Indian Defense News

Electric to get a fresh contract for F404-GE-IN20 Engines to power Tejas Mk1A

- Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) is about to ink a final contract with the Indian Air Force (IAF) for the purchase of 83 Upgraded Tejas Mk1ALFA fighter jets soon and soon after HAL also place fresh orders for additional 100+ F404-GE-IN20 afterburning engines to power upgraded jet and deal is likely to be concluded somewhere later in 2021. The value of the order is more than $600 million and follows an initial 2004 purchase of 17 F404-GE-IN20 that was followed by a 2007 purchase of 24 F404-GE-IN20 engines to power a limited series of operational production aircraft, naval prototypes, and IOC and FOC aircraft.
India in the Pre-Pokhran-II Nuclear Test era had acquired 11 F404-F2J3 engines that were the predecessor of the F404-GE-IN20 engines and were initially used on the TD and Prototypes of the LCA-Tejas aircraft. Sometime after 2010, Unverified reports also say that HAL had placed orders for 7 more additional F404-GE-IN20 engines for the first 40 aircraft that will enter in service with IAF but these original contracts had not factored in larger follow-up orders since F414-GE-INS6 were to be equipped on Tejas Mk2 that used the same airframe as Mk1.

into Suratgarh MIG-21 crash starts; IAF experts to reach airbase
-A court of inquiry has been ordered into Tuesday night’s MiG-21 crash in Suratgarh, 70 km from Sriganganagar, in Rajasthan. A team of experts from the Indian Air Force will reach Suratgarh airbase station on Wednesday to investigate the accident.
On Tuesday, a MiG-21 Bison fighter jet belonging to the IAF crashed near Suratgarh due to “technical malfunction”. During a training sortie, a MiG-21 Bison aircraft experienced a major technical malfunction. “The pilot ejected safely, there was no loss of life”, said official sources.
People in Chak 28PBN village heard a loud noise about the fighter plane crashing. According to the information the aircraft was on a regular flight.
At around 8:30 pm, when the pilot was bringing the aircraft to land towards the airbase, a technical fault occurred. Pilot sensed a malfunction, and was able to eject himself.
According to police sources, the pilot had to eject about 3 acres from the boundary wall of the airbase station, while the fighter plane crashed with a loud explosion.

Navy to finally get its big guns as US steps in
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The Indian Navy, which has spent quite a few sleepless nights over main guns for its under-construction vessels, has received a massive breather with the US clearing the sale of 13 MK 45 anti-surface and anti-air gun systems.
The guns are to be deployed on board 11 under-construction destroyers and frigates. The Trump Administration Tuesday notified to the US Congress its determination to sell $ billion worth of naval guns along with ammunition and related add-ons to India.
“The clearance by the Trump administration is a big relief,” a Navy officer told ThePrint. “They are the main guns that will be fitted on the four new Project 15B Visakhapatnam-class stealth destroyers and the seven Project 17A stealth frigates.”
The Navy’s original plans involved procuring the guns from the Italian firm Oto Melara. But the firm is owned by Finmeccanica, which was embroiled in the VVIP chopper scam. In 2015, then defence minister Manohar Parrikar decided against dealing with Finmeccanica, which was a key gun supplier to the Navy.
Since then, Indian Navy officials have rued in private that while the ships are being built and steel cut, there was no sight of the main guns.
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