Indian Navy’s jaguars “sinks” USS Nimitz

INDIANEXPRESS (sept 07 07): As the small green dots approached closer on the radar screen, the Indian officer sitting deep inside USS Nimitz knew it was too late to save the ship. Jaguar maritime fighters of the Indian Air Force (IAF), operating from the Car Nicobar air base, had managed to come dangerously within striking range to successfully launch anti-ship missiles on the super carrier. The IAF registered its first “kill” of the day — none less than the mighty nuclear powered Nimitz with its compliment of 85 fighters. But the young officer, on a cross attachment to the US ship, barely had time to feel proud. The battle had begun in earnest and the target now was India’s lone aircraft carrier. INS Viraat, however, proved easy meat for the joint striking force of US F-18 Super Hornets and IAF Jaguars with the American fighters deliberately flying over the ship to drive home their air-superiority skills. With the five-nation Malabar 07-2 naval exercise entering its final two days today, the buzzword on board the Kitty Hawk — the US carrier coordinating the 30-warship mock battle — was the level of “interoperability” achieved by the participating Navies of India, US, Australia, Japan and Singapore. From tracking and destroying a nuclear submarine, operating three aircraft carriers in close proximity, managing air traffic for over 200 aircraft spread over just 150 X 200 km (roughly the size of airspace between Mumbai and Pune), supporting an amphibious assault to taking on a deep-sea terror threat and tackling piracy, the five countries jointly carried out pretty much the entire range of modern maritime operations. “We didn’t just get a chance to operate together but also the opportunity to assess our own capabilities by comparing them with the latest technology in the world,” says Vice Admiral R P Suthan, commander in chief of the strategic Eastern Command, who is the “tactical commander” for the mock battle over the next two days. The location is less than 200 miles from the Chinese listening post in Coco Islands and touches the strategic Malacca Straits. But the US is quick to deny that this is an alliance to contain the military might of the Asian economic giant. “This has not been put together as a signal against anyone. It is meant to bring Naval professionals together to practise,” Vice Admiral William Crowder, Commander of the Seventh fleet, the largest forward deployed fleet of the US Navy, told reporters on board the super carrier. The war game is scheduled to culminate in a final mock battle involving all battleships over the weekend. The detailed scenario has not been revealed but is likely to be an intense air-dominated battle fought between two divided groups of the flotilla.However, USS Nimitz, which headed home today after reaching the end of its deployment period, will be  missed by the Indian fighters.

Sweden offers help

ZEENEWS (sept 04 07): Keen to cast off the ghost of the Bofors kickbacks scam, Sweden has proposed new avenues of defence cooperation to India, including joint development of jet fighters and submarines.  “The Swedish government is proposing to invest in Gripen fighters and is keen that India too take a investment stake in jointly developing these new generation fighters,” visiting Swedish Vice Minister for Defence H G Wessburg said.  Gripen is one of six jets vying for India`s biggest ever global tender worth over Rs 42,000 crore (10 billion dollars) for the purchase of 126 fighter aircraft. Gripen is made by Swedish major SAAB International, which recently made its first overseas sales of the jet to South Africa and some European nations.  “Stockholm`s offer is not related to the Indian Air Force`s request for proposals (RFP),” Wessburg said, affirming that Sweden wanted broad-based cooperation in defence research and development.

ISRO plans Rs 1600 cr navigation satellite constellation

REDIFF (sept 04 07): India plans to build a constellation of seven geostationary satellites at a cost of Rs 1,600 crore to meet the navigational system requirements in cars, trains and aircraft. “Design (of the satellites) is more or less complete. We are in the process of building the first proto model,” Secretary in the Department of Space G Madhavan Nair said. “First launch will take place around 2010. We should be able to complete all the satellites by 2012,” Nair, also the Chairman of Indian Space Research Organisation, told reporters on the sidelines of an international space meet. These seven geo-stationary satellites will cater to the navigational system requirements in cars, trains and aircraft, he said. “It can provide accurate timing signals all over the place,” and also find applications in surveying as well locating things in times of disaster. “If you want to have a global coverage, we have to have a constellation of nearly 24 satellites which has to be going around all over the world… 20,000 km above the earth; whereas we have evolved a unique concept by which if you put in geostationary orbit, it will be continuously visible from our region. We need only a minimum number of satellites. Seven satellites will do this job,” he said. The Bangalore-headquartered ISRO is in the process of establishing the Indian Regional Navigation System based on these seven proposed satellites over India. “For the constellation, we are going to spend around Rs 1,600 crore,” Nair said.

