Indian Frigate "INS Trikand" armed with BrahMos finishes sea trials in Russia

The last in a series of three frigates that Russia is building for India at the Yantar Shipyard in the Baltic exclave of Kaliningrad has completed contractor sea trials, a spokesman for the shipyard said on Friday.

Sergei Mikhailov said the trials of The Trikand frigate in the Baltic Sea began on February 5 and were completed on March 14.

“Within this period, the vessel carried out five voyages in the Baltic Sea, each lasting several days,” Mikhailov said.

The Trikand is currently at the Baltiisk port, preparing for state sea trials. It is scheduled to join the Indian Navy in the summer of 2013.

India's frigate INS Teg

Russia and India signed a $1.6 billion contract on the construction of three modified Krivak III class (also known as Talwar class) guided missile frigates for India in 2006.

The first frigate, INS Teg, joined the Indian Navy on April 27, 2012, and the second, The Tarkash, arrived at the port of Mumbai in India on December 30, 2012.

The frigates are each armed with eight BrahMos supersonic cruise missiles.

They are also equipped with a 100-mm gun, a Shtil surface-to-air missile system, two Kashtan air-defense gun/missile systems, two twin 533-mm torpedo launchers and an antisubmarine warfare (ASW) helicopter.

Related: India's nuclear-powered submarine rattles China

India air force begins combat exercise

The Indian Air Force has begun a major exercise, "Live Wire", to hone its combat skills.

Hundreds of fighters, helicopters, transport aircraft and drones from all five operational commands are testing both offensive and defensive air power capabilities.

India's ground and navy forces will also take part in the exercise, to test the three armies' joint abilities.
The exercise is the biggest in a decade with all the country’s airbases involved. The exercise comes close after the air force held a large fire-power and bombing display "Iron Fist" at Pokhran last month.

India's nuclear-powered submarine rattles China

India recently test-fired a submarine-launched ballistic missile capable of carrying a nuclear warhead – something that is of serious concern not only to New Delhi’s arch-rival Pakistan, but also to China, according to report from Joseph Farah’s G2 Bulletin.

China recently has been concerned about India’s efforts to expand its influence in the East and South China Seas, where Beijing has asserted exclusive jurisdiction especially over maritime resources. Beijing is upset with India over its assistance to Vietnam in off-shore oil exploration.

At the same time, New Delhi has been equally concerned about China’s expansion into the Indian Ocean. Beijing strategists see the Indian nuclear ballistic missile submarine capability as threatening its access to the Indian Ocean through the Malacca Strait, where 25 percent of global trade takes place.

At the same time, India could use its future ballistic missile submarine force to block Chinese oil imports through the Strait, thereby causing major disruptions in the Chinese economy.

In response to this future prospect, China has set up a network of forward-deployed naval bases to protect its oil shipping lanes to the Middle East. Some of these facilities will be in the Indian Ocean, which New Delhi sees as a plan by Beijing to surround it.

However, New Delhi’s deployment of these SLBMs could complicate that strategy and actually position Indian submarines off of China’s shores, resulting in the threat to China of a ballistic missile attack.

India’s ability to launch a ballistic missile submarine will ensure that neither China nor Pakistan will be able to destroy New Delhi’s nuclear capability in a first strike. With the ability to launch a ballistic missile from a submarine, it completes New Delhi’s nuclear triad – launching a nuclear attack from land, sea or air.


The missiles will be placed on India’s Arihant nuclear submarine. It will be outfitted with four launch silos designed to hold 12 of the new missiles that have a range from 700 kilometers to 3,500 kilometers.

The Arihant is expected to be operational this year, with three more planned for construction and put into operation by 2025.

Sources say that this reflects a new Indian strategic direction to make the Indian Ocean its own area of influence in competition with the Pakistanis.

WDN

Indian Navy exercises in Arabian Sea

NEW DELHI, March 3 (Xinhua) -- The Indian Navy has carried out a major exercise in the Arabian Sea over the last 30 days, during which it has honed its combat skills as well as its operational strategy, local media reported Sunday.

