Pakistan Military Developments

nitesh

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http://thenews.com.pk/latest-news/4606.htm

NEW YORK: Former President Pervez Musharraf has said missile tests of Ghauri I and Ghauri II failed :emot0:and Dr. Qadeer Khan is well aware of all this, Geo News reported.
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Parthy

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Pakistan Air Force Receives Three New F-16s from US

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan: U.S. and Pakistani officials marked the latest chapter in the growth of the Pakistan Air Force with the delivery of three additional new F-16 aircraft to the Government of Pakistan from the United States during an induction ceremony today at Shahbaz Air Base near Jacobabad, Pakistan.

"These aircraft represent a significant increase in Air Force technology and capability for our strategic allies here in Pakistan," said Brig. Gen. Michael Nagata, Deputy Commander of the Office of the Defense Representative to Pakistan. "These deliveries are the culmination of many, many years of hard work, a great deal of patience, a great deal of labor and commitment that many people have contributed to make a day like this a reality."

U.S. and Pakistani officials attending the ceremony included Air Marshal Mohammad Hassan, PAF Deputy Chief of Staff for Operations and Army Brig. Gen. Michael Nagata, deputy commander of the Office of the Defense Representative to Pakistan.

Approximately 150 Pakistani and U.S. officials attended the event.

Hassan deemed the planes, ""¦a dream machine for the entire Pakistani nation." In describing the impact that the aircraft will have, he remarked, "all these efforts"¦contribute directly toward maintaining peace in the region and also making our anti-terrorist efforts more meaningful and successful."

The F-16 Block 52 represents the latest configuration of Lockheed Martin's 4th generation multirole fighter, offering additional fuel and payload capacity, new or improved avionics and sensors, and color cockpit displays with enhanced pilot/vehicle interfaces. This is the second batch of new F-16s delivered; the first delivery of three took place June 27. Deliveries will continue with all 18 fighter aircraft arriving by January 2012.

In addition to the delivery of these new aircraft, the U.S. is working with the PAF to update 45 F-16s from its existing fighter fleet through the U.S. Foreign Military Financing security assistance program. When the updates are completed, these aircraft will have very similar capabilities to the new F-16s, to include advanced communications and a precision targeting system.

The first batch of updated F-16s is scheduled to arrive in Pakistan in early 2012.

http://www.defencetalk.com/pakistan-air-force-receives-three-new-f-16s-from-us-30065/
 

wild goose

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Pakistan to buy missiles, flight systems from China


BEIJING: Pakistan has confirmed it will buy Chinese missiles and flight systems to equip its 250 JF-17 Thunder jet fighters as it seeks to deepen military cooperation with Beijing, state media said Thursday.

Rao Qamar Suleman, air chief marshal of the Pakistan Air Force, told the Global Times newspaper Chinese radar systems and SD-10 mid-range homing missiles would be used on the fighters co-developed by the two nations.

"PAF has no plans to install Western devices and weapons on the aircraft for the time being," the newspaper quoted Suleman as saying.

Pakistan may also buy up to four Chinese surface-to-air missiles, as it seeks stronger cooperation with China to help upgrade its armed forces, Suleman told the China Daily in a separate interview.

He made the remarks on the sidelines of the annual Zhuhai Air Show now under way in southern China.

Chinese defence experts played down the comments, saying any cooperation did not target any country and did not compare with deals adopted during a visit to India this month by US President Barack Obama, the China Daily said.

Among the deals struck during Obama's trip was a preliminary accord worth 4.1 billion dollars for India's air force to buy 10 C-17 transport aircraft from US aviation giant Boeing.

Pakistan had initially planned on arming its JF-17 fighters with missiles made by French firm Thales SA in a deal reportedly worth 1.2 billion euros (1.6 billion dollars).

But French officials confirmed to AFP in April the deal had been put on hold without explanation. The French daily Le Monde reported that it was cancelled to avoid damaging relations with India.

China is a strong ally of Pakistan and Islamabad draws heavily on Beijing for its defence and infrastructure needs.

Pakistan's air force has a fleet of Chinese aircraft, including F-7PGs and A-5s, but also US-built F-16s and French Mirages. The medium-tech JF-17 or Thunder jets, manufactured jointly with China, are a recent addition.

http://www.dawn.com/2010/11/18/pakistan-confirms-missiles-flight-systems-deal-with-china.html
 

Parthy

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Pakistan to arm fighter aircraft with Chinese missiles

Beijing: Pakistan has confirmed it will buy Chinese missiles and flight systems to equip its 250 JF-17 Thunder jet fighters as it seeks to deepen military cooperation with Beijing, state media said Thursday.

