144 indigenous howitzers approved for Army

The Indian Defence Ministry has cleared a proposal to induct 144 indigenously-developed 155mm howitzers into the Army for which trials will be held later this year.

The 155mm artillery guns are being developed indigenously by the Ordnance Factory Board (OFB) in Jabalpur on the basis of Transfer of Technology of the controversial Swiss Bofors guns, which were inducted into the Army in late 1980s.

"The Defence Acquisition Council (DAC) has cleared a proposal for production of 144 155mm guns (in the Army).

MiG-29K trials aboard INS Vikramaditya

An RAC MiG-29KUB trainer operated by Russian pilots is going through testing aboard the INS Vikramaditya.

The Vikramaditya is currently undergoing sea trials in the White Sea near the port of Severodvinsk, where it has spent years being converted from the former Soviet-era carrier Admiral Gorshkov.
The Indian navy said flight trials are expected to continue in Russia for several months, with a team of its personnel to be present during the tests. Indian pilots are only likely to land on the ship following its delivery to India, which is scheduled to take place by the end of 2012.

Fighter Jets Make First Landing on Indian Aircraft Carrier

A MiG-29KUB two-seat naval fighter jet made the first touch-and-go landings last week on the Indian Navy aircraft carrier Vikramaditya, Sevmash shipyard said on Monday.

The ship is currently undergoing sea trials in the Barents Sea off the north coast of Russia.

The jet, piloted by navy test-pilots Col. Nikolai Diorditsa and Mikhail Belyaev, completed several approaches to the carrier and finally made a touch-and-go landing.

INS Vikramaditya sets out on trial voyage

The newly refurbished INS Vikramaditya aircraft carrier took to the sea for the first time on Friday.

The carrier sailed out for crucial pre-delivery trials in the early hours of June 8 from the berth of the Sevmash shipyard in Russia’s northern city of Severodvinsk, where the former Soviet heavy aviation cruiser Gorshkov had been converted into a regular aircraft carrier christened Vikramaditya.

During the trials, scheduled to last 120 days, all the ship’s systems will be tested.

Naval Version of LCA Makes First Flight Video

India on April 27 conducted the first flight of the naval version of its Light Combat Aircraft (LCA).

The 20-min. naval prototype (NP-1) test sortie took place over Bengaluru and was flown by Air Commodore T.A. Maolankar and co-pilot Wing Commander Maltesh Prabhu. The aircraft executed various maneuvers, including low-speed handling and close formation flying at slow speed with another aircraft, a defense ministry official says.

The LCA is expected to replace the Indian navy's aging fleet of British-built Sea Harriers and complement its fleet of MiG-29 carrier aircraft. The aircraft is the second short-takeoff-but-arrested-recovery (stobar) fighter in the world along with the Russian deck-based aircraft, and will be the only carrier-borne fighter in the light category.

Nuclear Submarine INS Chakra Inducted into Navy

Tethered to the jetty, the 8,140-tonne steel shark floated menacingly as if waiting to break free. Soon, it will, to prowl silently underwater for extended periods, hunting for enemies to track and kill. The 8,140-tonne nuclear-powered attack submarine INS Chakra, with lethal 'hunter-killer' and intelligence-gathering capabilities, was formally inducted into Indian Navy on a 10-year lease from Russia at a cost of around $1 billion on Wednesday.

Defence minister A K Antony, Navy chief Admiral Nirmal Verma and Russian ambassador Alexander M Kadakin extolled the submarine as a shining example of the deep and abiding strategic partnership between India and Russia during the welcome ceremony at the highly-guarded Ship-Building Centre here.

INS Chakra, with a dived displacement of 12,000 tonnes, will, however, not give India its long-awaited third leg of the nuclear weapons triad since it is not armed with long-range strategic missiles due to international treaties. But it will happen after India's own nuclear submarine INS Arihant, armed with the nuclear-tipped K-15 missiles, is inducted into service sometime next year.

India’s Arms Market: Everyone In, Nobody Out

Russia has arrived at the DEFEXPO 2012 exhibition in India in the shadow of its own recent failures and the success of Western weapons manufacturers on the Indian arms market. But is Russia’s position on the Indian market really so weak?

India is ready to buy

The Indian arms market is an extraordinary place even by the standards of the markets of the Gulf oil monarchies, which buy weapons indiscriminately, provided the batch is big and the price is high. But India, although it also buys many weapons, does so only after serious consideration and for far-reaching reasons. This is why arms talks with India are like a complex dance with a large number of partners, not unlike a Bollywood movie.

