UAV INDIA Part 2: The Rustom-H MALE UAV Detailed

  By Shiv Aroor

EXCLUSIVE VIDEOS: Weaponised ALH Dhruv Firing Trials At Nasik

Army offers to depute officers for advise on anti-naxal ops

The government continues to weigh options of fighting naxalism more effectively, Army has offered to send Colonel-rank officers to the Home Ministry on deputation for advise in anti-Maoist operations.
The army has sent a proposal in this regard to the Defence Ministry, army sources said.
“We have offered to depute Colonel-rank officers with experience of commanding battalions in counter-insurgency operations to provide advise in anti-naxal operations,” a source said.
The number of officers to be sent to the Home Ministry has not yet been decided.
The government has to decide how and where it would want to use these officers, they said.
Experience of these officers in battling terrorism and insurgency in Jammu and Kashmir and the North East will help the states plan anti-naxal operations more effectively, the sources said.
Some naxal-affected states have been requesting Army for services of senior officers with experience in counter-insurgency operations, they said.
The move comes at a time when the government is weighing various options of dealing with naxalism more effectively.
The Home Ministry is looking for an enhanced role of armed forces in anti-naxal operations. The Defence Ministry is hesistant to get involved in it although it is not averse to providing some kind of logistical support.
The Home Ministry has sought Army’s help in defusing IEDs and demining the naxal-infested territory.
It has also asked the IAF to provide helicopters for quick deployment and evacuation of paramilitary forces during anti-Naxal operations that may be carried out in inaccessible areas.
The proposal is currently before the Cabinet Committee on Security, which is yet to take a final view.
IAF has suggested to the Defence Ministry that its 15 helicopters deployed in the UN missions in African countries may be called to meet the shortage of choppers.

Indian carrier’s deck systems tested with MiG-29K prototype

A non-flying MiG-29K naval strike fighter prototype is being used to test aircraft handling systems in the former Soviet aircraft carrier being refitted for the Indian Navy at the Sevmash shipyard in Severodvinsk, northern Russia.
Sevmash announced on 9 June that the MiG-29K was brought on board Vikramaditya (ex-Admiral Gorshkov ) to trial flight-deck hardware, in particular the restraints that are designed to hold an aircraft in place until its engines generate sufficient thrust for take-off.
The yard’s head of production for military-technical co-operation, Sergey Novoselov, said that successful testing of the restraints was a condition for the next contractual payment for the carrier refit.
Jane’s understands that the test aircraft is a MiG-29K prototype built in the late 1980s and used to demonstrate arrested landings and ‘ski-jump’ take-offs with the Kuznetsov-class carriers then under construction for the Soviet Navy.
BY: JANES

Oman confirms orders for Insas Rifles from India

Oman has become the Second country to order INSAS Standard rifle (5.56 mm) has a  standard assault rifle of the Royal Army of Oman , INSAS went to mass production in 1997 and became standard rifle in Indian Army and Indian Paramilitary  , Its real test came in Kargil war soon in 1999 and while rifle was reported of minor snags in extreme high mountainous warfare was liked by soldiers for its ruggedness . soon Indian Government provided more then 25 thousand INSAS Standard rifles to Royal Nepal Army for a special price to fight moists .
Oman has still not disclosed the numbers of the guns to be ordered  but it will be one of the largest order to be placed by a country ,three to four times more then ordered by Royal Nepal Army , Oman is still evaluating its requirements for the rifles to be ordered .
INSAS performed extremely well and passed all the test conducted under harsh dessert condition of oman .
BY: IDRW NEWS NETWORK

Indian Army Test Drives Tatra Vehicles All over India – Passes through Panambur NH

