Su-30: News and Discussion

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Philip
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Re: Su-30: News and Discussion

Post by Philip »

Wig,there was an interview with the CoAS where he said that all niggling problems with the MKIs mentioned earlier had been resolved.
The problem with manned fighters is that their endurance is limited.The JSF's range/endurance isn't great by any means and efforts are on to increase the range.Even with refuellers,the human endurance element poses restrictions.No matter what superb sensors you have,IRST,AESA,etc,a launch of a salvo of missiles detected upto 800nm whatever,will be very difficult to shoot down with limited numbers of shorter ranged missiles carried internally.Long endurance UCAVs loitering at v. high alts. sat linked would be far better placed to shoot down missiles.Ultimately it is going to be the combination of anti-missile assets assets,ground,airborne,maritime,sats,and the networking between them which will choose the best solution that will matter.

The second aspect is numbers.How many 5th gen aircraft and 6th-gen in the future that can be fielded.There are limitations to their acquisition due to high costs and also their missile carrying capacity.Sortie rate is another for such high maintenance aircraft.For the next 15 years at least,even beyond, 4++ gen aircraft are going to still be the workhorses of air forces.Barring the US and Russia in the future,the amount of 5th-gen fighters that air forces can afford to field due to their high costs will be limited as can be seen from the numbers ordered by allies of the JSF. Even the IAF's earlier figure of "200" FGFAs was slashed to 120+.Therefore in the Indian context,the incremental upgrades to existing frontline fighters in service will be vital to preserve the edge that we currently have vs our two main threats.If the entire lot of MKIs are to be upgraded as planned,with numbers made up by other med. aircraft (Rafales and UG legacy aircraft) and LCAs,the IAF will have a well-balanced force for the next decade.
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Re: Su-30: News and Discussion

Post by member_24684 »

Phillip sir

the French pilots flew with their Rafale nearly 10.5 hours Non stop. with aerial refueling

From Paris to their Ex colony French re union Island
Karan M
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Re: Su-30: News and Discussion

Post by Karan M »

I can get what he meant and it is not about training etc but our existing fleet - basically MiG-21, 23, 27 and to some extent 29 (non upgraded). The earlier MiGs especially which made almost 60% of our fleet were completely tough beasts, and it was a common thing to say that these are "not airconditioned types" like the Mirage 2000s which required AC hangers. They are "mechanics" aircraft - the crew chief and his team would know each plane in and out, and learn its service history. You could swap parts around, even rebuild others. The Mirage 2000 and Jaguar were of different types. Generally even avionics on Russian aircraft had wider tolerances since the EMI/EMC clearances were a largeish range.

However, Su-30 MKI is a different story, it comes with a host of electronics and specialized testers are used to certify and validate a lot of onboard systems. Its as sophisticated as the Mirage and avionics/mission systems apart, you also need the infrastructure to maintain it. Unfortunately, due to a bunch of reasons, new AFB dont have the infra yet to maintain these aircraft & it is still being built up even as the aircraft have been deployed. The usual business of deploying a bunch of mechanics with limited hand tools and spares stock to manage a few birds will not work.

Spares are being sourced from Russia as almost all of local production is being used for aircraft assembly.
Starting 2012 HAL started organizing its local suppliers for the spares indigenization aspect as well. That should help as well.
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Re: Su-30: News and Discussion

Post by Sid »

SajeevJino wrote:Phillip sir

the French pilots flew with their Rafale nearly 10.5 hours Non stop. with aerial refueling

From Paris to their Ex colony French re union Island
Hat tip to fighter pilots for such long endurance flights. I cannot imagine how they manage natures call.

In bombers and transport such long durations can be sustained because you at least have some space to stretch your legs. But fighter planes?? Do they have special meal regime which they follow?
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Re: Su-30: News and Discussion

Post by krishnan »

10 hrs is manageable atleast with regards to food , for nature's call probably used military adult diapers
Sid
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Re: Su-30: News and Discussion

Post by Sid »

^^^
there is no such thing as military adult diapers :) and no... you cannot hold your pee pee for 10 hours.

