Russian Indian BrahMos Supersonic Cruise Missile

Indian Air Force Undergoing Major Transformation:IAF Air Chief PV Naik Said

These are exciting times for the Indian Air Force after battling years of obsolescence and depleting fleet strengths, it is now poised for a major transformation. What does the future hold? In an exclusive interview, Air Chief Marshall PV Naik, the Chief of Air Staff discusses his strategy for the transformation of the IAF.

Here's his conversation with NDTV's Security & Strategic Affairs Editor Nitin Gokhale.

NDTV: Let me start by asking you what are the changes that are being done in the Air Force for the past 3-4 years and what do you think is going to happen in the next 3-4 years?

PV Naik: The process of change started seven or eight years back but it is materialising now, which is a very very exciting thing. Over the next 3-4 years, I expect the IAF to become one of the most modern air forces in the world. There are lots of things in the offing - we have aircrafts, equipment, missiles, radars actually we have a very long list. 

India, S Africa to hold joint Naval exercise

SANYA (PTI): India and South Africa on Thursday decided to hold joint Naval exercises and fixed a new trade target of USD 15 billion to be achieved by next year as Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and President Jacob Zuma met here and discussed ways to boost overall ties.

During the 45-minute meeting on the sidelines of the BRICS Summit, Zuma also informed Singh about his government's intention to invite President Pratibha Patil and Congress chief Sonia Gandhi to his country.

The two leaders discussed a number of issues including bilateral defence and economic ties, UN reforms and developments in Libya and Ivory Coast, Secretary (Economic Relations) in the External Affairs Ministry Manbir Singh told reporters here.

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India, Singapore conduct naval exercise in South China Sea

NEW DELHI (PTI): Close to Chinese maritime boundary, the Indian Navy is engaging the Singaporean Navy in an eight day wargames in the South China Sea.

During the exercise, the two navies will develop and share each other's skills in training and related aspects of anti-submarine warfare, Indian Navy officials said here.

"This time, Singapore Navy has deployed three frigates, a missile corvette, a submarine and a maritime patrol aircraft. The Singapore Air Force is also deploying fighter aircraft in it," they added.

Indian, Singapore navy to engage in five-day naval exercise in South China Sea

SINGAPORE (PTI): The five-day joint naval exercise between the Indian Navy and the Singapore Navy will start Saturday in the South China Sea.

Five Indian navy ships, under the command of Rear Admiral Harish Chandra Singh Bisht, arrived in Singapore on Friday for the drill that aims to strengthen bilateral maritime security relations.

The joint exercises, held on alternate year in the Indian Ocean and the South China Sea, has built up understanding and knowledge between Indian and Singapore navies, Rear Admiral Joseph Leong, Fleet Commander of the Republic of Singapore Navy told PTI at a reception hosted on board INS Jyoti.

Russia to lease n-submarine to India by October

Moscow: Russia will lease K-152 Nerpa, a nuclear-powered submarine, to India by October this year, a Russian naval admiral said on Wednesday.

'The submarine is completely ready for transfer. An Indian crew is currently training aboard with Russian instructors,' said the admiral who requested anonymity.

'This should be completed before October. We're running late,' he said.

Twenty sailors were killed after toxic gas leaked on board Nerpa as the submarine was undergoing trials in the Sea of Japan in November 2008. A fire extinguishing system malfunctioned, leading to the discharge.

The $900-million lease contract was drawn up after Moscow and New Delhi struck a deal in January 2004 when New Delhi agreed to fund a part of the submarine's construction.

The Nerpa was originally scheduled to be inducted into the Indian Navy as INS Chakra by mid-2008.

Some media reports earlier said that the K-152 Nerpa attack submarine had already been transferred to India on a 10-year lease.

BRAHMOS underwater test-firing by year-end

NEW DELHI (PTI): India will testfire the submarine-launched version of the 290km range BRAHMOS supersonic cruise missile by the end of this year.

"We will testfire the underwater version of the missile by the end of this year after we get the pontoon for the purpose," BrahMos Aerospace chief A Sivathanu Pillai told reporters here.

Underwater weapon-delivery platforms are considered to be the most potent second strike capability of countries' defence strength.