India's nuclear-powered submarine INS Chakra

More than 50 warships, including the stealth frigates and nuclear-powered submarine INS Chakra, from the Indian Navy's eastern fleet and the western fleet, took part in the exercise, along with 75 fighter jets and choppers, 'The Times of India' newspaper reported, quoting officials as saying.

The exercise, codenamed Tropex, also witnessed the Indian Navy practice operational concepts like maritime manoeuvre from the sea in a bid to show its readiness in case of a swift and high-tempo conflict in the future, the report said.

Elements from the Indian Air Force and the para-military Coast Guard also participated in the exercise, it said.

Russia, India Describe Next-Gen Fighter Plans

The air force commanders of both Russia and India have this month discussed the progress and future schedule of the fifth-generation Sukhoi fighter project. They are keen to have their own pilots evaluate the design so that they can take a decision on further funding for the project.

Russian air force commander Gen. Victor Bondarev said that he expects all four flyable prototypes of the so-called PAKFA (Future Aviation Complex of Frontal Aviation) to gather at the defense ministry’s test base and firing range near Akhtubinsk in Southern Russia, for customer assessment and weapons release trials. By the year-end their number shall increase to eight. If tests are a success, the PAKFA will go into series production in late 2015 or early 2016.

In his turn, Indian air force chief of staff told journalists at the recent Aero India show that he expects arrival of three PAKFA development prototypes in India, the first in 2015, the second in 2017 and the third in 2018. Air Marshall N. A. K. Browne said that the design and development phase of what India calls the Fifth Generation Fighter Aircraft (FGFA) is proceeding well under “a small-value contract.” When it is completed later this year, India and Russia will sign a new R&D contract “which is the mother of all phases,” he added.

Should India be satisfied with flight performance of the FGFA, it will fund the next phase: creation of a customized version for the Indian air force by a joint team of Russian and Indian engineers. The Indian version would use same airframe, engines and main systems, and differ in mission hardware and software, as well as weapons nomenclature. Series airframes manufacturing would commence at Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) in 2022, Browne added.

At Aero India, United Aircraft Corporation’s president Mikhail Pogosyan said that Russia and India would buy “over 400” aircraft and that the total market would exceed 600. He confirmed that all four prototypes built to date are now in flight test, and said that additional development aircraft will be completed “as necessary, after the two sides sign the full-scale development contract.”

Pogosyan further insisted that both Russian and Indian versions “will be based not only on the same platform, but also have identical onboard systems and avionics.” Indian air force specialists had been involved in working out specification to the aircraft “from the very beginning and through all development phases.” He continued, “It may happen that in future there will be some specific [national] requirements for onboard systems or additional missions, but these would be formally agreed by both customers.” Pogosyan expects the FGFA to follow the Su-30MKI/MKM example, in which “the Indian and Malaysian air forces use the very same platform, with the difference confined to a few avionics items.”

AIN Online

Budget 2013: Priorities of the Indian armed forces

Finance Minister P Chidambaram will present the Union Budget on Thursday. Given the likelihood of no major increase in defence spending, here is a look at what the priorities of the armed forces are.

After the Rs 14,000 crore cut in defence spending in the last financial year, the buzz is that no major increase is likely in the defence budget for the coming year given that the armed forces have pruned their procurement lists focusing on priority equipment to be acquired.

The Army's priority list includes:


- Replacement of the Bofors artillery with the OFB upgraded 155 mm gun of longer range

- Modern artillery ammunition (bi-modular charges, fuzes etc)

- Assault rifles for Infantry (trials underway)

- Also bullet proof jackets/helmets for CI operations

- Tank ammunition (INVARS missile for T-90 tanks)

The Army also wants to replace its 1960s vintage Cheetah and Chetak helicopters, 60 per cent of which are nearly at the end of their service life.

