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Do you know that the Imperial Iranian Air force was stated to become the first middel eastern operator of F16
discription courtesy http://www.f-16.net/f-16_users_article28
Imported Single Engine Fighter Jet Contest
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Adnan Jumean
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but that was back in 1970s....................
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I know was just sharing a intresting tid bit of info
WolfPack86
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IDN TAKE: Why The F-16 Deal Is Critical For India
Americans believe that India remains the only major F-16 prospect customer. Per reports in the media, two top Senators have urged the Trump administration to push for the sale of F-16 fighter jets to India to build its capability to counter security threats and balance China’s growing military power in the Pacific.
Senators Mark Warner from Virginia and John Cornyn from Texas in a joint letter to US Defense Secretary James Mattis and Secretary of State Rex Tillerson said, the present administration must make the fighter jet acquisition a priority during initial bilateral discussions with India. India has launched an effort to expand its combat aircraft fleet and the competition has reportedly narrowed down to Lockheed’s F-16 and SAAB’s Gripen.
Mark Warner, who is a Democrat and John Cornyn from the Republican Party are the co-chairs of the influential Senate India caucus, the only country specific caucus in the US Senate.
A primary factor in India’s decision will be compliance with Prime Minister Modi’s ‘Make in India’ initiative, which will require establishing some level of local production capacity. Given the strategic significance of India selecting a US aircraft as the mainstay for its future Air Force and the potential for a decision this year, they asked the Trump administration to make the fighter acquisition a priority during bilateral discussions.
The senators urged to weigh in forcefully with the White House on the strategic significance of this deal, both to America’s defense industrial base and to its growing security partnership with India. This comes as a strong case to represent a historic win for America that will deepen the U.S.-India strategic defense relationship and cement cooperation between the two countries for decades to come.
Balance of Power
It is obvious that America wants to increase interoperability with India who would remain a key partner and dominant power in South Asia, at the same time building India’s capability to counter threat from the north, and balance China’s growing military capability in the Pacific along with key regional allies Australia & Japan.
The counter balance the U.S. lawmakers perceived was that India would increasingly serve as an integral partner in the U.S. security architecture in the volatile South Asian region, helping to protect the joint interests and deter common threats, and also emerge as a critical trading partner to counter the Chinese growing economic strength. Therefore, for managing China's growing military and economic capability and the threat it poses to India's territorial integrity as well as its influence in the Asia-Pacific, external balancing may be the only resort available for India.
Economic Warfare
It is interesting to note that Apple after so many years of abstinence has decided to set up a manufacturing base in India, the company has planned to commence initial manufacturing operations in June at Bangalore this year. This will foster cutting edge technology ecosystem and supply chain development in Karnataka, which are critical for India to compete globally. Apple uses a fairly complex supply chain. The parts for the iPhone, iPad, iPod and Mac are manufactured, mostly by third parties, across 28 countries. It has 766 suppliers, of which 346 are based in China, 126 in Japan, and 69 in the US. There is one in India, a unit of Flextronics (an American multinational technological manufacturer which is the second largest global electronics manufacturing services company) in Tamil Nadu state.
India will be only the third country globally to assemble iPhones, an indication of how important the country has become for one of the world's most valued companies.
The key takeaway from this development would be for PM Modi and President Trump to device a strategic process to wean away key manufacturing units from China back over to India. Other major industrial nations would automatically follow suit once the Americans starts abandoning China, but it would need some deft diplomatic & political maneuvers on the part of both the countries to achieve this far reaching objective.
The key strategy for both India and America therefore should be to weaken China's manufacturing base which has since become an engine of diplomatic, political and economic clout globally for China, leading to its belligerence against various regional pockets across Asia and has even taken cudgels against the United States.
It is in our national interest to work with America to progress democratic principles through regional security partnership and burden sharing, To this end, the Indian government must support the co-production of the F-16 aircraft in India and aid a key critical security requirement with a proven American product. This would be the stepping stone to further this important strategic process on the economic front.
Parting Notes
Many strategic thinkers see the rise of India as a natural balancer to China as beneficial to the United States. A tightening of relations with India is something that was already accelerating under Barack Obama, whose administration saw the world's biggest democracy as a counterbalance to China's rising power. Trump may take the relationship further. For years India has been living in the shadow of China as the second-best emerging market for investors.
Sasha Riser-Kositsky, Asia analyst at consulting firm Eurasia Group said "Over roughly the last 10 years, U.S. policy has broadly followed this logic, helping strengthen ties with India and offering unprecedented cooperation in terms of civilian nuclear power and co-development and co-production of defense technologies while asking relatively little in exchange."