Cochin Shipyard to expand capacity with Rs 500 crore investment

KOCHI (PTI): The Public sector Cochin Shipyard Ltd is proposing to expand its existing capacity through a ship lift system with an investment of Rs 500 crore, a top official said Friday.

The new system is likely to come up at the northern end of the CSL estate and would be 120 metre long and able to accommodate ships up to 6,000 tonnes, CSL Chairman and Managing Director, Commodore K Subramaniam, told reporters here.

First Fleet Tanker for the Indian Navy Delivered In Mumbai

Today in Mumbay there was the commissioning ceremony for the “Deepak”, the first of two fleet tankers ordered from Fincantieri by the Indian Navy.

Present at the ceremony were A.K. Antony, the Indian Minister of the Defence, Admiral Nirmal Varma, Chief of Naval Staff of the Indian Navy, and Corrado Antonini, Chairman of Fincantieri. The order is the first surface vessel India has ordered from a European company, gained in competition against prominent international players, in particular from Russia and Korea.

With a displacement at full load of 27,500 tonnes, the 175 metre long fleet tanker, with a beam of 25 metres and a height of 19, has two 10,00 kW diesel engines for propulsion and can reach a maximum speed of 20 knots. Further features include a propulsion system with an adjustable propeller and a flight deck for medium-heavy helicopters (up to 10 tons).

Indian Navy's UAVs to keep an eye on intrusion

Porbander: Surveillance along the western coastline has been beefed up with the commissioning of a squadron of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) at the Naval base in Porbander.

The Unmanned Aerial Vehicle, called the Heron, will now keep an eye on intrusions along the western coast, which was used by the 26/11 attackers to enter Mumbai.

Its operations will entirely be controlled from a remote location and will send back pictures and videos of any suspicious movement in the sea. The Heron is equipped to locate even submarines, warships and aircraft, and can remain in the sky for up to 12 hours at a stretch.

"It doesn't have a pilot who can get tired. So it has a lot of endurance. It can fly far or survey from near. It has the potential to carry equipment such as a camera, a communication interceptor and video transmitter. These UAVs will prove to be a big boost for surveillance. They are equipped with most advanced systems and can fly for long hours," says Western Naval Command spokesperson Captain Manohar Nambiar.

Accompanying the Heron is the third generation Searcher MK2 which has also been commissioned.

India, Russia discuss Admiral Gorshkov, piracy threat

NEW DELHI (PTI): India and Russia on Monday discussed ways to increase cooperation in tackling the growing threat of piracy in the Indian Ocean region and the issue of training navy personnel for operating aircraft carrier Admiral Gorshkov.

The deliberations in this regard were held between Indian Navy chief Admiral Nirmal Verma and his Russian counterpart Admiral Vladimir Sergeevich Vysotskiy, who arrived here Monday on a three-day visit.

"Whilst discussing the maritime environment, specific emphasis was laid on the growing threat of piracy in the Indian Ocean Region (IOR) and various possibilities for the two navies to co-operate," Navy officials said here.

Discussions on ongoing projects included "detailed deliberations on the training of Indian Naval personnel for the operation of aircraft carrier rechristened as INS Vikramaditya, scheduled to commence later this year," they said.

Bangladesh naval delegation visits Southern Naval Command

KOCHI (PTI): A high-level delegation of Bangladesh Navy arrived on a two-day visit to the Southern Naval Command here on Monday to strengthen mutual cooperation between the two navies in areas of professional training.

The visiting delegation, led by Commodore M Nizamuddin Ahmed, Commodore Commanding, Chittagong, called on Vice-Admiral K N Sushil, Flag Officer Commanding-in-Chief Southern Naval Command.

The programme of the delegation includes a briefing on Indian Naval training and visits to various training facilities at Southern Naval Command, a Defence release said.

Several Bangladesh Navy personnel were undergoing training in various institutions under Southern Naval Command, it said.

Similarly, India has also been sending its Navy personnel to Bangladesh for training.

Indian Navy Marine Commandos to be Equipped with Israeli Rifles

The Indian Navy marine commandos (MARCOS) will be armed with Israeli-made Tavor assault rifles and Galil sniper rifles to enhance their operational capability.

