News Report: India Floats Biggest Tender for Procurement of 234 Naval Helicopters

In a procurement that could be one of the biggest additions to India’s naval warfare capabilities in recent times, the Indian Navy intends to purchase at least 123 naval multi role helicopters (NMRH) with anti-submarine capabilities and light utility twin engine helicopters for offshore and shore based operations.

New Delhi (Sputnik) — Hard pressed by operational inadequacies, the Indian Navy has made public its intentions to procure at least 234 aerial vehicles to serve in warships. A request for information (RFI) has been sought from six global manufacturers for an estimated deal of over $5 billion.

The Indian Navy has said 123 naval multi-role helicopters should have anti-submarine warfare capabilities. The requirement has been outlined keeping in mind the growing presence of foreign submarines in the Indian Ocean region. The Indian Navy has also floated tentative requirements for light utility twin engine helicopters weighing about 4.5 tons to be used in both shore-based and offshore operations.

The procurement would be executed under the newly approved strategic partnership (SP) model that seeks to identify an Indian private firm as a strategic partner who would tie up with a shortlisted foreign original equipment manufacturer (OEMs) to manufacture military platforms. The main criteria for the selection of OEMs would be the compatibility of their products with the Services Staff Qualitative Requirements (SQRs), and their commitment to provide technology and other assistance to enable their Indian partners to produce in India with maximum localization.

News Report: India’s Light Helicopters Take Maiden Flight, Commercial Production Soon

Close on the heels of the maiden flight of HTT-40 (PT-2), the second prototype of India’s indigenously built single-engine, three-ton light utility helicopter (LUH) made its maiden flight on Monday at its facility in Bengaluru. The flight was conducted without any snag in 22 minutes.

New Delhi (Sputnik) — LUH manufacturer Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd (HAL) has modified the second prototype based on feedback after testing the first prototype on September 6, 2016. Further expansion flights are in progress.

The helicopter has a maximum all-up-weight (AUW) of 3,150 kg, fitted with Safran HE Ardiden-1U engine of 750 KW power, with a range of 350 km and a seating capacity of six passengers plus two pilots. The helicopter will be capable of flying at 220 kmph, with a service ceiling of 6.5 km. The helicopter can operate from sea level to high altitudes of the Himalayas.

News Story: India, Russia close in on chopper deal - report

Kamov Ka-226T - NATO name: Hoodlum (Image: Wiki Commons)

Russia is close to finalising a deal to build helicopters in India, an executive said Tuesday, a move that would boost Narendra Modi's ambitions to manufacture defence hardware locally.

India is the world's top defence importer and is seeking to revamp its Soviet-era military equipment against an increasingly assertive China.

Prime Minister Modi has been encouraging foreign firms to work with local contractors under a "Make in India" campaign, to reduce India's reliance on costly imports.

Russia and India first flagged plans for a joint partnership to build Kamov helicopters -- a twin-engine chopper used for military and civilian purposes -- in 2015.

But India has increasingly turned to the United States and France, rather than traditional ally Russia, for its military hardware in recent years.

Two Russian firms -- Russian Helicopters and state-owned arms exporter Rosoboronexport -- are on the brink of finalising a joint venture with India's state-run Hindustan Aeronautics Limited, according to reports.

Viktor Kladov from Rostec, the parent company of Rosoboronexport, said the joint venture would be completed in "one to two months".

Read the full story at SpaceDaily

News Story: Russia Allows Companies to Work With India to Supply Weapon Spares

By: Vivek Raghuvanshi

NEW DELHI — Russia has agreed to allow its defense companies to forge direct ties with Indian defense companies — both public and private sector — to supply, service and jointly manufacture spares for use by Indian defense forces. 

So far, Rosoboronexport of Russia is the sole contractor for spares for a variety of Russian defense platforms and weapons in use by the Indian defense forces, which as been the case for the last five decades. 

India buys Russian spares at a cost of more than $2 billion annually for multiple weapons and platforms. 

Indian defense companies are not permitted to tie up directly with Russian manufacturing companies for the supply of additional spares, and subsystems and all contracts are routed through Rosoboronexport. 

"Supply of spares on time and on 'right price' has been the main problem with Russian systems, and overall problems of spares is critical," a top Indian Ministry of Defence (MoD) official said. 

