DTN News: IAF Going In For Massive Upgrade Of Airfields, Helipads

DTN News: IAF Going In For Massive Upgrade Of Airfields, Helipads

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*DTN News: IAF Going In For Massive Upgrade Of Airfields, Helipads

*DTN News: India’s First Naval Variant Of Light Combat Aircraft - TEJAS

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*Indian Air Force to Induct LCA Tejas Fighter Jets by 2010: Defence Minister

Source: DTN News - - This article compiled by Roger Smith from reliable sources including The Times of India & Wikipedia

(NSI News Source Info) NEW DELHI, India - August 13, 2010: From new Sukhoi-30MKI bases at Chabua (Assam), Halwara (Punjab) and Jodhpur (Rajasthan) to one for Tejas fighters in Sulur (Tamil Nadu), IAF is going in for a massive upgrade of its airfield and helipad infrastructure across the country.

This will not only bolster operational logistics and flexibility on both the eastern and western fronts with China and Pakistan, apart from plugging existing gaps over central and peninsular India, but also make IAF airbases more accessible to civilian aircraft.

This is in tune with IAF's aim to have 42 fighter squadrons by 2022, up from the existing 32, with progressive induction of 270 Sukhois, 126 multi-role combat aircraft, 120 indigenous Tejas Light Combat aircraft and the first lot of the fifth-generation fighter aircraft to be developed with Russia.

A major endeavour in all this is the soon-to-be-launched MAFI (modernisation of airfield infrastructure) programme, under which 30 of IAF's 51 operational airbases will be upgraded in Phase-I over 42 months. "

Commercial negotiations with the Tata Power-led consortium for MAFI Phase-I, at a cost of around Rs 1,300 crore, is in the final stages now. Bhatinda airbase will be taken up as the pilot project,'' said a source.

Under Phase-II, remaining IAF, Army, Navy and Coast Guard airfields will be modernised. The upgrade includes resurfacing, expansion and lighting of runways for night operations as well as installation of new tactical navigational (TACAN), instrument landing (Cat-2 ILS), air traffic management and air-to-ground radio communication (RCAG) systems.

The North-East is a major thrust area, with upgrade of airbases in Chabua, Dibrugarh, Jorhat, Mohanbari, Hasimara, Guwahati and Bagdogra, among others. The Tezpur airbase already houses Sukhois after it underwent an upgrade last year.

Then, after reactivating western sector ALGs (advanced landing grounds) like Daulat Beg Oldi, Fukche and Nyama in eastern Ladakh, IAF is now concentrating on upgrading eastern sector ALGs like Pasighat, Mechuka, Walong, Tuting, Ziro and Vijaynagar as well as several helipads in Arunachal.

This is meant to strategically counter China's massive build-up of military infrastructure all along the 4,057-km Line of Actual Control, which includes 14 airbases directed against India in Tibet.

The focus on the western front, of course, remains as sharp as before. The Phalodi airbase in Rajasthan, just 102 km away from the Pakistan border, for instance, began fighter operations earlier this year.

"The aim is to make all the bases capable of operating all kinds of aircraft. This will, for instance, allow our IL-78 mid-air refuellers to support fighters from virtually anywhere in the country,'' said the source.

*This article is being posted from Toronto, Canada By DTN News ~ Defense-Technology News, contact: dtnnews@ymail.com