The primary aim should be to solidify and strengthen the significant gains made in the bilateral U.S.-India defense relationship over the two previous administrations. The United States, India and China are all important players in Asia. The two countries must unite and make a strategic push to exclude China. Compatibility between the two biggest democracies is in the interests of the two countries as well as peace and prosperity in the region.
http://www.indiandefensenews.in/2017/03/idn-take-why-f-16-deal-is-critical-for.html
Americans believe that India remains the only major F-16 prospect customer. Per reports in the media, two top Senators have urged the Trump administration to push for the sale of F-16 fighter jets to India to build its capability to counter security threats and balance China’s growing military power in the Pacific.
Senators Mark Warner from Virginia and John Cornyn from Texas in a joint letter to US Defense Secretary James Mattis and Secretary of State Rex Tillerson said, the present administration must make the fighter jet acquisition a priority during initial bilateral discussions with India. India has launched an effort to expand its combat aircraft fleet and the competition has reportedly narrowed down to Lockheed’s F-16 and SAAB’s Gripen.
Mark Warner, who is a Democrat and John Cornyn from the Republican Party are the co-chairs of the influential Senate India caucus, the only country specific caucus in the US Senate.
A primary factor in India’s decision will be compliance with Prime Minister Modi’s ‘Make in India’ initiative, which will require establishing some level of local production capacity. Given the strategic significance of India selecting a US aircraft as the mainstay for its future Air Force and the potential for a decision this year, they asked the Trump administration to make the fighter acquisition a priority during bilateral discussions.
The senators urged to weigh in forcefully with the White House on the strategic significance of this deal, both to America’s defense industrial base and to its growing security partnership with India. This comes as a strong case to represent a historic win for America that will deepen the U.S.-India strategic defense relationship and cement cooperation between the two countries for decades to come.
Balance of Power
It is obvious that America wants to increase interoperability with India who would remain a key partner and dominant power in South Asia, at the same time building India’s capability to counter threat from the north, and balance China’s growing military capability in the Pacific along with key regional allies Australia & Japan.
The counter balance the U.S. lawmakers perceived was that India would increasingly serve as an integral partner in the U.S. security architecture in the volatile South Asian region, helping to protect the joint interests and deter common threats, and also emerge as a critical trading partner to counter the Chinese growing economic strength. Therefore, for managing China's growing military and economic capability and the threat it poses to India's territorial integrity as well as its influence in the Asia-Pacific, external balancing may be the only resort available for India.
Economic Warfare
It is interesting to note that Apple after so many years of abstinence has decided to set up a manufacturing base in India, the company has planned to commence initial manufacturing operations in June at Bangalore this year. This will foster cutting edge technology ecosystem and supply chain development in Karnataka, which are critical for India to compete globally. Apple uses a fairly complex supply chain. The parts for the iPhone, iPad, iPod and Mac are manufactured, mostly by third parties, across 28 countries. It has 766 suppliers, of which 346 are based in China, 126 in Japan, and 69 in the US. There is one in India, a unit of Flextronics (an American multinational technological manufacturer which is the second largest global electronics manufacturing services company) in Tamil Nadu state.
India will be only the third country globally to assemble iPhones, an indication of how important the country has become for one of the world's most valued companies.
The key takeaway from this development would be for PM Modi and President Trump to device a strategic process to wean away key manufacturing units from China back over to India. Other major industrial nations would automatically follow suit once the Americans starts abandoning China, but it would need some deft diplomatic & political maneuvers on the part of both the countries to achieve this far reaching objective.
The key strategy for both India and America therefore should be to weaken China's manufacturing base which has since become an engine of diplomatic, political and economic clout globally for China, leading to its belligerence against various regional pockets across Asia and has even taken cudgels against the United States.
It is in our national interest to work with America to progress democratic principles through regional security partnership and burden sharing, To this end, the Indian government must support the co-production of the F-16 aircraft in India and aid a key critical security requirement with a proven American product. This would be the stepping stone to further this important strategic process on the economic front.
Parting Notes
Many strategic thinkers see the rise of India as a natural balancer to China as beneficial to the United States. A tightening of relations with India is something that was already accelerating under Barack Obama, whose administration saw the world's biggest democracy as a counterbalance to China's rising power. Trump may take the relationship further. For years India has been living in the shadow of China as the second-best emerging market for investors.
Sasha Riser-Kositsky, Asia analyst at consulting firm Eurasia Group said "Over roughly the last 10 years, U.S. policy has broadly followed this logic, helping strengthen ties with India and offering unprecedented cooperation in terms of civilian nuclear power and co-development and co-production of defense technologies while asking relatively little in exchange."
