Russian defense industry to ‘breathe new life’ into Su-30SM fighter jet

The heavily upgraded Su-30SM plane may open a new niche for Russia in India, Russian Deputy Prime Minister Yuri Borisov said

The Sukhoi Su-30SM fighter jet will be standardized with the generation 4++ Su-35 fighter by its onboard equipment and armament to cut its cost price and breathe a new life into the plane, Russian Deputy Prime Minister Yuri Borisov told journalists on Tuesday.

"After completing the work on the Su-30SM upgrade, changing the layout of the onboard radio-electronic equipment to make the Su-35 and the Su-30SM more standardized and thus cut the cost price, and standardizing the airborne weapon systems, this may breathe a new life into the plane," the vice-premier said.

The heavily upgraded Su-30SM plane may open a new niche for Russia in India, he noted.

"Considering that there are about 200 such planes in India [the Su-30MKI as the baseline version of the Su-30SM], an opportunity will probably open for modernizing this fleet to prolong its service life," the vice-premier explained.

Under Russia’s diversification program and amid the declining volume of the defense procurement plan, domestic defense enterprises should shift their focus towards life cycle maintenance and upgrade, Borisov noted.

‘It is necessary to move towards diversification and towards gaining foothold on the civil market. This is what we will have to do under the national project and as part of investment programs of our fuel and energy companies," the vice-premier said.

TASS reported in September 2018 that during their upgrade the Su-30SM fighters would also get AL-41F-1S engines mounted on the Su-35 planes. It was also reported in January 2019 that the trials of the modernized Su-30SM multirole fighter jets were expected to be completed before the end of 2019.

Su-30SM upgrade

The Su-30SM is being upgraded by the Irkut Aircraft Corporation and the Sukhoi Design Bureau on the assignment of Russia’s Defense Ministry with the involvement of leading Russian defense enterprises. The upgrade will boost the fighter’s combat capabilities: it will increase the range of detecting and identifying air targets and furnish the plane with new precision weapons to hit air, ground and sea targets at a range of several hundred kilometers.

The Su-30SM is a multirole supermaneuverable heavy fighter equipped with a phased array radar and canard panels. The fighters of this type are furnished with the AL-31FP engine derived from the AL-31F baseline motor of the Su-27 plane. It is distinguished by its thrust vectoring and the increased service life.

The Su-35 is a Russian-made multipurpose generation 4++ super-maneuverable fighter jet equipped with a phased array radar and steerable thrusters. The fighter is equipped with the AL-41F-1S engine, which allows it developing supersonic speed without an afterburner thrust. The experimental AL-41F-1 turbojet engine performs the function of the first-stage powerplant for the Su-57 (PAK FA) fifth-generation fighter.

TASS

The Sukhoi Su-30SM fighter jet will be standardized with the generation 4++ Su-35 fighter by its onboard equipment and armament to cut its cost price and breathe a new life into the plane, Russian Deputy Prime Minister Yuri Borisov told journalists on Tuesday.
"After completing the work on the Su-30SM upgrade, changing the layout of the onboard radio-electronic equipment to make the Su-35 and the Su-30SM more standardized and thus cut the cost price, and standardizing the airborne weapon systems, this may breathe a new life into the plane," the vice-premier said.


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http://tass.com/defense/1046519

Risk of India-Pakistan war may hang on fate of downed pilot

As Asia’s most acrimonious rivals face off, the fate of a captured Indian Air Force pilot may hold the key to whether - and how - each side is able to step back from broader conflict.

India and Pakistan, which have fought three major wars since the partition of 1947, regularly exchange artillery and small-weapons fire across a disputed border. But the situation which flared up earlier this month escalated dramatically into Wednesday, with the loss of an Indian MiG 21 fighter jet and the pilot later paraded on Pakistani television.

While the US, Russia and China are all calling for calm, domestic political factors make it far from easy for either side in the conflict to back down. India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi must contest a general election within weeks, while his counterpart, Imran Khan, faces a military that is seeking to assert its dominance at a time when Pakistan is in the eye of a financial and economic storm.