Pilots uses "Piddle Packs", and ladies prefer to use diapers as its hard for them to use it. Maybe their oxygen masks serves dual purpose :mrgreen: :mrgreen:

But there is something new on the horizon and its called AMXD (advanced mission extender device).
http://www.omnimedicalsys.com/UserManual.pdf
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Re: Su-30: News and Discussion

Post by Singha »

for a while even urinary catheters were used.
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Re: Su-30: News and Discussion

Post by brar_w »

The JSF's range/endurance isn't great by any means and efforts are on to increase the range.
The F-35A missed the KPP by 5 Nautical miles. Hardly eye popping. The F-35C and B exceeded the KPP by around 20nm. The F-18C/D (The aircraft the F-35C replaces in the USN) will be hard pressed to get you a 400 nautical mile combat radius with minimal flying at low altitude and in an air to air configuration (without tanks). The F-35C gives you something like 615-620 nm in the same profile. The same applies to an F-16 loaded with an IRST pod and weapons (no tanks). Where the legacy fighters make up is through tanks (Multiple i.e. 3 at times). The F-35 does the same on internal fuel and tanks will most likely be added in the future. More range is always desired (on all aircraft) but the F-35 in the mission the services want it to be configured initially exceeds by a considerable margin - the radius of all the fighters it is replacing (F-16, F-18, A-10, Harrier). More range would come from the 5% efficiency improvements being funded for block 4 (by the USN) and ultimately the Variable cycle engine way out in the future.
SajeevJino wrote:Phillip sir

the French pilots flew with their Rafale nearly 10.5 hours Non stop. with aerial refueling

From Paris to their Ex colony French re union Island
Ferry flights aside, USN's VF-41 Early operation enduring freedom fighter sorties were 8 hours or longer. If one were to go back into History the F-111F and EF-111's air strike missions over Libya saw them flying 14 hour sorties.
Last edited by brar_w on 22 Jul 2014 18:24, edited 2 times in total.
chetak
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Re: Su-30: News and Discussion

Post by chetak »

brar_w wrote:
SajeevJino wrote:Phillip sir

the French pilots flew with their Rafale nearly 10.5 hours Non stop. with aerial refueling

From Paris to their Ex colony French re union Island
Ferry flights aside, USN's VF-41 Early operation enduring freedom fighter sorties were 8 hours or longer.
Definitely adult diaper time.
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Re: Su-30: News and Discussion

Post by NRao »

The original HT link does not work, but here is content, from 2010:
Fighter pilots wore diapers and flew non-stop for more than nine hours to carry out the Indian Air Force's farthest and longest bombing exercise recently - symbolising the IAF's extended reach.

They flew Sukhoi-30 MKI fighters to destroy mock targets in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands.

A senior IAF officer told HT, "The fighters dropped air-to-ground ordnance for the first time on an uninhabited island in the Andamans. We want to exploit the location of these islands to train fighter pilots for extreme missions."

Six fighter planes were launched from air force bases in Bareilly and Pune for the experimental long-haul mission. Russian Ilyushin-78 refuellers flew from Agra to tank up the Sukhois during the flight over the Bay of Bengal.

The officer said long-range missions would be planned regularly from now on to push the limits of technology and human endurance.

Fighter pilots may have to get used to carrying more loads in their diapers. The officer said future missions would be more complex, requiring them to stay airborne for 12 to 15 hours. "We can keep the fighters airborne for as long as we want.

Refuellers are a game-changer," he said. The Air Force has started providing diapers to pilots as 'standard clothing'.

Former IAF chief Air Chief Marshal Fali Homi Major, said, "The IAF seems to be gearing up for expeditionary missions. Human endurance should not be a limiting factor in the cockpit."
Such pilots also take some medication to keep wide awake. forget what exactly it is.
Last edited by NRao on 22 Jul 2014 18:23, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: Su-30: News and Discussion

Post by member_24684 »

chetak wrote:
brar_w wrote:
Ferry flights aside, USN's VF-41 Early operation enduring freedom fighter sorties were 8 hours or longer.
Definitely adult diaper time.

The Russian Su 34 Fullback has Attached Toilets ..any stats about their long range missions
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Re: Su-30: News and Discussion

Post by NRao »

^^^^^

That is a dedicated bomber, if I am not mistaken.
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Re: Su-30: News and Discussion

Post by NRao »

2013 :: IAF tests 'pills' to keep pilots on the 'go'
The Indian Air Force (IAF) has tested for its pilots 'Go Pills', which will enhance their alertness and keep them awake in engagements stretching to even 36 hours.
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Re: Su-30: News and Discussion

Post by wig »

Engine rejig to cut Su-30 burnouts
IAF’s frontline fighter jet Sukhoi-30MKI will be modified under new specifications laid down by its Russian manufacturers to fix mid-air engine trouble in its fleet.