The primary aim should be to solidify and strengthen the significant gains made in the bilateral U.S.-India defense relationship over the two previous administrations. The United States, India and China are all important players in Asia. The two countries must unite and make a strategic push to exclude China. Compatibility between the two biggest democracies is in the interests of the two countries as well as peace and prosperity in the region.
http://www.indiandefensenews.in/2017/03/idn-take-why-f-16-deal-is-critical-for.html
WolfPack86
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#Trump lifts #HumanRights embargo to allow sale of #F16 jets to #Bahrain
https://twitter.com/hashtag/f16
https://twitter.com/hashtag/f16
WolfPack86
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Trump Lifts Human Rights Embargo to Allow Sale of F-16s to Bahrain
US President Donald Trump has overridden a condition put in place by the Obama administration that Bahrain end state-sponsored human rights abuses in order to receive 19 F-16 fighter jets, Defense News reports.
The Obama White House had made the transfer of the F-16s “contingent on human rights improvements in the country,” the Congressional Research Service (CRS) notes.
The current administration, however, told Congress to move forward with the deal, which is likely to take place, though the deal has yet to be completely finalized.
The decision to allow the sale may be “part of [the Trump administration’s] articulated policy to counter Iran’s regional influence,” CRS added.
Bahrain has been an active participant in the Saudi-led coalition against Houthi rebels in Yemen, a situation that’s deteriorating into a more severe humanitarian crisis by the day. Further, the monarchy has been called a dictatorship by human rights groups for marginalizing the Shia population in Bahrain.
According to Human Rights Watch, Bahrain routinely tortures prisoners, silences political opponents via legislation and “arbitrarily strips rights activists and political dissidents of their citizenship,” the group said in its 2016 report on Bahrain.
What’s more, Reporters Without Borders, the Index on Censorship and the Bahrain Institute for Rights and Democracy signed a document penned by the foreign secretary of the UK blasting Bahrain’s refusal to allow a free press in the country, the Guardian reported in August 2016.
Bahrain has also deployed sorties to conduct airstrikes against Daesh in Syria, “but not in Iraq,” the CRS wrote.
Bloomberg estimates the US deal could be worth between $2.7 and $4 billion, depending on whether the package includes supplies to upgrade Bahrain’s current F-16s.
On Thursday, US Army Gen. Joseph Votel told the House Armed Services Committee that human rights concerns have been a source of tension between Bahrain and the US in the past, impeding lucrative arms deals.
“Slow progress on key [foreign military sales, or FMS] cases, specifically additional F-16 aircraft and upgrades to Bahrain’s existing F-16 fleet, due to concerns of potential human rights abuses in the country, continues to strain our relationship,” Votel said.
https://sputniknews.com/military/201703301052139243-trump-lifts-embargo-f16-bahrain/
US President Donald Trump has overridden a condition put in place by the Obama administration that Bahrain end state-sponsored human rights abuses in order to receive 19 F-16 fighter jets, Defense News reports.
The Obama White House had made the transfer of the F-16s “contingent on human rights improvements in the country,” the Congressional Research Service (CRS) notes.
The current administration, however, told Congress to move forward with the deal, which is likely to take place, though the deal has yet to be completely finalized.
The decision to allow the sale may be “part of [the Trump administration’s] articulated policy to counter Iran’s regional influence,” CRS added.
Bahrain has been an active participant in the Saudi-led coalition against Houthi rebels in Yemen, a situation that’s deteriorating into a more severe humanitarian crisis by the day. Further, the monarchy has been called a dictatorship by human rights groups for marginalizing the Shia population in Bahrain.
According to Human Rights Watch, Bahrain routinely tortures prisoners, silences political opponents via legislation and “arbitrarily strips rights activists and political dissidents of their citizenship,” the group said in its 2016 report on Bahrain.
What’s more, Reporters Without Borders, the Index on Censorship and the Bahrain Institute for Rights and Democracy signed a document penned by the foreign secretary of the UK blasting Bahrain’s refusal to allow a free press in the country, the Guardian reported in August 2016.
Bahrain has also deployed sorties to conduct airstrikes against Daesh in Syria, “but not in Iraq,” the CRS wrote.
Bloomberg estimates the US deal could be worth between $2.7 and $4 billion, depending on whether the package includes supplies to upgrade Bahrain’s current F-16s.
On Thursday, US Army Gen. Joseph Votel told the House Armed Services Committee that human rights concerns have been a source of tension between Bahrain and the US in the past, impeding lucrative arms deals.
