Navy, Army and IAF finally agree to procure armed drones from US as MQ-9 Reaper in $3 bn deal....

Impressed with the performance of the two leased Sea Guardian drones, the Navy, Army and the Air Force will finally jointly procure 30 armed versions of the American unmanned aerial system in what could be a $3 billion deal, ThePrint has learnt.

The decision comes just before US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin’s visit to India later this month. Austin’s visit could be a precursor to the impending meet of the ‘Quad’ leaders — US, India, Australia and Japan. 

According to sources in the defence and security establishment, initially one of the three services were not clear about procuring the armed predator drones but now all three are finally on the same way. 

They added that the Defence Minister Rajnath Singh-led Defence Acquisition Council (DAC) could take a final decision on this “soon”.

If approved, this would be the first tri-service procurement since Chief of Defence Staff General Bipin Rawat was appointed to steer the Indian armed forces into a more united force, both in terms of operational doctrine and procurement.

According to the deal, India will be acquiring 30 MQ-9 Reaper or Predator B, 10 each for the three services.

The MQ-9B has an endurance of 48 hours and a range of over 6,000 nautical miles. It comes with nine hard-points, capable of carrying sensors and laser-guided bombs besides air-to-ground missiles, with a maximum payload of two tonnes.

The Navy, which is the lead agency for procurement of HALE (High Altitude Long Endurance) UAVs, will seek the Acceptance of Necessity (AON) from the DAC.

Successful Launches of VL-SRSAM Missile System

                                                                                                                                         

Defence Research & Development Organisation (DRDO) conducted two successful launches of Vertical Launch Short Range Surface to Air Missile (VL-SRSAM). 

The launches were carried out today from a static vertical launcher from Integrated Test Range (ITR), Chandipur off the coast of Odisha. Indigenously designed and developed by DRDO for Indian Navy, VL-SRSAM is meant for neutralizing various aerial threats at close ranges including sea-skimming targets. The current launches were carried out for demonstration of vertical launch capability as part of its maiden launch campaign. On both occasions, the missiles intercepted the simulated targets with pinpoint accuracy. The missiles were tested for minimum and maximum range. VL-SRSAM with Weapon Control System (WCS) were deployed during the trials. 

The present trials have proved the effectiveness of the weapon system and few more trials will be conducted shortly before deployment on Indian Naval ships. Once deployed, the VL-SRSAM system will prove to be a force multiplier for the Indian Navy.

INS Karanj Submarine

INS Karanj is India’s third of the six Scorpene-class submarines with superior stealth and combat capabilities.

The Mazagaon Dock Limited (MDL) on Monday delivered the third Scorpene-class submarine to the navy after two years of sea trials. The submarine was launched in January 2018. MDL chairman and managing director,Western Naval Command’s chief of staff officer (technical), signed the acceptance document.

                        Specifications

Displacement : 1615 T (Surfaced) , 1775 T (Submerged)

Length : 67.5 m

Beam : 6.2 m

Height : 12.3 m

Draught : 5.8 m

Propulsion : 4 x MTU 12V 396 SE84 Diesel Engines, 360 x Battery Cells

Speed : 11 kn (Surfaced), 20 kn (Submerged)

Range : 12000 km @ 8 kn (Surfaced) , 1020 km @ 4 kn (submerged)

Endurance : 50 days

Test Depth : 350 m

Complement : 8 officers, 35 sailors

                     Armaments

AEG SUT 264 Torpedo

The AEG SUT 264 is a German 21 in. heavyweight torpedo. SUT means surface and underwater target. Atlas Elektronik manufactures this torpedo. INS Karanj has six 533 mm Torpedo launch tubes and it can launch 18 AEG SUT 264 torpedos.

This torpedo is wire guided with active/ passive onboard terminal guidance. It has a range of 28 km @ 23 knots and 12 km @ 35 knots. It is capable of achieveing speeds excess of 35 knots. The warhead is usually 250 kg RDX. Magnetic Field or contact initiates the warhead.

SM39 Exocet

MBDA SM.39 Exocet is an anti-ship missile. It has inertial guidance, active radar homing and GPS guidance.

• Mass : 780 kg
• Length : 6 m
• Diameter : 34.8 cm
• Warhead : 165 kg
• Engine : Solid Propellant Engine turbojet (MM40 Block 3 Version)
• Wingspan : 1.35 m
• Range : 70 – 180 km
• Sea Skimming
• Max Speed : Mach 0.93

INS Karanj can carry 30 mines instead of the torpedoes. As a result, INS Karanj will have the mine warfare capability. 

C303/S ATCM Electronic Warfare and Decoys

The C303/S is an anti-torpedo countermeasure system. This system is designed to counter the attacks of acoustic homing torpedoes which includes both active and passive as well as wire and non-wire guided torpedoes. It is formed by a 12 barrel launching network.

Indian Navy, Indian Airforce To Get Indigenous SAAW (Smart Anti-Airfield Weapon)

The Defence Acquisition Council (DAC) headed by the Defence Ministery cleared the procurement of the indigenously developed ‘Smart Anti-Airfield Weapon’ or SAAW for the Indian Navy and the Indian Air Force.

Developed by the DRDO, SAAW has a range of around 100 km and weighs around 125 kg.

