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Tuesday, October 4, 2022

PRACHAND LCH Is Defenceless...As Of Now

In March 2020 the Cabinet Committee on National Security (CCNS), which met under the Chairmanship of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, had approved procurement of 15 Limited Series Production (LSP) variants of LCH at Rs.3,887 crore along with infrastructure sanctions worth Rs.377 crore. Of the 15 helicopters, 10 are for the Indian Air Force (IAF) and five for the Indian Army (IA). Eventually, the IA plans to procure 97 LCHs and the IAF 65. 

The IA raised the 351 Army Aviation Squadron on June 1, 2022 in Bengaluru and received its first three LCHs on September 29. The fourth LCH is expected by the last week of October, after which the 351 Army Aviation Squadron will move to Missamari by the month’s end. The fifth LCH is expected to be delivered by late November. Presently, the Army Aviation Corps has three Brigades at Leh, Missamari and Jodhpur, and operates around 145 Advanced Light Helicopters (ALH), 75 of which are the Dhruv WSI/Rudra weaponised variants. Another 25 ALH Mk.3s are on order, which will be inducted within two years. The IA will also start receiving six AH-64E Apache attack helicopters in early 2024, which had been contracted under an estimated US$800 million deal with Boeing in February 2020. In addition, the IA is also pushing a case for 11 more Apaches, for which negotiations are under way.

The Indian Air Force (IAF) had formally inducted four ‘Prachand’ LCHs into 143 Helicopter Unit ‘Dhanush’ at Jodhpur Air Force Station on October 3.

Back in 2015 during the Aero India expo at Bengaluru, HAL Chief Test Pilot Retired Wg. Cdr. Unnikrishnan had told me that the RWR, LWR and MAWS sensors would most probably be installed along the twin stub-wings of the LCH. As of now, neither the IA LCHs nor the IAF PRACHANDs have an on-board self-protection suite comprising radar warning receivers, laser warning receivers, missile approach warning systems and countermeasures dispensers--all of which exist on board the IA and IAF Dhruv WSI/Rudra helicopter gunships. To make matters worse, the HELINA/Dhruvastra anti-armour guided-missile suite remains elusive as well for both the Dhruv WSI/Rudra and the LCH! Will IA HQ and IAF HQ both claim that all such suites will find their way on board the SP-series LCHs? We shall see. In addition, both the IA HQ and IAF HQ should be asked if any other army or air force in the world is flying attack helicopters that are devoid of self-protection suites. If not, then what pleasures do the two armed services HQs derive from being the global exception to the norm. Or will both LCH variants cruise only within friendly airspace during wartime? This is highly embarrassing, to say the very least.

60 comments:

DAshu said...

:) Let's give them benefit of doubt as they are already on board previous rotary flying machines. worry is ATGM and its radar.

Millard Keyes said...

Well Prasun, you yourself said Indian leadership mentality is Run, Walk Crawl - this is another example. The other is- they give a hoot about armed personnel and it seems they treat them with punity like the Communist countries do-expendable assets. No good standing in front of the war memorial singing praises of the battle heroes when treating them like they don't matter. Shameful and disgraceful.

Raghu said...

Hi Prasun,

Will recertification of the platform will have to take place with all the associated tests once the self protection suite equipment are fitted out? That could take time.

Or can this process be cut short based on the data points obtained from the tests with Dhruv WSI?

Regards,

Raghu

Devdutt said...

Isn't Saab supposed to be providing the IDAS Self Protection Suite from next year?

Sumeet said...

Prasunji, Will it have millimeter wave radar?

Rohit Gill said...

Sir, what type of anti-tank missiles and ammunition is Armenia going to acquire from us ?

Anonymous said...

Sir,

IAF don't have enough aircraft.
Condition is alarming.

https://twitter.com/mave7781/status/1577225873006407680?t=yDP0a8P1l42ilSGPslV63Q&s=19

Regards
Anway

Anonymous said...

The recent official video from IAF is showing astra mk2 missile separating from Su-30mki. Does that mean that astra mk2 testing is being done without public announcements?

asd said...

