august-September l 2010 Volume 5 No 4 `100.00 (India-based Buyer only) SP’s AN SP GUIDE PUBLICATION www.spsnavalforces.net ROUNDUP 3 PaGe lead story Keeping an Eye submarines have progressed from having to porpoise at the surface to see outside through crude viewing devices fixed in height and direction to today’s photonic masts using high-resolution cameras housed in the sub - marine’s dorsal fin-like sail The Road Ahead Lt General (Retd) Naresh Chand The prospect of carrier-borne aircraft and military aviation, except unmanned PaGe 5 aerial vehicles, appears uncertain. It depends heavily on two factors—technology Crying Over Spilled Oil and economics. PhotograPhS: Indian Navy any spill, however small, has an environmen - tal and financial impact which takes time and resources to overcome Lt General (Retd) Naresh Chand PaGe 8 Weapons Under Water a modern torpedo can destroy targets at a range of 40 km and a speed of about 50 Sea Harriers on flight deck of INS Viraat knots. Its destructive power is more than a missile and it can differentiate between a tar - n ADMIRAL (RETD) ARUN PRAKASH explore a bit of aviation history first. or two seaplanes as a standard fit. They get and a decoy. a few months from now, on november would be launched from a ramp on the gun rysTal gazIng or predicting the 10, 2010, we will observe the centennial of turret and recovered on board by crane. Lt General (Retd) Naresh Chand future must be one of the most Eugene Ely’s intrepid demonstration that seaplanes being limited in perform - hazardous occupations known to aircraft could be operated from the deck ance, naval commanders began to demand PaGe 12 man. In ancient times, those who of a warship. at that juncture, aviation was fighters at sea. By the end of First World 50 Golden Years got it wrong were declared false a mere seven year old, but this demonstra - War, this had led to the progressive evolu - Indian Naval air squadron 300 celebrates Cprophets and were either stoned to death tion was enough to trigger a revolution in tion of naval fighters as well as ships ded - completion of five decades of service or burnt at the stake by an indignant public. maritime warfare. Bold and imaginative icated to aircraft operations with the fleet Keeping these hazards in mind, let me men in a number of navies started experi - at sea. The definitive aviation ship—the Rear Admiral (Retd) Sushil Ramsay start with the safe but anodyne statement menting with different methods of inte - flat-top aircraft carrier made its appear - that today the prospect for everything in grating the flying machine into different ance in the early 1920s. PLUS military aviation, except unmanned aerial aspects of operations at sea. such was the clamour for air support Surveillance of Land and Maritime 4 vehicles (UaVs), appears uncertain. If that like all innovations, the aircraft too that second World War saw even merchant Borders upsets you, just think of all the poor air faced much opposition from the tradition - ships being equipped with fighters which forces of the world, as they contemplate alists who were of the view that the 16-inch could undertake a rocket assisted take-off Interview: Admiral (Retd) R.H. Tahiliani 7 such a bleak future. gun on deck and 12-inch armour-plating on from a small ramp in the bows. Temporar - Search and Rescue 7 Coming specifically to the fate of car - the waterline constituted an unbeatable ily, this proved a useful measure against rier-borne aircraft; it is inextricably linked combination for all times to come. The air - german U-boats and patrol aircraft, but Innovative Trends in Warship Building 10 to the platforms that carry them. The fu - craft made a hesitant debut on the mar - when the casualty rate in convoys shot up, First 14 ture of both is full of question marks, be - itime scene—first in the scouting role, then small merchant ship hulls were modified cause it depends heavily on two for gunnery observation and finally for with a flight deck but no hangar and TecKnow 14 factors—technology and economics. I will strike and fleet air-defence. Cruisers and equipped with 15-20 aircraft. They became News in Brief 15 touch upon both these aspects; but let me battleships began to be equipped with one the famous escort carriers fondly dubbed 4/2010 1 lead story The Golden Jubilee of the Indian Navy’s frontline to see outside through crude viewing devices to L fighter squadron, INAS 300, was celebrated in today’s photonic masts using high-resolution cam - Goa with over a hundred White Tigers, both serv - eras. We have for you an article on the new A ing and retired in attendance. Thus it was appro - periscope