The Air Force is going the whole hog putting its weight behind every procurement, big or small, insisting that everything is driven by operational necessity. Fighter, transport and helicopter procurement appears to be on track, the gap in air defence and the Avro replacement is probably the focus could be.

For the Navy, the priority list includes acquiring 16 multi-role maritime helicopters and 56 utility helicopters. It also includes minesweepers from South Korea and crucially the new line of conventional submarines under Project 75I.

Defence cuts if any are not expected to hit equipment already contracted for as payment for these will have to be made. In that sense the Air Force and Navy have done well in terms of speeding up procurement of big ticket items. The Army is the laggard here and is paying the price in terms of operational deficiencies.

IBN Live

India ready to induct BrahMos cruise missile into Air Force by 2014

NEW DELHI, Feb. 26 (Xinhua) -- India will be ready to induct BrahMos supersonic cruise missile into its Air Force by the end of next year, a top official has said.

"The program for induction of BrahMos supersonic cruise missile with a speed of Mach 3 into the Indian Air Force will be ready by the end of 2014. BrahMos will be upgraded to a hypersonic cruise missile with a speed of Mach 7 by 2017," Sivathanu Pillai, the chief executive of BrahMos Aerospace Private Limited, was quoted by the local media as saying in the southern state of Tamil Nadu Monday.

He added, "While Europe, the U.S. and China are in the process of developing such missiles, efforts are under way in India to make Mach 8 possible."

The land-launched and ship-launched versions of BrahMos, the world's fastest cruise missile in operation, are already in service. BrahMos is named after two rivers, the Brahmaputra in India and the Moskva in Russia.

The BrahMos Aerospace Private Limited is a joint venture between the state-owned Defense Research and Development Organization and NPO Mashinostroyenia (NPOM) of Russia.

BrahMos Aerospace to develop tech for hypersonic missiles

BrahMos Aerospace, an Indo-Russian joint venture, has initiated efforts to develop technology for hypersonic version of the BrahMos missile which can travel at five to seven times the speed of sound, a top company official has said.

"The company is roping in academics to develop the requisite technology before going in for designing and developing missiles which can travel at Mach 5 to 7 (five to seven times the speed of sound). It will be BrahMos II version next to the present variants of Mach 2.8 to 3.5," A Sivathanu Pillai MD & CEO of the company told PTI.

He said the IISc, Bangalore, would collaborate with the company with a 20 member scientists' team developing technologies for high temperature material required to build the missile, cram-jet propulsions and energy modules and the requisite algorithms.

A separate centre has been created for this purpose in Indian Institute of Science while its Russian counterpart, the Moscow Institute of Aviation, would produce technologies for propulsion, kinetic energy modules for the hypersonic version.

In all probability, it would take a minimum of five years for these initiatives to crystallise. In the meantime, BrahMos would work out blueprints for setting up a production centre, choice of vendors for supply of necessary components and investment structure, he said.

After these operations, BrahMos Aerospace would take up development of missiles that can come back to the originating mode after destroying the designated target, he said.

Pillai said modernisation and expansion of manufacturing facilities at Hyderabad and Thriuvananthapuram are also on the cards since the domestic market demand is on the increase.

He said the Indian Air Force had also started placing orders for BrahMos and added that the Army and the Navy are regular customers.

Pillai was here to participate in a felicitation function held in his honour on being conferred the Padma Bhushan Award.

The Economic Times

Vietnam supports ASEAN – India strategic partnership

Vietnamese Deputy Foreign Minister Pham Quang Vinh has affirmed Vietnam’s support for the increased ASEAN – India strategic partnership in various fields at their fifth annual dialogue which concluded in New Delhi, India, on February 20.

Addressing the two-day event, Vinh said the dialogue takes place in the context that the region is facing opportunities and challenges.

He added that while the region is striving to maintain peace and stability as well as boost economic connectivity, it is also coping with increasingly complicated challenges, including non-traditional security challenges such as natural disasters, epidemics, climate change, energy and food security, and trans-national crime.

