India’s MILSAT Deployments Set To Increase

Faced with the prospect of increasing regional militarisation of space, given China’s on-going efforts to deploy constellations of both GPS navigation, defence communications and radar-imaging satellites at breakneck speeds, the Defence Research & development Organisation (DRDO) has authored a detailed and time-bound roadmap for the development and deployment of military satellites for both secure military communications and overhead reconnaissance for submission to the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), India’s national agency responsible for developing space applications satellites and their launch vehicles. The first segment of the DRDO-authored roadmap will be realised later this year when ISRO launches the first dedicated military communications satellite for the Indian Navy. The multi-band satellite, weighing 2,330kg (5,137lb) and costing US$212 million, will be parked into a geostationary orbit 1,000nm above the Indian Ocean, and network the Navy’s principal surface combatants, submarines, aircraft, unmanned aerial vehicles and land-based operation centres through a secure high-speed data-link system, known as Link-2, which was jointly developed by the Navy and DRDO, and is being produced by Bharat Electronics Ltd. The footprint of the communications satellite will include the Strait of Hormuz and Horn of Africa in the west, the Indian Ocean Region, and the Malacca Straits and southern South China Sea to the east. This satellite will be joined next year by the Oceansat-3, which will be used by the Navy for bathymetric analysis which in turn is a prime prerequisite for conducting both undersea warfare and anti-submarine warfare. Oceansat-3 will be followed in 2014 by the $25 million communication-centric intelligence satellite (CCI-SAT), presently being developed by the DRDO’s Hyderabad-based Defence Electronics Research Laboratory. Weighing less than 1,000kg, it will be equipped with both communications transponders as well as a synthetic aperture radar (SAR) for gathering all-weather radar imagery for strategic targetting purposes. It will orbit the Earth at 500km. Proceeding in parallel are efforts to deploy the Indian Regional Navigational Satellite System (IRNSS)—a constellation of seven GPS navigation satellites (having on-board L-5 band and S-band transponders) in geo-stationary orbit over the Indian Ocean by 2015. Three satellites will be in geostationary orbit over the Indian Ocean.

Presently, India has a deployed constellation of ISRO-built earth observation satellites in sun-synchronous orbits that have dual civil-military applications. The first such satellite to be launched was the Technology Experiment Satellite or (TES), an experimental satellite to demonstrate and validate, in orbit, technologies that could be used in the future overhead reconnaissance satellites developed by ISRO. TES weighs 1,108kg and was successfully placed in 568km sun-synchronous orbit on October 22, 2001 using the PSLV-C3 version of the ISRO-developed polar satellite launch vehicle (PSLV). The technologies demonstrated in TES were attitude and orbit control systems, high-torque reaction wheels, new reaction-control system with optimised thrusters and a single propellant tank, lightweight spacecraft structure, solid-state recorder, X-band active phased-array antenna, improved satellite positioning system, miniaturised TTC and power system, and two-mirror-on-axis camera optics. The TES had a panchromatic (PAN) camera capable of producing images of 1-metre resolution. The Cartosat-1, weighing around 1,560kg at launch, is primarily used for cartographic purposes. It was launched by the PSLV-C6 rocket launcher on May 5, 2005. Cartosat-1 carries two PAN cameras that take black-and-white stereoscopic pictures of the earth. The swath covered by these high-resolution PAN cameras is 30km and their spatial resolution is 2.5 metres. The cameras are mounted on the satellite in such a way that near simultaneous imaging of the same area from two different angles is possible. This facilitates the generation of accurate three-dimensional maps. The cameras are steerable across the direction of the satellite’s movement to facilitate the imaging of an area more frequently. The images taken by Cartosat-1 cameras are compressed, encrypted, formatted and transmitted to the ground stations. The images are reconstructed from the data received at the ground stations. Cartosat-1 also carries a solid-state recorder with a capacity of 120GB to store the images taken by its cameras. The stored images can be transmitted when the satellite comes within the visibility zone of a ground station. Cartosat-2, weighing around 680kg, was launched by the PSLV on January 10, 2007. It carries a PAN camera that takes black-and-white photos of the earth. The swath covered by the camera is 9.6km and spatial resolution is less than 1 metre. The satellite can be steered up to 45 degrees along as well as across the track. Cartosat-2 is capable of providing scene-specific spot imagery. The data from the satellite is being used for detailed mapping and other cartographic applications at cadastral-level, as well as applications in land information system (LIS) and geographic information system (GIS). Cartosat-2 can produce images of up to 80cm in resolution. Cartosat-2A, which was launched by PSLV-C9 on April 28, 2008, carries a PAN camera capable of taking black-and-white pictures. The satellite can be steered up to 45 degrees along as well as across the direction of its movement to facilitate imagery collection of any area more frequently. Cartosat 2B, weighing 694kg, was launched on July 12, 2010. It too carries a PAN camera capable of taking black-and-white pictures. The Cartosat-3 is scheduled for launch later this year. Offering a swath width of 16km, it will be able to deliver take stereoscopic photos with a resolution of 25cm. It will use 1.2 metre optics with 60% of weight removal compared to Cartosat-2. Other features include the use of adaptive optics, acousto-optical devices, in-orbit focusing using MEMS and large-area lightweight mirrors.