The full political fallout of the exchanges remains unclear, but it is evident that the capture of a pilot “complicates matters and will heighten tensions,” said Sandeep Shastri, a political scientist and Pro Vice-Chancellor at Jain University in Bangalore.

Neither country can afford a full-blown conflict, yet neither leader can afford to look weak - all the more so with their respective publics whipped into a nationalist frenzy.

Pakistan’s military said Wednesday it shot down two Indian warplanes in the disputed region of Kashmir and captured a pilot, raising tensions between the nuclear-armed rivals to a level unseen in the last two decades.

India summoned the acting high commissioner of Pakistan and demanded immediate and safe return of an IAF pilot who was detained by Pakistan following an aerial engagement by air forces of the two countries.

India acknowledged one of its air force planes was “lost” in skirmishes with Pakistan on a chaotic day, which also saw mortar shells fired by Indian troops from across the frontier dividing the two sectors of Kashmir kill six civilians and wound several others. A helicopter crash in the region also killed six Indian air force officials and a civilian on the ground.

Many fled their homes

Thousands of Kashmiris in Pakistan-administered Kashmir have fled their homes, some bailed water out of disused bunkers, while others dug in - determined to see out the latest flare up of hostilities between India and Pakistan.

Shelling across the heavily militarised Line of Control which divides Kashmir between the two South Asian countries sent many seeking shelter Wednesday, even before India and Pakistan both claimed they had shot each other’s warplanes down, igniting fears of an all-out conflict.

Pakistani officials said four people were killed on Tuesday by shelling from the Indian side of the ceasefire line.

The death toll mounts on both sides each time sabre-rattling between India and Pakistan turns into conflict. This time, Kashmiris have watched warplanes fighting overhead and cowered under the shelling.

Many of the facts in the latest series of engagements are disputed by the two sides.

Major General Asif Ghafoor, spokesman for the Pakistan armed forces, said two Indian jets had been shot down after they entered Pakistani airspace while responding to a Pakistani aerial mission on targets in Indian-administered Kashmir.

One of the jets crashed on the Indian-administered side of the de facto border in Kashmir, known as the Line of Control, and the other on the Pakistani-administered side.

Ghafoor said the Pakistani aircraft had carried out the strikes in response to India’s air strike the day before, but had taken deliberate action to ensure no casualties were caused.

He said Pakistani jets had locked on to six targets, in a demonstration of their capacity to hit strategic installations, but deliberately fired into open spaces where there would be no casualties.

“This was not a retaliation in true sense, but to tell Pakistan has capability, we can do it, but we want to be responsible, we don’t want an escalation, we don’t want a war,” Ghafoor told a news conference.

One of the aircraft fell in Indian-administered Kashmir, while the second came down in Pakistani-administered territory with two pilots captured, he added.

Raveesh Kumar, a spokesman for India’s foreign ministry, gave a different account, telling a news briefing that the Pakistan air strikes on military targets had been “foiled”.

India shot down one Pakistani plane that landed in Pakistani territory, and that it had lost one of its own planes, not two, with the pilot “missing in action”, Kumar added.

 gulfnews

How the MiG-21 chased the F-16

(economictimes) :Pakistan Air Force sent 10 F16s from three airbases towards the Naushera sector in India. Target was to engage Indian Brigade HQ and Army installations.

Indian Air Force scrambled jets to take on incoming fighters, two MiG21s sent from Srinagar; Su30MKIs went airborne.

MiG21 Bison managed to reach the spot in time to intercept one F16 D with its R73 short-range missile.

The F16 D with two pilots got hit and two pilots ejected within Pakistan-occupied Kashmir. MiG21 Bison crashed across the border, pilot detained by Pakistan.


Why Mig21 engaged F16 ::

The taking down of a modern F16 with the relatively old MiG21 Bison is an unusual feat in aerial combat.

MiG21s, the quick-reaction jets, was based at the nearest airfi eld to the intrusion location, which is Srinagar. The jets armed with R73 short-range missiles reached the target zone fast to engage with the retreating Pakistani F16s.