Dear Prasun,
Apple has exported 1billion dollars of iPhone 14 from India to other countries. Do you think that India is ready to snatch manufacturing privilege from China? Is India on the right path?

Soumya Ray said...

Dear Prasun

https://youtu.be/yC_e1nLNnoo
https://youtu.be/BnS8nEUJVP4

Despite being equipped with Aegis, THAAD and/or Patriot, why does Japan (or South Korea) never intercepted (even in the past) the incoming ballistic missile launched by North Korea and flying over their respective mainlands as a display of deterrence?

Thanks and Regards:):)

joydeep ghosh said...

@prasun da

can we customize the EM rail gun as EMALS for carriers

thanks
Oydeep ghosh

Unknown said...

Hi prasoon..Is it appearong that russia may use tactical nukes in ukraine..whats ur assesment..regatds kunal

buddha said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Parthasarathi said...

Prasunda,
If China's carrier battle group comes to Indian Ocean then which path they would follow 1. Melaca strait or 2 Lombok Strait. What is India's plan should be ?
Best regards

Anonymous said...

Talking about foreign AF they inducted platforms after they prove flight worthiness. Not like our higher than thou standards of IAF IA with their endless trials. Self protection suite will be added after formal orders at lsp stage. Please note the 15 lch that are being produced are funded with internal allocation by hal. They fielded their heli in aftermath of galwan on lac without any formal commitment towards orders. Would any foreign players do that??? Public of this country is absolutely stupid in defence matters

rad said...


Hi prasun
some nicompoop keeps repeating that iaf chief said that all upgraded systems on the super su-30 will be desi.. the joke is a large part of the readers believe that.The cream on the cake is that the FBW on the su -30 will be desi !!

pse dwell on the desi sholder fired vshroads
it seems another lighte verisioin is under development?

what is the problem of fitting the saab protection system on the lch when it already on the rudra?

Prasun K. Sengupta said...

To DASHU & DEVDUTT: LoLz! Between 2010 & 2022, 4 LCH technology demonstrators were built. Are we then to conclude that in these 12 years no efforts were made to install the IDAS suite on the LCHs? Ideally, as per global norms, the complete IDAS self-protection suite should have been installed & integrated PRIOR to the commencement in 2017 of airworthiness certification-related flight-tests. Without this, the MTOW & max rate of climb of the LCH cannot be established & validated. In short, laws of physics cannot be tinkered with.

Meanwhile, more sobering news emerged yesterday from the IAF CAS’ Press Conference:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WT0H7f7_pKA

1) The six A321-based AEW & CS Mk.2s will be delivered only by 2030.

2) Su-30MKI upgrade will take off only by 2025.

3) The IAF continues to ASSUME that components of 114 Gen-4.5 MRFAs can be licence-built by Indian vendors. Consequently, instead of procuring additional Rafales under a G-to-G contract, the stage is now set for another round of time-consuming RFP release & competitive evaluations.

Regarding the Su-30MKI upgrade, this month’s FORCE magazine has my article that explains how it will all be done. Only the fire-control, weapons management and self-protection avionics suites will be upgraded (replacing Russia-origin hardware and software) using dual redundant MIL-STD-1553B databus-based architecture, along with MIL-STD-1760 stores (weapons) interfaces. The Su-30MKI’s data handling system (DHS) and digital flight-control computer for fly-by-wire flight-control, which use the GOST 26765.52-87 databus protocol (Russian equivalent of MIL-STD-1553B), will be retained, since Russia has not shared the source-codes of its DHS with the IAF and HAL.

To MILLARD KEYES: India’s ‘netas’ are but our own reflections, since they did not descend from the heavens, but have emerged from our own midst. And how exactly are we? Here’s one illustration:

Polluting River Yamuna in Delhi:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D7Y6DrEBcH8

Prasun K. Sengupta said...