“Slow progress on key [foreign military sales, or FMS] cases, specifically additional F-16 aircraft and upgrades to Bahrain’s existing F-16 fleet, due to concerns of potential human rights abuses in the country, continues to strain our relationship,” Votel said.
https://sputniknews.com/military/201703301052139243-trump-lifts-embargo-f16-bahrain/
WolfPack86
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#Gripen E to gain enhanced anti-ship missile https://www.flightglobal.com/news/articles/gripen-e-to-gain-enhanced-anti-ship-missile-435772/… Rb 15 F-ER (extended range) #military #svfm
https://twitter.com/hashtag/gripen
WolfPack86
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Algerian Air Force order 16 Gripen E and a option on 16 more.
https://twitter.com/hashtag/gripen
https://twitter.com/hashtag/gripen
WolfPack86
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Crucial Defence Ministry Meeting Today To Look At Strategic Partner Policy
Maitri missile project - next-generation quick-reaction surface-to-air missile (QRSAM) with a lethal near-hundred per cent kill probability
Defence Minister Arun Jaitley is to chair a Defence Acquisition Council meeting today which will, among others, smoothen the acquisition of the S-400 long range missiles, clear an AEW&C system for the IAF and fast track the purchase of anti-tank missiles for the Army's Rudra helicopters.
This is Jaitley's first DAC meeting as defence minister since he took over additional charge of the ministry on March 13. The DAC which is the MoD's principal body to clear capital acquisitions, is expected to remove the offset clause in the Request for Proposals of five S-400 'Triumf' long range missiles to be acquired from Russia for over $5 billion.
Highlights
1 DAC meeting to smoothen acquisition of the S-400 long range missiles.
2 Fast track the purchase of anti-tank missiles for the Army's Rudra helicopters.
3 Another agenda is a Rs 1900 cr purchase of additional DRDO-AEW&C aircraft.
An intergovernmental agreement (IGA) on the sale of the S-400 was signed last October between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the 17th India-Russia summit in Goa. Russia insisted on waiving the offset clause that mandates a reinvestment of 30 per cent by the country in Indian aerospace and defence sectors, to speed up deliveries of the missile system. A DAC waiver on the mandatory offset clause will mean the S-400 deal can be signed with Russia sometime this year.
'MAITRI' FOR ALL THREE SERVICES
The DAC is also expected to take a call on the scrapping of the Short Range-Surface to air missile (SR-SAM) project for the Indian Navy. The project 'Maitri', being jointly developed by France's MBDA in collaboration with the DRDO, is meant for all three services. The Navy is believed to be pursuing an alternate replacement for the Israeli 'Barak' short range missiles currently installed to protect principal surface combatants from enemy missiles.
Another item on the DAC agenda is a Rs 1900 crore purchase of an additional DRDO-Airborne Early Warning and Control Systems (AEW&C) aircraft based on the Embraer 145 jet. The first DRDO-developed radar fitted on the Embraer and dubbed the 'Netra' was handed over to the IAF at Aero India 2017 on February 15. A second 'Netra' is to be delivered later this year.
MORE ON AGENDA
Also on the DAC agenda is the purchase of 124 Anti Tank Guided Missiles (ATGMs) launchers and 1326 missiles for Rs 724 crore for the indigenously-built Rudra helicopters. The Army has ordered 60 ALH Rudra Mark-IV armed helicopters a few years ago but they currently do not have an ATGM because the indigenous Helina (Helicopter launched Nag) missile is yet to enter service.
The 124 ATGMs are expected to fulfill a critical void in the Army's fleet of 60 Rudra gunships which are on order.
Two ATGMs, MBDA's PARS-3 and Rafael's Spike ATGM have been short-listed. These will be fast-tracked without the initial trials that will be done post the contract. The contract is expected to entail re-configuration by the manufacturer- the world over ATGMs are usually in a quad pack but the Rudra has only a two-tube launcher.
http://www.indiandefensenews.in/2017/04/crucial-defence-ministry-meeting-today.html
Maitri missile project - next-generation quick-reaction surface-to-air missile (QRSAM) with a lethal near-hundred per cent kill probability
Defence Minister Arun Jaitley is to chair a Defence Acquisition Council meeting today which will, among others, smoothen the acquisition of the S-400 long range missiles, clear an AEW&C system for the IAF and fast track the purchase of anti-tank missiles for the Army's Rudra helicopters.