The reason why more modern jets were not used is that the area of intrusion was closest to the MiG21 base.

In 1971 war, MiG21 brought down Pakistani F104 Starfighters.

How Indian Air Force foiled Pakistani attempt to attack Army brigade HQ on Wednesday

As many as ten Pakistan Air Force (PAF) F-16 fighter jets took off from different air bases in Pakistan with an aim of destroying an Indian Army's brigade headquarters in Jammu and Kashmir's Nowshera sector and an oil depot near Srinagar on Wednesday.

The Army brigade headquarters is a huge establishment near the Line of Control (LoC).

The jets took off from different bases in Islamabad, Nur Khan and Sargodha in Pakistan. The Indian radars monitored the Pakistani jets coming together at 9.52 am. Immediately, four Su-30MKi fighter jets and two MiG-21 jets took off from Srinagar and Awantipora to tackle the intruders.

After entering the Indian airspace from Nowshera sector at 10 am, within two minutes, they faced the Indian jets over the skies in Rajouri and returned immediately to avoid getting hit.

As they were returning, a MiG-21 shot at them and one of the F-16s could be seen falling on their side of the LoC in Lam Keri sector. The Indian pack returned after seeing the Pakistani jets entering their airspace but the MiG-21 could not be accounted for as it did not return.

In the process, the IAF managed to thwart an air attack by Pakistan which may have caused a massive damage to the Indian Army positions.

Pakistan claimed that it captured two Indian pilots. Later, it changed the statement saying only one Indian pilot - IAF Wing Commander Abhinandan - was in its custody.

After today's attempt by the Pakistan Army and befitting reply by the Indian forces, many high-level meetings were held in New Delhi. Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman held an important meeting with three services chiefs.

Top Air Force sources controlling the entire operations said Prime Minister Narendra Modi met the National Security Adviser Ajit Doval, Air Chief Marshal BS Dhanoa and Army Chief General Bipin Rawat, and all possible options on retaliatory strikes were discussed.

 indiatoday

Why IAF picked MiG-21s to take on Pakistani F-16s on Wednesday

Keyboard warriors, armchair analysts and even experts have questioned the rationale of using the MiG-21 aircraft in Combat Air Patrol (CAP) Wednesday, when India lost at least one fighter against Pakistan’s F-16s.

However, sources in the Indian Air Force defended the use of the MiG-21, saying it was one of the fighters in its inventory and that aircraft are rotated based on operations, time and threat level.

What happened Wednesday

At around 1005 hours Wednesday, three F-16s of the Pakistan Air Force violated Indian air space and entered into the Nowshera sector. They targeted four military installations and dropped bombs.
The Indian Air Force, which was on high alert, swung into action. At least two MiG-21 Bisons, which were on CAP duty, chased the F-16s and were even able to shoot down one of them.
Pakistan claims the Indian fighters crossed the LoC and were engaged by it, though it hasn’t clarified if they were engaged by its aircraft or air defence systems.
India has confirmed that it lost one MiG-21 Bison and that the pilot is ‘missing in action’. Pakistan claimed to have downed two fighters and captured two pilots, but later clarified the number to be one pilot — Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman.
News of Abhinandan’s capture confirmed that it was a MiG-21 Bison that went down, after initial speculation about a MiG-29.

 Why MiG-21?
Many questioned why the MiG-21 was used for the CAP and to engage the F-16s. After all, it was first inducted into the IAF 56 years ago, in 1963, and has picked up the nickname ‘Flying Coffin’ due to a spate of crashes in the last couple of decades.
However, IAF sources explained that ever since the alert level was raised immediately after the Pulwama terror attack on 14 February, various fighter aircraft were put on CAP duty.
Tuesday night, a mix of Sukhoi Su-30 MKIs and MiG-29s were in the air through the night. However, in the morning, MiG-21s were put on the duty.
“The MiG-21 is something that we have in our inventory and it would be used for operations. We have had a mixture of aircraft doing CAP, and at the time when the Pakistan Air Force jets came in, the MiG-21s were in the air, and hence, they challenged the F-16s,” an IAF officer said.
The indigenous Light Combat Aircraft ‘Tejas’ was supposed to replace the MiG-21 in the IAF inventory, but due to inordinate delays in the former’s development, the IAF has been forced to drag the MiG-21 along.

