Indian Air Force: News & Discussions

[randombully]

J20 & J16, Possible SEAD lineup

View attachment 24019

View attachment 24020

Can it fill ARM missile, inside it's weapons bay? Or have to carry it externally?

 

[rockdog]

Can it fill ARM missile, inside it's weapons bay? Or have to carry it externally?

Quite possible inside

 

[randombully]

Quite possible inside

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So they are making it multirole from air superiority,
Previously I was thinking PLAAF will buy j35 as multirole and j20 will be dedicated air superiority( can still do multirole if needed, with external load).
But with this it looks like there's not much need for j35 in airforce, what are the chances of plaaf buying j35?

 

[rockdog]

So they are making it multirole from air superiority,
Previously I was thinking PLAAF will buy j35 as multirole and j20 will be dedicated air superiority( can still do multirole if needed, with external load).
But with this it looks like there's not much need for j35 in airforce, what are the chances of plaaf buying j35?

News said: PLAAF testing wing is speeding up trials of J35A.

Which means Navy version would be named as J35C.

PLAAF might be not urgent since it has full speed production of J20.

And SAC so far might need bring 100 J35C for navy as first priority in coming yrs. And Pakistan AF might treated 24 to 36 as 2nd batch.

If you count 24 J35C for each AC from 001, 002, 003 and 004 already in shipyard.

 

[randombully]

News said: PLAAF testing wing is speeding up trials of J35A.

Which means Navy version would be named as J35C.

PLAAF might be not urgent since it has full speed production of J20.

And SAC so far might need bring 100 J35C for navy as first priority in coming yrs. And Pakistan AF might treated 24 to 36 as 2nd batch.

If you count 24 J35C for each AC from 001, 002, 003 and 004 already in shipyard.

View attachment 24029

So looks like plaaf will still buy them.

 

[shade2]

Mirage 2000 crashed in Shivpuri, MP, both pilots ejected safely

Air Force's Mirage 2000 Fighter Jet Crashes Near Shivpuri In Madhya Pradesh

A twin-seater Mirage 2000 fighter aircraft of the Indian Air Force (IAF) crashed today near Shivpuri in Madhya Pradesh while it was on a routine training sortie.

www.ndtv.com

 

[Indianhawk]

Mirage 2000 crashed in Shivpuri, MP, both pilots ejected safely

Air Force's Mirage 2000 Fighter Jet Crashes Near Shivpuri In Madhya Pradesh

A twin-seater Mirage 2000 fighter aircraft of the Indian Air Force (IAF) crashed today near Shivpuri in Madhya Pradesh while it was on a routine training sortie.

www.ndtv.com

With this I guess crash record is almost similar for mig29 and mirage of airforce.

 

[shade2]

With this I guess crash record is almost similar for mig29 and mirage of airforce.

If only they'd made the decision of inducting a certain """"MiG 21++++++""""" earlier and in good numbers, the pilots wouldn't have to fly these life-hazard jets that are way past their retirement age.

We are seeing these crashes now but you see last years gallantry awards and there are citations of Chad Pilots saving these geriatric planes with the control surfaces not working or the canopy flying off and other such situations, we don't know how many such other "near crash" scenarios might have occurred, but chad pilot actions might have prevented crashes.

 

[Indianhawk]

If only they'd made the decision of inducting a certain """"MiG 21++++++""""" earlier and in good numbers, the pilots wouldn't have to fly these life-hazard jets that are way past their retirement age.

We are seeing these crashes now but you see last years gallantry awards and there are citations of Chad Pilots saving these geriatric planes with the control surfaces not working or the canopy flying off and other such situations, we don't know how many such other "near crash" scenarios might have occurred, but chad pilot actions might have prevented crashes.

These mirages have just been upgraded that too at almost 50 million each !

 

[randombully]

Numerical simulation of RCS for carrier electronic warfare airplanes

This paper studies the radar cross section (RCS) of carrier electronic warfare airplanes. Under the typical naval operations section, the mathematical…

www.sciencedirect.com

When the radar band is X, the detection distance of Model A under electronic jamming is reduced by 60.97% compared with the distance under no electronic jamming. The detection distance of Model B under electronic jamming is reduced by 58.20% compared with the distance under no electronic jamming.

Power of EW, or as the French call it "active stealth"

It's a chinese paper.
Model A is US navy fa18 growler, Model B is su33 EW varient

 

[vampyrbladez]

With AMCA prospectively not reaching FOC until some time in the 2040's, India is contemplating buying Su-57. This article suggests that Su-57 has a long way to go before it, too, will be fully developed. In view of what it says, should India be thinking of buying the Su-57?

From rubles to rubble: The true cost of fielding Su-57 Felon

The initial cost estimates for the Su-57 have been a matter of much speculation and debate. Early figures suggested a unit cost hovering around $35-$50 million.

bulgarianmilitary.com

Too tired to type all of this again.

Option 1 : Import F 35

Lets say India negotiates (begs) US to allow purchase of 36 F 35 aircraft throughout 2025-26. Finally US agrees and in 2026-27 a deal is signed for ~$8 bn.

The deal will include US weapons like AIM 120 C7, JDAM, etc and WILL be subject to US rules and regulations regarding intended usage. Also, India will have ZERO access to IP and will need to reply on US contractors to service these aircraft.

The first aircraft will be delivered 4-6 years after the signing of the deal (2030-2031). Then the rest over the next two years (2032-2033).

Option 2 : Persist on AMCA

By comparison, AMCA rollout is scheduled for 2026, which is reasonable given titanium bulkhead cutting and other small scale part manufacturing started in 2022.

First flight, depending on how many subsystems are installed in the AMCA will be 2027-2028. Then add another 3 years of tests (weapon-radar integration, certification, flight envelope tests, manuals, troubleshooting, compatibility) and by 2030-31 you have a somewhat ready IOC capable fighter.

Another 2 years 2032-2033 you have a FOC capable AMCA. If we sign GE F414 engine deal in 2025 (hopefully) and it takes 2 years to build the facility while we import some GE F414 engines as part of the deal, then by 2027 facility is ready. By 2028 domestic assembly of GE F414 commences and by 2031-32 everything is in place for AMCA to be mass produced and inducted.

Conclusion :

In both cases, India won't receive a 5th generation fighter before 2031-32 at the earliest. Bear in mind that it will take another 2-3 years to have at least 2-3 operationally ready squadrons of the F 35/AMCA so ~2034.

India needs to produce more SU 30 MKI, mass produce Tejas MK2, finish the 180 Tejas MK1A and missile-radar max until the mid 2030s.

 

[Migflug]

These mirages have just been upgraded that too at almost 50 million each !

Shows the great foresight of imported air force!!