ISRO to lauch five in one year

HINDU (sept 03 07): The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) is gearing for five launches a year from its spaceport here, according to its Chairman, G. Madhavan Nair. Two more PSLV launches

There would be two more launches of the Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) this year, but the details of what satellite they would put in orbit were yet to be worked out, he said.

There would be another GSLV launch next year.

Big plans

 

Answering questions at a press conference here about ISRO’s plans to capture the international satellite-launch market, Mr. Nair said, “We want to capture five to 10 per cent of the market” (mid-range satellite segment of 2,000 kg and plus) in the next five years.

Enquiries received

 

K.R. Sridhara Murthi, Executive Director, Antrix Corporation Limited, said he had received many inquiries for launching satellites, particularly by the under-development GSLV-Mark III.

The vehicle can put into orbit satellites weighing more than 3.5 tonnes. Antrix Corporation is the marketing agency of the Department of Space.

Trying time

 

G. Ravindranath, Mission Director, who was modestly joyous over the mission’s success, said words failed him at the moment. The ISRO team had a trying time after the failure of the GSLV in July 2006, but they proved that they could bounce back.

N. Jayachandran Nair, Vehicle Director, and Prahlada Rao, Satellite Director, spoke about the efforts that went into the mission. While it normally took about 24 months to build an INSAT, INSAT-4CR was built in less than 12 months after the GSLV’s failure last year.

K.N. Shankara, Director, ISRO Satellite Centre, Bangalore, which built the satellite, said that the solar array of INSAT-4CR had been deployed.

B.N. Suresh, Director, Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre, Thiruvananthapuram, which built the GSLV-F04, said the launch reinforced ISRO’s confidence in the mastery of launch vehicle technology.

ADA plans supersonic fighter trainer

NEWINDPRESS (sept 2 07) The Aeronautics Development Agency (ADA) is looking at designing and developing a supersonic lead-in fighter trainer (LIFT), ADA Director, Dr P S Subramaiam, has said. During his presentation on “LCA (Tejas) development and way ahead” at a technical programme organised by the Aeronautical Society of India (AeSI) on Saturday, he said the supersonic LIFT would be developed on the basic platform of the LCA Tejas. The aim of the supersonic LIFT was to allow trainee fighter pilots a transition phase after training on the transonic advanced jet trainers, Hawks. “We are working on the configuration of this advanced fighter trainer,” he said without specifying any deadlines for the project, but added that the advantage was in already having the LCA components to further develop into the supersonic LIFT. He said two naval variants of the LCA would be complete by mid-2008 when one variant would be ready for test flights. Subrmaniam said the LCA prototype vehicle (PV)-5 would be the lead-in naval variant on which a system called the leading edge vortex controller (LEVCON) would be added to assist the aircraft in challenging conditions of landing on an aircraft carrier while on the move at full speed. “The next nine months will see extensive systems integration on the naval variant, before it is ready for test flights,” he said. He said six Tejas aircraft had logged 392.45 hrs in 742 flights and the project would gather momentum in the next few months to ensure that the initial operational clearance was obtained on time in 2008. On September 3 (Monday), the LCA is expected to take off with drop tanks as part of this speeded up programme. Subramaniam said ADA had also initiated work on its own on the medium combat aircraft (MCA), a programme for which the government has yet to accord sanction. He said scientists were aiming to integrate advanced technologies like stealth, artificial intelligence based controls, and advanced electro-optic sensors. Gas Turbine Research Establishment (GTRE) Director, T Mohana Rao, in his presentation said his scientists were struggling to reduce the weight of the Kaveri engine to 1,050 Kgs as required by ADA for the LCA Tejas. Rao said of the nine engine prototypes, the first three weighed 1,432 Kgs, the fourth to eighth weighed 1,235 Kgs while the ninth weighed 1.101.1 Kgs.