To RAGHU: Ideally, as per global norms, the complete IDAS self-protection suite should have been installed & integrated PRIOR to the commencement in 2017 of airworthiness certification-related flight-tests. Without this, the MTOW & max rate of climb of the LCH cannot be established & validated. In short, laws of physics cannot be tinkered with.

SUMEET: Not as of now.

To ROHIT GILL: All the ammo reqd by T-72 MBTs, including the INVAR anti-helicopter round. In addition, Konkurs-M ATGMs that are now being licence-built by BDL.

To ANWAY: The IAF film showing the Astra BVRAAM is the Mk.2 variant with the ‘desi’ Ku-band seeker. The Mk.1 variant had the same seeker from Russia’s JSC AGAT as that on the R-77 BVRAAM. The Mk.3 variant is the one with ramjets. Here is the IAF film:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fIGIy0mxaAg

No ramjets are visible on the airframe.

To ASD: India is a long way away from becoming a manufacturing hub for foreign OEMs. That’s because India’s transportation infrastructure is 30 years behind that of China & even Vietnam.

To SOUMYA RAY: The DPRK’s BMs would have been intercepted had they been inbound against land targets located within Japan. Exo-atmospheric overflights, if intercepted, can result in missile debris falling over areas that can cause harm to the civilian population.

To JOYDEEP GHOSH: The EMRG of the DRDO is meant for launching 18kg artillery shells, not for 34-tonne M-MRCAs.

To KUNAL: If TNWs are used in Ukraine-captured/Russia-claimed areas, then such areas will become uninhabitable for years for either side. Hence, usage of any kind of nuclear weapons by Russia is ruled out. TNWs can be used only in sparsely populated areas, like the locational flat-land high-altitude plateau deserts of Tibet or the Thar Desert.

To PARTHASARATHI: Without doubt such a CBG will enter the IOR through the Sunda or Lombok Straits. To counter that, the IN has since 2020 been deploying its DDGs & FFGs in that area along with P-8Is. And now, Australia’s P-8As operating from Christmas Island south of Sumatra too keep a vigil along those straits.

Prasun K. Sengupta said...

To RAD: Regarding the Su-30MKI upgrade, this month’s FORCE magazine has my article that explains how it will all be done. Only the fire-control, weapons management and self-protection avionics suites will be upgraded (replacing Russia-origin hardware and software) using dual redundant MIL-STD-1553B databus-based architecture, along with MIL-STD-1760 stores (weapons) interfaces. The Su-30MKI’s data handling system (DHS) and digital flight-control computer for fly-by-wire flight-control, which use the GOST 26765.52-87 databus protocol (Russian equivalent of MIL-STD-1553B), will be retained, since Russia has not shared the source-codes of its DHS with the IAF and HAL.

Here is the IAF CAS’ Press Conference:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WT0H7f7_pKA

I’m told that the DRDO had back in 2015 proposed that its own ‘desi’ IDAS self-protection would be ready for installation by 2017. While DARE has co-developed the MAWS with ELBIT Systems & the ‘Dhruti’ RWR has been developed by DARE, the laser warning system has yet to be developed by DARE. In other words, the DRDO has prevented the fitment of SaabTech’s IDAS on the LCHs. And mind you, even the HAL-developed single-engined LUH requires a self-protection suite, but there’s no word from HAL about its progress.

The DRDO-developed VSHORADS will come in 2 variants, a twin-missile launcher like that used by the Mistral; a shoulder-launched variant, i.e. MANPADS. Both will have IFF transponders. Max range will be 7km. Dual-band (IR/UV) seeker has been developed by DARE, based on the technologies mastered for the ‘desi’ MAWS sensor.

To SUMANTA NAG: Bijoya Doshomi Shubhececha to you & all fellow bloggers!

To JUST_CURIOUS: India can easily approach Russia for re-configuring one of the IAF’s existing IL-76MDs as an airborne turbofan testbed, just as China had done 12 years ago. The DRDO-developed VSHORADS will come in 2 variants, a twin-missile launcher like that used by the Mistral; a shoulder-launched variant, i.e. MANPADS.

VIKRAM GUHA said...