The Risat-1 (radar imaging satellite), also due for launch later this year, will be placed in a sun-synchronous orbit of 608km altitude. Equipped with a SAR, the satellite will operate in any of the five modes, including coarse resolution (50-metre), wide swath (240km), narrow swath (10km) and high resolution spotlight (2-metre). The Risat-2 (or TecSAR), imported off-the-shelf from Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) at a cost of $200 million for the Dehra Dun-based National Technical Research Organisation (NTRO), was launched by PSLV-CA on April 20, 2009. Risat-2 is fitted with an X-band dish-like SAR antenna that can provide significant, near-term, day/night and all-weather point and area collection capability to meet the immediate needs of ground-based warfighters in-theatre as well as those of the broader intelligence community. It is a low-weight mini-satellite weighing about 660lb (300kg) and is positioned in a low-earth orbit. The satellite uses a generic bus system developed by IAI’s Space Systems Division, to fit both optronics and SAR payloads, if required. The 220lb (100kg) EL/M-2070 SAR employs multi-beam electronic steering and was developed by IAI/Elta Systems. While the specific resolution of the payload is classified, its advertised capabilities include multiple modes of operation, including high-resolution spot, strip, mosaic (electronic steering) and wide area coverage. Image enhancement for better target discrimination is also supported by employing multi-polarisation. The payload control system is designed to facilitate tasking to dissemination cycles in less than three hours. The ground station supports various automated processes, including registration to digital map or Orthophoto, automatic target detection, automatic cluster detection, automatic change detection, report generation, and dissemination. Presently, ISRO and IAI are believed to be cooperating to develop an India-specific variant of the Optsat 3000 three-axis stabilised, autonomous overhead reconnaissance satellite for the NTRO. The Optsat 3000 satellite will offer simultaneous PAN and multi-spectral imaging capability, plus very high-resolution photo-imagery. The satellite’s low weight and compact dimensions will result in low inertia, thereby allowing for high agility, which in turn will enable achieving a very high number of images, widely spread, in one satellite pass. The satellite, to be deployed in low-earth orbit, is being designed for a mission life of more than six years.—Prasun K. Sengupta

Hardened Air Cover With MR-SAMs & LR-SAMs

If everything proceeds as planned, then the first strategic military-industrial joint sector partnership between India and Israel will soon witness its first success with the maiden test-firing in India of the Barak-2 surface-to-air missile. The Barak-2, also known as Barak-8 in Israel, will be available from 2013 in two versions--the 70km-range vertically-launched medium-range surface-to-air missile (MR-SAM) variant for the Indian Navy, and a 120km-range long-range (LR-SAM) variant for the Indian Air Force (IAF). Both variants are presently being co-developed by a consortium of entities that include India’s Hyderabad-based Defence Research & Development Laboratory (DRDL), Bharat Electronics Ltd (BEL) and Bharat Dynamics Ltd (BDL) on one hand, and a consortium of Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) and TATA Advanced Systems, called NOVA Integrated Systems Pvt Ltd. The MR-SAM variant is also likely to be inducted into service by the Indian Army in future. The MR-SAM’s critical design review was completed by early May 2008 and its DRDL-developed two-stage pulsed rocket motor was successfully test-fired earlier the same year. The first six sets of these rocket motors were shipped to IAI by the DRDL in July 2008 for further test and integration activities. Series production is due to begin in 2011 at the Hyderabad-based facilities of BDL and NOVA Integrated Systems. From the Indian side, the principal R & D players for both variants of the Barak-2 are the DRDL, Hyderabad-based Research Centre Imarat (RCI) and Advanced Systems Laboratory (ASL), and the Bangalore-based Electronics R & D Establishment (LRDE). Israeli companies participating in the joint venture are the MLM and ELTA Systems business divisions of IAI. While IAI/MLM is responsible for developing the guided-missiles along with the DRDL, RCI and ASL, IAI/ELTA will co-develop along with the LRDE and BEL the command-and-control system and related fire-control system (for both variants of the Barak-2).

It may be recalled that India and Israel inked the Barak-2 MR-SAM’s joint five-year R & D contract--valued at US$556 million--on January 27, 2006, following 17 months of exhaustive negotiations. For extended ground-based long-range air defence India’s Cabinet Committee on National Security on July 12, 2007 approved a $2.47 billion project to co-develop the LR-SAM variant. Subsequently, on February 27, 2009 India signed a $1.4 billion procurement contract with IAI for the Barak-2 LR-SAM, and this was followed in April the same year by a $1.1 billion contract for procuring the Barak-2’s naval MR-SAM variant. In January 2009, TATA Advanced Systems and IAI entered into a military-industrial partnership for creating Nova Integrated Systems and pumped in an initial investment of $200 million. IAI held 26% and TATA 76% in the joint venture. NOVA Integrated Systems subsequently acquired an initial 30 acres of land at the Aerospace and Precision Engineering Special Economic Zone (being developed by the Andhra Pradesh Industrial Infrastructure Corp) in Adibatla, near Hyderabad, with work on infrastructure development taking off in August 2009. Current plans call for the Indian Navy to install between 36 and 48 Barak-2 MR-SAMs on board each of its three Project 15A Kolkata-class guided-missile destroyers (DDG) now being fitted out at Mumbai-based Mazagon Docks Ltd, as well as on board each of its seven planned Project 17A guided-missile frigates and the four Project 15B DDGs. On the other hand, the Barak-2 LR-SAM’s launch customer will be the IAF, with the Navy opting for this missile for installation on board its first Indigenous Aircraft Carrier that is now being fabricated at Cochin Shipyard Ltd. The IAF has already committed itself to procuring an initial batch of nine Barak-2 LR-SAM squadrons.

The vertical launch cell modules for the Barak-2 MR-SAM are now being developed by Mumbai-based Larsen & Toubro Ltd, with an eight-cell module weighing 1,700kg. The Barak-2 will make use of a novel nose-mounted dual guidance system: an active phased-array radar for guidance over the final 30km terminal phase of its flight; and a miniaturised, gimbal-mounted imaging infra-red seeker using an indium antimonide staring focal plane array operating in the 3 to 5 micron wavelength band. During the initial fly-out phase of flight, the Barak-2’s seeker window will remain covered with a two-piece clamshell protection shroud. Metal bladders installed in the shroud will be inflated to eject the protective shroud before the combined seekers initiate target acquisition. High agility will be maintained through a tungsten jet-vane system for thrust vector control, combined with advanced electro-pneumatic control actuation systems and electro-pneumatic control actuation systems. The Barak-2 will also have a 60kg pre-fragmented warhead that in turn will use a laser-based digital proximity fuze. Service ceiling of the MR-SAM variant will be 16km, and 24 such missiles will be able to simultaneously engage 12 airborne targets. During its boost- and mid-course guidance phases, the SAM will use an integral data link to receive guidance cues from the shipborne EL/M-2248 MF-STAR S-band solid-state active phased-array multi-function surveillance, track and guidance radar developed by the ELTA Systems subsidiary of IAI.