Latest Tatra vehicles likely to be inducted into Indian Army were found test driven here on the highway at Panambur on Friday June 18. The vehicle was moving down south the state from Bangalore
as part of the vehicles’ all-terrain test drive all over the country.
Speaking to Daijiworld army official Basavaraj, who was behind the wheels said it is a special vehicle which is being taken on a test drive on the roads all over India. We are testing its ability in terrains like sea, deserts, plains and hills so that they can soon be introduced into the Indian Army.
Tatra T815 is available in three configurations, namely heavy recovery vehicle, medium recovery vehicle and light recovery vehicle. This is an all-terrain vehicle developed by Tatra a.s., a vehicle manufacturer based in Czech Republic. It is used for various purposes such as transporting soldiers, tanks and missiles.
Tatra vehicles are supplied in India by Bharat Earth Movers Limited (BEML), an Indian company based in Bangalore. A major public sector company which is in joint collaboration with Tatra Vectra Motors Limited supplies defence material in India. Tatra Vectra Motors is a joint venture between Tatra a.s. and UK based Vectra Group.
“The vehicle will be tested all over India and its features will be made known to the public only on the Republic Day Parade next moving along Rajpat at Red fort, New Delhi on January 26.
BY: daijiworld.com / Pictures daijiworld.com

UAV INDIA Part 1: First Ever Impressions Of AURA, India's UCAV

What you're looking at here are the first ever manifestations of what India's UCAV, codenamed AURA, could look like. These are images from an official presentation (see slide) by India's Aeronautical Development Establishment (ADE) director PS Krishnan, outlining AURA (Autonomous Unmanned Research Aircraft), a programme that was nameless and obscure in the public domain before it was reported on here on LiveFist and on Headlines Today. As you can see from the slide, the ADE describes the AURA as a "self defending" high speed reconnaisance UAV with a "weapon firing capability", which seems a typically laboured way of describing the obvious. With the programme still in its project definition stage, the images used in the slide above are likely just representative (the tacky flag-on-underbelly routine a-la Lockheed Nighthawk with stars and stripes), though it's a definite indication of how the programme's scientists are thinking. It's all fully in line with what former DRDO chief controller for Aeronautics said in 2007: that India's combat drone would be a stealthy flying-wing concept aircraft with internal weapons and a turbofan engine.

By Shiv Aroor

Tank Trouble: Arjun's Uphill Road

Copyright The Indian Express

  By Shiv Aroor

India's Black Kite Fixed-wing MAV

NAL/ADE Black Kite MAV. Wingspan: 300-mm. Endurance: 30 minutes. Range: 2-km. Payload: Daylight camera.

Photo: NAL

Saab Puts Sea Gripen On India's Vikrant-class Carrier

This impression of the conceptual Sea Gripen roaring off the deck of India's first indigenous aircraft carrier (INS Vikant) is part of a recent presentation that Saab made. The ship impression is of course this one, released last year by Indian naval designers.

  By Shiv Aroor

Arms spending: India grows as west shrinks

India’s military modernisation presents opportunities for defence majors.
With global arms majors focused on the commercial opportunities presented by India’s military modernisation programme, consulting firm Deloitte India and the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) have produced a detailed report on the country’s defence market and the possibilities it presents. Entitled, “Prospects for Global Defence Export Industry in Indian Defence market”, the report was released today at the Eurosatory 2010 defence exhibition in Paris.
The report follows a KPMG-CII report in January on “Opportunities in the Indian Defence Sector”, a PricewaterhouseCoopers report in April on “Aerospace and Defence Insights” and a CII report last month on foreign direct investment (FDI) in the defence sector.
The Deloitte-CII report points out that as defence expenditure drops in the traditionally big-spending western economies, including the USA, Indian defence spending will grow steadily over the next 20-25 years, as New Delhi implements a major defence modernisation.

KEY IAF PROJECTS

* 180 Sukhoi-30MKI (pictured) fighters, worth $9.9 billion.

* 126 medium fighters (to replace the MiG-21) for $9.09 billion.

* 120 indigenous Tejas light combat aircraft (LCA), for which an additional $1.71 billion has been allotted.

