more entwined with the reactionary geopolitical conflict between India and Pakistan, adding to each a highly explosive new dimension.
As the International Committee of the Fourth International explained in its statement “Socialism and the Fight Against War,” published last month, the only progressive basis on which to oppose Washington’s insane attempt to uphold US global hegemony through aggression and war is to counterpoise to the imperialists’ war map the map of the class struggle—that is, the building of a global working-class movement against war on the basis of a socialist and internationalist program.

Keith Jones/wsws

India Test Fires Nuke Capable SLBM K-4 Secretly

 
India has reportedly conducted a test of its home grown intermediate range Submarine Launched Ballistic Missile (SLBM) K-4 secretly from an undersea platform in the Bay of Bengal in a bid to boost its deterrence capability by strengthening the second strike fire power.
Even as the authorities of Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) are tightlipped about the secret test, a reliable defence source on Tuesday confirmed ‘The Express’ that this nuclear capable missile was fired from a submerged pontoon positioned nearly 30 feet deep sea offshore Vizag coast on Monday.
Launched underwater, the missile developed indigenously by the DRDO, surged to the surface leaving behind a ribbon of thick smokes. Although the result of the test was not known, the source claimed it’s take off was smooth as a powerful gas generator successfully ejected it from the pontoon.
The first test of the missile was also conducted secretly on March 24, 2014 and the DRDO admitted it officially only in January last year in the Aero-India show. The K-4 missile is best in the world in its class and it is faster and stealthier. Once operational, the two-stage missile will equip the country's first nuclear-powered submarine ANS Arihant.
Working very covertly under the secret K-project for last nearly two decades, prime focus of the DRDO was to make the weapon system lighter and faster having both cruise and ballistic variants. A very few countries have the triad of firing nuclear tipped missiles from air, land and undersea. Other countries, which have the capability, include Russia, USA, France, Britain (UK) and China.
A defence scientist said the K-4 missile will supplement its cousin 750-km range K-15 missile (renamed as B-05). Nuclear powered INS Arihant submarine which is likely to be commissioned in the Navy shortly will be equipped with four K-4 missiles or 12 K-15 missiles. The missile has to go for three/four more trials before being inducted in the navy.
As reported by 'The Express' earlier this manoeuvrable missile having an innovative system of interlacing in three dimensions can also cruise at a hypersonic speed. This exceptional feature of the weapon system makes it difficult to be tracked easily and destroyed by any anti-ballistic missile defence systems. The missile has a high accuracy of close to zero circular error probability (CEP).
The underwater launched ballistic missile is about 12 metres long with a diameter of 1.3 metres. It weighs around 17 tonnes and is capable of delivering two tonne warhead up to a distance of over 3,500 km. The missile is powered by solid rocket propellant. High power long range tracking systems were spread along its trajectory to track the flight path.India has reportedly conducted a test of its home grown intermediate range Submarine Launched Ballistic Missile (SLBM) K-4 secretly from an undersea platform in the Bay of Bengal in a bid to boost its deterrence capability by strengthening the second strike fire power.
Even as the authorities of Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) are tightlipped about the secret test, a reliable defence source on Tuesday confirmed ‘The Express’ that this nuclear capable missile was fired from a submerged pontoon positioned nearly 30 feet deep sea offshore Vizag coast on Monday.
Launched underwater, the missile developed indigenously by the DRDO, surged to the surface leaving behind a ribbon of thick smokes. Although the result of the test was not known, the source claimed it’s take off was smooth as a powerful gas generator successfully ejected it from the pontoon.
The first test of the missile was also conducted secretly on March 24, 2014 and the DRDO admitted it officially only in January last year in the Aero-India show. The K-4 missile is best in the world in its class and it is faster and stealthier. Once operational, the two-stage missile will equip the country's first nuclear-powered submarine ANS Arihant.
Working very covertly under the secret K-project for last nearly two decades, prime focus of the DRDO was to make the weapon system lighter and faster having both cruise and ballistic variants. A very few countries have the triad of firing nuclear tipped missiles from air, land and undersea. Other countries, which have the capability, include Russia, USA, France, Britain (UK) and China.
A defence scientist said the K-4 missile will supplement its cousin 750-km range K-15 missile (renamed as B-05). Nuclear powered INS Arihant submarine which is likely to be commissioned in the Navy shortly will be equipped with four K-4 missiles or 12 K-15 missiles. The missile has to go for three/four more trials before being inducted in the navy.
As reported by 'The Express' earlier this manoeuvrable missile having an innovative system of interlacing in three dimensions can also cruise at a hypersonic speed. This exceptional feature of the weapon system makes it difficult to be tracked easily and destroyed by any anti-ballistic missile defence systems. The missile has a high accuracy of close to zero circular error probability (CEP).
The underwater launched ballistic missile is about 12 metres long with a diameter of 1.3 metres. It weighs around 17 tonnes and is capable of delivering two tonne warhead up to a distance of over 3,500 km. The missile is powered by solid rocket propellant. High power long range tracking systems were spread along its trajectory to track the flight path.

