Saab roped in to assist Tejas MK1 A

Saab roped in to assist Tejas MK1 A

Swedish defense firm Saab requested to assist in the LCA program, to resolve the problems in the Tejas and to produce upgraded variant of Tejas called MK 1 A. IAF already orderd 20 Tejas from HAL, which has no real fighting capability nor any guided launching capability. IAF looks for a upgraded Tejas which can capable to perform BVR missile firing along with internal EW suites to fight in modern battlefield.

The IAF has an requirement of more than 300 light aircraft similar like Tejas, However due to the issues in Tejas, IAF ordered 40 units, later decreased into 20 units due to its incapability to fight in modern battlefield. Since the first batch of twenty aircraft's don't have any real fighting capability,  rather than just being used for training purpose.

Tejas don't have BVR firing capability, no proper electronic warfare suites, no air fueling capability and very low combat radius. Due to this backlogs IAF is not ready to use the Tejas, since concerns raised by IAF, ADA and DRDO offered a modified Tejas under MK 1 A program, since Mark 2 program is long way ahead.

Under the MK 1A, Tejas comes with much sophisticated suites like, BVR missile firing capability, Modern Israeli AESA, advanced internal EW suits and much needed aerial refueling capability. IAF and Ministry of Defense set timeline of 2018 to produce those aircraft, and IAF plans to order some 100 MK1 A units.

HAL and DRDO tried to work with the imported missiles, radars and interface systems to modify the Tejas. However they failed to achieve it in scheduled time, and they faced huge cap in technology, So they looking for a foreign partner to help to overcome from the issue.

Saab is the one who is a world leader in aerospace and defense, who tries to push the Gripen to IAF many times, since IAF and ADA fears bringing Gripen can end the Indian development of Tejas. and IAF also rejected Gripen many times.

Now again ADA and DRDO looks into Saab to assist in the Tejas development. by this means Saab will try to modify the entire Tejas air frame to accommodate modern systems and sensors. and help the Israeli missiles and radars to interface with the Tejas computers made by India.

Sources close to Economic times said that, First level of talks with ADA/HAL and Saab has been completed, and another high level expertise committee from Sweden will arrive India next week to carry forward the discussion.

Latest update on Fighter Acquisition Plan

Latest update on Tejas Acquisition Plan

   The Government slowly listening the Air force plans and moving along with them, The Acquisition plans like Tejas, Rafale and FGFA is almost delayed since years. The actual plans are inducting those new jets by early 2015. However there is no new fighter jets added in the Air force last year.

    LCA Tejas is most delayed project executed by ADA, Built by the HAL and user is the IAF. However due to many reasons the Tejas yet to achieve the Final Operational clearance, IAF asks the ADA and HAL to speed up the plans and conduct regular trails before hands over to IAF.

    The major delay in the Tejas is, It's yet to fire a radar guided missile, Since many of them acknowledged the Tejas is a fourth gen fighter, It's still not shows it's BVR capability. Tejas is planned to get Israeli made Elta 2032 advanced pulse Doppler radar as main fire control radar. The issue is  Tejas currently having a Kevlar radome, which decreases the Radar's range due to restriction of the material.

    So Tejas waiting to get Quartz radome which was made with composite materials like fibers and resins. This will increase the radar detection range upto some 120 kilometers. with the increased range Tejas soon will fire the Israeli made Derby BVR missile. Derby is a medium range BVR missile developed by Israeli Rafeal.

Model of a Radome in RCI Testing

    Along with BVR missile integration, Tejas must need to perform aerial refueling mission to increase it's combat radius.  until Tejas performs those above said criteria IAF won't accept the Tejas. The ADA and HAL said they will perform those above mentioned missions before March 2016. However since months there is no clear progress made in the Tejas milestone.

    What the Tejas so far achieved is, It fired a IR guided missile with the support of Helmet mounted sight, For that Tejas pilot must need to visually identify the jet before launching the missile. Tejas fired the R 73 close combat missile with the range of some 20 kilometers, This is just for self defense which can be done in any kind of fighters and modern attack Helicopters.

    Tejas also performed precision strike capability, Tejas fitted with some laser guided munitions with the guidance of  Litening pod. The Precision guidance is better for air to ground pin point strike munitions. Allows Tejas can provide close air support to the ground forces.

Refueling Probe's

    Tejas completed all kind of Infrared guided weapon support systems. and waiting to complete the Radar guided weapon support system and aerial refueling mission.

Updates about Rafale and LCA Tejas

Updates about Rafale and LCA Tejas

   Some Recent updates about both the LCA Tejas and the Rafale aka medium and Light fighter, as the  Rafale and LCA almost missed it's induction date, the Ministry plans for some alternate solutions to fulfill the Requirements.  recently some information's floated in the media's about the cost escalation of Rafale and missed deadlines of Tejas's Final operational clearance which is the reason of the delay.

   The two factors mainly  the Rafale is offset clause and more weapon integration, at first the Offset clause, earlier in the MMRCA competition, the Supplier will invest 50% of deal value in India, in both Public and private sectors, as earlier projected some six to eight billion dollars will be invested back into Indian Companies by french firms once the contract and Settlements finalized, but India formally scraps the MRRCA tender by early this year and Defense Minster confirms the same in Parliament, as a new announcement in Paris made by Prime minister about direct acquisition of  some 36 Rafale.

    But the same also need bunch of bureaucracy  clearance before making final contract, for both Indian and French delegations in Talks to finalize the contract and about the Offset clause, to Full new procurement plan the French agreed to invest only 30% deal value in India, as India wants it should be 50% , so both of them in negotiations  for the Offset clause, so it's clear it took more than a month to clear the negotiations, whether it's 30% or 50% or somewhere between 30-50%.

    The second most negotiation is the Weapon integration, The IAF insists the deal to use the Indian made Astra BVR missiles into the Rafale Aircraft, and also raised about firing the Air to ground missile Brahmos, for that French asked more money since it's need a small hardware and computer changes including algorithm to support foreign weapons into the Rafale since the Rafale's computer and Radar will designed to coupled with French and European weapons, not the Indian and Russian Standard weapons. so for that French asked more money to for the structural and algorithm changes, but here India Contract negotiation committee negotiating about the cost escalation.

    By coming LCA, there were several critical issues, as meant the radar nose cone and flight refuel probe delay from the European companies,which makes the LCA program takes one more deadline and  pushed it to next year for Final operational clearance, there is no clear information who is delaying, either the HAL or the supplier, also till the HAL doesn't delivered the ordered IOC standard Aircraft to the IAF, there is a Assembling problem is also raised, earlier some reports mentioned due to lack of capacity of HAL, Government plans to scrap the HAL from LCA project and plans to handover the project to some Private Companies, but the news is not verified.

   another issue is the lack of Internal Electronic countermeasure, the Defense Minister reported that the missing Internal ECM suites in the Tejas, which saves the fighter from threats,  but due to the small size fighter, in the early days such systems are huge in size, So it's hard to house inside the light aircraft, but now it's available in Tiny size, but this will be added only in the Mark 2 version of Tejas, Defense Minister told in Parliament.

    Another is the Maintenance and logistics nightmare, HAL fails to answer the questions raised by IAF about the maintenance of Tejas fighter, IAF found lack of spare and engineers to resolve problems after deploying the Fighters under the IAF, every fighters Needed to be checked before making the sortie for the Base need huge number of Ground support crew's, 

    as these Two major problems in Both Rafale and Tejas, It looks like their is no sign of good news this year,