technology for submarines. There are priate to include a write-up by former Chief of write-ups on underwater weapons, new trends in I Naval Staff Admiral Arun Prakash, who was the warship construction, and the usual news digest. commissioning Commanding Officer of 300 To keep our readers updated about the latest R Naval Air Squadron when it was re-equipped with technological developments and happenings the Sea Harrier FRS Mk51 in UK in 1982, as the around the world, new sections like First and O lead article. He does some crystal gazing on the TechWatch have been introduced since the last future of carrier-borne fighter aircraft after going issue. This time too, we have included the sev - T through their evolution since 1910, when it was Owner’s pride: recently, SP’s Editor-in-Chief Jayant eral newest developments. So lay your anchors first demonstrated that an aircraft could be oper - Baranwal presented a copy of SP’s Military Yearbook and read on. 2009-2010 to Defence Minister A.K. Antony in New Delhi I ated from the deck of a warship. He goes on to build a passionate case for an indigenously-built D aircraft carrier and a home-grown carrier-borne tory of INAS 300 is also included. The piece on fighter. Coupled with this, is an interview of for - oil spills is most topical due to the recent mer CNS Admiral R.H. Tahiliani who as a Lt episodes of oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico and off E Commander was the first Indian pilot to land a the Mumbai coast following the collision between Seahawk on INS Vikrant on May 18, 1961. MSC Chitra and MV Khalija III. Submarines have Jayant Baranwa L A report on the celebrations and a brief his - progressed from having to porpoise at the surface Publisher & Editor-in-Chief The Road Ahead continued “Jeep carriers.” difficult to generate on a non-nuclear ship. Sea Harrier on an operational sortie aircraft carriers were instrumental in Either way, the choice of catapult operations deciding the fortunes of the war at sea, in has serious ship-design and hence cost im - almost all theatres and in every facet of plications would be a major decision. maritime warfare during World War II. an On the other hand, British aerospace intense shipbuilding programme ensured and the swedish saaB company have prom - that on cessation of hostilities, the Us navy ised to explore the possibility of offering had over a hundred carriers including 78 sTOBar versions of the Typhoon and Jeep carriers and the royal navy about half gripen, respectively. a seemingly facile that number. The Japanese had started the offer, such as this, has huge unstated impli - war with one of the biggest fleet of 10 car - cations. The design modifications required riers, but heavy attrition left them with just to convert a shore-based aircraft into a car - half a dozen at the time of surrender. rier-borne machine, without an excessive Post-World War II induction of jet air - weight/performance penalty, are significant. craft, with higher operating speeds on carri - Once completed, they will require a full- ers, led to the evolution of three innovative fledged trial programme for operational British concepts—the mirror landing sight, clearance. Both these items carry tremen - the steam catapult and angled-deck recovery dous cost implications and it is anybody’s operations. all these contributed to safety guess as to who will carry the financial bur - and efficiency of ship-borne flight opera - den—especially if we are talking about a tions and were eagerly adopted by other mere 40-50 aircraft for the Indian navy. navies. However, as naval fighters gained in to save a few billion dollars. Post-Cold War that the second carrier’s air group would so this brings us back to the original performance and became heavier, they conflicts have obviously reinforced this line consist of the Mig-29K and perhaps lCa question; what is the future of carrier-borne demanded larger hangars, more powerful of thinking because two decades after the (navy), with an option to operate the F-35(B) fighters? India’s maritime interests and com - catapults and bigger flight decks. It is the disappearance of the soviet threat, their lightning II, at a later date, if it is available. mitments in the 21st century demand that last of these which became the driver for carrier force consists exclusively of 100,000 However, it is a different matter that at a our navy deploys its units in the distant this size of the carrier. tonne nimitz class super-carriers with an price tag of `450 crore a piece, we may not reaches of the Indian Ocean region for pro - For example, if you wanted to operate 1,100-foot-long flight deck.