The move comes after the IAF faced an unusually high number of mid-air engine failures over the past two years (January 2102 onwards) and asked the Russians to rectify the problem in the fighter jet. The Tribune had highlighted this in its July 21 report. The IAF has a fleet of 200 Sukhoi aircraft and another 72 are on their way from Moscow.

The plane is the mainstay of India’s air operations to dominate the skies against possible attacks from both western and eastern frontiers.The modification will be carried out on 400 engines of the twin-engine aircraft, besides installation of some spares for emergencies. The Russians will install modified engines on the next lot of 72 jets, sources say.

The modification will primarily be carried out at HAL’s Sukhoi engine plant in Orissa. The HAL is a public sector undertaking owned by the Defence Ministry.

The modified engines will first be tested on the aircraft, before being fitted to the entire fleet. The refit will be carried out in batches over the next 18-24 months.

The Russians have assured India that the modifications will eliminate the problem of mid-air engine failure, say sources.

The Russian proposal has been accepted by the top brass of the IAF.

Some of the engines — the AL-31FP — produced by NPO Saturn of Russia have been behaving inconsistently over the past two years. Since the engines powering the jet are still being produced, there is a scope for modification.

The IAF had flagged the Russians after studying each failure in detail between 2012 and 2013. The matter was taken up at a meeting between the two nations in February and later in June.

The instances of single-engine Su-30MKI landings were very high during the period. This was lowering the operational ability of the fleet, besides raising questions about war readiness.

The Su-30MKI is a twin-engine aircraft and can land even if one of its engines fails mid-air. But this limits pilot’s ability to attack or withdraw during conflict.

Only four Su-30MKIs have so far crashed since their phased induction in 1997. A pilot had died in the first crash in 2009. At least one of the crashes is attributed to “engine trouble”.

Su-30MKI enjoys air superiority because of its engines. In horizontal flight, it can fly at 2,400 kmph or achieve a rate of climb of 230 metres per second. The ‘thrust vectoring control’ in the engine improves aircraft’s manoeuvrability.

The aircraft is now being tweaked to fire the BrahMos super-sonic cruise missile.

While the aircraft is based at Bathinda, Halwara, Sirsa, Bareilly, Jodhpur and Bhuj in the North and West, its two squadrons are based at Tezpur and Chabua in the East.

Another squadron is based in South to augment the Indian Navy’s fleet of MiG29-K and Sea Harriers aboard aircraft carriers INS Vikramaditya and INS Viraat, respectively.
http://www.tribuneindia.com/2014/20140804/main4.htm
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Re: Su-30: News and Discussion

Post by Austin »

Some information of IAF BARS Upgrade in Interview with NIIP GD ( pg 34 )

http://en.take-off.ru/index.php/compone ... cle/45/431
The Irbis’s predecessor, the Bars, fits approximately 250 Su-30MKI, Su-30MKM
and Su-30MKI(A) fighters that the Indian, Malaysian and Algerian air forces have operated with success. The radar has cleared all of the phases of its trials, has been streamlined to perfection and is capable of all the tasks it was designed for. At the same time, India wants the radars equipping its Su-30MKI fighter fleet modernised as part of the fleet’s upgrade, with its intent on having such an upgrade voiced several years ago. At Phase I, the Bars was supposed to be refined while retaining its
passive electronically scanned array through extending its range, enhancing its resolution and ECM immunity and adapting it to advanced airborne weapons. Phase II was expected to replace the Bars’s antenna with the AESA. Apparently, it makes sense to do so after the AESA radar designed for the PMI fighter has been tested, so that the lessons learnt are put to use.
I presume that other operators of the fighter family – Malaysia and Algeria – will show interest in such modernisation too, just as India did.
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Re: Su-30: News and Discussion

Post by tsarkar »

wig wrote:Engine rejig to cut Su-30 burnouts http://www.tribuneindia.com/2014/20140804/main4.htm
Wonder about the reliability of the single Al-31 engined J10. That also explains why China has never exported J10

I've always wondered why ADA went ahead with GE-404 instead of Al-31 for LCA, but now, in hindsight, going with a more reliable engine definitely made more sense.
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Re: Su-30: News and Discussion