This is Jaitley's first DAC meeting as defence minister since he took over additional charge of the ministry on March 13. The DAC which is the MoD's principal body to clear capital acquisitions, is expected to remove the offset clause in the Request for Proposals of five S-400 'Triumf' long range missiles to be acquired from Russia for over $5 billion.
Highlights
1 DAC meeting to smoothen acquisition of the S-400 long range missiles.
2 Fast track the purchase of anti-tank missiles for the Army's Rudra helicopters.
3 Another agenda is a Rs 1900 cr purchase of additional DRDO-AEW&C aircraft.
An intergovernmental agreement (IGA) on the sale of the S-400 was signed last October between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the 17th India-Russia summit in Goa. Russia insisted on waiving the offset clause that mandates a reinvestment of 30 per cent by the country in Indian aerospace and defence sectors, to speed up deliveries of the missile system. A DAC waiver on the mandatory offset clause will mean the S-400 deal can be signed with Russia sometime this year.
'MAITRI' FOR ALL THREE SERVICES
The DAC is also expected to take a call on the scrapping of the Short Range-Surface to air missile (SR-SAM) project for the Indian Navy. The project 'Maitri', being jointly developed by France's MBDA in collaboration with the DRDO, is meant for all three services. The Navy is believed to be pursuing an alternate replacement for the Israeli 'Barak' short range missiles currently installed to protect principal surface combatants from enemy missiles.
Another item on the DAC agenda is a Rs 1900 crore purchase of an additional DRDO-Airborne Early Warning and Control Systems (AEW&C) aircraft based on the Embraer 145 jet. The first DRDO-developed radar fitted on the Embraer and dubbed the 'Netra' was handed over to the IAF at Aero India 2017 on February 15. A second 'Netra' is to be delivered later this year.
MORE ON AGENDA
Also on the DAC agenda is the purchase of 124 Anti Tank Guided Missiles (ATGMs) launchers and 1326 missiles for Rs 724 crore for the indigenously-built Rudra helicopters. The Army has ordered 60 ALH Rudra Mark-IV armed helicopters a few years ago but they currently do not have an ATGM because the indigenous Helina (Helicopter launched Nag) missile is yet to enter service.
The 124 ATGMs are expected to fulfill a critical void in the Army's fleet of 60 Rudra gunships which are on order.
Two ATGMs, MBDA's PARS-3 and Rafael's Spike ATGM have been short-listed. These will be fast-tracked without the initial trials that will be done post the contract. The contract is expected to entail re-configuration by the manufacturer- the world over ATGMs are usually in a quad pack but the Rudra has only a two-tube launcher.
http://www.indiandefensenews.in/2017/04/crucial-defence-ministry-meeting-today.html
WolfPack86
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Teeth For Combat Choppers, Eyes In The Sky, Long Range S-400 Missiles DAC Agenda For Today
WolfPack86
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Defense Ministry Meeting On Strategic Partners Policy
Vital Defense Ministry meeting to take place for ventilating SP policy
Defence Minister, Arun Jaitley, on Monday is expected to arrive at a conclusion on the pending issue of Strategic Partner (SP) policy.
The Defense Ministry’s apex procurement body, the Defense Acquisition Council (DAC), headed by Jaitley, will try to resolve concerns over the SP policy; “strategic partners,” – private companies nominated by the Defense Ministry as selected production agencies for defense equipment.
The SP policy intends to encourage Prime Minister, Narendra Modi’s “Make in India” initiative by engaging private industry to zeal defence production and create manufacturing jobs.
Private defense industry and companies hoping to enter this field will be following the developments carefully to see whether the SP policy will corner defense production for a handful of big players, or leave space for others to share the profits.
http://www.indiandefensenews.in/2017/04/defense-ministry-meeting-on-strategic.html
Vital Defense Ministry meeting to take place for ventilating SP policy
Defence Minister, Arun Jaitley, on Monday is expected to arrive at a conclusion on the pending issue of Strategic Partner (SP) policy.
The Defense Ministry’s apex procurement body, the Defense Acquisition Council (DAC), headed by Jaitley, will try to resolve concerns over the SP policy; “strategic partners,” – private companies nominated by the Defense Ministry as selected production agencies for defense equipment.
The SP policy intends to encourage Prime Minister, Narendra Modi’s “Make in India” initiative by engaging private industry to zeal defence production and create manufacturing jobs.