Mahindra Announces Two Joint Ventures at DefExpo 2012 in India

The company's MoU with Rafael Advanced Defence Systems Ltd., a manufacturer of high tech defence systems for air, land, sea and space applications, will lead to the formation of a Joint Venture Company in India. The JV will develop and manufacture products such as Anti Torpedo Defence Systems, Electronic Warfare Systems, Advanced Armouring Solutions and remotely operated weapon stations for Futuristic Infantry Combat Vehicles (FICV).

Simultaneously, the Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB) has been approached for the creation of a 74:26 company.

The company's MoU with Rafael Advanced Defence Systems Ltd., a manufacturer of high tech defence systems for air, land, sea and space applications, will lead to the formation of a Joint Venture Company in India. The JV will develop and manufacture products such as Anti Torpedo Defence Systems, Electronic Warfare Systems, Advanced Armouring Solutions and remotely operated weapon stations for Futuristic Infantry Combat Vehicles (FICV).

Defence Minister Inaugurates Defexpo-2012

Defence Minister Shri AK Antony declared open the Defexpo India-2012, the 7th Land, Naval and Internal Security Systems Exhibition, here this morning. Following is the full text of his Inaugural Address on the occasion:
“Distinguished participants, guests and friends,

On behalf of the Ministry of Defence, Government of India, I take this opportunity to extend a very warm welcome to all our distinguished delegates and participants from across the world to DEFEXPO INDIA 2012. I wish you all a very pleasant and a successful visit.

DEFEXPO INDIA 2012 is the seventh of the series of India’s Land and Naval Systems Exposition, being biennially organised by the Ministry of Defence since 1999. This year the event has been organised in association with Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry, an example of public-private partnership.

Poland’s Bumar Wins $275M Indian Contract

The Supervisory Board of Bumar sp. z o.o. chose to implement the contract signed by Bumar sp. z o.o. and BEML Ltd. for the supply of 204 units of the WZT-3.

The Supervisory Board of Bumar sp. z o.o. also agreed to carry out the agreement of 27 February 2012 between Bumar sp. z o.o. and ZM BUMAR-Łabędy S.A.

The contract is one of the priorities of Bumar sp. z o.o. Management Board.

Indo-Us Wargames Called Yudh-Abhyas 2011-12 Begin In Rajasthan

The Indo-US war exercise called Yudh Abhyas 2011-12 has started in the deserts of Rajasthan and the joint drills will feature troops from both nations engaging each other in a series of counter-terror activities and urban warfare training. While the US Army was represented by troops from 25 Infantry Division, the Indian side consists of troops from Jammu and Kashmir Rifles and Mechanised Infantry.

While the US team consisting of 170 members is being led by Colonel Thomas J Roth, Commander of 2nd Engineer Brigade, his Indian counterpart will be Brigadier B S Dhanoa. Yudh-Abhyas 2011-12 will consist of series of tactical drills carried out by Indian and US troops over a period of two weeks. One of the motives behind the exercise is to neutralize possible threats that could be encountered in peace keeping operations of UN.

The session would also involve drills and military exercises involving Infantry Combat Vehicles and Armoured Personnel Carrier. Advanced tools for monitoring and training from both sides are also being used and Improvised Explosive Device (IED) detection equipment and other sophisticated communications equipment is also being installed as part of the drill. The two armies will train together and conduct manoeuvres, especially those related to securing lines of communication, search-and-rescue operations and intelligence requirements for sustained peace enforcement.

India Opens Defense Show As Suppliers Line Up

Around 250 foreign firms, mainly from the US, Russia, France, Israel, the UK and Germany, and over 55 official delegations will be in town this week for the four-day ``DefExpo-2012' that begins on Thursday.

Over 330 Indian exhibitors, including major ones like Tatas, Punj Lloyd, L&T and Mahindra, will also be there to explore tie-ups and joint ventures with foreign companies as well as DRDO, defence PSUs and domestic shipyards.

The defence ministry has been pushing for JVs and technology transfers to strengthen the DIB, albeit in a haphazard manner, even as it continues to restrict FDI to only 26% in the defence production sector.

Russia Orders 30 SU-30SM Two-Seaters

Russian Defence Minister Anatoly Serdyukov and President of Irkut Corporation Alexey Fedorov, have signed the contract on Su-30SM multirole fighters delivery for the Russian Armed Forces.

Under the contract, Irkut Corporation will supply to the Defence Ministry 30 aircraft of this type by 2015.

