AMCA - Advanced Medium Combat Aircraft (HAL)

lover

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How is the progress of the Light Combat Aircraft and AMCA projects?

An advanced version, the LCA MK II, is the next aero platform. LCA MK II configuration is frozen and qualitative requirements are finalised. It is our endeavor to develop the fifth-generation advanced multi-role combat aircraft (AMCA) as per the project schedule to meet the Air Force’s requirements. We should be in a position to roll out the first AMCA within five years of project approval. We are not comparing AMCA with other aircraft, but are trying to meet the specifications given to us by IAF.
https://economictimes.indiatimes.co...armaments-drdo-chief/articleshow/72101751.cms
 

Prashant12

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Advanced Medium Combat Aircraft (AMCA): Gen-5 fighter on track, plan to fly by 2025


With the Indian Air Force (IAF) already operating the Tejas Mark 1 fighter, the Aeronautical Development Agency (ADA) developing the Tejas Mark 2 and Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd (HAL) building the interim Tejas Mark 1A, there have been important breakthroughs in India’s most ambitious fighter programme: the futuristic Advanced Medium Combat Aircraft (AMCA).

Girish Deodhare, who heads ADA, the Defence R&D Organisation (DRDO) agency that oversees the Tejas and AMCA programmes, briefed Business Standard on the capabilities and development of the AMCA – a stealthy, fifth-generation (5-gen), medium weight fighter that is slated to be a match for any adversary in the skies.

“After eight years of design work, we have completed the stealth shaping of the AMCA. We are now building a full scale model of the fighter, in order to measure its ‘radar cross section’ (a measure of an object’s visibility to radar),” said Deodhare.

The ADA chief said the AMCA’s design is now mature and its internal systems are laid out. That clears the way for its detailed design, followed by metal cutting – the symbolic start of constructing a flying prototype.

“The AMCA’s first flight is targeted for 2024-25,” said Deodhare. “We plan to build five prototypes for a flight-testing programme that would take about four years. By 2028-29, we plan to begin series manufacture.

A 5-gen fighter is characterised by four advanced capabilities. It is stealthy, or near-invisible to enemy radar; it can ‘supercruise’, or fly faster than the speed of sound without engaging its engines’ fuel-guzzling afterburners; it has advanced avionics and sensors with network centric operations, coupled with artificial intelligence, to enhance the pilot-aircraft interface, allowing a single pilot to fly and fight the aircraft; and it can detect and engage targets from long distances, outranging its adversaries.

Stealth fighters are most crucial in the opening stages of a war, when they take advantage of their invisibility to enter enemy airspace and strike enemy radars, air bases and control centres. With air superiority thus obtained, “non-stealthy” fighters like the Sukhoi-30MKI can fly into enemy airspace, without incurring heavy casualties, to strike targets like roads, railways, airfields, depots and ground forces.

To achieve stealth, a 5-gen fighter is shaped to scatter radar waves, rather than reflect them back. Special materials and paints further reduce radar reflectivity. In stealth mode, a 5-gen fighter conceals its fuel and weapons in an internal bay, since carrying them under its wings, as conventional fighters do, creates protrusions that reflect radar waves and compromise stealth.

Deodhare said that while AMCA would be a 25-tonne fighter, it would have an “all-up-weight” (AUP) of just 20 tonnes in stealth mode, when it would carry just one-and-a-half tonnes of weaponry concealed in internal weapon bays. In “non-stealth mode”, another five tonnes of weaponry or fuel could be carried on external stations, under its wings.

The AMCA would be able to carry up to 6.5 tonnes of fuel in internal tanks. While its operating radius remains secret, a back-of-the-envelope calculation indicates it can easily strike targets 1,000 kilometres away and return to base.

In “non-stealth” mode, it can carry an additional 1,200-1,300 litres in its internal bays, with its weapons load mounted on external, under-wing stations, thus operating as a potent long-range bomber.

A key challenge in the AMCA programme is to develop a new engine, powerful enough to permit super-cruising. For now, AMCA designers are working with twin General Electric (GE) F-414 engines – which is also being used, in a single- engine configuration, to power the Tejas Mark 2.