For the IAF’s ground-based LR-SAM variant, command-and-control plus fire-control will be provided by a containerised system weighing only 1,300kg. Target search and tracking will be performed by a ground-based version of the MF-STAR, known as the EL/M-2258. On the other hand, the MR-SAM variant for the Army will make use of the motorised EL/M-2084 active phased-array multi-mode radar. Weighing about seven tonnes, the MF-STAR uses four flat, lightweight antenna arrays. For weapons guidance, the MF-STAR supports different operating modes, including mid-course guidance for active air defence missiles and illumination enslavement for semi-active air defence missiles, thus making dedicated guidance radar systems redundant. The radar also incorporates an automatic splash detection and measurement mode to support naval gunnery in maritime security and close-in defence roles. Current plans call for the Indian Navy to procure 500 Barak-2s, with the Army expected to procure up to 1,500 missiles. The IAF will be acquiring about 1,000 LR-SAMs.—Prasun K. Sengupta

MF-STAR Deliveries For Project 15A DDGs On Track

Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) has begun delivering its EL/M-2248 multi-function surveillance and threat alert radar (MF-STAR) for the Indian Navy, which is the launch export customer for this system. The S-band active phased-array MF-STAR, developed by IAI’s ELTA Systems Ltd, will go on board the three Project 15A Kolkata-class 6,700-tonne guided-missile destroyers (DDG) now being built by Mumbai-based Mazagon Docks Ltd (MDL), as well as on the four projected Project 15B DDGs and on INS Vikrant, the indigenous aircraft carrier now being built by Cochin Shipyard Ltd. It uses pulse-Doppler techniques, multiple beam-forming and advanced high-PRF waveforms to extract stressing and low radar cross-section threats even in conditions of heavy jamming and dense clutter. Key functionalities include three-dimensional volume search, missile horizon search, multi-target tracking, surface surveillance, helicopter detection, gunnery control and splash spotting. The MF-STAR can initiate tracks against sea-skimming anti-ship cruise missiles at ranges in excess of 25km, and out to more than 250km for a high-flying combat aircraft. On the MF-STAR fibre-optic cables have replaced the earlier-generation waveguide and coax cables, which has substantially reduced the radar’s weight so it can be installed on board warships of varied designs. The MF-STAR uses four 3 x 3-metre fixed-array faces (each weighing 1,500kg) based on a modular tile-array architecture (with each tile containing 16 Gallium Arsenide transmit/receive modules) to allow for scaleability in the size of the antenna aperture. Liquid cooling is used to dissipate heat at the arrays. In-board equipment weighing 900kg is housed within six cabinets--two for processing and four for the power supply. Earlier, ELTA had supplied three S-band EL/M-2282 AD-STAR surveillance and threat alert radars for the Indian Navy’s three MDL-built Project 17 Shivalik-class FFGs, six more for the three Project 16 Godavari-class and three Project 16A Brahmaputra-class FFGs, two more for two Kashin 2-class DDGs, and another one for INS Viraat.

The Barak-2 will make use of a novel nose-mounted dual guidance system: an active phased-array radar for guidance over the final 30km terminal phase of its flight; and a miniaturised, gimbal-mounted imaging infra-red seeker using an indium antimonide staring focal plane array operating in the 3 to 5 micron wavelength band. During the initial fly-out phase of flight, the Barak-2’s seeker window will remain covered with a two-piece clamshell protection shroud. Metal bladders installed in the shroud will be inflated to eject the protective shroud before the combined seekers initiate target acquisition. High agility will be maintained through a tungsten jet-vane system for thrust vector control, combined with advanced electro-pneumatic control actuation systems and electro-pneumatic control actuation systems. The Barak-2 will also have a 60kg pre-fragmented warhead that in turn will use a laser-based digital proximity fuze. Service ceiling of the MR-SAM variant will be 16km, and 24 such missiles will be able to simultaneously engage 12 airborne targets. The Barak-2’s MR-SAM variant for the Indian Army will make use of the motorised EL/M-2084 active phased-array multi-mode radar, while the Barak-2’s LR-SAM variant for the Indian Air Force will use a motorised land-mobile version of the EL/M-2248 MF-STAR. Current plans call for the Indian Navy to procure 500 Barak-2s, with the Army expected to procure up to 1,500 missiles. The IAF will be acquiring about 1,000 LR-SAMs.—Prasun K. Sengupta

Batch 2 Of Three Project 1135.6 Frigates Being Readied

In exactly nine months from now, the first of the three additional Project 1135.6 guided-missile frigates (FFG) now being built for the Indian Navy (IN) in Russia will enter service, with the remaining two following a year later. The US$1.1 billion (Rs51.14 billion) contract for these three FFGs was inked on July 14, 2006, following which construction got underway at the Kaliningrad-based Yantar Shipyard JSC. The keel-laying ceremony for the first FFG--INS Teg (sabre) F-45--took place on July 27, 2007 and the vessel was launched on November 27, 2009. It is due to undergo her sea trials starting next April. Keel-laying for the second FFG--INS Tarkash (quiver) F-46—took place on November 27, 2007 and the vessel was launched on June 23 last year. Keel-laying for the INS Trikand (bow) F-50 took place on June 11, 2008 and it was due for launch at presstime.

Each of the three follow-on Project 1135.6 FFGs will have a length of 124.8 metres, beamwidth of 15.2 metres, full-load displacement of 4,035 tonnes, and a top speed of 30 Knots. The ship’s Crew compliment will be 220, including 28 officers. The FFGs will also be equipped with the Trebovaniye-M combat management system supplied by Russia’s Meridian Research and Production Enterprise JSC, and an integrated platform management system built by Russia’s Aurora Research and Production Association. Also fitted on board will be the TK-25E-5 integrated electronic warfare suite, four KT-216 decoy launchers, on-board communications suit supplied by India’s Bharat Electronics Ltd (BEL), four Danish 1mW Wartsila WCM-1000 generator sets with Cummins KTA50G3 engines and Kirloskar 1mV AC generators, Zorya/Mashproekt of Ukraine’s M7N.1E gas turbine propulsion system (comprising twin DS-71 cruise turbines and twin DT-59 boost turbines), plus German water purifiers.