Post by Rien »

tsarkar wrote:
wig wrote:Engine rejig to cut Su-30 burnouts http://www.tribuneindia.com/2014/20140804/main4.htm
Wonder about the reliability of the single Al-31 engined J10. That also explains why China has never exported J10

I've always wondered why ADA went ahead with GE-404 instead of Al-31 for LCA, but now, in hindsight, going with a more reliable engine definitely made more sense.
Do you have any numbers to back that up? How do you know the GE-404 is "reliable"?
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Re: Su-30: News and Discussion

Post by RKumar »

Rien wrote: Do you have any numbers to back that up? How do you know the GE-404 is "reliable"?
LCA is the proof.

Beside that KAI T-50 and SAAB Gripen, I am ignoring the double engine planes.
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Re: Su-30: News and Discussion

Post by Austin »

AL-31F engine issue could be unique to MKI never came across such issue with other MK operators and there are quite a few.
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Re: Su-30: News and Discussion

Post by Austin »

tsarkar wrote:I've always wondered why ADA went ahead with GE-404 instead of Al-31 for LCA, but now, in hindsight, going with a more reliable engine definitely made more sense.
AL-31 would any way not fix into LCA frame , the closest that can come into LCA is RD-33 series but GE-404 was chosen for LCA when there was the famous Rajiv-Regan agreement to help india in LCA program including Engine and FBW.
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Re: Su-30: News and Discussion

Post by Rien »

RKumar wrote:
Rien wrote: Do you have any numbers to back that up? How do you know the GE-404 is "reliable"?
LCA is the proof.

Beside that KAI T-50 and SAAB Gripen, I am ignoring the double engine planes.
So you have no numbers. That kind of off the cuff remark ignores the real reliability problems and failures the Dhruv and Tejas suffered because of the unreliability problems of the GE-404. The Dhruv suffered from the same problems, sanctions imposed by the US after the 1998 tests.

But they switched from an unreliable US engine to the French one. As a result, Dhruv avoided those interminable delays caused by the selection of an US engine. Any US origin equipment is unreliable and can be denied at any time. That is the reality. The selection of the GE-404 was the biggest blunder made by Rajiv and the Tejas team.
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Re: Su-30: News and Discussion

Post by Indrajit »

NRao wrote:2013 :: IAF tests 'pills' to keep pilots on the 'go'
The Indian Air Force (IAF) has tested for its pilots 'Go Pills', which will enhance their alertness and keep them awake in engagements stretching to even 36 hours.
L-Tyrosine 500mg will do the job perfectly. :)
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Re: Su-30: News and Discussion

Post by tsarkar »

Austin, when an airframe is designed, its designed around the engine. Similarly, a ship is designed around its powerplant. So there was a choice between a Russian or American engine. The French M88 & Eurojet were not mature yet.

Secondly, Al-31FP used by India is different from standard Al-31F in only one aspect - TVC nozzles. Rest of the engine is the same as standard Al-31F. Only Malaysia has that engine, possibly Algeria.

Rest all export users use standard Al-31. But irrespective of the variant, all the export operators, none fly as intensively as IAF, possible exception being China. Being twin engined gives a measure of reliability.

China has also significantly invested in developing Al-31 variants for its J-10 program.
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Re: Su-30: News and Discussion

Post by Viv S »

Austin wrote:AL-31F engine issue could be unique to MKI never came across such issue with other MK operators and there are quite a few.
Only two main export customers - India & China. According to several Chinese commentators online, the PLAAF had been regularly forced to replace their AL-31s well before their specified service lives.
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Re: Su-30: News and Discussion

Post by NRao »

Filed under: "This gets tedious. Google is my friend, it can be yours as well" ...............................................is this:

It is not that the Russians did not dream of selling the AL-31 for the LCA project, they did. But, at that time Kaveri, so an article claims, was the preferred engine, which seems why they did not push it. But no mention is made of the fit between the engine and the plane - strange as it may sound.

________________________

The GE404 was expected to be a tmp working arrangement, IIRC, until the Kaveri came. When the Kaveri did not come they commissioned GE to come out with a IN version of the 404, which then became the standard (for the MK-I). By then RG was long gone. And, along with the sale of other equipment, the US signaled that sanctions will not impact the relations. Which, for what it is worth (cannot remove scratches from records it seems), has been restated for the upcoming trip of the US Def Sec to India.