Anatoly Serdyukov noted that upcoming entry of the modern two-seat super-manoeuverable aircraft into the Russian Armed Forces significantly increase the combat power of the Russian Air Force. Moreover, technical capabilities of the fighter allow achieving a higher level of pilot trainings, which is especially important due to the increase in procurement of new-generation combat aircraft.

Israel Deploys New Anti-Tank Missile Defense

In response to the growing anti-tank missile threats in the Gaza Strip region, Southern Command incorporates two high-tech defense systems

The Southern Command recently combined two new technological systems as a response to the growing anti-tank missile threat in the region. The systems were developed by the Elbit Systems Ltd. Company, enabling early detection and warning as well as redirecting of launched anti-tank missiles.

Elbit Systems is one of the leaders in the security market in Israel and abroad, and a main weapon supplier for the IDF.

DRDO Conducts Successful Test of Interceptor Missile

DRDO today conducted a successful test launch of the interceptor missile. DRDO’s Air Defence Missile AAD-05 has successfully hit the ballistic missile and destroyed it at a height of 15 kms off the Coast of Orissa near the Wheelers Island.

A modified Prithvi missile mimicking the ballistic missile was launched at 1010 hrs from ITR Chandipur. Radars located at different locations tracked the incoming ballistic missile. Interceptor missile was ready to take-off at Wheelers Island. Guidance computers continuously computed the trajectory of the ballistic missile and launched AAD-05 Interceptor Missile at a precisely calculated time.

With the target trajectory continuously updated by the radar, the onboard guidance computer guided the AAD-05 Interceptor Missile towards the target missile.

Russia Expects KA-226T to Win Indian Helicopter Tender

The results of the tender to supply the Indian Air Force and Army with 197 reconnaissance and surveillance helicopters are expected to be announced soon. All the test phases have been completed and the examination of bids is at final stage.

JSC Rosoboronexport is hoping that Russia’s Kamov Ka-226T multi-purpose helicopter will win. Its rival is Eurocopter AS550 C3 Fennec helicopter.

A distinct advantage of the Russian bid is its "cumulative" effect: the superior Ka-226T chopper is offered together with an offset program which is attractive for the Indian side.

Iran Test Fires New Radar-Evading Missile

Iran has test fired a new medium-range missile capable of avoiding radar detection, raising the stakes in its defiance of the West.

The launch was part of a 10-day military exercise being conducted in the Gulf near the Strait of Hormuz.

The drill is taking place as the country's relationship with the West is under increasing strain over its nuclear ambitions.

Neuron UCAV Demonstrator Unveiled

Neuron, the European Unmanned Combat Aircraft (UCAV) technology demonstrator, was presented on 19 January 2012 to government officials from the six participating countries (France, Sweden, Italy, Spain, Greece and Switzerland). This ceremony took place on the Istres facility of prime contractor Dassault Aviation, is south-eastern France

DGA, acting as the program’s Executive Agency representing all partners, awarded the Neuron prime contract to Dassault Aviation in February 2006. Thus, this presentation is the culmination of five years of design, development, manufacture, assembly and early static testing of the demonstrator. The engine tests began in December 2011 and will continue until the first flight in mid-2012.

Subsequently, flight tests will be carried out over two years in France, Sweden and Italy.

India Picks Rafale As MMRCA Winner

French firm Dassault Rafale has bagged India's biggest-ever military contract for supplying 126 combat aircraft for the Air Force, edging out European rival EADS in the deal that may be worth about ten billion dollars.

The French firm was declared as the lowest bidder, according to which it will get the contract under India's defence procurement procedure, sources said in New Delhi on Tuesday.

"The French firm Dassault Rafale has emerged as the L-1 (lowest bidder) and cheaper than its European rival EADS (maker of Eurofighter) in the tender and will be offered to supply the aircraft to the IAF," the source said.

Russian flat variable-geometry nozzle.

Russia started practical work on the thrust vector control from late 80's. Su-27s were widely used as flying labs for testing new aircraft and systems, The flying lab derived from the T10-26 was used to test the asymmetric swivelling nozzle. In 1990, the T10U-5 combat trainer left engine was fitted with a flat variable-geometry nozzle. The results of those and other tests have been used in designing new versions of the fighter and prospective combat aircraft.

The team was lead by Mikhail Pogosyan (General Director of Sukhoi Aviation)

Mikhail Pogosyan in the video say's huge technology advancement were made to develop a 5th generation aircraft, Not all the solutions were implemented on the flying laboratory which we flew with a flat nozzle, During the test we monitored the performance and manageability of the system.