Prasun Da, শুভ বিজয়া দশমীর প্রীতি ও শুভেচ্ছা to you and all your loved ones.

Regards,
VIKRAM

Prasun K. Sengupta said...

DRDO Tests Unmanned Weaponised Boats in Pune:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sgO8BaBonv8

Su-30MKI in Jodhpur AFS: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=32XQ5HdQ8Ig

PA COAS Seeks No Further Service Extension:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RjD0JM58_tk
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HO72eHDbikM

Tactics behind pro-India Twitter drive against Pakistan Army:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XvBzEc_tSvs

To VIKRAM GUHA: And the very same to you & all your loved ones.

buddha said...

শুভ বিজয়ার প্রীতি শুভেচ্ছা দাদা।
ভালো থাকবেন। আপনার blog আমাদের কাছে অনেক মূল্যবান। ধন্যবাদ এই ভাবে সত্যি কে তুলে ধরার জন্য।

Chanakya Chatterjee said...

You are an idiot of the highest order ... You are a half educated south Asian pretending to be a European. .. you say they give a hoot when the right term is they give give a hoot ... You say punity when you should say impunity ... You are a gadha ... Uneducated as shot

Chanakya Chatterjee said...

Sumeet .. congrats ... You remember the full form of MMW ... but oh shit
..you forgot that the whole conversation since the last threat has been defensive weaponry from maws to rwr and yet you spoke of mwr which is purely offensive ...

Chanakya Chatterjee said...

Bcos ... When you deal with a dictator or military led country you never show your capability ... Bcos those assholes with no voters to answer to will chase and conquer whatever capability you show ... So the best thing is mmm let them show and stay quiet

rad said...


hi prasun
dont you think the stated 7 km range for a rather large missile like the vshorads is understated or it the range for the yet to be tested manpads?

i think it is commendable that a IR and UV sensor has bee designed locxally . Is it cooled or uncooled?
i hear that the IR transparent front dome made of a type of saphire is hi tech and costly , how did we make that

i feel it will be in the rane of the rbs 70 in range given it data link as well to control the missile, what is ur say

the iaf chief says that the a320 bases awacs will come at the end of the decade? i dont uderstand as we have proved all the systems . does the future a 320 awacs sport a larger and longer antenna made of GAN modules ? will it be comparable to tha lates saab global eye?



Raghu said...

Hi Prasun

I read your article on the Super Sukhoi upgrade in Force October edition. Three points for clarification

1) Will the Uprated Uttam radar for Sukhoi upgrade have Gallium Nitride TR modules?

2) During the multi phase upgrade, is there a chance of incorporating Russian systems which are immune to sanctions at a later stage?

3) Will the upgrade include engine change with an upgraded model from Russia at a later stage?

Regards

Raghu

just_curious said...

Prasun,

1 lot of bits parts players trying their luck in the Ukr-Rus war.. classic case of aag lagi hain to apne haath senk lo.. turkey on Greece .. what the f**k is Poland upto-- Poland hints at willingness to host US nuclear weapons? they want nukes on their soil.
2 US has gone for broke by damaging nordstream how wil this play out.. will Ruskies sit quiet?More imp has EU become totally impotent?

just_curious said...

3 why is the whole of EU buying F 35s? given that any upgrades will be @the whims of the US.. why are the eu countries not sticking together & opting for US dependency .. it does seem that the europeans are resigned to the fact that they can't resolve their squabbles and need a big bro to monitor them..

buddha said...

Sir about how long Russian army keep fighting..
Whatever news coming out indicating russian troops with drawing or being captured...
Ukraine with plenty of western arms and ammunition seems like going to defeat Putin army in big way...
Does this condition lead fall of putin..
Or does he has any move left except nuclear threat..
Once mighty Russian air force and rocket artillery brance seems clueless ...
What's your take on the current and immediate future of the war...

Anonymous said...

@Prasunda

Your views on this:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rz7tvhJoLc8

Regards,
Abs

Prasun K. Sengupta said...

