India's MiG-29K planes face operation deficiencies: CAG

WolfPack86

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HIGHLIGHTS ::
- India's mainstream naval fighter jet plane MiG-29K faces operational deficiencies
- The aircraft were being technically accepted despite having discrepancies/anomalies, the CAG said in its report
- The CAG slammed the delay in construction of the indigenous aircraft carrier

India's mainstream naval fighter jet plane MiG-29K faces operational deficiencies due to defects in engines, airframe and fly-by-wire system leading to very low availability, top government auditor has said even as it slammed the delay in construction of the indigenous aircraft carrier.

The aircraft were being technically accepted despite having discrepancies/anomalies, the Comptroller and Auditor General of India said in its report tabled in Parliament on Tuesday.

"The MiG-29K, which is a carrier-borne multi-role aircraft and the mainstay of integral fleet air defence, is riddled with problems relating to airframe, RD MK-33 engine and fly-by-wire system," it said.

Serviceability of the warplanes was low, ranging from 15.93 per cent to 37.63 per cent and that of MiG-29KUB ranging from 21.30 per cent to 47.14 per cent.

Serviceability refers to the total number aircraft available for operation at a time from the overall capacity.

The CAG said the augmentation of infrastructure at Visakhapatnam was still at the Detailed Project Report stage even six years after approval in December 2009.

The Full Mission Simulator was assessed to be unsuitable for Carrier Qualification (CQ) simulator training for pilots, as the visuals did not support the profile, it said.

The auditor noted that the service life of the aircraft is 6000 hours or 25 years (whichever is earlier) and with issues facing the MiG-29K/KUB, the operational life of the aircraft already delivered would be reduced.

"Further, the deliveries of the aircraft under the Option Clause scheduled between 2012 and 2016 are much ahead of the delivery schedule of the Indigenous Aircraft Carrier (IAC) in 2023, as projected by Cochin Shipyard Limited," the report said.

As per the Option Clause contract (March 2010), in case the customer's representatives have any observations during the aircraft technical acceptance, these shall be eliminated by the supplier's representative before the Technical Acceptance Report (TAR) is signed.

"As of November 2015, ten aircraft had been technically accepted. Audit observed discrepancies/anomalies on the first MiG-29K/KUB of the Main Contract technically accepted in February 2010, continued to persist on six aircraft acquired under the Option Clause," it said.

It said that even as the IAC continues to be constructed in Cochin Shipyard Limited and the fact that INS Viraat is expected to be decommissioned in 2016-17, Indian Navy's operational readiness and maritime capability will be affected due to the availability of only one aircraft carrier, INS Vikramaditya till delivery of the IAC.
http://www.defencenews.in/article/Indias-MiG-29K-planes-face-operation-deficiencies-CAG-7029
 
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ezsasa

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Sometimes I wonder whether CAG/govt auditors give "Job well done" on any defence acquisition.

It is understandable that it their job to find loop holes, and media thinks only negative stories need to be published. There must be some reports which indicate "all is well".
 

WolfPack86

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Russia supplied faulty MiG-29K fighters to India

The navalised MiG-29 fighters acquired by Indian Navy to arm its aircraft carriers has serious operational shortfalls, according to a audit report tabled by India's Comptroller and Auditior General (CAG) in the Parliament.

The carrier borne multi role air superiority fighter is riddled with problems in its airframe, RD-MK-33 engines and fly by wire systems, the report says.

CAG slammed the Indian Navy for accepting the 45 MiG-29K and MiG-29KUB acquired from 2009 to 2016 in a $ 2.2 billion deal. According to the first deal, 16 fighters were acquired to arm the INS Vikramaditya (ex-Admiral Gorshkov) carrier, while an option clause contract for 29 additional aircraft was signed in March 2010 in which 12 would arm the indigenous INS Vikrant carrier.

The serviceability of the fleet was poor, ranging from 15.93 to 37.63 percent for the MiG-29K, while 21.3 to 47.14 percent for the twin seat MiG-29KUB trainers.

Even though advanced and improved than its predecessor, the RD-33MK engine still had reliability problems and design defects, which had caused ten cases of single engine landings.

Out of the 17 remedial modifications to be carried out by MiG on delivered engines by November 2014, only 4 was implemented as of September 2015, and the remaining would be carried out when the engines were sent to Russia for overhaul.

Also despite modifications and improvements, numerous airframe defects including shearing of engine mounting side bolt, failures of INCOM mounting tray, failure of radar scanner mountings, have occurred during deck operations which had an adverse impact on Indian Navy pilots training and capability of aircraft for undertaking prolonged deployments.

The 6000 hours or 25 years (whichever is earlier) service life of the aircraft was also reduced due to longer build up time after delivery, ranging from 2 to 15 months.

Fly-by-wire system of the aircraft also demonstrated poor reliability ranging from 3.5 percent to 7.5 percent between July 2012 and June 2014.

Further, deliveries of the 13 aircraft under the Option Clause contract scheduled between 2012 and 2016 was much ahead of the delivery schedule of its INS Vikrant carrier in 2023.

The $30 million Full Mission Simulators designed for the ground training of pilot was assessed to be unsuitable for Carrier Qualification (CQ) simulator training for pilots, as the visuals did not support the profile which required high accuracy and fidelity.
http://www.defencenews.in/article/Russia-supplied-faulty-MiG-29K-fighters-to-India-7078

 

Screambowl

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If there was any such problem the IAF would have rejected it or complained.
Or
The Russians bribed IAF and asked to shut?

This update means.. India is without any air force. CAG should be careful before what they produce.
 

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