newindianexpress

March 3, 2016

India To Sign Contentious Logistics Agreement Allowing US Access to Indian Military Bases

  The BJP leaders from Prime Minister downwards are unsparing in their criticism of the Congress. But paradoxically the NDA Government is following almost all the major policies of the UPA Government, including its economic policy of liberalisation, privatisation and globalisation and its foreign policy of widening and deepening India’s ‘strategic partnership' with the United States.
  Recently some reports have appeared in the foreign press that the NDA is engaged in (unannounced) parleys with Washington on a military Logistics Support Agreement (LSA). If this agreement is finally reached, all the major Indian seaports and airports will come under the ‘absolute control’ of the Americans. What is intriguing is that the Modi Government has not contradicted these reports. This lends credence to the veracity of what has been reported. (The Citizen Bureau adds: India and US are preparing to sign a the key military logistics agreement when top officials of both the US and India meet here next month, April.
The three long pending contentious agreements that were resisted by the Left, as well as some sections of the BJP, when the Congress government was in power are expected to be inked when US Defence Secretary Ashton Carter visits India.) The proposal of an LSA is not new. It has been there for quite some time. For instance, a paper by Saroj Bishoyi titled Logistics Support Agreemen: A Closer Look at the Impact on Indo-US Strategic Relationshipand published in the Journal of Defence Studies (organ of the Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses) as far back as 2013, deals with the LSA in extenso. It says, inter alia, that:
  “The crux of the defence cooperation is related to defence procurements, transfer of dual-use technologies, research and development, and India’s defence industrialisation. The two countries now talk about collaborating on multi-national operations and strengthening the ability of their armed forces to respond quickly to disaster situations by mitigating logistics shortfalls. The US even looks towards building a long-term strategic partnership with India to support its ability to counter the emerging security threats and to develop procedures for facilitating cooperation infuture contingencies.
 However, such practical cooperation between the armed forces of the two countries and their ability to perform effectively get affected by the absence of proper logistics support arrangements. For removing such barriers and enabling practical cooperation, the US first proposed a Logistics Support Agreement (LSA), the India-specific version of the Acquisition and Cross-Servicing Agreement (ACSA), at the sixth meeting of the India-US Defence Policy Group (DPG) in June 2004. The arrangement aimed at the exchange of logistics support, supplies, and services between the armed forces of the two countries on reciprocal basis.”
  What is adumbrated is, in fact, an India-US military alliance. Jawaharlal Nehru never agreed to such an alliance. Even in the wake of the humiliating military defeat at the hands of the Chinese in 1962, Nehru refused to go under a US ‘umbrella’ which was offered to him at that time and tenaciously stuck to his policy of non-alignment. He was critical of all military alliances like the NATO, MEDO, SEATO, ANZUS, etc. It may be recalled in this connexion that the Soviet Union entered into the Warsaw Pact with her Eastern European allies only as a response to the NATO which sought to encircle the Soviet Union.
  Former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, at the beginning of his tenure as a politician as the Finance Minister in Narasimha Rao’s Cabinet, first scrapped the Nehru-Mahalanobis paradigm of development in which both public and private sectors would co-exist side by side but it is the public sector which would occupy the ‘commanding heights’ of the economy. Thirteen years down the line, as the Prime Minister of the UPA Government, he abandoned the policy of non-alignment and opted for the policy of ‘strategic partnership’ with the USA, although India had become far stronger militarily in the last fifty years.
  The proposed LSA is, without doubt, a part of the US policy to contain China—its rising military strength and domineering stance which aims eventually to surpass the USA as a military power and emerge as the world hegemon. It is with the express objective of containing China that India has held several joint naval exercises with the US, Japan and Australia in recent times. Also without doubt, China’s hostility to India has been unrelenting in the past half-a-century. But that does not, per se, provide a rationale to India’s entering into a military alliance with the US which will compromise or abridge India’s sovereign rights and deny its right to make independent policy options in times of crisis. The LSA will also undoubtedly further antagonise Beijing. Clearly, the LSA or any such Indo-US alliance will be a one-way street: it will be used in the interest of the US. When US and Indian interests do not coincide, it is the US interests that will prevail and decide how the agreement is implemented.