In such context, ASEAN’s role in Community building as well as in its contribution to building an environment for stability and development cooperation is crucial. For this reason, ASEAN highly values India ’s role in such joint effort, Vinh said.

Vinh also stressed the need to grasp an overall picture of regional situation and existing strong foundation between ASEAN and India , as well as recognize challenges relating to regional peace and security, including traditional and non-traditional security, and economic opportunities and potentials.

The Deputy FM said he hopes ASEAN members and other nations, including India, will support the joint effort between ASEAN and related countries in ensuring peace, stability and maritime security and safety in the East Sea as well as the settlement of disputes by peaceful means on the basis of respecting international law and conventions on the law of the sea, including the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the East Sea (DOC) and the ASE AN’s Six-Point Principles.-VNA

India test fires missile from under sea, completes nuclear triad

Jan 29, 2013- Bay of Bengal: After a smooth countdown at 1.40 pm on Sunday, India's missile, named BO5, emerged effortlessly breaking the balmy waters of the Bay of Bengal. The missile was launched from an approximate depth of about 50 metres, simulating exactly the conditions as would prevail during an operational launch from India's indigenously made nuclear-powered submarine INS Arihant. The missile whose name has been variously given as Sagarika or at times K-15 or even Dhanush has finally been christened as BO5 and is a medium-range ballistic missile.

After emerging from the water, the missile followed a copy book track of its trajectory and hit its target about six minutes after launch in a very precise manner. The trajectory was tracked using several cameras and radars specially deputed for this launch.

This is the fourteenth consecutively successful launch of this potent weapons system which has till now always been done in complete secrecy. This was the last developmental launch and now the weapons system is ready to be integrated with the Indian submarines, says AK Chakrabarty, the man who designed and perfected this naval missile system and is also the director of the Defence Research and Development Laboratory, Hyderabad. He spoke exclusively to NDTV on board the ship which controls the missile launch. This sophisticated technology has been mastered only by the USA, Russia, France and China. India has now joined this select club of five, and has now completed what is called the nuclear triad, which essentially gives India the capability to launch at will its nuclear weapons from air, land and sea.

The indigenously made missile has been perfected after more than 15 years of development by the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO). Mr Chakrabarty, who had tears of joy in his eyes, described the mission as "perfect and could not have been any better."

A young team of about 200 DRDO scientists and personnel from the Navy and a flotilla of ships took part in today's mission. The NDTV team of Pallava Bagla and Alphonse Raj were the only journalists allowed to witness the launch live from the middle of the Bay of Bengal.


NDTV/ YouTube

Missiles that Indian armed forces have

Jan 24, 2013- New Delhi: India's missile and nuclear weapons programs have evolved as elements of its strategic response to more than 60 years of wars and skirmishes it has fought with Pakistan and China.

Deep tensions and mistrust in the sub-continent continue unabated to the present.

India's debacle on the borders at the hands of China in the 1962 war, probably more than any other event, galvanized its leadership to build indigenous missile and nuclear weapons capabilities as a credible deterrent against attack by China, and to attain military superiority over Pakistan.

The programme, that was envisioned under the leadership of Indira Gandhi in the 1970s and was started in the early 1980s, has been further consolidated with an exponentially expanded plan in the latter years.

Let’s have a look where India today stands in missile systems:

BrahMos

BrahMos is a stealth supersonic cruise missile that can be launched from submarines, ships, aircraft or land.

The name BrahMos is a portmanteau formed from the names of two rivers, the Brahmaputra of India and the Moskva of Russia.

It is the world's fastest cruise missile in operation. The missile travels at speeds of Mach 2.8 to 3.0.

The land-launched and ship-launched versions are already in service with air-launched and submarine-launched versions currently under testing phase.

A hypersonic version of the missile is also presently under development with speed of Mach 7 to boost aerial fast strike capability. It is expected to be ready for testing by 2017.

