Indian Military Aviation

[Singha]

headlines today.

all fleet of basic trainer HPT32 grounded 2 weeks ago
lot of engine and fuel line issues
stage2 plane - Sitara delayed "indefinitely", Kiran mk2 used.

imo its better to fast track the prop trainer RFP and run with one
of the many good choices than a long drawn trials, TOT Process.
they are not high tech or costly birds - just import the whole lot.

[Gagan]

China still has about 450 4th / 4+ / 3rd gen aircraft. But they have twice that number of trained pilots.

[chetak]

headlines today.

all fleet of basic trainer HPT32 grounded 2 weeks ago
lot of engine and fuel line issues
stage2 plane - Sitara delayed "indefinitely", Kiran mk2 used.

imo its better to fast track the prop trainer RFP and run with one
of the many good choices than a long drawn trials, TOT Process.
they are not high tech or costly birds - just import the whole lot.

That is exactly what they want us to do so that some one can pocket a fortune.

Lots of khujli in the world aviation suppliers market. All the vultures want to come to or gatecrash the Indian military airplane market.

Why is this issue being raked up now? All known HPT-32 engine problems were identified and discussed threadbare eleven years or more ago.

Can't some public sector types solve engine and fuel system problems in all this time? Its just a bloody lycoming engine!
Replace the thing if it comes to that. The problem is definitely somewhere else. Just using the engine as a convinient shoulder to fire the gun and camouflage the actual reason.

Incidentally the LTTE seems to have managed OK with the same series of lycoming engines!

The following aircraft seem to be doing OK with the same series of the lycoming engines.

AAC Angel
Aero Commander 500 series
Bellanca 17-31ATC Turbo Viking
Britten-Norman Islander
Britten-Norman Trislander
Brantly 305
CallAir A-9
Cessna 182
Dornier Do 28
Evangel 4500
Gippsland GA8
Gippsland GA200
Murphy Moose
Hiller UH-12
PAC CT/4E
Piaggio P.166
Piper Aerostar
Piper Aztec
Piper Saratoga
Piper PA-24 Comanche
Piper PA-31 Navajo
Pitts Special variants
Robinson R44
Van's Aircraft RV-10
Socata TB-20
Socata TB-30 Epsilon
Utva Lasta
Utva-65 Privrednik
Zlin Z-143

[Nirmal]

btw...why does IAF doesn't have Strategic bombers...like B1, B2 or Tu-160...

Not sure if TU-160 Blackjack was ever seriously offered to India.

Four Tu-22M may have been leased to India in 2001 for maritime reconnaissance and strike purposes.

Anyway, now back to MRCA discussion.

Is it true???
I just remember that there were some negotiations going on about it.. Never knew what happened to it later on...[/quote]
The Russsians were not in favour of 'leasing' they wanted an outright sale of TU-22M. Black jacks were never offered nor has indian shown any intrest in them in the past.

[dinesha]

India's homegrown Medium Lift Helicopter project has been grounded as state-owned Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd. (HAL) has failed to find global partners to co-develop the helicopter.
http://www.defensenews.com/story.php?i= ... =AIR&s=TOP

[Rahul M]

without a much more powerful engine than shakti it won't have gone forward anyway.

[Dmurphy]

India Air Chief Warns of Slipping Fleet Strength

IAF sources said it will take at least five years for the purchase of 126 Medium Multirole Combat Aircraft (MMRCA) to work its way through the Defence Ministry bureaucracy. The IAF is in the process of procuring 126 MMRCA at a cost of more than $10 billion.

[sum]

IAF sources said it will take at least five years for the purchase of 126 Medium Multirole Combat Aircraft (MMRCA) to work its way through the Defence Ministry bureaucracy. The IAF is in the process of procuring 126 MMRCA at a cost of more than $10 billion.

Five years is too optimistic going by recent trends..

[chetak]

India's homegrown Medium Lift Helicopter project has been grounded as state-owned Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd. (HAL) has failed to find global partners to co-develop the helicopter.
http://www.defensenews.com/story.php?i= ... =AIR&s=TOP

Ever since MBB of Germany was unfortunately and prematurely shafted by the powers that be during the ALH development, other international players have wised up.

The conditions set forth by prospective collaborators will doubtless be very daunting and extremely expensive with a major part of monies to be paid upfront. They may not even cede management control to HAL.

[Cybaru]

Do we really need a partner ? Can we not do it alone ? Lets start the project and someone may step up.

