sea harriers
November 30, 2006
From: Mrityunjay Bose
Sea-Harrier to last for more than five years: Navy
MUMBAI: The state-of-the-art Sea-Harrier fighter jets of the Indian Navy would last for more than five to six years beyond the expected life of the lone aircraft carrier INS Viraat, from which these majestic British-origin aircraft operate.
"We expect that it would last more than five years," said Vice Admiral Sangram Singh Byce, Flag Officer Commanding-in-Chief of the Western Naval Command (WNC), the sword arm of the three-dimensional blue water Indian Navy.
Talking to reporters on board INS Viraat, Vice Admiral Byce confirmed that Soviet-era Kiev-class aircraft carrier Gorshkov, which would be renamed Vikramaditya would arrive in 2008 and its component of frontline Russian origin MiG-29K fighter aircraft. "The top-of-the-line MiG-29K will augment the air arm of the Indian Navy," he said and added that it is a multi-role aircraft and can perform various functions like land-attack, ship-attack and air-defence. "We will get a quantum jump once these are inducted," he noted.
On the other hand, he added, the indigenous aircraft carrier, which is being built at Cochin Shipyard Ltd, would be commissioned in 2012. This ship, WNC sources said, would be able to accommodate different types of aircraft which include the Sea-Harriers, MiG-29Ks and the naval variant of Tejas, the indigenously-developed Light Combat Aircraft (LCA).
The technology demonstrator of this naval LCA would be ready by 2008 and the Indian Navy hopes that by the time the indigenous carrier rolls out, these multi-role aircraft would be ready for commissioning.
While Sea-Harriers are short-take-off and-vertical-landing aircraft, the MiG-29K operates on the concept of arrested-recovery. The naval LCA would be capable of operating both ways. As far as Gorshkov is concerned, its flight deck is being modified in Russian shipyards, so that it can operate planes of different origins. This too is expected to have a ski-jump like INS Viraat, which the Indian government purchased from the Britishers in the eighties.
A senior official told the Herald: "The Sea-Harriers are also undergoing midlife upgrades, to increase its life span." He said that at a time two aircraft are being sent to Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd, Bangalore, and in the next few months all these aircraft would undergo an upgrade and would also be fitted with some new systems, to match the technology of date.
As far as capabilities is concerned, said Vice Admiral Byce: "We are adopting two to three methods – first induction of new platforms, secondly deploying innovative tactical means and upgrading the existing military hardware."
He also revealed that two IL-38 SD aircraft, which returned from Russia post midlife upgrade, have not been fitted with state-of-the-art systems.
(This report was first published in The Maharashtra Herald, Pune)
From: Mrityunjay Bose
Sea-Harrier to last for more than five years: Navy
MUMBAI: The state-of-the-art Sea-Harrier fighter jets of the Indian Navy would last for more than five to six years beyond the expected life of the lone aircraft carrier INS Viraat, from which these majestic British-origin aircraft operate.
"We expect that it would last more than five years," said Vice Admiral Sangram Singh Byce, Flag Officer Commanding-in-Chief of the Western Naval Command (WNC), the sword arm of the three-dimensional blue water Indian Navy.
Talking to reporters on board INS Viraat, Vice Admiral Byce confirmed that Soviet-era Kiev-class aircraft carrier Gorshkov, which would be renamed Vikramaditya would arrive in 2008 and its component of frontline Russian origin MiG-29K fighter aircraft. "The top-of-the-line MiG-29K will augment the air arm of the Indian Navy," he said and added that it is a multi-role aircraft and can perform various functions like land-attack, ship-attack and air-defence. "We will get a quantum jump once these are inducted," he noted.
On the other hand, he added, the indigenous aircraft carrier, which is being built at Cochin Shipyard Ltd, would be commissioned in 2012. This ship, WNC sources said, would be able to accommodate different types of aircraft which include the Sea-Harriers, MiG-29Ks and the naval variant of Tejas, the indigenously-developed Light Combat Aircraft (LCA).
The technology demonstrator of this naval LCA would be ready by 2008 and the Indian Navy hopes that by the time the indigenous carrier rolls out, these multi-role aircraft would be ready for commissioning.
While Sea-Harriers are short-take-off and-vertical-landing aircraft, the MiG-29K operates on the concept of arrested-recovery. The naval LCA would be capable of operating both ways. As far as Gorshkov is concerned, its flight deck is being modified in Russian shipyards, so that it can operate planes of different origins. This too is expected to have a ski-jump like INS Viraat, which the Indian government purchased from the Britishers in the eighties.
A senior official told the Herald: "The Sea-Harriers are also undergoing midlife upgrades, to increase its life span." He said that at a time two aircraft are being sent to Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd, Bangalore, and in the next few months all these aircraft would undergo an upgrade and would also be fitted with some new systems, to match the technology of date.
As far as capabilities is concerned, said Vice Admiral Byce: "We are adopting two to three methods – first induction of new platforms, secondly deploying innovative tactical means and upgrading the existing military hardware."
He also revealed that two IL-38 SD aircraft, which returned from Russia post midlife upgrade, have not been fitted with state-of-the-art systems.
(This report was first published in The Maharashtra Herald, Pune)
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