I do not think RG had anything to do with the GE engine that is on the LCA today.
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Re: Su-30: News and Discussion

Post by Austin »

tsarkar wrote:Austin, when an airframe is designed, its designed around the engine. Similarly, a ship is designed around its powerplant. So there was a choice between a Russian or American engine. The French M88 & Eurojet were not mature yet
When LCA was designed a decision was already made that Russians wont be involved , When Rajiv Gandhi Visited US , Regan promised that it will help India in high technology area and LCA was one , hence we went with F404 as Gripen at that time was using same engine and LCA was in same class , also a decision was made to take US help for FBW .... I read this in an 80's Vayu Article.

It was a political decision at highest level to take US help on LCA at that point in time.

NRao , AL-31 series will never fit in an LCA airframe its more in class of F-16/J-10
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Re: Su-30: News and Discussion

Post by Austin »

Viv S wrote:Only two main export customers - India & China. According to several Chinese commentators online, the PLAAF had been regularly forced to replace their AL-31s well before their specified service lives.
AL-31FP is used in all the Su-30MK(X) series sold to Malaysia , Algeria , India Russia etc

http://www.uk-odk.ru/eng/products/milit ... ion/al31f/
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Re: Su-30: News and Discussion

Post by NRao »

AL-31 series will never fit in an LCA airframe
We all know that. Apparently that memo did not reach the Russians. Even as late as 2002 some in Russia were open to that idea - silly as it seems. (I am just reporting data points.)

However, WRT the RG-Reagan agreement, it was meant to be a temporary measure - until the Kaveri came along. So, GE has three engines supplied for the LCA program. Only one of them can be attributed to the RG meet/agreement. The other two are way beyond that era. Let us not confuse that in the fog of US-sanctions-bad-idea thinking.
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Re: Su-30: News and Discussion

Post by Singha »

it seems the idea to fit the aging Mig27 airframes with Al31 to improve safety and fuel economy has also been buried.

not sure where the honeywell F125 re-engine proposal for Jaguar is lying. the Jags need a power boost to be effective in the himalayas hot n high ops else they cannot be used with effective warloads there. to my knowledge thats the reason Jags are not deployed at all in the indo-china theater with not even a single unit in the Sikkim-Assam region as well. it would be a huge force multiplier if we could engine 100 jaguars and deploy them with the latest kit like sudarshan, paveways, CBU105 SFW in a tactical attack role.
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Re: Su-30: News and Discussion

Post by NRao »


not sure where the honeywell F125 re-engine proposal for Jaguar is lying
Being reviewed for offset clauses, etc ............. is the latest news.
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Re: Su-30: News and Discussion

Post by tsarkar »

Austin wrote:When LCA was designed a decision was already made that Russians wont be involved , When Rajiv Gandhi Visited US , Regan promised that it will help India in high technology area and LCA was one , hence we went with F404 as Gripen at that time was using same engine and LCA was in same class , also a decision was made to take US help for FBW ....
Yes, and since most scientists involved were US & European educated, so the US design philosophy of "compact" instead of Russian "large" was selected. Case in point - Elta 2032 weighs around 100 kg while Phazotron Zhuk weighs around 200 kg with both radars having comparable performance.
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Re: Su-30: News and Discussion

Post by Surya »

I have not figured out why the IAF does not want to deal with upgraded Mig 27s?

there is a reengined Mig 27 flying in russia
the avionics upgrade was good or at least from one quarter I heard it worked well
Its a solid bird otherwise so what gives?
Cost? If so what the analysis

if the reengined \upgraded 27 was good - even the line could be reopened

none of the mig 27 jocks I know seem to be able to explain this aspect
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Re: Su-30: News and Discussion

Post by Manish_Sharma »

RKumar wrote:
Rien wrote: Do you have any numbers to back that up? How do you know the GE-404 is "reliable"?
LCA is the proof.

Beside that KAI T-50 and SAAB Gripen, I am ignoring the double engine planes.
Even Rafale was flown on this engine in beginning that says something.