Rao Qamar Suleman, air chief marshal of the Pakistan Air Force, told the Global Times newspaper Chinese radar systems and SD-10 mid-range homing missiles would be used on the fighters co-developed by the two nations.

"PAF has no plans to install Western devices and weapons on the aircraft for the time being," the newspaper quoted Suleman as saying.

Pakistan may also buy up to four Chinese surface-to-air missiles, as it seeks stronger cooperation with China to help upgrade its armed forces, Suleman told the China Daily in a separate interview.

He made the remarks on the sidelines of the annual Zhuhai Air Show now under way in southern China.

Chinese defence experts played down the comments, saying any cooperation did not target any country and did not compare with deals adopted during a visit to India this month by US President Barack Obama, the China Daily said.

Among the deals struck during Obama's trip was a preliminary accord worth 4.1 billion dollars for India's air force to buy 10 C-17 transport aircraft from US aviation giant Boeing.

Pakistan had initially planned on arming its JF-17 fighters with missiles made by French firm Thales SA in a deal reportedly worth 1.2 billion euros (1.6 billion dollars).

But French officials confirmed to AFP in April the deal had been put on hold without explanation. The French daily Le Monde reported that it was cancelled to avoid damaging relations with Pakistan's nuclear rival India.

China is a strong ally of Pakistan and Islamabad draws heavily on Beijing for its defence and infrastructure needs.

Pakistan's air force has a fleet of Chinese aircraft, including F-7PGs and A-5s, but also US-built F-16s and French Mirages. The medium-tech JF-17 or Thunder jets, manufactured jointly with China, are a recent addition.

http://www.defencetalk.com/pakistan-to-arm-jf-17-fighter-jets-with-chinese-missiles-30248/
 

Parthy

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Pakistan to arm fighter aircraft with Chinese missiles

Beijing: Pakistan has confirmed it will buy Chinese missiles and flight systems to equip its 250 JF-17 Thunder jet fighters as it seeks to deepen military cooperation with Beijing, state media said Thursday.

Rao Qamar Suleman, air chief marshal of the Pakistan Air Force, told the Global Times newspaper Chinese radar systems and SD-10 mid-range homing missiles would be used on the fighters co-developed by the two nations.

"PAF has no plans to install Western devices and weapons on the aircraft for the time being," the newspaper quoted Suleman as saying.

Pakistan may also buy up to four Chinese surface-to-air missiles, as it seeks stronger cooperation with China to help upgrade its armed forces, Suleman told the China Daily in a separate interview.

He made the remarks on the sidelines of the annual Zhuhai Air Show now under way in southern China.

Chinese defence experts played down the comments, saying any cooperation did not target any country and did not compare with deals adopted during a visit to India this month by US President Barack Obama, the China Daily said.

Among the deals struck during Obama's trip was a preliminary accord worth 4.1 billion dollars for India's air force to buy 10 C-17 transport aircraft from US aviation giant Boeing.

Pakistan had initially planned on arming its JF-17 fighters with missiles made by French firm Thales SA in a deal reportedly worth 1.2 billion euros (1.6 billion dollars).

But French officials confirmed to AFP in April the deal had been put on hold without explanation. The French daily Le Monde reported that it was cancelled to avoid damaging relations with Pakistan's nuclear rival India.

China is a strong ally of Pakistan and Islamabad draws heavily on Beijing for its defence and infrastructure needs.

Pakistan's air force has a fleet of Chinese aircraft, including F-7PGs and A-5s, but also US-built F-16s and French Mirages. The medium-tech JF-17 or Thunder jets, manufactured jointly with China, are a recent addition.

http://www.defencetalk.com/pakistan-to-arm-jf-17-fighter-jets-with-chinese-missiles-30248/
 

ajtr

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Sarkozy urged to testify to inquiry into Pakistan arms sale kickbacks

L'affaire Karachi, scandal involving alleged bribes leading to 2002 bombing, began in 1994 when Sarkozy was budget minister

Nicolas Sarkozy was today urged to break his silence over the most potentially damaging corruption scandal of his career: an inquiry into whether he authorised illegal kickbacks from arms sales to Pakistan to fund a political campaign.

L'affaire Karachi is the most explosive corruption investigation in recent French history and the biggest scandal to personally threaten Sarkozy.

The potent saga of suspect submarine sales and illegal kickbacks centres around a bomb attack in Karachi in 2002, when 15 people, including 11 French engineers, were killed in what judges believe was a retaliation attack over unpaid government bribes.