Prithvi missiles

The Prithvi missile is a family of tactical surface-to-surface short-range ballistic missiles (SRBM) and is India's first indigenously developed ballistic missile.

Development of the Prithvi began in 1983, and it was first test-fired on February 25, 1988 from Sriharikota, SHAR Centre, Pottisreeramulu Nellore district, Andhra Pradesh.

It has a range of up to 150 to 300 km. The land variant is called Prithvi while the naval operational variant of Prithvi I and Prithvi II class missiles are codenamed Dhanush (meaning Bow). Both variants are used for surface targets.

The initial project framework of the IGMDP envisioned the Prithvi missile as a short-range ballistic missile with variants for the Indian Army, Indian Air Force and the Indian Navy.

Over the years the Prithvi missile specifications have undergone a number of changes.

The Prithvi I class of missiles were inducted into the Indian Army in 1994, while Prithvi II with an extended range were being inducted in 2006.

Prithvi III class has a longer-range of 350 km, and was successfully test fired in 2004.

Agni missiles

The Agni missile is a family of Medium to Intercontinental range ballistic missiles developed by DRDO of India.

The initial Technology demonstrator version had a range of 1500 km but were based on a solid and a liquid stage making for long preparation before firing.

While the Agni-I, Agni-II and Agni-III, Agni-IV, Agni-V were developed under the IGMDP, and Agni-VI is under development as independent projects pursuant to the policy changes made by the DRDO after the end of the IGMDP in 2008.

Trishul missiles

Trishul is the name of a short range surface-to-air missile developed by India as a part of the Integrated Guided Missile Development Program.

Designed to be used against low-level targets at short range, the system has been developed to defend naval vessels against missiles and also as a short range surface to air missile on land.

The range of the missile is 12 km and is fitted with a 15 kg warhead. The weight of the missile is 130 kg. The length of the missile is 3.1 m.

India officially shut the down Trishul Missile project on February 27, 2008.

Akash missiles

Akash is a medium range surface-to-air missile developed to achieve self-sufficiency in the area of surface-to-air missiles.

It is the most expensive missile project ever undertaken by the Centre in the 20th century.

Akash is a medium-range surface-to-air missile with an intercept range of 30 km. It has a launch weight of 720 kg, a diameter of 35 cm and a length of 5.8 metres.

Akash flies at supersonic speed, reaching around Mach 2.5. It can reach an altitude of 18 km.

The missile is supported by a multi-target and multi-function phased array fire control radar called the 'Rajendra' with a range of about 80 km in search, and 60 km in terms of engagement.

The Akash system meant for the Army uses the T-72 tank chassis for its launcher and radar vehicles.

The Akash system can be deployed by rail, road or air.

Nag missiles

Nag is India's third generation "Fire-and-forget" anti-tank missile. It is an all weather, top attack missile with a range of 3 to 7 km.

The missile uses an 8 kg tandem HEAT warhead capable of defeating modern armour including ERA (Explosive Reactive Armour) and composite armour.

Nag uses Imaging Infra-Red (IIR) guidance with day and night capability.

Nag can be mounted on an infantry vehicle; a helicopter launched version will also be available with integration work being carried out with the HAL Dhruv.

Many of the above-mentioned platforms are operational with the various branches of the Indian Armed Forces.

Some missiles in different stages of testing and fine-tuning are:

A submarine-launched ballistic missile series (K-series, whose versions tested till now, range between 750 and 3500 km but later versions are slated to travel beyond 6000 km), a solid-fuelled stand-alone 150-km range tactical ballistic missile (Prahaar),

A long range surface-to-air missile (LRSAM) system in joint venture with Israel (Barak with range between 70 and 120 km)

A long range cruise missile system (Nirbhay with range of 1000 km which is scheduled to be tested any day now)

Sagarika, Surya missile and Prahaar are other missiles that are in different stages of development

There are also murmurs about a ultra-long range surface-to-air missile system being under development though it has not been confirmed by the government.