[Dmurphy]

Five years is too optimistic going by recent trends..

I don't know about the other projects, but this one seemed to be on track!

[chetak]

Do we really need a partner ?

Is the pope catholic?

We have big time disasters strewn all over our aviation development landscape, primarily because of bloated gigantic egos.

[Mahesh_R]

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/news ... 049833.cms

The militants hiding in the forests opened fire on the search party and in the ensuing gunfight two militants were killed, he said.

Guru's,

can't we use UAV's for the search operations....or even take the help of ISRO satellites like IRSAT -2 .....to get the exact location, real time data of the militants...instead of doing a manual search which can result in casualties of soliders...I understand the search from UAV might not help much since it is a thick forest but still some information is better than nothing...any guru with real time experience in J&K can give us some information

[krishnan]

You will require a UAV with IR and such sensors to peek out those pigs hiding , and then use the onboard bombs to take them out, its easier if it was an open ground like deserts , no so easy in jungles and forests

[sum]

Never know, it might have been the UAVs which gave the initial tracking info..

[Baldev]

If someone wants to look flight range of various mig29 varients without fuel tanks/with fuel tanks along with total life hours of various mig29 series fighter can see here ,along with mig31 Zaslon radar range which you all already know.

http://www.rusarm.ru/cataloque/air_craf ... _16-19.pdf

http://www.rusarm.ru/cataloque/air_craf ... _20-24.pdf

missiles r73,77,27,33 which everyone on BR knows but do check the hit probability of each missile

http://www.rusarm.ru/cataloque/air_craf ... 18-121.pdf

[Baldev]

as you all know mig27 have been upgraded and there was new Laser Ranger & Marked Target Seeker (LRMTS) integrated to it

russian Laser illumination and ranging station “Klyon-PS”
http://img198.imageshack.us/img198/591/ ... 000662.gif

Application:

* targeting of guided laser seeking missiles
* ranging to ground targets
* illumination of ground targets at a distance up to 8 km “Klyon-PS” has the following channels:
* laser range finder illuminator
* gyrostabilized drive mechanism
* target designator for guided missiles

The system is used in MiG-27, Su-22, Su-25 aircraft and their modifications

Specifications:

Ranging limits to ground targets 10 km

Sighting angles, deg.:
- in azimuth ± 12
- in elevation 6 up and 30 down

Mass, kg 82

so new LRMTS came from russia or france

[JimmyJ]

IAF strengthening air defence radars along LAC with China

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/news ... 056629.cms

[Dmurphy]

IAF strengthening air defence radars along LAC with China

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/news ... 056629.cms

Say we detect the intruding helos and aircrafts. What next? Lodge a strong complaint with the Chinki leadership?

[Baldev]

IAF strengthening air defence radars along LAC with China

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/news ... 056629.cms

Say we detect the intruding helos and aircrafts. What next? Lodge a strong complaint with the Chinki leadership?

but where are air defense missiles

[Baldev]

RameshC wrote:
you dont understand that we still have to deal with them, the mig is a piece of shit and wont be ready till 2013, now ****** delays get used to the fact that US will win a lot of defence deals, your ranting wont stop that, their platforms outperform their competiton and hence they will win a lot of deals...C-17s, more c-130Js, P-8s, E-2D hawkeyes, V-22s, AEGIS, apaches, Chinooks, f-18SH

V-22 after spending 27 billion dollars (which even exceeds PAK FA development cost) on this aircraft which no one else wants to buy lets see how many are sold abroad for each aircraft one has to pay 100 million which doesn't includes spares,training,maintenance costs.

mi35 which is still in production for Brazil,Indonesia so its more appropriate to buy more mi35.

only c130,c17 and Chinooks are in.

[Katare]

V22 would make an excellent AEW aircraft for IN's smaller carriers. It flies lot higher, lot faster lot more eonmically and with a lot more pay load than helicopter based AEW that IN uses right now. If they can sort out the kinks, IN would be lucky to share the fruits of all that labor and capital investment.

[SriniY]

Wont it be logical to assume that setting up air defence radars would mean setting up something to defend as well. Just because the article does not mention it doesnot mean it is not being done.

[Dmurphy]

IAF's Oct 8 flypast to include Israeli Phalcon AWACS

NEW DELHI: IAF again intends to dazzle people with its "awesome air-power and fire-power'' during its traditional October 8 raising day flypast
this year, which will also include the newly-inducted Israeli Phalcon AWACS (airborne warning and control systems) aircraft or the "eye in the sky'' force-multiplier.