The families of the French victims urged Sarkozy to testify to investigating magistrates about what he knows. "At the top of the French state there is a fear of this dossier advancing because it implicates Nicolas Sarkozy and those close to him," said Olivier Morice, the families' lawyer.

The Socialist party demanded "clarity" from the president and the immediate release of state classified documents to the investigation.

The scandal dates back to 1994 when Sarkozy was budget minister in a government led by his ally and mentor, Prime Minister Édouard Balladur. The Balladur government sealed a deal to sell three Agosta 90 submarines to Pakistan for an estimated $950m.

To secure the contract large bribes were allegedly paid to Pakistani politicians and military, as well as commissions to middlemen. Paying commissions to intermediaries was not against the law at the time. But the key issue is whether around €2m of illegal kickbacks from the sale were secretly funnelled back to France to fund Balladur's unsuccessful 1995 presidential campaign. As budget minister, Sarkozy would have authorised the financial elements of the submarine sale. At the time he was also treasurer and spokesman for Balladur's campaign.

Renaud Van Ruymbeke, one of France's most ruthless independent investigative magistrates, is currently investigating the kickback allegations as well as claims that Sarkozy approved the setting up of a shadow company to channel money from the arms deals commissions to fund Balladur's political activities in France. The investigative website Mediapart has quoted a Luxembourg police investigation which found Sarkozy oversaw the setting up of two Luxembourg companies at the time.

Balladur lost the 1995 presidential campaign to his bitter enemy Jacques Chirac. From the Élysée, Chirac immediately set about dismantling the network of commissions and launched several secret inquiries into Balladur's possible use of kickbacks. He ordered that all the bribes to Pakistan must stop. In 2002 a bus carrying staff to the Karachi site where the submarine construction was being finalised was bombed. Fifteen people were killed, including 11 French engineers.

For years Pakistan blamed al-Qaida, as did the French government.

But a new anti-terrorist judge investigating the bombing, Marc Trévedic, has suggested a different theory: that the attack was likely to have been a retribution hit because France had stopped the commission payments.

In a significant move, Chirac's former defence minister, Charles Millon, this week confirmed to the inquiry that kickbacks on the arms deals existed.

French newspapers quoted his testimony: "For the Pakistani contract, looking at the secret service reports and analyses carried out by the [defence] ministry services, one has the absolute conviction that there were kickbacks."

Sarkozy and Balladur have flatly denied all allegations of involvement in the Karachi affair. Questioned at a press conference last year, Sarkozy flew into a rage, saying the suggestion that the French engineers were killed as retaliation for unpaid bribes was "ridiculous" and "grotesque" fairy tales. He said: "Let's have some respect for the grief of the victims. Who could believe a fable like that?"

Balladur, in a letter to Le Monde, said he had "no knowledge at all" about any commissions and that his campaign expenses had been approved by France's highest body.

The families of the victims have this week lodged a demand with Van Ruymbeke that he question not only Sarkozy, but Chirac and the former prime minister Dominique de Villepin.

They argue that even though Sarkozy is covered by presidential immunity, he can be heard as a witness.

The families say the investigation has been hampered by the highest levels of the state refusing to co-operate or to release classified documents.

Journalists investigating the case say their phones have been tapped and they have been followed by the security services.

This week Magali Drouet and Sandrine Leclerc, whose fathers were both killed in the bombing, released a book about their fight for justice.

Drouet said that when the inquiry began to focus on a likely retribution attack over unpaid bribes it was almost too much to bear.

"I asked myself how it was possible, the corruption lead seemed even worse than the idea that it was a blind attack," she said.

The families would continue to fight for the truth to be revealed, she added.

Long search for answers

May 2002 A suicide bomb attack on a bus in Karachi kills 15 people, including 11 workers for the French naval defence company DCN on their way to the city's dockyard to work on submarines that had been sold to Pakistan. Islamabad blamed al-Qaida.

June 2003 Two Pakistanis, who authorities said were members of banned Islamist groups and had confessed to the attack, were sentenced to death.

June 2009 A new French anti-terrorist judge, Marc Trévidic, investigating the bombing, says his top line of investigation is that the bombing was linked to French arms sale bribes. He says the attack was probably linked to France's move to stop paying commissions.

February 2010 At the request of families of the victims, the Paris prosecutor opens a separate investigation into obstruction of justice in the case. Judge Renaud Van Ruymbeke leads this investigation.

October 2010 Van Ruymbeke extends his brief and begins investigating alleged kickbacks. The Paris prosecutor launches an appeal to stop him.
 

ajtr

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The Karachi bombing and kickbacks allegations


In 2002 a suicide bomber killed 14 workers of French marine engineering company DCN in Karachi, 11 of whom were French citizens. These killings are linked to submarine sales by France to Pakistan that go back to the early 1990s.