The Indian Navy still continues to face problems in the procurment of critical spares parts for its Russian Kilo-class submarines, warships and aircraft carriers, missiles, electronic warfare control systems, radar communication tools, and navigation systems. 

Despite repeated requests, Russian Embassy officials were unavailable for comment. 

Read the full story at DefenseNews

News Story: India Inks $300M Helicopter Upgrade Deal With Russian Firm

Kamov KA-28 of the Indian Navy (Image: Wiki Commons)

Vivek Raghuvanshi

NEW DELHI — After nearly eight years of waiting, India has signed a $300 million contract with Rosoboronexport of Russia to upgrade 10 Russian-made submarine-hunting helicopters for the Indian Navy, said an Indian Ministry of Defence (MoD) official.

"All 10 copters will be modernized and upgraded and delivered at regular intervals over the coming five years," the official said of the Kamov-28 helicopters. India issued a request to upgrade the helicopters in 2008.

According to an Indian Navy official, the service is facing a shortage of anti-submarine warfare (ASW) helicopters and has been relying on Kamov-28s with 1980s-era technology. The other ASW helicopters with the Navy are 16 aging Sea King helicopters, which need urgent replacement, the official added.

Read the full story at DefenseNews

News Report: Russia to Make Indian Anti-Submarine Warfare Helicopters More Lethal

Image: Wiki Commons

Augusta Westland's involvement in corruption charges prompted India to swiftly ink a deal with Russian firm Rosoboronexport to carry out upgrades on the Kamov Ka28 PL without having to strike down Selex’s ATOS mission management system from the upgrade process.

India and Russia have inked a deal worth 310 million dollars to upgrade ten Kamov Ka28PL anti-submarine warfare helicopters for the Indian Navy. The signing of the agreement was a smooth affair as evident from its finalization within two months of clearance by India's Cabinet Committee on Security. The Defense Acquisition Council cleared the proposal in March this year. This is the first time a deal of this nature has been signed by India in such a swift manner. 

Upgrades of the Kamov 28 had been pending for the last eight years due to various reasons. However, sensing the Indian Navy's immediate necessity, especially for its frigates, destroyer and aircraft carrier INS Vikramaditya, Indian Defense Minister Manohar Parrikar intervened and signed the deal last Saturday. 

Editorial: Back From the Dead - India and Russia Revive Talks Over Fifth Generation Fighter Jet

By Franz-Stefan Gady

New Delhi and Moscow have restarted cost negotiations over the Sukhol/HAL Fifth Generation Fighter Aircraft.

A high level Russian delegation arrived in New Delhi this week to recommence negotiations over the much-delayed Sukhol/HAL Fifth Generation Fighter Aircraft (FGFA) project, or as it known in India, the Perspective Multi-role Fighter (PMF), the Times of India reports.

“We have got the clearance to restart the talks. Accordingly, a Russian team is here and cost negotiations began yesterday,” said a source within India’s Ministry of Defense.

The Russian delegation is also negotiating with state-run Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) over joint production of 200 Kamov 226T light transport helicopters under the “Make in India” initiative and estimated to be worth $1 billion.

During the annual India-Russia summit, which took place in late December 2015 in Moscow, Russian President Vladimir Putin and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi failed to resolve the impasse over the PMF project.

Read the full story at The Diplomat

Editorial: In Russia, Indian PM Looks to Close Major Defense Deals

Image: Flickr User - MEAphotogallery

By Ankit Panda

Narendra Modi’s state visit to Russia could result in a bevy of important defense deals.

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi arrived in Russia on Wednesday, where he will spend two days meeting with senior Russian officials, including Russian President Vladimir Putin. The visit will cover the gamut of the India-Russia bilateral relationship, touching on economic, defense, energy, and counter-terrorism. Notably, Modi is expected to confirm India’s sale of Russia’s advanced S-400 Triumf missile defense system. India will become the second buyer of the advanced platform after China. The visit marks Modi’s first state visit to Russia since becoming India’s prime minister in May 2014. Modi previously traveled to Russia for the Shanghai Cooperation Organization and BRICS Summits over the summer in Ufa. Last year, Putin traveled to India for a bilateral visit, signing billions in agreements on trade and nuclear cooperation.