The IAF Day flypast and parade, at the Hindon airbase in Ghaziabad to mark the 77th anniversary of the force next month, will see the force display 54 fighters, transport aircraft and helicopters.

It was in May that IAF inducted the first of the three Phalcon AWACS, which was originally scheduled for delivery in December 2007, under the $1.1-billion deal signed in March 2004.

The Israeli 360-degree Phalcon early-warning radar and communication suite has been mounted on Russian IL-76 heavy-lift military aircraft in a tripartite project among India, Israel and Russia to give IAF its most potent force-multiplier.

Phalcon AWACS will boost IAF's capabilities to detect and track troop build-ups or aircraft movements, for instance, deep inside Pakistan, much further than ground-based radars, while flying well within Indian airspace.

Primarily used for detection of incoming hostile cruise missiles and aircraft from around 400-km away in all-weather conditions, AWACS will also be used to direct air defence fighters during combat operations against enemy jets.

[Dmurphy]

‘Sarang’ team bids adieu to Yelahanka Air Force Station

The pride of the Air Force Station in Yelahanka, the 151 Helicopter Unit, also known as ‘Sarang,’ the colourful helicopter display team of the Indian Air Force (IAF), has bid goodbye to its home base for the past four years.


This was announced by Air Commodore Sagar Bharati, Air Officer Commanding of the Air Force Station, here on Friday. The team from Sarang displayed its final flypast in a dazzling rehearsal here. The unit comprising the Advanced Light Helicopter (ALH) or the ‘Dhruv’, a multi-role, multi-mission helicopter powered by two Turbomeca TM 333-2B2 engines was moved to the Yelahanka air base in April 2005 and accorded the status of a full fledged helicopter unit. “The Sarang team will move to the Sulur Air Force Station in Coimbatore. The decision is a routine operational requirement of the IAF. The unit will be replaced by a Mi-8 helicopter squadron,” said Air Cmde Bharati.

Recalling the team’s association with Yelahanka Air Base and the City, Wing Commander Ravuri Sheetal, Commanding Officer of the Sarang team said the 151 helicopter unit will leave behind lot of good memories.

“It was a pleasure to be in Yelahanka, our home from 2005 and participate in the Aero India display. We will continue to capture the hearts of audiences. Those interested in the Sarang display can place a request to the Air Headquarters,” he said.

The Sarang (Peacock in Sanskrit) is symbolic to the IAF as it is the national bird of India. The display team comprises four Dhruv’s, manufactured by Hindustan Aeronautics Limited and comprises 13 pilots, 2 technical officers and 1 commentator. It has earned accolades at air-shows the world over, for its breathtaking aerobatics display and is also a regular participant in the bi-annual Aero India show at Yelahanka. The Sarang team will now head for New Delhi to participate in Air Force day celebration on October 8, and then fly-in to its new home at Sulur Air Base.

Does that mean the new Mi-17s ordered have started coming? Don't really remember the date of delivery of that contract.

[Cain Marko]

If someone wants to look flight range of various mig29 varients without fuel tanks/with fuel tanks along with total life hours of various mig29 series fighter can see here ,along with mig31 Zaslon radar range which you all already know.

http://www.rusarm.ru/cataloque/air_craf ... _16-19.pdf

http://www.rusarm.ru/cataloque/air_craf ... _20-24.pdf

missiles r73,77,27,33 which everyone on BR knows but do check the hit probability of each missile

http://www.rusarm.ru/cataloque/air_craf ... 18-121.pdf

Max external payload, kg - 6,500

Good find Baldev. Explains why the ex CNS Arun Prakash (or was it S Mehta) is so happy with the 29Ks. Also clarifies why the MTOW of the K is now an incredible 24500kg! this is turning out to be an awesome a/c indeed! It is now specced @ 6500kg max payload!

For all those interested in the K:
We can be relatively sure that the russkis (and the IN) did effectively manage to keep the weight down with all those composites. The latest specs should read something like this:
12500kg (Empty)
24500kg (MTOW)
6500kg - max payload
5500kg - internal fuel

The case of the MiG-29K is a superb example of what the russki industry can achieve when held to stringent demands by the likes of the IN (not to mention the latter's input from the v. beginning). They had announced that the K would come in 3 stages, circa 1990s, 2002, and 2008, they were right. The original K afaik (9.31) weighed about 12700kg empty, had about 4700kg internal fuel and carried about 4500kg weapons. Around 2002-2005, as work began in earnest on the latest K (9.41), the specs just continued to improve in stages, and this is borne out by the specs sheet on BR (5500kg fuel + 5500kg weapons). The latest K (2008+) now has another ton of weaponload. V. impressive.