Private defense industry and companies hoping to enter this field will be following the developments carefully to see whether the SP policy will corner defense production for a handful of big players, or leave space for others to share the profits.
http://www.indiandefensenews.in/2017/04/defense-ministry-meeting-on-strategic.html
WolfPack86
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US Senators Urge Progress on US-India F-16, Guardian Drone Deals
Last week, a pair of U.S. senators from both the Republican and Democrat parties have jointly sent two letters (see here and here) to U.S. Defense Secretary Jim Mattis and Secretary of State Rex Tillerson urging the completion of two defense deals between India and the United States.
Senator John Cornyn (R-TX) and Senator Mark Warner (D-VA), co-chairs of the U.S. Senate India Caucus, in one letter, call on the United States to approve a deal to co-produce Lockheed Martin F-16 fighters in India. In a second letter, the two call for the U.S. government to approve the export of the General Atomics Guardian. The Guardian is a nonlethal variant of the MQ-9 Reaper drone, used by U.S. Customs and Border Protection and the U.S. Coast Guard.
The two senators acknowledge the “strategic importance of the growing United States-India defense and economic relationship,” which has enjoyed broad bipartisan support in Washington, D.C., for well over a decade now. They further note that India “increasingly serves as an integral partner in the United States’ security architecture in the volatile South Asia region.” This comment echoes Mattis’ own remarks to India’s national security adviser two weeks ago. Mattis commended India for promoting “stability in the South Asia region” then. In addition to highlighting the strategic value of the deals, Cornyn and Warner highlight the potentially positive effect of the deals on preserving U.S. employment in the defense sector.
With the inauguration of the Trump administration, things have been slow-moving on the U.S.-India defense cooperation move. When Mattis spoke to his former Indian counterpart, Manohar Parrikar, in February, he brought up the Defense Technology and Trade Initiative. His predecessor, Ash Carter, had long spearheaded that project to encourage U.S.-India collaboration on defense commerce and technology. In its final year in office, the Obama administration further recognized India as a “major defense partner,” an effectively bespoke status for New Delhi that signaled the United States’ intent to deal with New Delhi as it would with its closest allies in the region.
Despite Cornyn and Warner’s calls to action, the two deals in question are actually quite far from being actual “deals.” Following the demise of the old Medium Multi-Role Combat Aircraft (MMRCA) tender, which had been awarded to France’s Dassault for its Rafale fighter, and India’s decision to sideline the domestically developed HAL Tejas Light Combat Aircraft, India will open up another 200-jet competitive bidding process for foreign suppliers, looking for a medium-weight aircraft to succeed its fleet of MiG-21 fighters. The F-16 may be a compelling option for New Delhi here, as it had been during the MMRCA process, but under Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s ‘Make in India’ initiative, New Delhi will look to negotiate aggressively for concessions on technology transfer and domestic production.
Meanwhile, the process toward concluding the sale of the Guardian drone is further along in the sense that New Delhi officially filed a letter of request last year to the United States, kicking off the latter’s Foreign Military Sales process. With the change of administrations in the U.S., there has been little publicly reported on the state of this deal. The United States has yet to formally accept the Indian request and was examining the requests’ compatibility under its export rules for unmanned systems and based on existing commitments under the Missile Technology Control Regime, which India joined last year.
http://www.defencenews.in/article/U...on-US-India-F-16,-Guardian-Drone-Deals-251350
Last week, a pair of U.S. senators from both the Republican and Democrat parties have jointly sent two letters (see here and here) to U.S. Defense Secretary Jim Mattis and Secretary of State Rex Tillerson urging the completion of two defense deals between India and the United States.
Senator John Cornyn (R-TX) and Senator Mark Warner (D-VA), co-chairs of the U.S. Senate India Caucus, in one letter, call on the United States to approve a deal to co-produce Lockheed Martin F-16 fighters in India. In a second letter, the two call for the U.S. government to approve the export of the General Atomics Guardian. The Guardian is a nonlethal variant of the MQ-9 Reaper drone, used by U.S. Customs and Border Protection and the U.S. Coast Guard.
The two senators acknowledge the “strategic importance of the growing United States-India defense and economic relationship,” which has enjoyed broad bipartisan support in Washington, D.C., for well over a decade now. They further note that India “increasingly serves as an integral partner in the United States’ security architecture in the volatile South Asia region.” This comment echoes Mattis’ own remarks to India’s national security adviser two weeks ago. Mattis commended India for promoting “stability in the South Asia region” then. In addition to highlighting the strategic value of the deals, Cornyn and Warner highlight the potentially positive effect of the deals on preserving U.S. employment in the defense sector.