To RAD: It is not large, but appears large in the photo. Dual-mode IR/UV seeker is a derivative of the IR/UV sensor co-developed by DARE & ELBIT Systems back in 2015. All such seekers are cryogenically cooled. RBS-70 is a laser beam-riding missile (and therefore is not a fire-n-forget system) & is also a VSHORADS. The A321 AEW & CS Mk.2 is a completely new design with additional workstations & a slightly longer AESA antenna & hence is airworthiness certification will take a long time, especially if the prototype has to go to Alaska in the US for testing its de-icing system.

To RAGHU: 1) Yes, all TRMs now being produced by Astra Microwave & BEL have Ga-N. 2) No chance at all, because, as the IAF CAS was alluding to on October 4 without elaborating, it will henceforth be impossible to import any avionics from Russia because the West has embargoed the sale of all types of micro-processors & microchips to Russia. And within Russia itself the production of such hardware is now almost impossible due to the sanctions that now prevent the export of such hardware to Russia by traditional suppliers from Taiwan, Malaysia & Singapore. This in turn will also impact the now on-going S-400 LR-SAM supplies to the IAF. 3) Not possible, since such turbofans have FADEC avionics that in future will be impossible to be built without access to Western micro-processors from the likes of INTEL & Motorola.

To JUST_CURIOUS: The F-35 JSF remains the cheapest Gen-5 MRCA & all NATO member-states & military alliance partners of the US therefore find it to be the most viable & sustainable option.

To BUDDHA: The following videos will answer all your questions:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kxzs-qHnkqI

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AcgzB9hqxqo

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MojUU8GgThM

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2hZoQ4xebGw

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gJRjKuss_Co

To ABS: Watch the videos that I’ve weblinked above.

Millard Keyes said...

It took me a while to figure out who this mongrel Chanakya Cunterjee that came out of his mother's arse is ranting at! I am talking to Prasun you moron why does it hurt you - bastards like you have ruined the country - what difference does it make who I am pretending to be - certainly not pretending to be a know all -it is people like you who is makin g the US rate India as a country to be concerned - a true genius in bastardry. STFU and stay put UNLESS you are spoken to.

rad said...


HI prasun
is it more or less confirmed that the UTTAM upgraded is going onboard the su-30? u did say before that the russians wont allow that? due to sanctions? then it is going to take another 5 years minimum??
how are we going to interface that with nav, weapon , and many other systems . how about interfacing with n the FBW system for low -low -low hands off flight?
what if the russians refuse? though they themselves cant supply the aesa radar?
but on the long run it is going to be better for the country

given the sanctions they will find it hard to deliver the s-400 , worse they cant support it in the future ?? corect?

On the Vshorads... why do you think the designers forsaked the traditional canard on the nose and chose the mid body wing for the vshorads? the reaction jets are in the base ? the pics depict the rocket motors firing like the nag missile ... if they deplete the fuel then how are those thrusters going to work in the end game ? the only option is to have movable rear fins that no other vshorads has??

which is the FAB that makes GAN aesa module for india??



rad said...


IF russia cant get chip what if china gives it ti them? or any other entity

Anonymous said...

@Prasunda

Nobel Peace Prize Winner 2022:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ales_Bialiatski

It seems as the counterpart of the likes of Teesta Setalvad, Yogendra Yadav, Medha Patkar, Gaurav Navlakha, et al. When our stature and importance for the US led globalist project increases, we can expect one among the likes of the above to be conferred numerous awards.

Regards,
Abs

Anonymous said...

@Prasunda
In addition to the above: https://theprint.in/opinion/indian-armed-forces-cant-turn-a-blind-eye-to-religious-politics/1152474/

The loyalists of the ancien régime want the armed forces to shed their neutrality and politically push back against the existing ideology of the ruling government. The insinuation doesn't outline the limits to which such a 'pushback' would be subjected to, so a military coup cannot be ruled out either.

What I would like to understand is what are some of the processes hidden from public view that are taking place which have rattled the usual suspects?

Reagrds,
Abs

Raghu said...

Hi Prasun,

Does this mean an end to our military technical coperation with Russia? Hard to believe.