That means that the MiG-35 will be approximately 11500kg, it will be one hell of a fighter for sure! It has simply benefited from the K program. Even if all they do is take off the extras reqd for carrier ops, this bird will pose a far better TWR and wingloading than any of the legacy birds. Awesome, I am v. happy for the IN.

CM

[Baldev]

V22 would make an excellent AEW aircraft for IN's smaller carriers. It flies lot higher, lot faster lot more eonmically and with a lot more pay load than helicopter based AEW that IN uses right now. If they can sort out the kinks, IN would be lucky to share the fruits of all that labor and capital investment.

but first let IN commission its first ADS in 2017

right now unit price for v22 is 70 million same as that of c130j,but AWACS fitted to it its going to cost over 100million

we paid 1.2 billion for 6 c130j which means 200 million for each aircraft,actual cost of each c130j is close to 70million and rest 130 million was paid for ground infrastructure,spares,training for each aircraft

according to above mentioned analysis if C17 cost over 200 million and we have to pay 300 million extra just for ground infrastructure,training,spares etc so this would cost 500 million for each C17

so if AEW v22 cost over 100 million so we have to pay at least 100 million extra for extra stuff

[Bala Vignesh]

Wont it be logical to assume that setting up air defence radars would mean setting up something to defend as well. Just because the article does not mention it doesnot mean it is not being done.

Not necessarily... The radars could be placed just to monitor the activity.. and also as deterrent to scare away future incursions now that the site is being monitored... Just a thought...

[Bala Vignesh]

Hey i found this interesting note in the wiki article on Suryakirans..

The Suryakirans operate 16 HJT-16 Kiran Mk.2 trainer aircraft. The HJT-16 is the basic armaments trainer aircraft of the Indian Air Force, and is used for intermediate flight and weapons training. The aircraft is also effective in reconnaissance and counter insurgency operations

Suryakirans

Has the Kiran ever been used in such roles and is there any article on that... Can the gurus please provide some light on that...

[Aditya G]

Has the Kiran ever been used in such roles and is there any article on that...

Nope.

[Dmurphy]

Israel Unveils Loitering Anti-Missile Drone

India is considering acquiring Harpy 2 (also known as 'Harop') killer drones developed by Israel Aerospace Industries, as part of a procurement program valued over $US1 billion. Harop is an evolution of the Harpy killer drone, optimized to operate against enemy radars and surface/air missiles. Harpy was developed in the 1990s and has been successfully exported to countries around the world.

[A Sharma]

Where eagles dare

[krish.pf]

The case of the MiG-29K is a superb example of what the russki industry can achieve when held to stringent demands by the likes of the IN (not to mention the latter's input from the v. beginning). They had announced that the K would come in 3 stages, circa 1990s, 2002, and 2008, they were right. The original K afaik (9.31) weighed about 12700kg empty, had about 4700kg internal fuel and carried about 4500kg weapons. Around 2002-2005, as work began in earnest on the latest K (9.41), the specs just continued to improve in stages, and this is borne out by the specs sheet on BR (5500kg fuel + 5500kg weapons). The latest K (2008+) now has another ton of weaponload. V. impressive.

That means that the MiG-35 will be approximately 11500kg, it will be one hell of a fighter for sure! It has simply benefited from the K program. Even if all they do is take off the extras reqd for carrier ops, this bird will pose a far better TWR and wingloading than any of the legacy birds. Awesome, I am v. happy for the IN.