The S-400 deal with Russia is significant in many ways. It will represent the largest Indian weapons deal with Russia since 2001, restoring Moscow’s position as India’s top arms provider—a position it had held since the days of the Soviet Union but has recently conceded to the United States. Additionally, as I noted in an earlier piece for The Diplomat, the S-400 is an eminently capable missile defense system, among the best in its class in the world. Adding the S-400 to India’s arsenal will bolster India’s ability to protect against ballistic missiles and bombers from hostile neighbors.

For Russia, India’s continued appetite for defense hardware is a welcome opportunity at a time when western sanctions and drooping oil prices have hurt the country’s economy. The Russians no doubt took note when, last year, during Putin’s state visit to New Delhi, Narendra Modi noted that “Russia will remain [India's] most important defense partner.” Echoing last year’s assurances, Modi assured Putin that Moscow would remain India’s “principal partner” in defense, Russian state news reported.

“Russia has been India’s foremost defence partner through decades, accounting for a majority of our defence equipment… Even in the current environment, despite India’s improved access to the world market, Russia remains our principal partner,” Modi told Itar-Tass.

Read the full story at The Diplomat

News Story: Indian Firms Set Teams for Helicopter Tender

By Vivek Raghuvanshi

NEW DELHI — In India's first helicopter competition reserved for domestic defense companies, teams have been established between top defense companies Larsen & Toubro with Airbus Helicopters and Tata Advanced Systems with Sikorsky Aircraft to produce a light utility helicopter (LUH).

Other corporate arrangements include Mahindra Defence Systems teaming up with Bell Helicopter and Punj Lloyd with Russian Helicopters. The domestic companies have to respond by Feb. 17 to a request for information (RFI) they received in October to provide the helicopters on a Buy and Make (India) basis in the $2.5 billion tender.

State-owned Hindustan Aeronautics also is negotiating a tie up with Russian Helicopters.

None of the overseas or domestic companies would discuss their partnerships.

A Ministry of Defence official said there is no certainty that the helicopters built by the domestic companies would be cheaper than importing them directly.

Read the full story at DefenseNews

News Story: India, Russia Take Small Steps on Fighter Deal

Sukhoi T-50 Pak Fa/FGFA Stealth Fighter

By VIVEK RAGHUVANSHI

NEW DELHI — India and Russia have agreed to settle their differences over the Fifth Generation Fighter Aircraft (FGFA) program, which the countries are co-producing. But a source in the Indian Defence Ministry said irritants remain following the summit-level talks here Dec. 11.

The issue came up during Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin, the source said, adding that a final agreement will likely emerge in the “near future.” During the summit talks, Putin offered light utility helicopters to be manufactured in India, the MoD official added.

“I am pleased that Russia has offered to fully manufacture in India one of its most advanced helicopters,” Modi said in an official statement. “It includes the possibility of exports from India. It can be used for both military and civilian use. We will follow up on this quickly.”

The MoD source said the Russians have offered to manufacture in India the Ka-226, a small twin-engine helicopter, designed by Kamov. India has an immediate requirement of 440 light utility helicopters needed to replace the aging Cheetah and Chetak helicopters.

Read the full story at DefenseNews

News Story: India Cancels Navy LUH Tender; Issues New Request

By VIVEK RAGHUVANSHI

NEW DELHI — India has canceled yet another light utility helicopter (LUH) global tender, this time for the Navy, which has rushed to float a new request for information to domestic companies for the troubled program, said a Defence Ministry source.

The request seeks to gauge company interest in manufacturing an unspecified number of LUHs in partnership with foreign firms.

The Ministry of Defence early this month canceled the Navy’s global tender issued in 2012 for the procurement of 56 LUHs. The Navy had hoped to induct the helicopters by 2016. The competitors, Airbus Helicopters and AgustaWestland, have been informed of MoD’s decision to cancel the tender, the source added.

No official from either AgustaWestland or Airbus Helicopters was available to comment on the cancellation.

Read the full story at DefenseNews

News Story: Indian Armed Forces plan to buy 440 new Light Utility Helicopters

The Indian armed forces have projected a combined requirement of 440 light utility helicopters which will now be manufactured indigenously involving the state-owned HAL and private sector firms in partnership with foreign players. 

The IAF, Army and the Navy require 440 choppers and these would be now manufactured within India including the HAL, private sector firms and foreign players, Defence Ministry officials said here.