How will the partial mobilization of 300000 reservists by Russia affect the war in Ukraine?

With Regards

Raghu

Prasun K. Sengupta said...

To RAD: ‘Uttam’ AESA-MMR will go on board upgraded Su-30MKIs PROVIDED it is fully developed. Presently, it is premature to jump to conclusions about the inevitability of this AESA-MMR going on board. After all, the CG of the Su-30MKI should not be disturbed by the avionics retrofit effort. Interfacing with FBW-FCS will be done will be handled by a Data Handling System (interface box) containing object codes, i.e. the same way in which Russia’s Soyuz docking modules were interfaced with the US-built International Space Station. Not just the S-400 LR-SAM deliveries, now even deliveries of the Zircon/BrahMos-2 will be in jeapordy. Many VSHORADS/MANPADS don’t have any nose-section canards. There is no foundry in India making GaN components. They are all imported, mostly from Israel. China has thus far not supplied any of its microchips to Russia as China too is heavily dependent on the US & Europe for semiconductor-manufacturing processes & thus does not want to risk attracting any further sanctions.

To RAGHU: Not an abrupt, sudden end, but definitely the winding down of military-industrial cooperation. Not just the S-400 LR-SAM deliveries, now even deliveries of the Zircon/BrahMos-2 will be in jeapordy. The same goes for additional VVER-1000 PWRs destined for KNPP in Tamil Nadu. Mobilisation of 300,000 Russian reservists won’t make any difference on the ground since Ukraine has already mobilised 1 million of its citizens since the outbreak of hostilities last February.

How Putin’s Gamble Has failed: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KT6Vsb_9FjI

IA T-90S Cannon Barrel Bursts: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2OPB7IZoccI

সুমন্ত নাগ said...

বিজয়ার প্রীতি ও শুভেচ্ছা দাদা, খুব ভালো থাকবেন । You are doing a Treemendous Job, simply no body tried to do.

Thanks Again.

DAshu said...

with excellent combo of intellectually incompetent service chiefs + willy Mod owned CEOs + over-jealous sarkaari babus and always illiterate GoI netas(MoD) - India is destined to be in this situation for quite a long period. But am happy $ reached 82.

rad said...


HI prasun
the Su-30 is a massive fighter ..hypothetically does a 100kg CG shift make a difference on the FBW system? cannot the fbw system cope with that?. After all the fbw is designed to take care of assymetrical load when weapons are released .?

in ur opinion dont u think the uttam will be lighter given the later gen electronics compared to the bars 001 radar?

the uttam seems to have demonstrated all the modes and is testing on the LCA how long will that take , any glitches so far?

the zircon also uses US chips? will US give access to chips for russain weapons for maintenace

i tink the worst case scenario is nuclear projects of russian origin .. what do we do

i dont understand how iran of all places manages to produce harpy copy drones wihtout cces to us electronics? they seem to have made aesa radars and modern missiles as well?

shakespere in his play " as you like it " says "sweet are the uses of adversity" i think it is the start of real indian atmanirbahr wether we like it or not.

সুমন্ত নাগ said...

DAshu, জন্মদিনের শুভেচ্ছা জানাই, আপনাকে ।


Meanwhile Russian Backed Forces counter attacks and claimed villages surrounding Bakhmut:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PNuEh5EDjJk

Parthasarathi said...

Prasunda,
Russia is going to suffer much more. After loosing to Ukraine the next problem will be revolution in ' Sthan ' areas.
Putin should start negotiations now.
Best regards

Raghu said...

Hi

So how long before these efforts towards a Gallium Nitride foundary bear fruit

https://www.news18.com/amp/news/auto/gallium-nitride-to-play-key-role-in-ev-innovation-in-india-union-min-rajeev-chandrasekhar-4871909.html

Regards

Pawan Kumar said...

Dear Prasun da,

What is cooking between US and west at large and with US in particular. Few days back US and yesterday Germany FM gave statements which are totally against India.

buddha said...