With the inauguration of the Trump administration, things have been slow-moving on the U.S.-India defense cooperation move. When Mattis spoke to his former Indian counterpart, Manohar Parrikar, in February, he brought up the Defense Technology and Trade Initiative. His predecessor, Ash Carter, had long spearheaded that project to encourage U.S.-India collaboration on defense commerce and technology. In its final year in office, the Obama administration further recognized India as a “major defense partner,” an effectively bespoke status for New Delhi that signaled the United States’ intent to deal with New Delhi as it would with its closest allies in the region.
Despite Cornyn and Warner’s calls to action, the two deals in question are actually quite far from being actual “deals.” Following the demise of the old Medium Multi-Role Combat Aircraft (MMRCA) tender, which had been awarded to France’s Dassault for its Rafale fighter, and India’s decision to sideline the domestically developed HAL Tejas Light Combat Aircraft, India will open up another 200-jet competitive bidding process for foreign suppliers, looking for a medium-weight aircraft to succeed its fleet of MiG-21 fighters. The F-16 may be a compelling option for New Delhi here, as it had been during the MMRCA process, but under Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s ‘Make in India’ initiative, New Delhi will look to negotiate aggressively for concessions on technology transfer and domestic production.
Meanwhile, the process toward concluding the sale of the Guardian drone is further along in the sense that New Delhi officially filed a letter of request last year to the United States, kicking off the latter’s Foreign Military Sales process. With the change of administrations in the U.S., there has been little publicly reported on the state of this deal. The United States has yet to formally accept the Indian request and was examining the requests’ compatibility under its export rules for unmanned systems and based on existing commitments under the Missile Technology Control Regime, which India joined last year.
http://www.defencenews.in/article/U...on-US-India-F-16,-Guardian-Drone-Deals-251350
WolfPack86
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Govt decision on ‘strategic partnership’ in defence procurement after Parliament session
NEW DELHI, APRIL 5:
The decision on whether to introduce the crucial chapter on ‘Strategic Partnerships’ into the Defence Procurement Procedure (DPP) 2016 will be taken once the ongoing Parliament session ends on April 12.
“We are at a very advanced stage. Once the session is over, it will happen,” Minister for Finance, Defence and Corporate Affairs Arun Jaitley, had said recently at the ‘Breakfast with BusinessLine’ meet.
The SP model is aimed at boosting manufacture of defence items through big-ticket contracts within the private sector. It is largely divided into segments – submarines, combat aircraft, warships and helicopters, and armoured vehicles. The idea is to enlist private sector defence companies in each of the segments as strategic partners for long-term contracts. Meanwhile, there is buzz that the Prime Minister will reshuffle the Cabinet once this Parliament session gets over and a full-time Defence Minister will be appointed, who will take a call on the issue, said sources.
Aatre panel
The VK Aatre Committee, set up by the Defence Ministry to formulate the Strategic Partnership (SP) model, had presented its report in April 2016, in which it had suggested one or two SPs for each segment.
This was seen as restricting the role of private Indian defence firms that had objected to the SP model, which was being reviewed by former Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar. However, after Parikkar’s exit from the Ministry, the proposal is being reviewed once again under pressure from the domestic industry.
It is learnt that projects worth ₹50,000 crore are stuck in the absence of the SP chapter. Foreign OEMs have already made it clear that without this chapter, they are unable to form joint ventures with Indian defence firms and there has been a dearth of large-scale defence projects.
“We are eagerly looking forward to the SP model. We are waiting for the guidelines to be issued and the selection of SP to be implemented by the government. DCNS is constantly having its dialogue with the Indian Navy for future warships and submarines to provide the Navy with the most suitable solution to meet its operational requirements,” said Bernard Buisson, MD, DCNS India.
Foreign players have so far stayed away from the foreign direct investment route even though the government has allowed 100 per cent foreign investment.
The idea of selecting SPs and granting preferential treatment to private sector defence players was mooted by the Dhirendra Singh Committee that was formed to design the new DPP. Later the Ministry constituted the Aatre Committee.
“Foreign players can also come under the FDI route since 100 per cent is now being allowed. But it is also true that the SP chapter will bring in some clarity. Selection of private players and how the programmes will be selected remains a question. The guidelines suggested by the task force were not formulated in the right spirit,” said Laxman K Behera, fellow at the Institute of Defence Studies and Analyses.
http://www.thehindubusinessline.com...t-after-parliament-session/article9618109.ece
NEW DELHI, APRIL 5:
The decision on whether to introduce the crucial chapter on ‘Strategic Partnerships’ into the Defence Procurement Procedure (DPP) 2016 will be taken once the ongoing Parliament session ends on April 12.
“We are at a very advanced stage. Once the session is over, it will happen,” Minister for Finance, Defence and Corporate Affairs Arun Jaitley, had said recently at the ‘Breakfast with BusinessLine’ meet.
