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V/2017 Aerospace & Defence Review The IAF at 85 The JF-17 Thunder The Great Marshal India’s 5th Gen Fighter CAS on Indigenisation Higher Defence Organisation Safran is powering and/or equipping more than 70% of airplanes and helicopters flying in India © Cyril Abad / CAPA Pictures / Safran - Eric Drouin / Safran - Philippe Stroppa / Safran - Adrien Daste / Safran. Daste - Adrien / Safran - Philippe Stroppa / Safran - Eric Drouin / Safran Pictures Abad / CAPA © Cyril Safran is committed to being a full-fledged technology partner in the development of the Indian aerospace and defence industry. By providing engines and/or equipment for the aeroplanes and helicopters flying in India, Safran is proud to be safeguarding the safran-group.com Indian skies for more than 60 years. SAF-AP LEAP-INDIA-VAYU AEROSPACE-215X280-GB.indd 1 14/09/2017 09:46 V/2017 V/2017 Aerospace & Defence Review 30 The Great Marshal 49 ‘Flying Daggers’ Fly 73 India’s 5th Again Generation Fighter The IAF at 85 The JF-17 Thunder With the light combat aircraft The Great Marshal India’s 5th Gen Fighter CAS on Indigenisation Higher Defence Organisation programme as reference, Air Marshal M Matheswaran (retd) stresses the Cover : A Limited Series Production (LSP) need for hard and pragmatic decisions Tejas LCA pulls out of a loop during an air Marshal of the Air Force Arjan even as the country moves forward to display at Aero India 2017 Singh DFC, who passed away on 16 The first LCA squadron is No.45, develop the advanced medium combat (photo: Angad Singh) September 2017 at the age of 98 was the ‘Flying Daggers’ which has been aircraft (AMCA), his views also having a legend in his lifetime for every aviator formally resurrected with the Tejas been submitted to the new Defence irrespective of his colour of uniform. light combat aircraft. A brief history of Minister Nirmala Sitharaman. EDITORIAL PANEL This tribute is by Vice Admiral Shekhar the unit is followed by its present status Sinha (retd.), a Naval Aviator and with the slow if steady receipt of LCAs Combined Arms MANAGING EDITOR former ‘Grey Eagle’. from HAL. 78 Vikramjit Singh Chopra EDITORIAL ADVISOR 33 Chief Speak ! 52 Higher Defence Admiral Arun Prakash Organisation in India EDITORIAL PANEL Pushpindar Singh Air Marshal Brijesh Jayal Dr. Manoj Joshi With the first batch of Apache attack Lt. Gen. Kamal Davar helicopters shortly expected to join service in India, in his no holds barred Lt. Gen. BS Pawar article, Brigadier Gurmeet Kanwal Air Marshal M. Matheswaran In this candid article, Air Marshal Vinod (retd), earlier Director CLAWS and Gp Capt JC Malik Patney (retd), presently Director now with the IDSA, concludes that Cdr M Nirmal General of CAPS, addresses the attack helicopters must be integral with the Army’s other combat arms Monica Arora ongoing debate within the country on changes suggested in the higher defence for operational synergy. Angad Singh Air Chief Marshal Birender Singh organisation of India. He examines the Dhanoa, CAS of the Indian Air Sayan Majumdar rationale - or otherwise - of Theatre Force articulated his views on ‘Joint The Startling Richard Gardner (UK) Commands and concludes that with so 94 Operations and Indigenisation’. This Reuben Johnson (USA) many other issues demanding attention, Growth was at the Air Chief Marshal LM Katre A new study on the expanding UAV/ “we need improvements and not going Bertrand de Boisset (France) Memorial Lecture held at Bangalore on USV market, indicates an increase off on tangents”. Dr Nick Evesenkin (Russia) 9 September 2017 when the Air Chief of over 400 percent in the numbers Tamir Eshel (Israel) gave a perspective of operations since required over the next 5 years. India’s independence, the last major air 64 “Ugly Duckling, UAVs in Afghanistan and Iraq have ADVERTISING & MARKETING MANAGER actions being over Kargil in 1999. The Swan or a Hunt demonstrated their usefulness for Husnal Kaur Chief focuses on both Indigenisation Counter-Improvised Explosive Device and Command Structures. Bird in hand ?” (C-IED) tasks, all of which is of vital BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT MANAGER interest in India. Premjit Singh 44 Ground Realities Also: Visit to Thales in France at 85 (Part II); LCH into production; Waves at Malabar; Irkut at MAKS PUBLISHED BY 2017; Saab Gripen Aggresser; Vayu Aerospace Pvt. Ltd. JSF Milestones; BAE Systems D-43, Sujan Singh Park, Developments; Big Stick over the Baltics; Load Diffuser 2017; New Delhi 110 003 India Poland’s ‘Unique Trio’; Tactical Tel: +91 11 24617234 Weapons Meet 2017; Tiger Meet Fax: +91 11 24628615 2017; Enter the Block 70; Four e-mail: [email protected] Unforgettable Events (Air Marshal On the IAF’s 85th anniversary, Air Professor Prodyut Das makes an open Philip Rajkumar). e-mail: [email protected] Marshal Anil Chopra (retd) writes on source assessment of the Sino-Pak JF-17 the IAF’s current