The armed forces had projected their requirements to the Defence Ministry before the government scrapped a Rs 6,000 crore tender to procure 197 such helicopters for the Army and the Air Force, they said.

The Hindustan Aeronautics Limited has already started a project in Tumkur, Karnataka for building light helicopters, which will have capability to lift 2.5 tonnes payload.

Read the full story at Army Recognition

News Story: India Cancels $1 Billion Light Helicopter Tender

Eurocopter/Airbus Fennec AS550 (Image: Wiki Commons)

By VIVEK RAGHUVANSHI

NEW DELHI — India has canceled the purchase of 197 Light Utility Helicopters (LUH) worth $1 billion in which Airbus Helicopter’s AS550 was competing with Russia’s Ka-226T built by Kamov. The cancellation followed lengthy corruption investigations.

Cancellation of the LUH helicopter program, which was a re-tender from an earlier cancellation, would hamper Indian Army logistics operations in the Himalayas above 20,000 feet. The Army has been waiting eight years for new helicopters to replace aging Cheetah and Chetak platforms, said an Army official.

The Cheetah and Chetak helicopters, made by state-owned Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd. under license, are 40 years old and being flown beyond their age limitations, the Army official added.

The decision to cancel the LUH tender was made Friday by the Defense Acquisition Council, which is headed by the defense minister and is the highest Defence Ministry agency that makes decisions on weapon purchases.

Read the full story at DefenseNews

News Story: Fraud Charges May Scuttle Indian Helo

HAL Dhruv Helicopter (Wiki Info - Image: Wiki Commons)

By VIVEK RAGHUVANSHI

NEW DELHI — The Indian Ministry of Defence has ordered state-owned Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd. (HAL) to accelerate development of its indigenous Light Utility Helicopter (LUH) program because fraud charges may derail the procurement of 197 helos from overseas, said an MoD source.

While no decision has yet been taken on canceling the 2009 tender, in which Eurocopter (Now Airbus Helicopters) and Kamov of Russia are competing, the source said, India’s anti-fraud agency, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), formally leveled charges against a serving Indian Army officer for alleged involvement in manipulating the trial report of the LUH procurement. Charges were made last week.

The officer’s alleged involvement came to light last year when an investigating team traveled to Italy to probe alleged corrupt practices by AgustaWestland to win a contract to provide 12 AW101 helicopters. The team discovered a document in which the Indian Army officer had allegedly offered AgustaWestland to turn the LUH contract in their favor. However, AgustaWestland was eliminated in the first round of procurement in the technical evaluation stage.

Eurocopter and Kamov executives were unavailable for comments.

Read the full story at DefenseNews

Editorial: India’s Emerging Blue-Water Navy

By Nitin Gokhale

Delivery of a new aircraft carrier caps a mostly impressive year for the Indian Navy.

On November 16, the Indian Navy finally took delivery of aircraft carrier INS Vikramaditya, formerly theAdm. Gorshkov, at Sevmash Shipyard in northern Russia's Severodvinsk town. The acquisition marks a new phase in India’s quest to become a true blue-water navy.

The handover ceremony of the 44,570-tonne carrier is sure to have generated more than a passing interest within the PLA Navy and across the rest of the continent, since India will be the only country in Asia to have two aircraft carriers in its fleet. Admittedly, the 55-year old INS Viraat is “long in the tooth” as India's Navy Chief Admiral D. K. Joshi himself described it in a recent interview, but it will continue to operate until India's locally built carrier INS Vikrant becomes operational by 2017. 

At the moment, only the U.S. Navy brings that sort of capability to Asia. Although it is coming five years late – the original delivery was scheduled for 2008 – the Vikramaditya will give India the ability to project raw naval power in its “near abroad” as well as in its extended neighborhood. With a capacity to carry two dozen Mig-29 K fighter jets and 10 Kamov helicopters at any given time on board and fitted with the latest sensors and missiles, the brand-new aircraft carrier will boost the Indian Navy's firepower significantly. 

Read the full 2 page story at The Diplomat

News Story: INS Vikramaditya all set to join Indian Navy on Saturday

NEW DELHI (PTI): Defence Minister AK Antony will induct the long-delayed aircraft carrier INS Vikramaditya, designed to boost India's maritime capabilities, at a shipyard in Russia on Saturday.