Is Russian army and Air force lacking punitive missile punch..
It seems After the cremiean bridge accident Russian defeat is nearing fast...
Or Russian force still can hold against the Ukrainian and push them

Chanakya Chatterjee said...

There is an old adage that people who have nothing to say use expletives and curse randomly. I won't dirty even my thoughts with your crap except to say ... "Same to you"

Raghu said...

Hi

As per the below report, the Sukhoi 30 upgrade project will involve Smart displays by Logic Fruit

https://www.thehindubusinessline.com/news/national/govt-strengthens-drdos-war-chest-to-push-for-developing-indigenous-technology/article65507327.ece

And this seems to be the product

https://www.logic-fruit.com/hardware/smfd/#:~:text=Our%20Military%20Grade%20high%20resolution,comes%20with%20graphics%20generation%20capabilities.&text=Data%20rate%20up%20to%204.25,1050%C3%971400%20(WUXGA).

Regards

Prasun K. Sengupta said...

To RAD: Yes, it does make a difference as far as certified parameters go. Changes will have to be made into the flight-control logic software, but this isn’t possible as Russia has not shared the source-codes with the IAF for the FBW-FCS’ digital flight-control computer. In any case, additional ballast can be applied, or additional avionics LRUs can be installed, for instance, for the MAWS sensors. The ‘Uttam’ AESA-MMR will indeed be lighter than the NO-11M ‘Bars’, say by about 30%. Most new-generation Russian weapons have since the mid-1990s relied on Motorola & Intel COTS processors & that’s why the Russian Air Force’s A-50 AEW & C upgrade project has been facing delays, since such Western processors were embargoed for export to Russia after 2014. If BrahMos Aerospace can make the indigenous LRUs for fire-control & navigation systems (using imported microprocessors) of the Zircon/BrahMos-2, then there would be no problems at all. And as I had explained earlier, all Iranian drones are not built by Iran, but built & supplied by China.

To RAGHU: It is not just about the Gallium Nitride Ecosystem Enabling Centre and Incubator (GEECI) facility. It is the end-product that matters most & for this one requires several imported inputs, in particular semiconductor lithography systems, which are available only from the Netherlands & Japan.

https://www.asml.com/en/products

https://www.nikon.com/products/semi/

https://www.the-digital-picture.com/News/News-Post.aspx?News=37414&Title=Canon-to-Build-New-Semiconductor-Lithography-System-Manufacturing-Facilities-in-Japan

https://asia.nikkei.com/Business/Tech/Semiconductors/Canon-to-build-345m-plant-for-chipmaking-equipment-in-Japan

https://www.eetindia.co.in/india-building-gan-tech-capability/

https://researchmatters.in/news/iisc-develops-india%E2%80%99s-first-e-mode-gallium-nitride-power-transistor

Prasun K. Sengupta said...

To RAGHU: LoLz! Twin AMLCDs can hardly qualify to become the backbone of any aircraft upgrade project. In any case, it appears that LOGIC FRUIT is a US-based company with R & D centres in India:

Logic Fruit Technologies https://www.logic-fruit.com/about-us/

Raphaemphibr Pvt Ltd's Optacopter: https://mphibr.com/raven

Su-30MKI Front Cockpit with upgraded AMLCDs:

https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Ht48FBo1kK4/Xj0x79MpIaI/AAAAAAAASgQ/_Ph0gJ-oOf81JDbX6nLb74CblYS4IULGgCLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/DSC00689.jpg

Tejas-AF Mk.2 with panoramic AMLCD:

https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-DtlCbm9qhtk/Xj0uOLI7lpI/AAAAAAAASd8/_hDUOwAXP80u97oWNQ1R6Nts935p95IxwCLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/DSC00825.jpg

The panoramic AMLCDs will also go on board the AMCA variants & the TEDBF.

https://www.samtel-hal.com/history-of-indigenisation.html

https://www.samtel-hal.com/multifunction-displaysfor-fixed-and-rotary-wing.html#s3

To BUDDHA: Watch this:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KXj_wuABosQ

Kaustav said...