Though i was sad when they rejected ej200 for ge 414 when they selected for Tejas Mk. II
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Re: Su-30: News and Discussion

Post by Karan M »

Surya wrote:I have not figured out why the IAF does not want to deal with upgraded Mig 27s?

there is a reengined Mig 27 flying in russia
the avionics upgrade was good or at least from one quarter I heard it worked well
Its a solid bird otherwise so what gives?
Cost? If so what the analysis

if the reengined \upgraded 27 was good - even the line could be reopened

none of the mig 27 jocks I know seem to be able to explain this aspect
Surya, I heard MiG-27 was already on life extension, there were both TTL & spares management concerns. Hence the upgrade was capped at 40 aircraft.
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Re: Su-30: News and Discussion

Post by brar_w »

Even Rafale was flown on this engine in beginning that says something
The F404 has worked on the F-18, Rafale A, X-29, X-45, Gripen, F-117, A-4, X-31, T/F-50 and I'm pretty sure I missed out one or two applications. The current standard for the family is the F414 that has plenty of growth provided an application that warrants it.
Last edited by brar_w on 07 Aug 2014 00:09, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: Su-30: News and Discussion

Post by Karan M »

tsarkar wrote:Yes, and since most scientists involved were US & European educated, so the US design philosophy of "compact" instead of Russian "large" was selected. Case in point - Elta 2032 weighs around 100 kg while Phazotron Zhuk weighs around 200 kg with both radars having comparable performance.
Tsarkar, for LCA, it cant be just that because most scientists on LCA are currently Indian educated. IMHO Its more that weight is a prime concern. There would be efforts to minimize every spare kg.
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Re: Su-30: News and Discussion

Post by Karan M »

Austin wrote:
tsarkar wrote:I've always wondered why ADA went ahead with GE-404 instead of Al-31 for LCA, but now, in hindsight, going with a more reliable engine definitely made more sense.
AL-31 would any way not fix into LCA frame , the closest that can come into LCA is RD-33 series but GE-404 was chosen for LCA when there was the famous Rajiv-Regan agreement to help india in LCA program including Engine and FBW.
In hindsight, it would have been better to sit the IAF down, get an agreement from them, that redesigning the LCA with AL-31FP with Russian actuators etc too was the long term better off solution, strategically than relying on Khan. Perhaps linked the Su-30 deal or follow on purchases, to that as well. As always, no long term strategic thinking. On the plus side, Moog actuators and Ge404s are pretty reliable.
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Re: Su-30: News and Discussion

Post by Karan M »

Austin wrote:AL-31F engine issue could be unique to MKI never came across such issue with other MK operators and there are quite a few.
Su-30 MKI is supermanoueverable with the TVC nozzles, canards, FBW. Expect the flow to the engine/operating conditions to be substantially different than std Su-27/30 flight conditions. Might be straining the engines more than the norm.
RKumar

Re: Su-30: News and Discussion

Post by RKumar »

Rien wrote: So you have no numbers. That kind of off the cuff remark ignores the real reliability problems and failures the Dhruv and Tejas suffered because of the unreliability problems of the GE-404. The Dhruv suffered from the same problems, sanctions imposed by the US after the 1998 tests.

But they switched from an unreliable US engine to the French one. As a result, Dhruv avoided those interminable delays caused by the selection of an US engine. Any US origin equipment is unreliable and can be denied at any time. That is the reality. The selection of the GE-404 was the biggest blunder made by Rajiv and the Tejas team.
There is difference between engine reliability problems and supplier reliability challenges. Why the hell you are mixing the problem. We know that we might not be able to fly fighter planes due to spare parts shortage during war (as a workaround we can stock up the spare parts) but its better then losing life during peace time (we can´t do anything about it as it happens we pilot is in the air ...we can say RIP :( ). We are held hostage by Russian (less) and Americans (more).
shaun
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Re: Su-30: News and Discussion

Post by shaun »

Karan M wrote:
Austin wrote:AL-31F engine issue could be unique to MKI never came across such issue with other MK operators and there are quite a few.
Su-30 MKI is supermanoueverable with the TVC nozzles, canards, FBW. Expect the flow to the engine/operating conditions to be substantially different than std Su-27/30 flight conditions. Might be straining the engines more than the norm.

Su-30 MKI is definitely super maneuverable but doesn't mean it perform Pugachev's Cobra the every other day !! :mrgreen:

Maybe mki's are more off the ground than its contemporaries with other air forces. The only thing that we know, Russians have solution in the form of modifications and more redundancy and IAF is comfortable with it as of now.
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