Principal on-board sensors for each of the three FFGs will include one E-band Fregat M2EM circular scan radar for providing target indication to the Shtil-1 surface-to-air missile (SAM) system, a Ratep JSC 5P-10E Puma fire-control system (comprising a passive-phased array target tracking radar along with an optronic illuminator), one I-band Garpun-B long-range surface target acquisition radar, one I-band MR-212/201-1 radar for navigation, a Kelvin Hughes Nucleus-2 6000A marine navigation radar for short-range navigation and surface surveillance, a Ladoga-ME-11356 inertial navigation and stabilisation suite supplied by Elektropribor, four MR-90 Orekh target-illumination radars, and a BEL-made HUMSA Mk2 hull-mounted panoramic sonar. For visual-range engagements, the FFGs will each have a Arsenal JSC-built 100mm A-190(E) main gun and twin KBP Instrument Design Bureau-built Kashtan-M combined gun-missile close-in weapon systems. The principal on-board offensive weapon system will be the eight 290km-range BrahMos Aerospace Ltd-built BrahMos vertically-launched supersonic multi-role cruise missile (capable of both anti-ship strike and land attack) instead of the 220km-range Novator JSC-developed Club-N/3M54TE supersonic anti-ship cruise missiles now on board the IN’s first three Project 1135.6 FFGs--INS Talwar, INS Trishul and INS Tabar. The BrahMos’ shipborne fire-control system is a derivative of the 3R14N-11356 shipborne fire-control system, developed by Russia’s Agat Research & Production Enterprise, while the universal vertical-launch cells are being supplied by Larsen & Toubro.

For area air defence, the Dolgoprudny Research and Production Enterprise DNPP JSC, which is part of the Almaz-Antey Air Defence Concern, is supplying the vertical-launch version of the Shtil-1 SAM system, which will comprise thirty-six 9M317ME SAM rounds (containing within three 12-VL cells) developed by the Altair Naval Radio Electronics Scientific Institute Public Joint Stock Company, which is also a member of the Almaz-Antey Air Defence Concern. The 9M317ME SAMs can be fired at one-to-two-second intervals. The missile is 5.18 metres long and 360mm in diameter. Launch weight of the 9M317ME is 58kg. It is armed with a 62kg blast fragmentation warhead initiated by a dual-mode radar proximity fuze, or a contact fuze. The range is between 3.5km and -32 km, while the altitude coverage is from 5 metres up to 15km. The tail surfaces have a span of 820mm when deployed. After the missile leaves the vertical launcher, a spring mechanism unfolds the tail surfaces and four gas-control vanes operating in the motor efflux turn the missile towards the required direction of flight. Once this turnover manoeuvre is completed, the gas-control vanes are no longer used. Subsequent flight control is via moving tail surfaces. A dual-mode solid-propellant rocket motor provides the missile with a maximum speed of Mach 4.5. In-flight guidance is achieved via a combination of inertial and semi-active radar homing. Also on board each of the three FFGs will be an aft helicopter deck and a hangar for housing a Kamov Ka-28PL or Ka-31 helicopter, and two Pacific 22 MkI rigid inflatable boats (RIB) built by Halmatic, which is owned by the UK-based VT Group. The RIBs are powered by Cummins 4 BTA marine diesel engines rated at 150bhp at 2800 rpm coupled to a Sternpowr leg providing a service speed of 22 Knots.

In another development, Russia has offered India the export version of its new Project 22350 FFG in response to a Request for Information (RFI), issued by India to about a dozen European, Russian and American shipyards in December 2006. The proposed acquisition of these seven new-generation FFGs under the IN’s Project 17A may well be worth more than Rs30,000 crore. The proposed acquisition of these seven FFGs (four of which will be built by Mumbai-based Mazagon Docks Ltd and three by Kolkata-based Garden Reach Shipbuilders & Engineers Ltd) is apparently meant to offset the delay in the acquisition of modern warships by the IN that had occurred over the past two decades. The design being proposed by Russia’s St Petersburg-based Severnoye PKB (Northern Design Bureau) FSUE has a proposed displacement of about 5,000 tonnes, a length of more than 130 metres, and a beamwidth of 16 metres. To sweeten the proposal, Russia has also offered to make the Project 22350’s hull design scalable, meaning the basic hull deign could also be enhanced into a guided-missile destroyer displacing 8,000 tonnes and housing two medium-lift helicopters on board.—Prasun K. Sengupta

ASPJs Developed For Tejas Mk1 & MiG-29UPG

The Ministry of Defence-owned Defence Research & Development Organisation’s Defence Avionics Research Establishment (DARE) has developed a family of internally-mounted self-protection jammers in cooperation with Italy’s Elettronica for installation on board the upgraded MiG-29UPG and the Tejas Mk1 light combat aircraft. Being part of the integrated defensive aids suite (IDAS), the jammers are lightweight and compact, yet powerful, and are meant to be targetted against continuous wave (CW), pulse and pulse-Doppler emitters. At the heart of the capability is a digital, software reprogrammable radio frequency memory (DRFM) that is used to deceive and jam coherent multimode airborne radars. The DRFM incorporates both the RF and memory sections required for digitising and storing signals of interest, as well as the techniques generator. On the MiG-29UPG, the jamming suite uses Elettronica of Italy’s Virgilius family of directional jammers, which make use of active phased-array transmitters for jamming hostile low-band (E-G) and high-band (G-J) emitters. Other systems features include a wide- and narrow-band signals reception, monopulse amplitude direction-of-arrival, direction-finding, threat identification/classification capabilities, a multi-domain (range, velocity, noise and amplitude) techniques generator, CW and pulse repeater channels, a steerable combined output signal, interfaces for a countermeasures dispensing system, host platform avionics in-flight data recording for post-mission debriefing and maintenance, and field-programmable threat library. The EW suites for both aircraft types receive emitter signals within the 2GHz to 18GHz band and transmit across the 6GHz to 17.5GHz frequency range. The MoD-owned Bharat Electronics Ltd (BEL) is presently series-producing the jamming suites as well as the related radar warning receivers.