1993

Edouard Balladur is French prime minister under then President Francois Mitterrand.

The French Naval Construction Executive (DCN) is looking to sell French submarines to Pakistan.

As France is competing with Germany for the contracts, SOFMA, the company responsible for the export of French military hardware, is offered a 6.25 percent commission on any future sales. This commission was perfectly legal at the time.

1994

In September 1994 a contract is signed between Pakistan and France for the purchase of submarines for a total of 5.41 billion francs (826 billion euros).

1995

SOFMA looks to pocket 338 million francs, while two Lebanese businessmen, through off-shore company Mercor Finance, look set to receive a four percent commission (216 million francs) to be shared with Pakistani intermediaries for securing the deal.

The French presidential election campaign pitches Prime Minister Edouard Balladur against Jacques Chirac for the Gaullist RPR party's nomination. Budget Minister and future French president Nicolas Sarkozy is in charge of Balladur's campaign.

According to left-leaning French daily Liberation in an April 2010 report, the Lebanese businessmen sold their commission contract to a Spanish bank in June 1995 for an immediate down-payment of 54 million francs, with the rest to be paid once the DCN contract with Pakistan was concluded.

Almost simultaneously, 10 million francs in cash (mostly in 500-franc notes) is paid into Balladur's campaign fund account (one fifth of the total funds), according to the Liberation report.

1996

Jacques Chirac wins the party nomination and is elected president. On discovering the scale of the sales and commissions to be paid, he orders an immediate inquiry led by Defence Minister Charles Millon.

In November 2010, Millon confirmed that he had concluded in his 1996 investigation that there had been kickbacks from the commission payments.

Jacques Chirac orders that all commission payments to Mercor Finance be halted immediately, although according to Liberation, payments continued well into 2001.

2002

A suicide bomber in Karachi, Pakistan kills 14 people, of whom 11 are French naval engineers working for DCN.

France immediately accuses al Qaeda of instigating the attack - although no one has ever claimed responsibility for it.

2007

Anti-terrorism judge Jean-Louis Bruguiere, assigned to lead the investigation into the bombing, is replaced by two investigating magistrates, Marc Trevidic and Renaud Van Ruymbeke.

Marc Trevidic opens a new direction in the investigation, namely that the attack was linked to the halting of commission payments.

2008

Weekly French news magazine Le Point reveals that a 2002 report by a former agent of the DST (French homeland defence and intelligence agency) concluded that the attacks were "financially motivated".

2010 – June

French investigative news website Mediapart claims that, according to the Luxembourg authorities, Sarkozy (as budget minister in 1994) set up off-shore company Heine to handle transactions to Mercor Finance in the submarines deal.

The website says that Luxembourg police believed "some of the funds that passed through the Luxembourg account were channelled back to France to finance the campaigns of French political parties."

Such allegations had been described as a "grotesque fairytale" by Sarkozy in 2009.

Investigating magistrate Trevidic confirms that there were indeed kickbacks associated with the submarine sales.

2010 – August

The families of the 2002 bombing victims start civil proceedings against Jean-Marie Boivin, former administrator of the Heine offshore fund set up in Luxembourg in 1994, for perjury.

The case is handled by Ruymbeke. But Paris prosecutor Jean-Claude Marin says that allegations of corruption by politicians in the 1990s are too old to be investigated.

2010 – October

Ruymbeke announces that he will, after all, investigate the corruption allegations - in particular, the allegations that kickbacks from the submarine sales were used to fund Balladur's 1995 election campaign.

Balladur says that his campaign funds were given the all-clear by the French Constitutional Court in 1995 and that there is no case to answer.

2010 – November

On November 10, Bernard Accoyer, speaker for France's National Assembly, refuses to hand Tredivic the testimony of some 60 people – including Balladur - who gave evidence to a parliamentary inquiry into the affair, citing France's constitutional separation of power between parliament and the judiciary.

News website Mediapart says that two of its journalists working on the Karachi file are under constant surveillance by the French security services.

The satirical newspaper Canard Enchaine claims, in the same week and in a separate case, that Sarkozy is supervising the surveillance of journalists personally. The Elysee Palace denounces these claims as "utterly ridiculous".

On November 17, in an interview with Mediapart, Gerard-Philippe Menayas, former financial director of the DCN, says that the payment of commissions from the submarine sales passed through a Luxembourg company called Cedel, later known as Clearstream.