Prasunda

Edward Luttwak - for interesting commonsensical perspective - among other things- India needs to step up it's maritime presence through more ships (& subs) to support other Asian nations. LPDs/LHDs rather than expensive sub-optimal Aircraft carriers seems to be the need here too for support, HADR, etc

https://youtu.be/qO9_Vo2dwPA

Nikhil M said...

Sir
First American maintenance package for Paki F 16, then American visit to POJK and terming it as AJK, then German soft support of UN resolution on Kashmir in place of Indian position of bilateral talks.
Have we gone a bit far in being autonomous in foreign policy ?
I know our foreign minister is a seasoned diplomat and knows our best interests. We can not remain pawn in the hands of West at the cost of dragon breathing down our neck.

But what's your take on these recent events ?

Regards
Nikhiil
Regards
Nikhil

Anonymous said...

Sir,

One of the best thread.

https://threadreaderapp.com/thread/1579274547529801728.html

Regards
Anup

Prasun K. Sengupta said...

https://forceindia.net/cover-story/long-road-ahead/

https://forceindia.net/feature-report/sukhoi-upgrade-poised-takeoff/

https://www.telegraphindia.com/world/china-tests-dhaka-waters-with-teesta-barrage-trip/cid/1891070

AMIT BISWAS said...

LRDE transferred Uttam radar TOT to HAL or BEL??

Prasun K. Sengupta said...

LRDE transferred to HAL Hyderabad Division:

https://hal-india.co.in/TabbedContent.aspx?MKey=122&TKey=Product

ToT for the IRST sensor will be done with BEL.

rad said...

hi prasun

In force india u have said it will take 4 years to develop the aesa radar for the su 30.

assuming the uttam has been cleared hardware wise ,why is the develop[ment time so long as more no of aesa modules bigger antenna face and higher power requirement are the only things that are going to change .Or are they planning to make a swash plate type antenna face like the gripen radar?.

the big question is will russia permit us to do all the work even fully knowing that they cannot supply the various sysytem for the upgrade due to sanctions?

even if we fit all the above systems will the su-30 have to be flown to gromov flight test center for test and evaluation? in that case will they not discover all the indian IPR stuff and western stuff? will indian test crew be embedded with them.?

an improved irst is being mande by India? how are we going to integrate russian CCM missiles to that?. Or are we ditching the russian missiles and going in for western and indian missiles? will MBDA allow us to integrate the asraam , irts HMS etc. NOw is it not better to fit a israeli targo HMS. will tht be allowed?.

there seem to be hell of a lot of work and westing to be done what is the time line u think when the upgrade starts?

why is the over haul time for a su-30 just 1000 hrs when even the LCA has better flight time?





Anonymous said...

With all due respect to the GOI, DRDO and Indian Armed forces. They are preparing to never fight a war, just building fancy toys that are useless during war times.

Kunal Jadon

Prasun K. Sengupta said...

To RAD: One size doesn’t fit all. Therefore, the scaled-up ‘Uttam’ AESA-MMR will require an all-new environment control system for cryogenic cooling & this in turn will consume more electrical power. And all this in turn requires both product development & extensive flight testing, both of which are time-consuming. Issue of Russia’s concurrence or permission is a non-issue, since no one is tinkering with Russia-origin source-codes. My article clearly states that all flight-certification work will be done in India, not in Russia. No Russia-origin CCMs will be used. Instead, the AIM-132 ASRAAM (already on Jaguar DARIN-3 aircraft & in future on Tejas Mk.1A) will be used by upgraded Su-30MKIs. HALBIT-supplied TARGO HMDS will be used, replacing the present-day Ukraine-origin Sura-M HMDS. Su-30MKI TBO is lesser than that of Tejas Mk.1 (which is 1,500-hour TBO) because of the AL-31FP’s TBO. The Su-30MKI’s airframe TBO can be increased to 2,000 flight-hours (or 4,000-hour TTSL) by undertaking fatigue testing of an existing Su-30MKI that has reached the TTSL mark of 2,000 flight-hours.