A defence ministry official said a consignment of over 500 TAR-21 Tavor assault rifles worth Rs150m ($3.3m) and another 30 Galil sniper rifles worth Rs20m ($437,847) was delivered to MARCOS.

"The Israeli team will be here to jointly inspect the delivered weapons and assemble them. MARCOS will begin using these rifles and start training on them from this month," the official said.

The Tavor is a 5.56mm-calibre weapon of Nato specifications while the Galil is a 7.62mm sniper weapon.

The two weapons will be a standard weapon for the force, and are already in use with the Indian Army's special forces and the Indian Air Force's Garud special forces units.

MARCOS, a force trained for special operations, is currently using the indigenous INSAS rifles and Russian Kalashnikov variants, according to IANS.

 Source: http://www.naval-technology.com/news/news107258.html

Britain wants to cooperate with India in Navy ship building

NEW DELHI (PTI): Britain Friday said it wanted to extend cooperation with India in the field of naval ship building.

"There is a considerable scope. There are common things like the way we build ships in the UK. The way we operate is common with the way India does. We do think that naval area is one where there are immense opportunities," British High Commissioner to India Richard Stagg told reporters here.

India and the UK have had a long Navy-to-Navy relationship as both the aircraft carriers which the Indian Navy has operated were earlier in service with the British Navy.

India, which has embarked on a major modernisation plan for its armed forces, has emerged as a favourite with various defence equipment-manufacturing countries with its plan of spending over USD 100 billion on defence in the next ten years.

Indian Navy: 2010 Year-End-Review

The nation woke up to the threat from the sea in the wake of the Mumbai attacks of November 2008. The Government has since initiated a slew of measures to beef up coastal security and in the year gone by the Indian Navy, besides the Coast Guard, witnessed much activity and expansion.

The Mig-29K and the INS Shivalik were the biggest force multipliers in the Navy during the year gone by. A large number of warships were also launched, including the INS Tarkash stealth frigate in Russia and INS Shakti fleet tanker in Italy in the Indian Navy’s efforts to bolster its blue water capability.

The Navy’s anti-piracy operations continued reaping dividends during the year gone by, making the sea lanes safer. Keeping up with India’s growing clout, the Navy was the foremost among the three arms in outreach, conducting exercises with foreign flotillas, the Naval ports hosting flagships of various friendly nations and the Indian warships visiting distant shores.

AUGMENTING COASTAL SECURITY

• The Indian Navy, being the nodal agency for Coastal Security among all maritime stakeholders, established four Joint Operations Centres, - at Mumbai, Kochi,

India seeks Indian Ocean supremacy with warship research

India launched a new naval research centre for warships on Tuesday, part of efforts by the South Asian giant to build its sea defences and counter the perceived threat of China in the Indian Ocean.

Defence Minister A.K. Antony laid the foundation stone for the National Institute for Research and Development in Shipbuilding (NIRDESH) in the southern state of Kerala, which will be built at a cost of six billion rupees (133 million dollars).

The facility, which will be up and running in two years, will help develop technology for "drawing board to delivery" of warships for India, a naval official said.

The Kerala unit will work independently of the national Defence Research and Development Organisation, with the aim of reducing India's dependence on military imports, which mostly come from Russia.

The 136-vessel navy said in a statement that NIRDESH would ensure India's maritime security.

"This would empower Indian navy, coastguard and other maritime security agencies in a manner befitting the country's stature and influence in the region," it said.

Indian, US Navy joint exercise off Andaman cost from today

NEW DELHI (PTI): Aiming to strengthen their capabilities in techniques associated with salvage and diving, navies of India and the US will hold a week-long joint exercise codenamed 'SALVEX' off the coast off Andaman and Nicobar Islands from today.

In the exercise, Indian Navy’s diving tender INS Nireekshak and USS Safeguard, a specialised Salvage ship are participating.

During the exercise, the Indian Navy will also gain experience of working on underwater Remotely Operated Vehicles (ROVs) and side scan SONARs being launched from USS Safeguard, Navy officials said.

It will also witness the operation of Hot Tap Equipment which is used for removal of oil or fuel from tanks of sunken vessels.