India TV News

India mulls huge increase in Rafale order, may buy up to 189 fighter jets

Jan 18, 2013- PARIS: India could buy up to 189 of the Rafale fighter jets currently being used by France to bomb Islamist militants in Mali, sources close to negotiations on the multi-billion dollar deal have told AFP.

The possibility of an additional 63 jets being added to an expected order for 126 was raised during a visit by India's foreign minister Salman Khurshid to Paris last week, they said.

"There is an option for procurement of an additional 63 aircrafts subsequently for which a separate contract would need to be signed," a source said.

"Presently the contract under negotiation is for 126 aircraft but we are talking about the follow-up."

India's contemplation of a much bigger than anticipated extension of its airpower will inevitably cause concern in neighbouring Pakistan given the permanently simmering tensions between the two countries.

The Indian press has estimated the value of the deal for 126 Rafales at $12 billion (nine billion euros).

A 50 per cent increase in the number of planes ordered would take it to around $18 billion, in a huge boost for the struggling French defence industry, although much of the economic benefit will be shared with India.

New Delhi selected France's Dassault Aviation as its preferred candidate to equip the Indian Air Force with new fighter jets in January 2012.

Under the deal on the table, the first 18 Rafales will be built in France but the next 108 will be assembled in India by Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd in Bangalore.

"The first aircraft will be delivered three years after signature of the contract," the source added.

An industry expert said the time lag reflected India's request for two-seater jets rather than the one-seater model that Dassault currently produces.

India has insisted that the deal involves significant technology transfer and that Indian suppliers secure work equivalent to around half of the value of the contract.

"The negociations for off-sets are progressing well," the source added.

The conclusion of the deal has been repeatedly delayed, with India having initially set a target of the end of last year, which slipped to March 31, 2013, the end of the current fiscal year.

French defence sources said last week that was unlikely to be met but voiced confidence it would finally be done, a stance echoed by Khurshid on his visit to Paris.

"We know good French wine takes time to mature and so do good contracts," Khurshid said after a meeting with French foreign minister Laurent Fabius.

"The contract details are being worked out. A decision has already been taken, just wait a little for the cork to pop and you'll have some good wine to taste."

Dassault and the French government are hoping that India's decision will have a positive influence on other potential buyers of the Rafale, who include Brazil, which is in the market for 36 planes, Canada, Malaysia and the United Arab Emirates.

The Rafale was used in a combat situation for the first time during the French-led Nato campaign which deposed Libyan dictator Moamer Kadhafi in 2011 and they have been active in Mali since the weekend.

Times of India

India test-fires manoeuvrable version of BrahMos

NEW DELHI, JAN 9, 2013: India today successfully test-fired a highly manoeuvrable version of the 290-km range supersonic cruise missile BrahMos from a naval warship off the coast of Vishakhapatnam in Bay of Bengal.

Brahmos successfully test-fired in 2012

“At 9.30 a.m., the missile blasted off in a pre-designated war scenario taking a ‘double-manoeuvre in S-form’ hitting the designated target ship just one metre above water line. The sheer velocity and power of hit made the missile rip through the ship’s hull,” BrahMos Aerospace CEO A. Sivathanu Pillai said here.

This is the 34th launch of BrahMos after the successful October launch from INS Teg in the Arabian Sea.

The BrahMos missile system was inducted into the Indian Navy in 2005 when it began arming the Rajput-class guided missile destroyers and inducted subsequently in many warships.

BrahMos is capable of acquiring data not only from the American GPS but also from Russian GLONASS satellite systems also, which ensures double redundancy.

In the last stage, the seeker takes over and the target is located with accuracy of few metres which ensures no chances of survival for the target.

“This has been proved once again today and with bulls eye accuracy,” officials said.

Defence Minister A.K. Antony congratulated the warship commander and Indian Navy and BrahMos team for the demonstration of capabilities, they said.