For escort jamming purposes, the Tejas Mk1 and MiG-29UPG are expected to be equipped with ELTA Systems’ EL/L-8251 jamming pod, which offers wide frequency coverage between 1GHz and 18GHz.—Prasun K. Sengupta

Tejas Mk2 M-MRCA: Crunch Time For ADA

With the Ministry of Defence sanctioning US$542.44 million (Rs2,431.55-crore) for the Bangalore-based Aeronautical Development Agency (ADA) in order for it to undertake full-scale engineering development of the ‘Tejas’ Mk2 medium multi-role combat aircraft (M-MRCA), it would seem, on paper at least, that ADA as per its own projections is now well-positioned to roll-out the first ‘Tejas’ Mk2 prototype by September 2013 and make this prototype fly by December 2014, following which Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd (HAL) would begin series-producing the M-MRCA by 2016. In reality, however, several R & D challenges lie ahead, most notably in the areas of systems integration and mission software development, which can only be overcome if ADA is allowed to fast-track the selection and procurement of key mission sensors, cockpit avionics and structural components. For its part, the Indian Air Force (IAF) and the Indian Navy, which are the principal stakeholders in the ‘Tejas’ Mk2 programme (with each financing 40% of their respective variants of the ‘Tejas’ Mk2) and will become the fourth-generation M-MRCA’s principal operator as well, has insisted on several enhancements to be incorporated into the single-engined single-seat ‘Tejas’ Mk2, which include:

·         A major upgradation of the glass cockpit design that is characteristic of the existing Tejas Mk1 MRCA, with two 8-inch by-20-inch panoramic active-matrix liquid crystal displays (PAMLCD) replacing the existing four bulkier AMLCDs.

·         Installation of a fully integrated but open-architecture mission avionics suite that will include a new-generation mission computer, active electronically-steered array-based multi-mode radar (MMR), an infra-red search-and-track sensor, or IRST (either pod-mounted or carried internally), helmet-mounted display (HMD), and two-way airborne data-links for communicating with friendly combat aircraft, AEW & C platforms and unmanned aerial vehicles..

·         An integrated defensive aids suite (IDAS) that includes a combined radar/missile approach warning system, countermeasures dispenser, fibre-optic towed-decoys, and an internal self-protection jammer.

·         An air-to-air/air-to-ground software-defined radio system that harnesses the power of its distinctive automatic routing and relay capabilities to offer extended range, while offering video, voice and data simultaneously at an exceptionally high data rate.

·         The ability to carry a laser designator pod, tactical reconnaissance pod, and escort jamming pod.

·         Installation of a frameless canopy actuation system, and a retractable aerial refuelling probe.

·         Employment of triple-ejector racks capable of launching precision-guided munitions (PGM) like the 125kg/250kg AASM (from the France-based Sagem Défense Sécurité subsidiary of the SAFRAN Group) laser-/GPS-/imaging infra-red sensor-equipped standoff munition, GBU-39 small-diameter bomb, CBU-105 sensor-fuzed weapons from Textron Systems, and MBDA’s Brimstone millimetre-wave radar-guided anti-armour missile.

From the above, it becomes evident that the IAF intends to position the ‘Tejas’ Mk2, to be powered by a 98kN thrust F414-GE-INS6 turbofan built by GE Aero Engines, as an M-MRCA capable of undertaking all-weather defensive counter-air operations, as well as all-weather effects-based tactical air-to-ground precision strikes in support of friendly ground forces out to a depth of 80nm beyond the jointly-defined Army/IAF fire support coordination line. Consequently, in order to meet the IAF’s time-bound roadmap for inducting the ‘Tejas’ Mk2 into service, ADA is soon expected to convene a series of bidders’ conferences, following which both global and restricted requests for proposals (RFP) are likely to be issued to interested original equipment manufacturers (OEM) by the last quarter of this year, with final vendor selection taking place before 2012 ends. For supplying the PAMLCDs, the principal contending OEMs are expected to include US-based L-3 Display Systems, BARCO of Belgium, SAMTEL Display Systems Ltd of India, Elbit Systems of Israel, and SAFRAN of France. The PAMLCDs will enable the pilot to view more battlespace information within a larger viewing area. The open-architecture mission computer has been developed by the Bangalore-based Defence Avionics Research Establishment (DARE) and will be built by HAL. As far as the X-band AESA-based MMR goes, on paper there are six competitors: SELEX Galileo’s Vixen 1000es/ES-5 Raven, the four-nation Euroradar consortium’s Captor-E, THALES Avionics of France’s RBE-2, Israel Aerospace Industries/ELTA Systems’ EL/M-2052, Northrop Grumman’s scalable agile beam radar (SABR), and Raytheon’s RACR. The SABR is the result of Northrop Grumman’s long-established expertise in fielding AESA-based MMRs for combat aircraft since the 1990s, starting with the APG-77 for the Lockheed Martin F/A-22 Raptor, APG-80 for the UAE Air Force’s Block 60 F-16E/F Desert Falcons, and APG-81 AESA for the Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning JSF. Raytheon too has a well-established reputation in this field, having supplied the APG-79 (from which the RACR is derived) for the Boeing-built F/A-18E/F Super Hornet Block 2, and the APG-63(V)3 for Boeing F-15SGs of the Republic of Singapore Air Force. The EL/M-2052’s array comprises ‘bricks’ of 24 transmit/receive modules, making it easy to assemble the AESA in different configurations to match the size and shape of an existing combat aircraft’s nose, up to 1,290 modules. Smaller, lower-module-count versions can be air-cooled, reducing weight and making integration simpler. Of these contenders, the least risky favourites for being shortlisted are the SABR and RACR, both of which have been available since 2008.