Clearstream is the subject of another scandal alleging illegal kickbacks from the sale of warships in the early 1990s which was linked to senior politicians including former Prime Minister Dominique De Villepin, Sarkozy's arch enemy.

On November 18, the families of the French engineers killed in the 2002 bomb attack in Karachi call for Sarkozy to testify in the case.

A lawyer for the families said they had lodged a demand with Ruymbeke that he question Sarkozy, Jacques Chirac and also Dominique de Villepin in the case.
 

ajtr

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cross-posting................

DG, Naval Intelligence (Retd) willing to spill the beans

The Agosta submarine deal which led to the ISI killing 11 French engineers in Karachi.
As public pressure in France mounts on President Nicolas Sarkozi to testify over alleged corruption in the sale of French submarines to Pakistan in the mid-90s, the then Director General Naval Intelligence (DGNI) of Pakistan Navy has offered help to Islamabad and Paris to book the corrupt and bring back the looted money to Pakistan.

Talking to The News, former DGNI Commodore Shahid Ashraf, who by his own account was tortured, harassed and put under illegal custody by the sleuths he once commanded and prematurely retired from the service "for knowing too much about the commission mafia in defence forces", said that he was willing to cooperate with the Pakistani as well as French authorities. "I have a lot to share with them about the kickbacks in the Agosta submarine deal," he insisted.

Ashraf, in a recent interview with this newspaper, disclosed certain details of the Agosta submarine deal and revealed while the deal had led to the removal of the then Chief of Naval Staff (CNS) Admiral Mansurul Haq and the framing of a corruption reference against Benazir Bhutto and Asif Ali Zardari but those mighty and powerful in the navy, who made millions of dollars from the deal, were never held accountable. The cover-up in the submarine deal, according to the former DGNI, was meant to save the skin of many in the Pakistan Navy.
To force his silence, he said, he was maliciously charged for getting Rs1.5 million from a naval officer, who was alleged to have got illegal gratification and kickbacks from foreign suppliers of the naval vessels, etc., but was 'interestingly' made an approver against the DGNI. On the contrary, a list of naval officers, who were alleged to have received kickbacks, were never touched. Instead, they were promoted as rear admirals.


It is pertinent to point out that a Feb 17, 1995 letter, issued by SOFMA (the French company that was involved in the Agosta deal), talked of making payment of $40,000 to each of the four naval officers whose names were mentioned in the same letter. Instead of probing the four officers, however, each one of them was later elevated as a rear admiral while the DGNI was taken to task for alleged corruption of Rs1.5 million. Interestingly, he was alleged to have received this money from a naval officer, who was getting money from foreign suppliers of the defence deals. As being the DGNI, he had even sought permission of his high command to catch an agent, who was giving bribe money to naval officers but was not allowed to do so.

Besides the then DGNI, the former naval chief Admiral Abdul Aziz Mirza has recently also given credence to the French investigative report that talked of almost $49 million kickbacks in the Agosta-submarine deal allegedly received by President Asif Ali Zardari and others, including the naval officers.

Recently, in an interview with The News, Aziz Mirza had also disclosed that the then Benazir government had urged the Pakistan Navy to go for the French subs. Mirza, while quoting the then Naval Chief Admiral Saeed Khan, had revealed that Benazir Bhutto's Defence Minister Aftab Shabaan Mirani had clearly indicated to the Pakistan Navy's high command the Benazir's government's preference for the induction of the French submarines.

Despite these clear verbal directions from the defence minister, the naval top command, according to Mirza, had again met and deliberated upon the subject and decided to recommend two options to the government namely the British Upholder and the French Agosta. The government later approved the induction of Agosta. Mirza, who led the Pakistan Navy from Oct 1999 to Oct 2002, said that the Navy first formally came to know about the kickbacks in the Agosta deal in 1998 following which it had proceeded against three officials of the ranks of captain and commodore for taking bribes and they were removed from service.
"My hunch is that besides the politicians, some top ranking naval officers even above the rank of commodore might have also received kickbacks as reflected in the recent French media reports, however, they (the top Naval officials) remained undetected for want of proof or witnesses," Mirza was quoted to have said, claiming that even the condemned former naval chief Masoor Ul Haq was not convicted of Agosta kickbacks but for the bribes that he had pocketed in the other defence deals.
 

ajtr

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French minister admits kickbacks on arms deal