ISRO prepares for INSAT 4C launch

ZEENEWS (sept 2 07): Overcoming technical snags, India on Sunday successfully placed into orbit its latest communication satellite from the spaceport here, giving a major boost direct-to-home television services. In a textbook launch, the rocket GSLV-F04 carrying INSAT-4CR satellite blasted off at 6:21 pm from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre, two hours behind schedule after computers put off the launch following unsatisfactory performance of vent valve of the rocket.

The scientists took about one hour 40 minutes to set right the problem and the rocket was cleared for launch at around 6:00 pm.

The Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle-F04 placed the 2,130 kg satellite into a Geosynchronous transfer orbit (GTO) at an altitude of 248 Km about 17 minutes after the liftoff. The 49-metre tall launch vehicle, the fifth in the GSLV series, soared into the space carrying the 2130 kg (415 tonne) satellite which was maneuvered into the orbit using its own propulsion system. “It has been an excellent performance of the launch vehicle. There have been a number of critical moments on this happy occasion,” Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) Chief G Madhavan Nair told reporters here. After the launch, the aluminium alloy payload fairing,measuring 7.8 metres in length and 3.4 metres in diameter, was discarded after the vehicle reached an altitude of 115 km.For many scientists, the successful launch of GSLV-FO4,was an occasion to rejoice as they were witness to the abortive launch of the previous GSLV-F02 in July last year. INSAT-4CR is the third in the INSAT-4 series and follows the previous two successful launches in December 2005 and March 2007. The launch of the rocket today was first scheduled to take place at 4.21 pm but was postponed three seconds before the blast off due to “technical snag in parameters related to launch,” ISRO said. As media personnel waited with bated breath to watch the lift-off came the news that it had been deferred by 50 minutes. It was then announced that the blast-off would be scheduled for 5.20 pm and then later it was deferred to 6.10 pm and then to 6.20 pm . The INSAT 4C satellite is expected to boost DTH television services, Digital News Gathering Service (DNGS),VSAT and other high bit rate data transmission in the country,and has a mission life of ten years. It is powered by solar array providing 2870w, two 70 ampere-hour nickel-hydrogen batteries.

The naval version of the LCA to fly next year

ZEENEWS (sept 01 07): The naval version of the light combat aircraft is slated to fly by middle of next year, P S Subramanyam, Programme Director, Aeronautical Development Agency (ADA), Bangalore, said. Two prototypes have already been approved he said while speaking at the Aeronautical Society of India here today. The naval version would have a bigger cockpit and windscreen besides being capable of operating from an aircraft carrier, he said. Work was also on, on developing the concept of the Medium Combat Aircraft (MCA), a twin Engined aircraft, optimised for strike missions, he said. The project is still awaiting approval. But teams were working on bits and pieces on the technology of the airfcraft, he said. The design objective of the MCA, among others, would be stealth, thrust vectoring and supercruising. It would have some of the features of the LCA in addition to some critical advance technology. It was also working on the concept of supersonic lead in fight trainer, (Slift),a new trainer that will help prepare combat pilots much more effectively and at an affordable cost. Speaking on the occasion, T Mohan Rao, Director, Gas Turbine Research Establishment at Bangalore, outlined the ongoing work on the Kaveri engine that would power the LCA.

HAL seeks help from Israel

DOMAIN B (30 aug 27): Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) will provide a radar system for India’s new Light Combat Aircraft fighter jet ‘Tejas’. The deal may be worth hundreds of millions of dollars. India’s electronics industry has been unable to successfully build a radar system for the new jet, and recently IAI head Itzhak Nissan visited the country and reached an agreement with local authorities to co-develop the system with Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd (HAL). The IAI is also looking to get a share in an expected contract said to be worth over a billion dollars, to upgrade the Indian Air Force’s (IAF’s) 51 Mirage-2000 jets.