The payload is impressive! Our Mig-29ks are heavier than the earlier Ks because it's a bigger fighter with enlarged wings and heavier avionics.
http://www.militaryparitet.com/en/data/ic_en/9/

Here are some twr of fighters with a fixed load. It's impressive-


T/W ratio = Max Thrust of Engine(s) / (Empty Weight + (3.505 tonnes of fuel & weapons, or only internal Fuel))
1.48 - F-15K
1.37 - F-22
1.32 - Su-35BM
1.29 - F-15C
1.26 - Su-27S
1.25 - Eurofighter
1.23 - Su-27SK & J-11A
1.22 - Su-30MKI
1.19 - Rafale C
1.18 - Mig-29M/M2
1.16 - Su-30MKK
1.15 - Mig-29A
1.148 - F/A-18E/F
1.10 - F-16 Block 52
1.09 - F-16 Block 60
1.09 - F-16 Block 50
1.09 - F-18C
1.08 - F-35A
1.08 - F-14D
1.06 - Mig-29k
1.03 - F-2A
1.01 - J-10
1.008 - J-8II
1.00 - F-35B
0.99 - MiG-23MLD
0.94 - F-35C
0.94 - Gripen NG
0.94 - F-4E
0.91 - Mig-23MF (& BN ?)
0.88 - Mirage 2000 C & H
0.88 - LCA
0.87 - F-14A
0.86 - F-CK-1
0.84 - JF-17
0.84 - Mig-19S**
0.83 - Tornado F3 Air Defence Variant
0.81 - Mig-27K
0.81 - F-20
0.80 - Mig-21 Bis (T/W - 1.12 in extra thrust mode)
0.79 - Kfir
0.76 - J-7E & F-7BG
0.70 - F-7PG
0.69 - Mig-21 F-13
0.68 - F-7MB
0.66 - Mirage F-1
0.58 - F-5E Tiger-II
0.57 - Mirage-IIIE & 5

Pure Interceptors
1.22 - Mig-31E
0.87 - MiG-25P Foxbat-A


Empty Weight - Thrust - Fighter

31,700 - 29,160 X 2 - F-15K
43,340 - 35,000 X 2 - F-22
40,565 - 31,967 X 2 - Su-35BM
28,600 - 23,450 X 2 - F-15C
35,935 - 27,557 X 2 - Su-27S
24,250 - 20,000 X 2 - Eurofighter
37,192 - 27,557 X 2 - Su-27SK & J-11A
40,565 - 29,400 X 2 - Su-30MKI
20,948 - 17,000 X 2 - Rafale C
25,573 - 19,580 X 2 - Mig-29M/M2
39,903 - 27,557 X 2 - Su-30MKK
24,030 - 18,300 X 2 - Mig-29A
30,600 - 22,000 X 2 - F/A-18E/F
18,780 - 29,160 X 1 - F-16 Block 52
22,000 - 32,500 X 1 - F-16 Block 60
19,200 - 29,400 X 1 - F-16 Block 50
24,700 - 17,700 X 2 - F-18C
29,300 - 39,900 X 1 - F-35A
43,735 - 27,800 X 2 - F-14D
29,211 - 19,580 X 2 - Mig-29K
21,000 - 29,500 X 1 - F-2A
19,544 - 27,557 X 1 - J-10
21,653 - 14,815 X 2 - J-8II
32,000 - 39,900 X 1 - F-35B
21,153 - 28,660 X 1 - MiG-23MLD
34,800 - 39,900 X 1 - F-35C
15,653 - 22,000 X 1 - Gripen NG
30,328 - 17,845 X 1 - F-4E
22,487 - 27,562 X 1 - Mig-23MF (& BN ?)
16,538 - 21,380 X 1 - Mirage 2000 C & H
14,100 - 19,100 X 1 - LCA
40,104 - 20,900 X 2 - F-14A
14,300 - 09,500 X 2 - F-CK-1
14,134 - 18,300 X 1 - JF-17
11,983 - 08,300 X 2 - Mig-19S**
32,000 - 16,410 X 2 - Tornado F3 Air Defence Variant
26,252 - 27,562 X 1 - Mig-27K
13,150 - 17,000 X 1 - F-20
11,770 - 15,650 X 1 - Mig-21 Bis (21,829 - emergency thrust*)
16,061 - 18,750 X 1 - Kfir C.2
11,667 - 14,650 X 1 - J-7E & F-7BG
11,629 - 13,448 X 1 - F-7PG
10,739 - 12,679 X 1 - Mig-21 F-13
11,629 - 13,219 X 1 - F-7MB
16,314 - 15,873 X 1 - Mirage F-1
09,558 - 05,000 X 2 - F-5E Tiger-II
15,600 - 13,240 X 1 - Mirage-IIIE & 5

Pure Interceptors
48,100 - 34,172 X 2 - Mig-31E
44,080 - 22,494 X 2 - MiG-25P Foxbat-A



Weight in lb, and Thrust in lbf.
3505 kg = 7729 lb
*21,829 extra thrust for 3 min & alt less than 4000m.
** Empty weight + 7729 lb exceeds max takeoff weight.
Su-35BM, Su-30MKK, Su-30MKI, J-10's weights are rough estimates.