A former French defence minister admitted political corruption had taken place in a dispute that led to the death of 11 French engineers in Pakistan as judges investigate allegations about a political campaign involving Nicholas Sarkozy.
By Henry Samuel in Paris 7:55PM GMT 18 Nov 2010
In a case that has implications for President Nicolas Sarkozy, Charles Millon confirmed yesterday that kickbacks were in place on arms deals to Pakistan during France's 1995 presidential election campaign.
The cancellation of the payments allegedly resulted in a bomb attack in Karachi that killed 11 French submarine engineers and four Pakistanis.
The May 2002 blast was initially blamed on al-Qaeda terrorists, but judges now suspect it was in retaliation for the non-payment of sweeteners promised to senior officials when Pakistan bought three Agosta attack submarines from 1994 for €825 million.The murky affair has been dubbed "Karachigate". Documents seized by investigators allege that part of the kickbacks, or "commissions" – legal under French law at the time – were illegally siphoned off to fund the 1995 presidential campaign of then prime minister, Edouard Balladur. Mr Sarkozy was his campaign manager at the time.
When Jacques Chirac won the election, it is alleged that he punished Mr Balladur for running against him by halting the remaining payments to senior Pakistani figures.
French media reported yesterday that Mr Millon told the investigating judge: "Looking at the secret service reports and analyses carried out by the [defence] ministry services, one has the absolute conviction that there were 'retro-commissions' [to France]."
The judge is investigating claims that a company set up with Mr Sarkozy's approval channelled the kickbacks to France. There is no direct evidence linking him or Mr Balladur to kickbacks. The president has labelled such suggestions as "fables".
 

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US delivers six F-16 aircraft to Pakistan


ISLAMABAD: Pakistan on Saturday received six new F-16 C/D Block 52 high tech aircraft from the United States.

The six new F-16s have brought the number of such fighter aircraft in the Pakistan Air Force (PAF) to 12.

Pakistan had signed a contract with the United States in 2005-2006 for the acquisition of 18 F-16 C/D Block 52 planes.

Under the agreement, the PAF would receive the 18 aircraft from the US in staggered batches.

Another batch of six F-16 C/D Block 52 aircraft is expected to be delivered to Pakistan in December 2010.


http://www.dawn.com/2010/11/20/us-delivers-six-f-16-aircraft-to-pakistan.html
 

Parthy

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PAF to arm JF-17s with Pakistani-Chinese codeveloped SD-10 mid-range homing missiles

BEIJING – PAKISTAN has confirmed it will buy Chinese missiles and flight systems to equip its 250 JF-17 Thunder jet fighters as it seeks to deepen military cooperation with Beijing, state media said on Thursday.

Rao Qamar Suleman, air chief marshal of the Pakistan Air Force, told the Global Times newspaper Chinese radar systems and SD-10 mid-range homing missiles would be used on the fighters co-developed by the two nations.

'PAF has no plans to install Western devices and weapons on the aircraft for the time being,' the newspaper quoted Suleman as saying.

Pakistan may also buy up to four Chinese surface-to-air missiles, as it seeks stronger cooperation with China to help upgrade its armed forces, Mr Suleman told the China Daily in a separate interview.

He made the remarks on the sidelines of the annual Zhuhai Air Show now under way in southern China.

Chinese defence experts played down the comments, saying any cooperation did not target any country and did not compare with deals adopted during a visit to India this month by US President Barack Obama, the China Daily said.

http://militarystrat.wordpress.com/...-codeveloped-sd-10-mid-range-homing-missiles/
 

Parthy

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ZDK-03: Pakistani-Chinese jointly developed AWACs fly

The rollout ceremony of first of four Chinese ZDK-03 airborne warning and control systems (AWACS) aircrafts for the Pakistan Air F

Pakistan has received its second Erieye radar-equipped Saab 2000, has accepted its first Shaanxi ZDK-03 airborne early warning and control system aircraft.



Islamabad has four ZDK-03s on order, with deliveries due to start later this year, say air force sources. The type is a new variant of the Shaanxi Y8 AEW&C aircraft designed specifically for Pakistan.

The Chinese aircraft is powered by four turboprop engines and has a greater range than offered by the Saab Microwave Systems Erieye, the sources say.

The air force recently received its second Saab 2000 surveillance aircraft, and anticipates that it will receive its remaining two in the second and third quarters of this year. Flight Global. Pakistan to get Chinese AEW&C aircraft this year By Leithen Francis

The rollout ceremony of first of four Chinese ZDK-03 airborne warning and control systems (AWACS) aircrafts for the Pakistan Air Force was held at Hanzhong in China today. The rollout coincided with

President Asif Ali Zardari's visit to China – his sixth since assuming the position in 2008.

PAF chief Air Chief Marshal Rao Qamar Suleman was the chief guest at the ceremony, which was attended by the Commander of the PLA Air Force and other military and civil officials of China.