List of aircraft of the Indian Air Force

From Wikipedia

Current aircraft

Photo	Aircraft	Origin	Type	Versions	In service[1]	Notes on aircraft
Fighter aircraft[1]
	Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-21	Soviet Union	Interceptor/fighter	MiG-21 Bison	108[citation needed]	All other 150+ MiG-21 aircraft are to be phased out after 2012.[2]
	Mikoyan MiG-29Fulcrum	Soviet Union	Air superiority fighter	MiG-29S	69[3]	To be upgraded to MiG-29SMT.[4]
	Sukhoi Su-30MKIFlanker-H	Russia/ India	Air superiority fighter	Su-30MKI	124[5]	272[6] aircraft have been ordered to date of which 182 will be constructed locally by HAL with a full technology transfer. 50 aircraft are to upgraded with newer avionics, onboard computers, electronic warfare systems and capability to carry the BrahMos missile.[7]
	Dassault Mirage 2000	France	Multi-role fighter	Mirage 2000 H	51[8][9]	The Indian Air Force is in talks with Thales of France as well as severalIsraeli companies to outfit the Mirage 2000 with newer radars and avionics in a $1.9 billion USD deal.[8][9]
	HAL Tejas	India	Multi-role		4	4[10] aircraft are in the IAF inventory though Initial Operating Clearance is expected only in December 2010. 48 aircraft of the type are on order.[11]
Total Combat aircraft					~500+
Ground attack/Bomber aircraft [1]
	Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-27	Soviet Union	Ground Attack	MiG-27UPG	122	122 from the total inventory of 148 being up-graded, while the remaining 26 are being phased out.
	Jaguar IS/IM	France United Kingdom	Bomber	Jaguar IS/IM	102
Total Ground attack/Bomber aircraft					224
Trainer aircraft
	HAL HPT-32 Deepak	India	Basic Trainer (BJT)		70	ALL grounded since Oct 09; and to be retired soon officially.
	HAL HJT-16 Kiran	India	Intermediate Trainer (IJT)	HJT-16	80
	BAE Hawk	United Kingdom	Advanced Trainer (AJT)	Hawk 132	39[12]	Received first 24 aircraft directly from BAE Systems.[13] In addition, 42 aircraft are to be locally assembled by HAL.[14] An additional 40 aircraft would be inducted into IAF and 17 into the Navy.[15] Total 106 aircrafts to be inducted.
Total Trainers Aircraft					189
Transport aircraft[1]
	Embraer EMB 135	Brazil	VIP transport	ECJ-135 Legacy	5
	Boeing Business Jet	United States	VIP transport	737-800	3
	Dornier Do 228	Germany India	very Light Transport	Do 228-201	40
	Hawker Siddeley HS 748	United Kingdom	Light Transport	HS 748-100	64
	Antonov An-32 Cline	Soviet Union	Medium Transport	An-32	94
	Ilyushin Il-76 Candid	Soviet Union	Heavy Transport	Il-76	17
Total Transport Aircraft					223
AEW&C[1]
	Beriev A-50Phalcon	Russia Israel	AEW&C	Phalcon	2	The expected delivery date for the third and final aircraft is December 2010.[16]
Total number of AWACS					2
Air Tanker Aircraft
	Ilyushin Il-78 MKI	Russia Israel	Il-76	IL-78MKI	6
Total number of Air Tanker Aircraft					6
Helicopters[1]
	HAL Dhruv	India	Utility helicopter	Dhruv	36
		India	Attack helicopter	HAL Light Combat Helicopter	65 on order
	Aérospatiale SA 315B Lama	France	Utility helicopter	SA 315B Cheetah/Cheetal	28
	Mil Mi-26 Halo	Soviet Union	Transport helicopter	Mi-26	4
	Mil Mi-8	Soviet Union	Transport helicopter	Mi-8	82
	Mi-17				52
	Mil Mi-35 Hind-E	Soviet Union	Attack helicopter	Mi-35	20
	Aérospatiale SA 316B Alouette III	France	Utility	-	92
Total number of Helicopters					314
Unmanned Air Vehicles
	Lakshya PTA	India		Pilotless Target Aircraft (PTA)	~10	23 were orderd by India to be operated by the IAF, Indian army and Indian Navy.
	IAI Harpy	Israel		Fire & Forget Radar Emitter Destroyer	?	A UAV explosive which attacks enemy radars, but also destroys its self.
	IAI Heron	Israel	Heron I/II	Strategic Multi-Role UAV	~25	India orderd 50 to be deployed by the IAF and Indian Navy.
	IAI Searcher	Israel	Searcher II		100+
Total Unmanned Air Vehicles					135+
Total Aircraft					1,321 aircraft and 135+ UAVs