 theprint

Indian Army destroys 5 Pakistani posts in retaliation along LoC in J&K

Highlights

• Army destroyed five Pakistani posts along the Line of Control in Jammu and Kashmir on Tuesday night
• The Pak troops were also seen firing mortars and missiles from civilian houses, using villagers as human shields

The Indian Army destroyed five Pakistani posts along the Line of Control in Jammu and Kashmir on Tuesday night in a befitting retaliation to firing from across the border, resulting in a "number of casualties" to Pak troops, a defence official said.

"The Indian Army retaliated for effect and our focused fire resulted in severe destruction to five posts and number of casualties to Pak army (along LoC in Rajouri and Poonch districts)", the defence PRO said.

From 6:30 pm onwards, the Pakistani army initiated unprovoked ceasefire violation by shelling with heavy calibre weaponry along the LoC out of frustration, he said.

The Pak troops were also seen firing mortars and missiles from civilian houses, using villagers as human shields.

However, the Indian Army targeted the Pakistani posts away from civilian areas, the PRO said, adding that this resulted in a "number of casualties" to Pak troopers.

In exchange of fire, five soldiers of the Indian Army suffered minor injuries, out of which two of them were shifted to a military hospital for medical treatment; they are stable.

TOI

US should not give aid to Pakistan until it stops harbouring terrorists: Nikki Haley

Pakistan has a long history of harbouring terrorists and America should not give Islamabad even a dollar until it corrects its behaviour, Indian-American former US envoy to the UN Nikki Haley has said as she praised the Trump administration for wisely restricting financial assistance to the country.

Haley, who has founded a new policy group 'Stand America Now' that will focus on how to keep the US safe, strong, and prosperous, wrote in an op-ed that when the US provides aid to nations, "it is more than fair to ask what the US gets in return for our generosity" but instead Pakistan routinely opposed the US position at the UN on several issues.

"In 2017, Pakistan received nearly USD 1 billion in US foreign aid, the sixth most of any country. Much of the aid went to the Pakistani military. Some went for road, highway, and energy projects to assist the Pakistani people," Haley wrote in the op-ed 'Foreign Aid Should Only Go To Friends'.

"On all key votes at the UN, Pakistan opposed the American position 76 per cent of the time. Much more troubling, Pakistan also has a long history of harbouring terrorists who have killed US troops in Afghanistan," she said.

Haley, the former Governor of South Carolina, added that the Trump administration has "already wisely restricted assistance to Pakistan, but there is much more to be done."

Haley, who had stepped down as the US envoy to the UN at the end of last year, has previously strongly criticised Pakistan for continuing to harbour terrorists that turn around and kill American soldiers while taking billions of dollars in foreign aid from the US.

In an interview to US magazine 'The Atlantic' in December, Haley had said the US did not need to give money to countries that wish harm to America, go behind its back and try and "stop us from doing things".

"The one example I'll give you is, look at Pakistan. Giving them over a billion dollars, and they continue to harbour terrorists that turn around and kill our soldiers —that's never okay. We shouldn't even give them a dollar until they correct it. Use the billion dollars. That's not a small amount of change," she had said.

Last September, the Trump administration cancelled $300 million in military aid to Islamabad for not doing enough against terror groups active on its soil. Trump had defended his administration's decision to stop hundreds of millions of dollars in military aid to Pakistan, saying Islamabad does not do "a damn thing" for the US and its government helped late al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden hide near its garrison city of Rawalpindi.

Haley's new policy group aims to promote public policies that strengthen America's economy, culture, and national security.

The group will provide information to grassroots Americans, to highlight the dangers and the opportunities they face domestically and internationally. It will advocate the policies that strengthen the US at all levels of government and in the broader media and culture.

 timesofindia