* Advanced and intermediate jet trainer aircraft.

* The Indo-Russian Fifth Generation Fighter, with an estimated development cost of $9.9 billion.

* Upgrades to more than 60 MiG, Jaguar and Mirage aircraft.

Linking defence spending to the International Monetary Fund (IMF) prediction that India’s economy will grow in real terms by 7.5 per cent from 2010 to 2014, the Deloitte-CII report says that India’s current defence expenditure of $32.03 billion will rise to an estimated $42 billion by 2015. The capital expenditure on new weapons platforms will rise from the current $13.04 billion to $19.2 billion in 2015.
Inflation, warns the report, somewhat tempers these figures: the real growth in defence expenditure is expected to be marginal over the next two years and about 5.3 per cent from 2012 to 2015.
Nevertheless, the figures remain impressive. During the current Five Year Plan (2007-12), India will spend $100 billion on weaponry, which will rise to $120 billion during the next Five Year Plan (2012-17).
Deloitte-CII point out that 70 per cent of this procurement, in value terms, is from foreign sources; Indian companies supply only 30 per cent, the bulk of that as components and sub-assemblies to state-owned companies. The report is sceptical about the Indian MoD’s (Ministry of Defence’s) oft-repeated target of 70 per cent indigenous production. If that target is to be achieved by 2015, local industry would need to more than double in size, an unlikely event.
India’s domestic defence sector benefits from increasing MoD requirements to “buy local” as well as taxation arrangements that advantage local firms; in the case of defence public sector undertakings (DPSUs), tax advantages can be as high as 50 per cent. Deloitte-CII, however, see clear opportunities for foreign firms in providing specialist inputs to Indian defence manufacturers, which they require for developing advanced platforms and systems.
Land systems
The report notes that India’s acquisition of land systems suffered a serious slowdown in 2009. Many of the postponed acquisitions relate to the Army’s $8-billion artillery modernisation programme (called the Field Artillery Rationalisation Plan, or FARP). This aims to induct between 2,700-3,600 guns over the next two decades at a cost of $4.77-6.48 billion.
Procurement has long been initiated for four kinds of guns: air-mobile ultralight howitzers for mountain divisions on the China border, towed and wheeled 155mm guns for plains infantry and mountain divisions, self-propelled tracked and wheeled guns for mechanised strike formations, and mounted gun systems. These projects, however, have moved very slowly.
Besides upgraded artillery, the report also highlights the proposed acquisition and upgrades of tanks, UAVs (Unmanned Aerial Vehicles) and 300 helicopters for Army Aviation. India’s obsolescent air defence systems also provide major opportunities to foreign vendors.
Navy and Coast Guard
Deloitte-CII note that naval acquisitions are earmarked for a greater degree of indigenisation than the other services. Foreign shipbuilders are pointed to opportunities for modernising Indian shipyards to enable them to produce large, advanced battleships. By 2022, the Indian Navy plans to have a 160-plus ship Navy, including three aircraft carriers, 60 major combatants (including submarines) and about 400 aircraft of different types.
The report highlights the Indian Navy’s “Indigenisation Plan (2008)”, which forecasts a requirement for marine engineering equipment, including gas turbines, diesel generators, pressure cylinders, hydraulic manipulators and motors.
Furthermore, India’s Coast Guard, which is 70 per cent short of its requirements, plans to double its assets in the next few years and triple them over a decade. Its current fleet of 76 ships and 45 aircraft is likely to be ramped up in five years to 217 ships and 74 aircraft. Some 70 of these new ships would be large vessels.
Aerospace
The report notes that India is struggling to indigenise aerospace production. Historically d0ependent upon Russia, the Indian Air Force (IAF) is looking to diversify its vendor base for combat and transport aircraft, providing major opportunities for aerospace firms