[Bala Vignesh]

0.88 - LCA

Is this the TWR for the current engine or the re-engined version??? Because the wiki article says its about 1.02...

[Cain Marko]

The payload is impressive! Our Mig-29ks are heavier than the earlier Ks because it's a bigger fighter with enlarged wings and heavier avionics.
http://www.militaryparitet.com/en/data/ic_en/9/

Krish,
That article is not the most accurate (check his sources, cites internet fora!). For ex. he states the internal fuel of the A @ about 4000kg, most sources put it at around 3.5 tons. Otherwise the K/35 would land up carrying around 6000kg of internal fuel. As it stands, the K (9.41) carries about 5500kg (50% more than the original A) internally. If the K is just about as heavy as the F-18e/f (~ 14 tons), it would suck in terms of TWR since the F-18 E/F has 2X10ton engines compared to the 2X9 for the K. That kind of empty weight and thrust would put it more in the M2k class, not enough to manage effective STOBAR ops imho. Another thing, if the K's empty weight is around 14tons, MTOW would be closer to 26 tons and not the 24.5 ton figure put forth by both Rosoboro and Mig.

However, he is right in that the 9.41 is bigger than the 9.31, but he does not take into consideration the comparatively large amounts of composites used in the latest K (>15%). Nor does he think about the weight savings in terms of newer avionics. Buntin, in 1999 did a good job of what the MiG-29K would be like, as said before they had a 1991, 2002 and 2008 estimate. In fact, he clearly alludes to the latest 29K being lighter than the original K (circa 1991) -

The reduced weight and space required of the onboard equipment will help increase the internal fuel load, as compared to the 1991-built MiG-29K

http://milparade.udm.ru/34/014.htm

IIRC, there was a change in terms of landing gear weight as well - the early K was 1100kg heavier than the M - (11600kg:12700kg). The newer K is supposedly only 800kg heavier.

CM.

[Dmurphy]

WTF

FinMin opposes IAF choice for refuelling aircraft

The Indian Air Force’s plan to acquire six new refuelling aircraft to give its fighters extended reach has hit a roadblock with the Finance Ministry questioning the selection of the European Airbus 330 MRTT aircraft that costs almost twice as much as its Russian built competitor.

[Rahul M]

at one level it makes sense. if you are buying only 6 new refuelers you should go with the IL-78 only. makes no sense to introduce yet another type.

new type makes sense only if the number is much larger and frankly, IAF does need a much larger fleet of refuelers. unfortunately due to the bean-counters @ MoF and MoD, IAF has had to develop a strategy of ordering one sqn at a time, a decidedly inefficient and costly way to place orders.

typical of babus, penny wise and pound foolish.

[nrshah]

Exactly Rahul,
It does not make any sense to buy only 6 refuelers of yet another type.

Sometimes, it becomes a little difficult for me to understand what IAF wants and needs. On one hand they want standardization and on other other side it is ok for them to buy 6 IL 78 and another 6 airbus. Also, the same is the case of AWACS - Phalcon - First three with IL 76 and now rumors are that they want another three on Airbus / Boeing.

Also, As per the report, The Air Force, on the other hand, is fed up of constant delays in spare parts as well as quality issues with Russian built aircraft.

If we ponder over similar new of recent past, almost every Russian hardware is having some problem. Mig 29 has design flaws, Spare parts is permanent issues, AAM are having homing problems, Clubs are not accurate, Artillery Shells are defective, T 90 tanks are having problems are just to name a few.

With 70% of Indian Military Hardware from Russia (almost all of them faulty), I don't understand on what basis our chief of Army and Airforce staff claims that we are prepared for any and every eventuality...

-Nitin

[nrshah]

How many refuelers should be ideally available with us?

Is there any thumb rule - say 10% of fleet size should be simultaneously refuel able?

-Nitin

[nikhil_p]

If we ponder over similar new of recent past, almost every Russian hardware is having some problem. Mig 29 has design flaws, Spare parts is permanent issues, AAM are having homing problems, Clubs are not accurate, Artillery Shells are defective, T 90 tanks are having problems are just to name a few.

Care to elaborate (with references) about the "design flaws" with the Mig-29 (smoky engines are not a design but a technical flaw)...AFAIK it is one of the best light medium fighters around.