OEMs likely to bid for supplying internally-mounted high-resolution IRST sensors include THALES Avionics with its OSF, Russia’s Urals Optical Mechanical Plant (UOMZ) with its OLS-30, and Selex Galileo of Italy with the 55kg Skyward. The sole pod-mounted IRST sensor is likely to be proposed by Lockheed Martin, whose Shadow Pod offers dramatically improved raid cell count (40 times more accurate than radar) at maximum declaration ranges (more than 60km) and provides the combat aircraft’s mission computer with track-file data on all targets and infra-red imagery to video displays. It can operate in either track-while-scan or single-target track modes with selectable scan volumes in azimuth and elevation. The HMD to be chosen for the Tejas Mk2 will be the Dash Mk5 from Elbit Systems. The Dash Mk5 has a magnetic helmet-mounted tracker to determine where the pilot’s head is pointed, and comes combined with a miniature display system that projects information onto the pilot’s visor. The head tracker and visor display act as a targetting device that can aim sensors and weapons wherever the pilot is looking. To obtain a variety of information and sensor-based data such as airspeed, altitude and target range, the pilot can refer to the visual display on the inside of the Dash Mk5 while remaining in a ‘heads-up’ position during combat, thereby eliminating the break in visual contact that occurs when the pilot looks away to check the display readouts in the cockpit. To aim and fire an air combat missile, the pilots will be required to simply point his head at the targets and press a switch on the flight controls to direct and fire a weapon. To attack a ground target, the pilot can acquire the target with a laser designator pod (LDP) and note its location on the helmet display. Alternatively, the pilot can use the helmet display to cue sensors and weapons to a visually detected ground target. An umbilical cable carries power and video drive signals to the internal helmet electronics, and position-sensing signals from the helmet to the signal processor box. The umbilical is provided with a quick disconnect connector to provide for safe ejection. The 8.5kV high-voltage supply for the helmet’s CRT display is embedded within the helmet, so that no high voltages are present on the umbilical. The tube and supply are embedded in the back of the helmet. The Dash Mk5 projects the CRT image via a folded optical path directly on to the spherical section visor. All symbology is calligraphic, produced by a programmable stroke generator, and a green phosphor is employed. Integration of HMD modes, HOTAS controls, and weapons system modes have been done in the Tejas Mk1’s mission computer operational flight programme and are specific to the IAF’s requirements. The two-way airborne data-links are likely to be supplied by HAL, which, among other systems, will be supplying the RAM-1701AS radio altimeter, TACAN-2901AJ and DME-2950A tactical air navigation system combined with the ANS-1100A VOL/ILS marker, CIT-4000A Mk12 IFF transponder, COM-1150A UHF standby comms radio, UHF SATCOM transceiver, and the SDR-2010 SoftNET four-channel software-defined radio (working in VHF/UHF and L-band for voice and data communications), and the Bheem-EU brake control/engine/electrical monitoring system, all of which have been developed in-house by the Hyderabad-based Strategic Electronics R & D Centre of HAL.

The open-architecture IDAS has been under joint development by DARE and Germany-based Cassidian since 2006, and will include the AAR-60(V)2 MILDS F missile approach warning system, the EW management computer and Tarang Mk3 radar warning receiver (developed by DARE and built by Bharat Electronics Ltd) and countermeasures dispenser built by Bharat Dynamics Ltd. Reusable fibre-optic towed-decoys using suppression, deception and seduction techniques that are likely to be evaluated include BAE Systems’ ALE-55, Raytheon’s ALE-50, RAFAEL’s X-Guard, and Cassidian’s Ariel Mk3, which incorporates a phased-array beam-steering device, providing full spherical coverage with 1.2 kW of power. Contenders for supplying the pod-mounted escort jammer include IAI/ELTA with its ELL-8251, and RAFAEL’s Skyshield. For self-protection, Elettronica of Italy has proposed its Virgilius family of directional jammers (as part of the IDAS suite), which make use of active phased-array transmitters for jamming hostile low-band (E-G) and high-band (G-J) emitters.

For tactical strike missions, the ‘Tejas’ Mk2 will be equipped with the Litening-3 LDP and RecceLite tactical reconnaissance pod—both built by RAFAEL. The customised frameless canopy actuation system and retractable aerial refuelling probe are likely to come from UK-based Cobham. The triple-ejector racks are likely to be supplied by either US-based EDO Corp or Cobham Mission Equipment. The rack is a weapon-suspension unit that attaches to an aircraft’s weapon pylons, enabling each pylon to carry three weapons. The mission planning-cum-debriefing system is likely to be custom-developed by Israel’s Rada Electronics Industries, which had earlier developed a similar system for the Su-30MKI.

Weaponisation of the ‘Tejas’ Mk2 is still work in progress, with the Astra Mk1 BVRAAM, now being developed by the DRDO’s Hyderabad-based Defence R & D Laboratory (DRDL), allowing IAF pilots to hit enemy aircraft up to 44km away and at altitudes of up to 20,000 metres. The follow-on Astra Mk2 will have a longer range of 80km. Once it is 15km from the target, the Astra Mk1’s on-board Agat-built 9B-1348E radar will pick up the target for terminal homing. When the target is within 5 metres, the Astra’s radio proximity fuse will detonate its warhead, sending a volley of shrapnel ripping through the targeted aircraft. A drawback in the Astra Mk1 remains its high weight. In comparison with the Astra Mk1’s 150kg, other BVRAAMs like the Derby weigh around 100kg only, while the Vympel R-77 weighs 175kg.