combat assets, fighter Thunder, the first detailed critique of Printed at Aegean Offset Printers aircraft upgrades, next generation this new multirole fighter which is being Regular features : developments and then to the reality: received in increasing numbers by the Commentary, Opinion, Viewpoint, the long delayed timelines in getting the Pakistan Air Force. The author makes The opinions expressed in the articles Aviation & Defence in India, World published in the Vayu Aerospace & Defence LCA into operational service, which has direct comparison of the timeline and Aviation & Defence News, Ancient Review do not necessarily reflect the views greatly affected the IAF’s planning, and development costs of the Thunder with Aviator Anecdotes, Vayu 25 Years or policies of the Publishers. in turn, its operational capability. the Tejas, India’s light combat aircraft. Back, Tale Spin. Visit us at: www.vayuaerospace.in C O M M E N T A R Y thalesgroup.com and manufacturing are linked. Fixing manufacturing and acquisitions Reforming India’s Defence alone will not work. She needs to urgently tackle the need to reorganise Establishment India’s sprawling military to make them an effective fighting unit for 21st century warfare, where challenges range from nuclear armed adversaries et’s not worry too much about Nirmala Sitharaman’s lacking in to proxy jihadis. This means shedding flab, integrating commands, experience to be the defence minister. For all their experience L getting them to work as a single unit with the civilians and so on. AK Antony and Manohar Parrikar were failures. In our system, no World-leading integrated She will confront a wall of vested interests who do not want any minister is expected to have expert knowledge of the subject he/ reform because, like all bureaucratic organisations, they are afraid they she is allotted. A good minister is someone who sets goals, takes will lose out on change. It is the task of the political boss to knock decisions, has sound judgment, listens, learns from experience, and their heads and change things. Sitharaman needs to first understand has authority within the government. defence systems the nature of the challenge, get the support of her boss and push the Sitharaman shone as a BJP spokesperson, is an articulate, hard reforms throught irrespective of who is on board or not in her ministry. working and dogged person. However, she is a political lightweight and her authority stems from the trust of Prime Minister Narendra Manoj Joshi in Hindustan Times Modi. And these qualities will not be enough in dealing with the Wherever safety and security matter, we deliver major portfolio she has been entrusted with in the recent Cabinet reshuffle. As a commerce minister, Sitharaman’s task was to supervise Bold moves in the MoD well-established policies of a ministry that ran reasonably well. f the much-anticipated reshuffle of the Union council of ministers did not quite shake the earth, it did not lack drama either. The elevation of SPACEBASED DEFENCE SYSTEMS AEROSPACE DEFENCE Outcomes in trade policy, FDI etc were not within the control of I Proven milsatcoms, surveillance, A comprehensive range of solutions the minister or the government of India anyway; external factors Nirmala Sitharaman to the Cabinet as the defence minister is remarkable. early warning, positioning, imagery to protect airspace against played a key role. But as defence minister, Sitharaman’s task is For the first time, two women will sit on India’s Cabinet committee and electromagnetic intelligence conventional and ballistic threats larger. Not only does she have to run a ministry, which deals with on security. This is a big step for not just Sitharaman but for women more than a million people and whose budget is nearly Rs 360,000 in general. The BJP’s sense of political control finds reflection in the crore, but to run it well, she needs to carry out deep reforms and dismissive ease with which the reshuffle has left the BJP’s allies out. The restructuring of the ministry. latest ally, JD(U), has effectively been told to expect forbearance in one The Indian ministry of defence (MOD) is obsolete, its public state rather than indulgent hospitality across the land. sector units and ordnance factories dysfunctional, it runs a military Some non-performers have been sent packing from the council whose organisation is outdated. Worse is the barely concealed of ministers, but we would be hard put to say all. While political calculations are clearly visible in bringing in ministers from Karnataka, NAVAL DEFENCE SECURE TELECOMMUNICATIONS & hostility between the civilians who run it and the military personnel State-of-the-art sensors and C4ISR INFORMATION SYSTEMS who have to implement its policies without having an effective role Madhya Pradesh, Kerala and Bihar, the message underlying the solutions enable naval task forces to be Real-time information superiority, better in formulating them.