  India has been facing continual terrorist attacks, big and small, planned and carried out by Pakistan and its ISI behind the fig-leaf of ‘non-State actors’. This fact is quite well to known to the US. Still, Washington continues to keep military ‘parity’ between India and Pakistan. It continues to give financial aid and supply military hardware to Pakistan on the specious plea of helping Islamabad in the ‘global war on terrorism’, knowing full well that such help will be used against India.
  In fact one of the articles that has appeared in the foreign press says that the US wants to rope in Pakistan and Afghanistan as well so that it has complete control over this part of Asia not only vis-à-vis China but also Russia, with which India has a long-standing relationship of mutual trust and cooperation. If signed, the LSA will enable the US to use Indian seaports and Army and Air Force airports for deployment and actual warfare. India’s growing proximity to the US is worrying Russia at a time when Washington is vigorously pursuing a policy of isolating Russia and imposing economic sanctions on it in the wake of the Ukraine dispute. This has driven Moscow closer to Beijing. It is a development that works against India’s overall strategic interests.
  Two decisions taken by the Modi Government on assuming power in the field of defence were unexpected. One was to ‘scale down’ the size of the Mountain Strike Corps which the UPA Government had decided to raise specifically to meet the growing Chinese threat in the North-East and to operate in Tibet if needed. The excuse the NDA offered was the high cost of its raising—Rs 64,678 crores. Much work had already been completed by then. But halfway the project was all but abandoned. It was said the money needed would instead be spent on building aircraft carriers. How the strengthening of the Navy could be a substitute for what the Army desperately needed for land-fighting in the North-East was not explained.
  The second unexpected decision was to go slow over the acquisition of 126 French Rafale Medium Multi-Role Combat Aircraft (MMRCA). The Rafale was selected by the IAF from among six alternatives it had including one offered by the USA. The fleet strength of the IAF had been reduced to a mere 24 squadrons against the sanctioned strength of 40 squadrons. The IAF desperately needed to phase out its old fighter aircraft to retain its air superiority over Pakistan and replenish its fleet strength. When the French Rafale was selected after extensive trials in preference to the US alternative, Washington was palpably unhappy.
  It was said the high cost of the Rafale was delaying the completion of the acquisition process and negotiations were on with the French for a mutually acceptable price. During Prime Minister Modi’s visit to France in April last year, it was reported that for the present India would buy 36 Rafales in a fly-away condition in view of the ‘critical operational requirements’ of the Indian Air Force. Co-production of the aircraft in India with the HAL was being discussed, but the French were not prepared to guarantee the performance of the aircraft built by the HAL. On the Indian side there were those who questioned the selection of the Rafale in the first instance.
  When President Francois Hollande visited India during the Republic Day celebrations this January, there were press reports that the Rafale deal had not figured at all during Hollande’s stay in India. Now the Rafale deal seems to be as good as dead because nothing has been heard either about the Rafale deal after this or about India seeking other sources for acquiring the required number of MMRCA the need for which is increasing by the moment.
  The question of an India-US Logistics Support Agreement has re-surfaced at this time. If India is drawn into a comprehensive defence alliance with the US, with Washington having total and unconditional access to and control over our air and sea ports, it is quite likely that India will be asked to buy all its military hardware from the US or from close US allies like Israel.
  (The Citizen Bureau adds: The Indian defence establishment has not been supportive of the deal earlier. This is reflected in an article written by now retired Major S.G.Vombatkere in 2010 where he said: “The LSA clearly envisages providing logistic bases for the US military. This needs careful thinking-through; it could be the thin end of a wedge commencing with providing facilities for docking or landing, victualling and re-fuelling for US military ships and aircraft, later expandable to ammunitioning that includes stockpiling US weapons protected by US military personnel stationed on Indian territory. The serious problem with this is, a US weapon stockpile is an attractive target for militants and terrorists, and a successful attack can well become reason for the US to multiply its military presence on Indian soil, even without this provision built into the LSA.”)

 thecitizen