The SP model is aimed at boosting manufacture of defence items through big-ticket contracts within the private sector. It is largely divided into segments – submarines, combat aircraft, warships and helicopters, and armoured vehicles. The idea is to enlist private sector defence companies in each of the segments as strategic partners for long-term contracts. Meanwhile, there is buzz that the Prime Minister will reshuffle the Cabinet once this Parliament session gets over and a full-time Defence Minister will be appointed, who will take a call on the issue, said sources.
Aatre panel
The VK Aatre Committee, set up by the Defence Ministry to formulate the Strategic Partnership (SP) model, had presented its report in April 2016, in which it had suggested one or two SPs for each segment.
This was seen as restricting the role of private Indian defence firms that had objected to the SP model, which was being reviewed by former Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar. However, after Parikkar’s exit from the Ministry, the proposal is being reviewed once again under pressure from the domestic industry.
It is learnt that projects worth ₹50,000 crore are stuck in the absence of the SP chapter. Foreign OEMs have already made it clear that without this chapter, they are unable to form joint ventures with Indian defence firms and there has been a dearth of large-scale defence projects.
“We are eagerly looking forward to the SP model. We are waiting for the guidelines to be issued and the selection of SP to be implemented by the government. DCNS is constantly having its dialogue with the Indian Navy for future warships and submarines to provide the Navy with the most suitable solution to meet its operational requirements,” said Bernard Buisson, MD, DCNS India.
Foreign players have so far stayed away from the foreign direct investment route even though the government has allowed 100 per cent foreign investment.
The idea of selecting SPs and granting preferential treatment to private sector defence players was mooted by the Dhirendra Singh Committee that was formed to design the new DPP. Later the Ministry constituted the Aatre Committee.
“Foreign players can also come under the FDI route since 100 per cent is now being allowed. But it is also true that the SP chapter will bring in some clarity. Selection of private players and how the programmes will be selected remains a question. The guidelines suggested by the task force were not formulated in the right spirit,” said Laxman K Behera, fellow at the Institute of Defence Studies and Analyses.
http://www.thehindubusinessline.com...t-after-parliament-session/article9618109.ece
I am otm shank
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Can anyone explain the upside to this?
WolfPack86
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Gripen E to get enhanced anti-ship missile
Sweden will equip its future fleet of Gripen E fighters with an extended-range version of the Saab/Diehl Defence-produced RBS15 anti-ship missile, under a project worth $358 million.
Equipped with an upgraded seeker, the RBS15F ER will have a reduced launch weight and increased range compared with earlier versions of the maritime- and land-attack missile.
The extended-range design will be among a variety of weapon types to be carried by the Gripen E, which is scheduled for delivery to the Swedish air force from 2019. Others include MBDA’s Meteor beyond visual-range air-to-air missile, which entered service with its MS20 operating standard Gripen Cs last year, and Diehl Defence’s short-range IRIS-T.
Saab lists the 4.35m-long, sea-skimming RBS15F ER as weighing around 600kg, including a 200kg warhead. It cites an operational range of more than 200km.
— with Pradeep Mittal.
https://www.facebook.com/pg/TejasMrca/photos/?ref=page_internal
Sweden will equip its future fleet of Gripen E fighters with an extended-range version of the Saab/Diehl Defence-produced RBS15 anti-ship missile, under a project worth $358 million.
Equipped with an upgraded seeker, the RBS15F ER will have a reduced launch weight and increased range compared with earlier versions of the maritime- and land-attack missile.
The extended-range design will be among a variety of weapon types to be carried by the Gripen E, which is scheduled for delivery to the Swedish air force from 2019. Others include MBDA’s Meteor beyond visual-range air-to-air missile, which entered service with its MS20 operating standard Gripen Cs last year, and Diehl Defence’s short-range IRIS-T.
Saab lists the 4.35m-long, sea-skimming RBS15F ER as weighing around 600kg, including a 200kg warhead. It cites an operational range of more than 200km.
— with Pradeep Mittal.
https://www.facebook.com/pg/TejasMrca/photos/?ref=page_internal
tejas warrior
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Gripen E is expected to get "FOC" by 2026.
Tactical Frog
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WolfPack86
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US #F16 jets could fly for 12k hours, or until 2048. Way longer than originally designed service life http://airheadsfly.com/2017/04/12/service-life-of-us-f-16s-extended-to-12000-hours/… #defense
https://twitter.com/hashtag/f16
https://twitter.com/hashtag/f16