The PAF signed a contract in 2008 with China Electronics Technology Group Corporation for the joint development of four ZDK-03 AWACS aircraft configured to Pakistan's specifications.

The ZDK-03 is an advanced AWACS with sophisticated integrated sensors and communications suite, PAF said in a statement.

In his speech at the rollout, Air Chief Marshal Suleman described the event as "another milestone in the exemplary history of cooperation between Pakistan and China".

This AWACS will strengthen the PAF's capabilities to maintain "peace with honour in the region", he said.

The AWACS is part of PAF's overall strategy of transforming itself into a "lean and technologically advanced air force", Suleman said.

The PAF will not spare any effort to make the defence of the country impregnable, he added.

CETC Chairman Wang Zhigang said the induction of the AWACS by the PAF will have a "positive impact on regional stability, peace and prosperity as well as on the close bond between the two military forces and two countries".

The PAF has also received two of four Saab-2000 AWACs aircraft ordered from Sweden.

The remaining two aircraft equipped with the Erieye radar system are expected to be delivered later this year.

ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan Air Force last year received the Saab-2000 Airborne Early Warning and Control aircraft from Sweden.

With the induction of the Swedish system, PAF has become one of the few air forces in the world to have Airborne Early Warning capability. Besides detecting high- and medium-altitude aircraft, this state-of-the-art system is also capable of detecting low-level flying objects over land and sea at extended ranges. The system is capable of picking even the surface targets over the sea. By virtue of these features, PAF would be able to boost its operational capability manifold by achieving requisite early warning for efficient and meaningful air defence of its airspace.

The Erieye AEW&C mission system radar is an active, phased-array, pulse-Doppler sensor that can feed an onboard operator architecture or downlink data (via an associated datalink subsystem) to a ground-based air defence network. The system employs a large aperture, dual-sided antenna array housed in a dorsal 'plank' fairing. The antenna is fixed, and the beam is electronically scanned, which provides for improved detection and significantly enhanced tracking performance compared with radar-dome antenna systems.Erieye detects and tracks air and sea targets out to the horizon (and beyond due to anomalous propagation)—instrumented range has been measured at 450 km.

Typical detection range against fighter-sized targets is approximately 350 km, in a 150° broadside sector, both sides of the aircraft. Outside these sectors, performance is reduced in forward and aft directions.Other system features include:Adaptive waveform generation (including digital, phase-coded pulse compression), signal processing and target trackingTrack While Scan (TWS)Low sidelobe values (throughout the system's angular coverage)Low- and medium-pulse repetition frequency operating modesFrequency agilityAir-to-air and sea surveillance modesTarget radar cross-section displayThe radar operates as a medium- to high-PRF pulse-Doppler, solid-state radar, in E/F-band (3 GHz), incorporating 192 two-way transmit/receive modules that combine to produce a pencil beam, steered as required within the operating 150° sector each side of the aircraft (one side at a time). It is understood that Erieye has some ability to detect aircraft in the 30° sectors fore and aft of the aircraft heading, but has no track capability in this sector

http://militarystrat.wordpress.com/2010/11/13/zdk-03-pakistani-chinese-jointly-developed-awacs-fly/
 

wild goose

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Turkey to upgrade PAF F-16s

Pakistan Air Force (PAF) has opted for Turkish Aerospace Industrial Complex 'TAI' for the Mid Life Upgrade (MLU) of its F-16A/B aircraft fleet in a bid to enhance its operational capability.
Well-placed defence sources told The Nation on Friday that Pakistan and Turkey signed an agreement in this regard last week and the multimillion dollars project would begin soon. Sources said that Pakistan has opted for 'TAI' - the Ankara-based Turkish aerospace industrial complex - just for the cost-effectiveness after its lengthy negotiations with the US manufacturers failed to bear fruits. "The US manufacturers of the F-16 aircraft were very expensive. Therefore Pakistan had to opt for Turkey," a source said.
Sources further said that under the agreement the project, that was expected to kick-start within next two months or so, would be executed in phases. The PAF, which currently has more than 40 F-16 A/B multi-roller fighter fleet, would soon start sending its F-16 aircraft to Turkey for the MLU.
TAI, established in 1984, is a joint venture of various Turkish companies and had successfully realised the co-production of F-16 fighters, CN-235 light transport/maritime patrol/surveillance aircraft, SF-260 trainers, Cougar AS-532 general purpose helicopters.
With its proven experience and know-how, TAI has improved its capabilities in the fields of design, production, modernisation, modification and systems integration of fixed and rotary wing air platforms, unmanned aerial vehicles and satellite.
Because of the high quality stringent standards including the NATO AQAP-2110, ISO-9001: 2000 and AS EN 9100, TAI has won position of a qualified supplier for Aermacchi, Agusta Westland, Airbus, Boeing, EADS CASA, Eurocopter, Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman, MDHI, Sikorsky etc.

http://dailyairforce.com/483/Turkey-to-upgrade-PAF-F16s.html
 

wild goose

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Pakistan successfully test fires Hatf-V missile: ISPR as usual




The missile can carry conventional and other warheads, the ISPR said.