BY: Ajai Shukla / Business-standard.com

Pakistan wants combat copters

Pakistan is seeking advanced U.S. attack helicopters and other weapons as part of a comprehensive arms package to bolster preparations for what its military is calling a “silent surge” of more than 100,000 troops into the mountain lairs of al Qaeda’s senior leadership in the country’s Northwest Frontier Province.
“I have been ambassador here for two years, and all I have to show for it is eight secondhand Mi-17 transport helicopters for a war that requires helicopters to root out al Qaeda and the Taliban,” Pakistan’s ambassador to Washington, Husain Haqqani, said in an interview with The Washington Times.
The ambassador said, “Military operations would have been quicker and much easier to plan and execute if we had the equipment. We have had tremendous attrition and a lot of loss of lives because of not having the right equipment.”
The $2.5 billion in arms that Pakistan has requested includes new helicopter gunships, including AH-1W and the Apache-64-D; armed helicopters, such as the AH-6 and MD-530 Little Bird; and utility and cargo helicopters, such as the UH-60 Black Hawk, the CH-47 D Chinook and the UH-1Y Huey.
Pentagon Press Secretary Geoff Morrell said the U.S. government is aware of its ally’s military wish list.
“The Pakistani military’s interest in additional lift is well-known, and we have tried to help meet their needs by providing several Mi-17s. We will continue to try to help them acquire the helicopters and other equipment they require to defeat the insurgents and terrorists in their midst,” Mr. Morrell said.
Pakistan’s military last year reversed its policy of signing cease-fire agreements with local tribal governors as it did in 2007 and 2008 in the regions thought to be hiding places for senior al Qaeda and Taliban leaders.
The new “silent surge,” however, also has cost the lives of thousands of Pakistani soldiers, including generals. The ambassador said Pakistan has lost more than 600 officers affiliated with the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI), its powerful and influential military intelligence arm.
Pakistan also has lost three one-star generals and one three-star general in combat. Five other generals have been killed in terrorist attacks.
Pakistani military officials have said their forces have a total of just 26 combat and transport helicopters for a counterinsurgency war in a mountainous region where helicopters provide a critical advantage.
But the Pakistani wish list also includes equipment that is not traditionally associated with counterinsurgency or mountain warfare. The Pakistanis are also requesting M1A1 tanks and M113A3 armored personnel carriers, as well as air-defense missiles, such as the Stinger, the Javelin and the Hawk.
The list also includes a request for unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), among the newest and deadliest high-tech arms.
The CIA operates UAVs in Pakistan for missile strikes against al Qaeda and Taliban leaders. The CIA operations, which are not publicly acknowledged by either government, have caused tensions in the past with Pakistan’s military, which argues that it should take the lead in overseeing the drone war in the remote, largely ungoverned tribal provinces.
Sen. Carl Levin, Michigan Democrat and chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, told The Washington Times that he was waiting for an assessment from the State Department and the Pentagon before commenting on the Pakistani arms request.
“We have provided a lot of equipment to Pakistan,” he said. “We have seen some progress from them in some areas of the country, and we have seen less willingness in other areas.”
Pakistan has declined to send its troops into North Waziristan. Pakistani officials say they lack the helicopters to fight in the region. Some U.S. officials have pointed out political considerations for Islamabad if an offensive is launched in that region.
Sen. John McCain, Arizona Republican and ranking member of the Armed Services Committee, said in an interview that “we ought to at least consider this request.” But he also added that the U.S. should provide “better training and maintenance for Pakistan’s military.”
The senator added, “There are continued concerns about this relationship between the ISI and the Taliban.”
But he also noted that a year ago, no one would have predicted that Pakistan’s military would take on the Taliban and al Qaeda redoubts in the Northwest Frontier Province. “There is a good argument to provide the equipment they need,” he said.
Retired Army Lt. Gen. David W. Barno, who commanded coalition forces in Afghanistan from 2003 to 2005, said the helicopters Pakistan wants would be useful to counterinsurgency operations.
BY: washingtontimes