A huge area of disappointment within the R & D programme for the ‘Tejas Mk2’ has been the development status of the indigenous GTX-35 Kaveri turbofan, which remains elusive. Under development by the DRDO's Bangalore-based Gas Turbine Research Establishment (GTRE) since 1986, its R & D effort has thus far incurred a cost of Rs28.39 billion (US$640 million). Thus far, nine prototypes of Kaveri and four prototypes of Kaveri’s core (Kabini) have been built. About 1,975 hours of ground-testing and altitude-testing has been conducted on the Kaveri and its cores. Kaveri engine prototype K-9 has been integrated with an IL-76MD flying testbed at Russia’s Gromov Flight Research Institute. After adequate engine ground runs and taxi trials, the maiden flight-test of the K-9 for over one hour was successfully completed on November 3, 2010, and was followed by three more flight-tests. These flight-tests covered 6km altitude and a speed of Mach 0.6. The Kaveri engine development project was sanctioned on March 30, 1989 with a probable date of completion (PDC) of December 1996 at a cost of Rs3.82 billion. The project cost was later revised to Rs28.39 billion. Some of the major reasons for time and cost overruns have ab-initio development of engine, lack of skilled manpower in engine manufacturing, enhancement in the scope of project during development, lack of infrastructure for engine manufacture testing and component-/systems-level testing within India. Flying Test Bed (FTB) trials was not originally included as a milestone in the project, while engine and component failures during testing, which is inevitable in this kind of project, resulted in changes in design and materials, based on various reviews. Also, accordance of less priority from foreign engine manufacturers in view of the minimum order quantity (MOQ) vis-a-vis the production order quantity from other engine manufacturers, and US sanctions imposed after mid-1998 affected the delivery of critical systems and components. Requests for Proposals (RFP) were floated by the GTRE in July 2005 for a undertaking a ‘peer review’ of the entire project and suggesting financially viable ways of achieving successful R & D closure over a 15-month period and undertaking joint production of the Kaveri with foreign engine manufacturers. Four entities--GE, Pratt & Whitney, Snecma Moteurs and NPO Saturn--submitted their proposals within two months. Yet, it was only in February 2007 that the DRDO awarded a contract to Snecma Moteurs for technical assistance in working out the Kaveri’s engineering development problems, especially the fabrication technologies required for bulk production of the Kaveri’s single-crystal turbine blades, which the MoD’s Hyderabad-based Mishra Dhatu Nigam Ltd (MIDHANI) has been unable to master thus far. The DRDO has since proposed to develop the Kaveri’s production version (K-10) on a co-design and co-development basis with France’s Snecma Moteurs. The technical evaluation for this proposal has been completed. A Tender Purchase Committee (TPC) with members drawn from from the DRDO, HAL, IAF, Indian Navy, and the MoD’s Integrated Finance (R & D) Dept is now negotiating the commercial aspects of a contract.--Prasun K. Sengupta

Impregnable Fortress On Paper Only

As ludicrous as it may sound, especially two years after 26/11, there are presently no concrete ground-rules for patrolling India's inshore coastal areas and the numerous creeks and rivulets along the coastline. Though the Ministry of Defence (MoD) and the Union Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) had vowed a flurry of initiatives to beef up coastal security, all that has been done so far is to bunch all operational priorities into an omnibus Maritime Security Plan, which in turn has given rise to turf wars between the Indian Navy (IN), Coast Guard (ICG) and the state-level Police agencies. To be the fair to the IN, it had as far back as the late 1990s proposed the creation of a Union Cabinet-level Ministry of Maritime Affairs in order to meet the future challenges, thereby ensuring that the functioning of all maritime organs be coordinated by a single policy-making apex body. As successive governments at the Centre have been loathe to embrace this concept, the Navy in early 2009 proposed that a Maritime Security Adviser (MSA) be appointed, along with a supporting Maritime Security Advisory Board (MSAB) to take stock of the growing oceanic influence on India’s foreign policy in the decades to come. According to the IN’s blueprint for action, the MSAB should synergise the functioning of more than 14 government departments and agencies responsible for various elements of maritime affairs, besides several security agencies with jurisdictions along the country’s coastline.

The MSA, the IN proposal states, ought to be assisted by the MSAB drawn from other Union ministries, security agencies and armed/paramilitary services, and a newly created Secretariat comprising one Rear Admiral, Five Commodores, 15 officers of the rank of Naval Captain and below, and 45 personnel. In other words, the proposal called for the Union government to create a new maritime security command under the IN’s charge. “Necessary coordination, including on policy issues, between maritime security agencies (IN and ICG) and other ministries at the apex-level for issues related to overall maritime security (including offshore and coastal security) would be provided through the MSA,” said the proposal prepared by the IN for the MoD and the Cabinet Committee on National Security (CCNS). The MSA, the proposal goes on, will initiate policy directives and in the exercise of this authority, he would also be specifically empowered to coordinate and, where necessary, regulate through directives, the activities of other departments and/or agencies, from the security angle, of the Government of India, as also private players operating within the maritime domain. To plug existing holes in the find, fix, finish, exploit, and analyse (F3EA) targetting model, the IN’s proposal had stated that “new procedures and linkages” are required to be put in place, while there is a need to “review existing responsibilities and linkages so as to substantially enhance analysis and dissemination of such information to consumers at all levels in a time-bound and accountable manner”. The draft proposal had also assigned accountability by designating the ICG as the sole authority for coastal security right from the high tide line—including areas to be patrolled by the state-level coastal police agencies—with the ICG’s Director-General functioning as Commander-in-Chief of the Coastal Command. “However, the overall responsibility for coordinating maritime and offshore defence will be with the Indian Navy,” it said. The IN had recommended that the ICG be authorised to function between 12nm and 200nm--which is the exclusive economic zone (EEZ), while the marine police agencies keep watch inside the 12nm of territorial waters and the IN beyond 200nm of blue water.

Last October, the IN also submitted a detailed 262-page technical blueprint on the ‘integrated national maritime domain awareness (MDA) project’ to all the concerned Union ministries and the 14 coastal states and union territories of India. This detailed blueprint centres around the creation of thye IN’s multi-spectrum National Command Control Communication and Intelligence Network (NC3IN), whose HQ is now coming up in Gurgaon, Haryana. The blueprint calls for an additional allocation of Rs9 billion for implementing the entire MDA project, whose principal aim is to generate a common operational picture of all ongoing activities at sea through an institutionalised mechanism for collecting, fusing and analysing information from technical and other sources like coastal surveillance systems (CCS), satellite-based automatic identification systems (AIS), vessel traffic management systems (VTMS), fishing vessel registration and fishermen biometric identity databases. The proposal also calls for the need to create state- level monitoring centres in coastal states/union territories to act as nodes for the national MDA network and upgradation of the four existing joint operations centres at Mumbai, Kochi, Vizag and Port Blair, as well as the creation of a shipping hub and fisheries monitoring centre. The blueprint also identifies the need to establish VTMS at the 56 non-major ports that handle international traffic. While India's 13 major ports either have or are being equipped with VTMS, except for Port Blair, none of the 200 non-major ports have any identification or surveillance systems as yet. The blueprint also calls for a VTMS for the eastern off-shore development areas like the one set up for the western ones.