The weapon, which is being procured at an approximate cost Rs 970 crore, will give the Air Force and the Navy the capability to hit Enemy Airfields and Runways, Bunkers, plane Hanger from a standoff distance with high precision during conflicts.

Given that this weapon can be launched from standoff ranges, the aircraft launching it can remain at a safe distance from the enemy target. In many cases, the weapon can be fired by IAF fighters like Jaguar & Sukhoi-30 MKI from within the Indian air space.

Apart from SAAW, the DAC also cleared the procurement of Static HF Trans-receiver sets for field units of the Indian Army and the Air Force at an approximate cost of Rs 540 crore to enable seamless communication.

Women Officers in Indian Navy

    (Afnan Sheikh, Kreeshma R, Sub Lt. Riti      Singh, and Sub Lt. Kumudini Tyagi.)

Women officers in the Indian Navy are finally taking the lead. For years now, women officers in the Indian armed forces have been in very small numbers.

According to Indian Navy, four women officers, today, passed the ‘Observe Course” and are set to join their duties.

Indian Navy’s Sub Lt Kumudini and Sub Lt Riti Singh are the first women officers to be deployed on a frontline warship as crew members. Both the naval officers will work as airborne tacticians. Meanwhile, Sub Lt. Afnan Sheikh and Sub Lt. Kreeshma R. will be operating fixed wing aircraft of the Navy.

Sub Lt Kumudini and Sub Lt Riti studied engineering and joined the Indian Navy in 2019. They successfully passed Indian Navy’s ‘ Observe Course’ at Southern Naval Command in Kochi on September 21.

All the four women officers participated in the batch of 21 Navy and Coast Guard personnel.

This comes as a landmark moment for Indian Navy, which got its first woman Navy pilot, Lieutenant Shivani, just nine months ago.

Women officers are rising from across the seas to fly higher in the skies.

Indian Navy & Royal Australian Navy Conduct 2-day Naval Exercise in Indian Ocean from Wednesday

Navies of India and Australia will carry out a two-day mega exercise in the Indian Ocean Region beginning Wednesday that will involve a range of complex naval manoeuvres, anti-aircraft drills and helicopter operations, officials said.

The exercise comes in the midst of India's tense border row with China and in the backdrop of growing activities by the Chinese navy in the Indian Ocean Region.

"The exercise is aimed at enhancing interoperability, improving understanding and imbibing best practices from each other. It would involve advanced surface and anti-air exercises including weapon firings, seamanship exercises, naval manoeuvres and cross deck flying operations," a Navy spokesperson said.

It will be the fourth major military drill by the Indian Navy since June. It has already carried out similar exercises with the navies of the US, Japan and Russia.

HMAS Hobart, the lead ship of the Hobart-class air warfare destroyers, will be among the assets to be deployed in the exercise by the Royal Australian Navy, officials said, adding Indian Navy ships Sahyadri and Karmuk will be part of Indian platforms.

"The exercise, which is in keeping with the strong bond shared by the two navies, would be another step towards strengthening Indo-Australia defence relations and the continued efforts of both governments to work closely to enhance safety and security of the global commons," the Navy spokesperson said.

He said the two navies have built a robust relationship through regular exercises.

Earlier this month, navies of India and Russia carried out an exercise in the Bay of Bengal.

In July, the Indian Navy carried out a military exercise with a US Navy carrier strike group led by the nuclear-powered aircraft carrier USS Nimitz off the coast of Andaman and Nicobar Islands. The USS Nimitz is the world's largest warship.

In the exercise with the US Navy, four frontline warships of the Indian Navy participated. The US carrier strike group was transiting through the Indian Ocean Region on its way from the South China Sea.

The US Navy carrier strike group comprises USS Nimitz, Ticonderoga-class guided-missile cruiser USS Princeton and Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyers USS Sterett and USS Ralph Johnson.

The Indian Navy carried out a similar exercise with the Japanese navy in June.

India has significantly expanded its deployment in the Indian Ocean Region with a plethora of warships and submarines following the border row to send across a message to Beijing.

The maritime space around the Malacca Strait is very critical for China's supply chain through sea routes.

India Conducts Successful Flight Test of ABHYAS from Odisha Test Range

India on Tuesday successfully conducted the flight test of ABHYAS - High-speed Expendable Aerial Target (HEAT) vehicles from a test range in Odisha.

The trial, carried out by the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) from the Integrated Test Range (ITR) at Chandipur near here, was tracked by various radars and electro-optic systems, the sources said.

Congratulating DRDO on its achievement, defence minister Rajnath Singh said ABHYAS can be used as a target for evaluation of missile systems.

During the trial on Tuesday, two demonstrator vehicles were successfully test-flown, DRDO sources said.

ABHYAS has been designed and developed by the Aeronautical Development Establishment (ADE) of the DRDO.

The air vehicle is launched using twin underslung boosters. It is powered by a small gas turbine engine and has an Inertial Navigation System (INS) along with a Flight Control Computer (FCC) for guidance and control.

The vehicle has been programmed for fully autonomous flight. The check out of the vehicle is done using laptop- based Ground Control Station (GCS), a defence statement said.

During the test campaign, the user requirement of 5 km flying altitude, vehicle speed of 0.5 mach, endurance of 30 minutes and 2g turn capability of the test vehicle were successfully achieved, it said.

“It proved its performance in a fully autonomous waypoint navigation mode,” a DRDO source said.