Antony will leave for Russia on Friday with a high-level delegation, including Defence Secretary RK Mathur, on a four-day visit during which, apart from commissioning the aircraft carrier, he will also co-chair the India-Russia Inter -Governmental Commission on Military Technical Cooperation (IRIGC-MTC) with his Russian counterpart, Sergey Shoigu.

Contracted for in 2004, during the NDA regime, the vessel has been delayed by over five years and has seen several time and cost overruns in the last nine years.

"The commissioning ceremony will take place at Sevmash Shipyard, Severodvinsk, on Saturday and the IRIGC-MTC meeting will take place in Moscow on Monday," a Defence Ministry release said.

Read the full story at Brahmand

News Story: Indian Air Force Wants Light Utility Helicopter Purchase Sped Up

By VIVEK RAGHUVANSHI

NEW DELHI — The Indian Air Force (IAF) has asked the Ministry of Defense (MOD) to speed up procurement of light utility helicopters. The request comes in the wake of a deadly crash of a newly acquired Russian-made Mi-17during a June 25 rescue mission in a region of the Himalayas that has been devastated by floods.

The request for accelerating the procurement of light utility helicopters (LUH) has been conveyed to the MOD, said sources in the IAF.

The IAF has been demanding replacement of its aging Cheetah and Chetak helicopters, which are mostly used for logistics in the upper reaches of northern India.

The $900 million LUH tender issued in 2009 — in which Kamov of Russia and Eurocopter of France are competing — remains undecided by MOD, which has given no reasons for the delay.

Read the full story at DefenseNews

News Story: Vendors asked to extend validity of bids for 197 choppers

NEW DELHI (PTI): Amid allegations of bribery attempt in the 197 chopper deal, India has asked the two vendors in the race to extend the validity of their commercial bids till the end of this year, making it clear that the procurement is in for further delay.

The validity of the commercial bids of the two firms -- European Eurocopter and Russian Kamov -- is expiring by the end of this month.

The Director General (Acquisition) in the Defence Ministry has asked the Eurocopter and Kamov to extend the validity of their bids up to December, defence sources told PTI here.

The development makes it clear that the procurement of the light helicopters for the Army and Air Force, which has already been in pipeline for over three years, is in for further delay.

The move comes against the backdrop of the Army asking the Defence Ministry to conduct a probe into allegations that a Brigadier, who was in-charge of the trial team for 197 light choppers, demanded a Rs 25 crore bribe from AgustaWestland to swing the deal in its favour.

AgustaWestland, an Anglo-Italian company, was one of the contenders in the deal for 197 helicopters but lost out in the race during trials.

Read the full story at Brahmand

News Story: Scandal Further Complicates Italy’s VVIP Helo Tender

By Vivek Raghuvanshi

NEW DELHI — AgustaWestland’s VVIP helicopter scandal has hit India’s long-pending tender to buy 197 Light Utility Helicopters (LUH).

The Defence Acquisition Council at its April 2 meeting failed to decide on the fate of the LUH buy and instead was apprised of the probe initiated by the Indian Army into the role of a serving brigadier who allegedly sought kickbacks to swing the LUH helicopter deal in 2009.

Documents seized by Italian authorities while probing Finmeccanica point to the brigadier’s offer to swing the deal, said a source in the Indian Ministry of Defence. No evidence has so far been found against the brigadier, who was overseeing the flight trials of the LUH in 2010.

The $1 billion LUH tender, in which Kamov of Russia and Eurocopter are competing, could face cancellation for the second time in six years, added the source, because of the latest controversy.

Read the full story at DefenseNews

News Story: Indian Navy To Be Without Carrier Until December

INS Vikramaditya (File Photo)

By Vivek Raghuvanshi

NEW DELHI — India will be without an operational aircraft carrier at least until December as it awaits the delayed delivery of the Russian-made carrier Admiral Gorshkov, and the Navy’s sole carrier, INS Viraat, is still undergoing refit.

Viraat is doing trials after a refit at the state-owned Cochin Shipyard, after which the carrier will be docked at the naval dockyard for repairs to propulsion, boilers and air conditioning systems. Indian Navy sources say the Viraat refit could take another year.

The refit aims to put Viraat into operation for another three to four years by which time the Gorshkov, renamed by India as the Vikramaditya, and the state-owned Indigenous Aircraft Carrier, would be in operation.

Read the full story at DefenseNews