ISLAMABAD: Pakistan on Tuesday successfully test fired a medium-range ballistic missile capable of carrying nuclear and conventional warheads, the military said.

The military said in a statement that Ghauri Hatf 5, with a range of 1,300 kilometres (800 miles), could carry conventional and other warheads.

The launch was conducted by the Army Strategic Force command's strategic missile group at the end of a field-training exercise aimed at testing the force's operational readiness, the statement said.

Pakistan's Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani, Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee chairman General Khalid Shahmeem Wyne and other senior military officers and scientists witnessed the tests, it said.

"You have made the nation proud and we salute you for your outstanding work," Gilani told the scientists and engineers.

Gilani said Pakistan could be proud of its defence capability and the reliability of its nuclear deterrence. This capability, he added, formed the bedrock of Pakistan's security policy and will continue to be enhanced.

"The test amply demonstrates the credibility of our minimum deterrence strategy, which is the cornerstone of our security policy and ensures peace in the region," he said.

"It also sends the right signals internationally that Pakistan's defence capability is impregnable and should never be challenged."Gilani said Pakistan was a responsible nation with an extremely reliable nuclear capability and did not harbor any aggressive designs against anyone.

South Asian rivals India and Pakistan — which have fought three wars, two of them over the disputed territory of Kashmir — have routinely carried out missile tests since both demonstrated nuclear weapons capability in 1998.

Pakistan's arsenal includes short-, medium- and long-range missiles named after Muslim conquerors.

"Let there be no doubt that Pakistan's armed forces are highly professional, motivated and fully capable of safeguarding Pakistan's security against all types of aggression," Gilani added.


http://www.dawn.com/2010/12/21/pakistan-successfully-test-fires-hataf-v-ghauri-missile-ispr.html
 

wild goose

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Pak Navy tests surface to air missile

KARACHI - 27th December 2010 (5 hours ago)
By APP


Chief of the Naval Staff, Admiral Noman Bashir, witnessed the live Surface to Air missile firing along with Vice Admiral Tayyab Ali Dogar, the Air Defence Commander of Pakistan Navy.

All the missiles fired, successfully acquired the targets, says a Pakistan Navy press release.

It said that a combination of SAM series were tested which gave PN the flexibility to operate with a range of missiles and strengthen the ground based air defence.

The area of responsibility of Air Defence Battalion stretches from Sir Creek in the east to Jiwani in the west.

A large number of Armed Forces officers witnessed the firing serial.

Chief of Naval Staff appreciated the efforts put in by the Air

Defence Battalion of Coastal Command and urged the officers and men to leave no stone unturned to ensure an impeccable defence

http://www.aaj.tv/2010/12/pak-navy-tests-surface-to-air-missile/
 

chex3009

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Pakistan to build radar for JF-17 'Thunder' fighter



The chief of staff of the Pakistan Air Force (PAF) has said that Pakistan has built its first facility to manufacture radars for fighter aircraft.

Air Chief Marshal Rao Qamar Suleman said the indigenously produced radar, built with China's assistance at the Pakistan Aeronautical Complex (PAC), in Kamra, north of Islamabad, would equip the JF-17 'Thunder' fighter aircraft jointly produced by the two countries.

"This is a major step forward. This will be the first such [radar manufacturing] facility in Pakistan," ACM Suleman said in an interview on 21 December at PAF headquarters in Islamabad. He confirmed that the radar would be fitted on the JF-17, which, along with US-supplied F-16 Fighting Falcons, is set to be the PAF's front-line combat aircraft.

Previous reports suggest that the radar to be manufactured will be the Chinese-built CETC/NRIET KLJ-7 radar set. At the 2010 Farnborough Air Show, at which two JF-17s made their debut in the West, Jane's reported that the KLJ-7 had received full marks from the JF-17's designers at PAC.

A PAC programme officer said : "I have flown with this radar and with other models that we have looked at fitting to this aircraft, such as the Thales RC400, and the Chinese radar is every bit as capable as its contemporary analogs."

http://geneva-globaldefence.blogspot.com/2010/12/pakistan-to-build-radar-for-jf-17.html
 

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