Yet, despite such path-breaking suggestions and groundwork, all that the CCNS has agreed to implement is an omnibus but trunciated Maritime Security Plan (MSP) that simply states that the IN is now the ‘designated authority'’ responsible for overall maritime security, with both coastal and offshore security under its control. The MSP states that the state-level marine police agencies would exercise jurisdiction up to 5nm from the coastline, the ICG till 30nm, and the IN would exercise similar control on the high seas beyond the 30nm limit. The MSP lays emphasis on extra security for coastal and offshore oil and gas installations by promulgating an exclusion zone of 5nm and a no-fishing zone around offshore infrastructure; installation of a VTMS at each offshore development field; and, deploying immediate support vessels—paid for by the oil and gas companies—to guard all of them. The MSP has also proposed to make it mandatory for all fishing boats to get registered through the issuance of biometric identity cards to all fishermen. It has earmarked Rs1 billion to install AIS transponders on 300,000 vessels below 300 tonnes weight for dynamic information on their identification, location, speed and course. Though the MoD, as part of the MSP, has also sanctioned 3,000 additional personnel for the ICG to be filled up on a priority basis, records show that this task will be completed only by 2022. But not yet addressed by the MSP is the ICG’s high-priority multi-phase force expansion blueprint, which calls for the acquisition of get 12 twin-engined medium-lift helicopters and 12 additional Do-228-201 as soon as possible. The ICG is presently equipped with 43 ships, 23 boats, 24 Do-228-201 coastal surveillance aircraft, 16 SA.316B Chetak helicopters and four Dhruv advanced light helicopters to protect India's vast 7,517km-long coastline, 1,197 islands and 2.01 million sq km of EEZ.

On paper, the MoD has already sanctioned projects worth Rs6,805 crores, which include the creation of nine more ICG stations, deployment of a combined CCS/AIS chain along the entire 7,516km coastline, the raising by the IN of a 1,000-strong specialised Sagar Prahari Bal (SPB) equipped with 80 fast interceptor craft (FIC) to protect shore-based naval assets and vital installations, and the setting up of an initial 73 marine police stations under a Rs329.62 crore plan (this will be followed by an additional allocation of Rs1,579.91 crores for another 131 police stations). Of these, 32 marine police stations are coming up on the west coast, with 12 of them being in Maharashtra. The ICG, which presently has 13 bases and two air stations on the west coast, will set up new stations at Pipavav and Veraval in Gujarat; and Dahanu, Murud-Jhanjira and Ratnagiri in Maharashtra. Air stations were being put up at Porbander, Ratnagiri and Thiruvananthapuram. In addition, though the MoD last March had awarded a Rs9.77 billion contract to Larsen & Toubro (L & T) under which the latter was to design and build 36 high-speed interceptor boats for the ICG, this contract has since been cancelled and now has been awarded to Cochin Shipyard Ltd, following a lengthy legal litigation process. The interceptor boats will feature aluminium-alloy hull construction with water jet propulsion to enable quick response. The interceptors will also be able to operate effectively in shallow water that will be critical for near -shore action. Also awarded by the MoD was a £34 million contract in late July to UK-based  Griffon Hoverwork for the supply of twelve 8000TD hovercraft for the ICG, the tender for which had been released in November 2009. At 21.3 metres in length and with a payload of 8 tonnes, the 8000TD can reach speeds of 45 Knots and is powered by two Iveco diesel engines. The ICG had earlier acquired six 8000TDs in 2001, two of which were built at Griffon Hoverwork, with the following four being assembled by Kolkata-based, MoD-owned Garden Reach Shipbullding & Engineering Ltd (GRSE).

The ICG is also gradually upgrading its existing fleet of Do-228-201s, starting with three aircraft. A contractual flight acceptance test was successfully performed at Daman in September 2009 on the first MSS-6000 airborne maritime surveillance system built and fitted by the Swedish Space Corporation (SSC) for the first Do-228-201 to be upgraded. The MSS-6000 comprises a SLAR (side-looking airborne radar (SLAR); an infra-red/ultra-violet (IR/UV) linescanner; high-resolution digital photography camera and a video system for visual documentation for evidence purposes. Data from all systems is processed, integrated and presented in one integrated view to the operator. All recordings are annotated with GPS data and digitally stored in an on board geographical database. Information from the sensors will be accessible from the operator’s console. It is displayed in real-time and is tightly integrated with a tactical map. The map will contain the current aircraft position and time marks on the flight track. The map image has a large number of operator selectable overlays such as background information (territorial borders, EEZ borders, exclusion zones etc), geo-corrected overlays from SLAR, IR/UV, observation and target notes as well as notes on location of captured images from cameras. This gives the right support to the MSS-6000 operator in every situation. All information from the mission is saved and can be compiled in mission reports and/or sent on to ground station and other units. Data and digital images are presented integrated with an electronic nautical chart database, and also correlated with the mission report, all at the fingertips of the user, to ensure maximum efficiency during routine surveillance as well as in emergency situations. The MSS-6000’s mission software also allows transmission of data to the ground in real-time as well as replay and analysis of the recorded mission on a separate ground workstation.

In another development, Saab TransponderTech of Sweden on November 24 was awarded a SEK116 million contract by the Directorate General of Lighthouses and Lightships (DGLL) for supplying a national CSS stradling the entire Indian coastline. The system includes TERMA of Denmark’s Scanter 2001 dual-band (S/X) radars each with 50km-range, and equipment for regional and national control centres. Users of the CCS apart from DGLL will be the IN, ICG and DG Shipping. Saab will implement the project, which includes installation, commissioning, training and support together with its Indian partner, Elcome Marine Services. The project will start immediately and will be completed within 18 months. The CSS that the DGLL has ordered comprises both radars and optronic sensors at 74 locations. The sensor sites will connect via VSAT links to form a Wide Area Network. Saab will also deliver the network servers and software, the CoastWatch operator software, including SAR support and advanced databases and statistical functions to nine control centres--six regional and three national. The control centres will be operated by the DGLL. There is also an option within the contract to include another 12 sensor sites.--Prasun K. Sengupta