However, this engine is not powerful enough for super-cruising in all configurations. “Each F-414 engine generates a maximum thrust of 98 KiloNewtons (KN), and in Indian climatic conditions that effectively reduces to 90 KN. We have calculated that an AMCA, with the configuration the IAF has specified, requires a thrust of about 220 KN (in Indian conditions) for super-cruising. That means we need twin engines, each generating 110 KN thrust in Indian conditions,” says Deodhare.

A clutch of DRDO laboratories, led by the Gas Turbine Research Establishment (GTRE), Bengaluru, is working to develop the AMCA engine. With the Kaveri engine, GTRE had managed to generate a maximum thrust of 83 KN. Now the target is 50 per cent higher.

Former Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar had estimated the AMCA’s development cost at about $4 billion – a major share of which would go into the engine. In 2015, India harnessed American expertise by setting up a “joint working group” (JWG) to co-develop jet engine technology. But on October 24, US Under Secretary of Defence Ellen Lord revealed the JWG had been scrapped since US export control laws safeguarded the technology that the DRDO wanted.

There is also an expectation, so far unrealised, that French engine maker, Safran, could assist with developing a suitable jet engine, as a part of its offset obligations relating to the purchase of 36 Rafale fighters.

A key decision in designing the AMCA relates to the trade-off between stealth and manoeuvrability. “As other stealth fighter designers have discovered earlier, the edge matching of surfaces and incorporation of an internal weapons bay that characterises stealth design also compromise the fighter’s aerodynamics, inhibiting its manoeuvrability. The IAF understands that, and has been sitting at the table with ADA in order to arrive at a mutually acceptable blend of performance and stealth,” says Deodhare.

Facilitating this cooperation is the IAF’s new leadership, headed by Air Chief Marshal RKS Bhadauria, which includes several officers who have been test pilots for the Tejas programme, and have an in-depth knowledge of the issues.

ADA officials point out that, having already mastered a range of aerospace technologies in the Tejas programme, the AMCA team is free to focus tightly on the Gen-5 challenges.

The technologies yielded by the Tejas programme include: “unstable aerodynamic design” for extra agility; complex control laws and a quadruplex digital flight control system; light composite materials for aero-structures; a glass cockpit with digital instrumentation; an environment control system with an on-board oxygen generating system (OBOGS); and advanced avionics that help the pilot switch quickly between air-to-air and air-to-ground roles.


Also mastered is the ability to do flight testing of fighter aircraft rapidly, without compromising safety. This experience will help in bringing the AMCA from design to induction without delay.
 

Prashant12

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IAF to add clause on local engines for AMCA fighters


NEW DELHI: The air force is likely to insist on a clause for development of an indigenous aero engine when it clears a multi-billion dollar programme to go ahead with the next generation Advanced Multirole Combat Aircraft (AMCA) by the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO).

The fighters – expected to take to the skies by 2026 as per current projects – are being planned to substitute costly imports of combat aircraft in the future, with the air force keen that a home grown engine be developed for true self dependence.

Sources said that while the first two squadrons of the AMCA will be powered by a variant of American origin GE 414 engine, the project will be clearing in the coming months on the condition that a parallel process be initiated by DRDO to develop a aero engine plant with foreign collaboration. “A clear path towards developing our own aero engine is essential and should be done along the AMCA programme which is being supported. If needed, foreign collaboration from western nations that have advanced technologies can be sought,” senior officials told ET.

The assessment within the Indian establishment is that engine technologies needed for future aircraft are available with nations like France, UK and the US while traditional ally Russia has lagged behind in the field. The Indian side is also keen not to repeat a deficiency in the Chinese weapons development programme where the lack of a reliable aero engine programme is seen as an impediment.

As reported by ET, the DRDO has carried out preliminary designs for the AMCA and is confident that it will be in a position to roll out the first test fighter within five years of the project receiving the next stage of financial sanction that is pegged around $ 1billion. The air force has put its weight behind the project as well, along with the Light Combat Aircraft. In comments preceding the air force day, Air Chief Marshal RKS Bhadauria had said that “on the fifth generation (requirement), the AMCA has been given a go ahead and we have given it our whole support and are putting in our energies there” and that no imports were planned in the foreseeable future.

Plans to develop the indigenous Kaveri fighter jet engine as part of the Rafale offsets deal have not taken off, even though presentations have been made by the French side on creating an aircraft engine ecosystem in India. Similarly, a plan to share jet engine technology under the US-India Defense Technology and Trade Initiative (DTTI) has been suspended last year after little progress was made by the two sides after detailed discussions.

https://economictimes.indiatimes.co...es-for-amca-fighters/articleshow/73162616.cms
 

brational

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It is not What I like. It is like IAF delaying AMCA programme by including Indian Engine Clause. IAF will go for Fancy 5G aircraft Import Like FGFA/F35 etc.
 

Defcon 1

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It is not What I like. It is like IAF delaying AMCA programme by including Indian Engine Clause. IAF will go for Fancy 5G aircraft Import Like FGFA/F35 etc.
On the contrary, IAF has already said that they are ok with first two squadrons of AMCA to come with GE F414 so that DRDO can get additional time for engine development.
 

Aniruddha Mulay

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On the contrary, IAF has already said that they are ok with first two squadrons of AMCA to come with GE F414 so that DRDO can get additional time for engine development.
As an emergency purchase 36-54 Su-57 might be procured if indigenous engine development is delayed.
 

vampyrbladez

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As an emergency purchase 36-54 Su-57 might be procured if indigenous engine development is delayed.
This seems very likely. Russia will need some bone thrown at them. Su 57 with full avionics, radar and engine upgrades along with refinements in stealth is what may be procured around 2026-27.

I expect FGFA (Su 57 MKI) numbers of around 125 - 144.
 

fire starter

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HAL AMCA’s future sixth generation capabilities. Defence Applications of Hyperspectral Imaging Technol
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ogy.

Hyperspectral Imaging is a next-generation imaging technology which enables vision beyond visible spectrum. The human eye sees color of visible light in mostly three bands (long wavelengths - perceived as red, medium wavelengths - perceived as green, and short wavelengths - perceived as blue), spectral imaging divides the spectrum into many more bands. This technique of dividing images into bands can be extended beyond the visible.

The goal of hyperspectral imaging is to obtain the spectrum for each pixel in the image of a scene, with the purpose of finding objects, identifying materials, or detecting processes. Recently Hyperspectral Imaging is being exploited for defence applications, as different materials can be identified then, algorithms could be set to identify materials used in missiles, military aircrafts their signatures etc. Military researchers have started to analyze the operational utility of hyperspectral imaging for detection, recognition and identification of targets, including low-signature targets. Large ‘spectral signature liabraries’ are being created to enable Hyperspectral Imaging sensors to quickly identify the enemy's weaponry, it's type and even potential from a considerable distance. The methodology can detect objects as small as IEDs and Land Mines and can differentiate materials of detected object even from normal glass to armoured glass.

You must have heard about detection techniques of 5th generation fighters including the F-35’s DAS and EOTS which provides Infrared and Thermal detection and targeting of enemy assets. Well the Hyperspectral Imaging is a tech meant to be more advanced than these 5th generation techs.

On 29th November 2018 India launched HySIS satellite, it's first Hyperspectral Imaging Satellite. In future their will be multiple Hyperspectral imaging satellites constantly doing surveillance activity over enemy territory. India's HAL AMCA will be highly networked fighter aircraft. Currently Indian Air Force uses ODL as a data link connecting it's assets to seamlessly share data within each other.

In future HAL AMCA on a mission would be able to recieve ‘live’ hyperspectral imagery about it's target, enemy's defensive weapons, their type and their current state as being hot or cold. The AMCA will be equipped with better situational awareness tools than the current 5th generation fighters like F-35. The HAL AMCA along with capability to recieve Hyperspectral Images and use them for targeting will have many sixth generation fighter features inside it. India has already made massive investments in Hyperspectral Imaging and already have an operational satellite based on this technology.

For more info in India's Hyperspectral Imaging Capabilities

https://mark20x.blogspot.com/2018/11/isros-hyperspectral-imaging-satellite.html?m=1

For more info on Hperspectral Imaging defence applications please watch this video.

https://www.headwallphotonics.com/government-military
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