India and the F-35?

[XanderCrews]

So when US stop selling weapons to Pakistan, India and US could became lot closer.

we already sell to both, don't know why we have to pick all of the sudden. If India wants to keep burdening itself with russian garbage and French flavored promises thats fine with me. if not they know who to call.

Btw it is US which wanted to sanctioned India because it is buying russian weapons to defend itself from Pakistan and China not long ago.

yes and not long ago we were bombing Serbs. Good times never last I guess.

The indians could be flying around more super hornets than they would know what to do with if they hadn't fallen for the Dassault scam with MCRA. many times on many occasions we've offered and they've accepted or declined but make no mistake the bar has been open for nearly any drink they could desire.

You Americans need to stop acting like world is still spinning around you, it doesn't. You need India and even Russia lot more then they need you, of course if you want to have any chance in stopping China.

for a guy lecturing on current events you sure missed the fact that india bought 20 billion dollars worth of weapons from us and the numbers are only rising, and it didn't require us cutting Pakistan off to do it.

if they ever want to cash out those trash flankers some F-15EX would do nicely no doubt.

[spazsinbad]

P'raps we know why there will be an uptick in US/western weapon (F-35?) selling to INDIA for previously secret reason:

Secret Pacific Strategy Called for Stronger India to Counter China
13 Jan 2021 John A. Tirpak

"The Trump administration’s Indo-Pacific Strategy, declassified Jan. 13, seeks to promote India’s military and economic strength as a counter to China, while trying to keep traditional U.S. regional allies in the fold. It revolves around blunting China’s rising influence, and aims to bolster the militaries of Australia, India, Japan, and South Korea with better arms, intelligence sharing, and common research and development, while getting those countries to shoulder a greater share of the Indo-Pacific defense burden....

...The strategy recommends strengthening the militaries of Australia, India, Japan, and Korea with increased arms sales and arms development cooperation. It also seeks a greater out-of-area role for both Japan and Korea, whose defense forces largely restrict themselves to domestic defense. Japan, particularly, will be encouraged to become “regionally integrated” as a “technologically advanced pillar” of the Indo-Pacific security architecture.

The U.S. aims for a “quadrilateral security framework” with the U.S., India, Japan, and Australia as the “principal hubs,” seeking particularly a “modernization of Japan’s Self-Defense Force.” The U.S. also seeks to reinvigorate alliances with the Philippines and Thailand, to “strengthen their role in upholding a rules-based order.” It sees Myanmar—which the strategy refers to by its old name of Burma—as becoming a potential ally as well, promoting and supporting that country’s “transition to democracy.”...

...Strengthening India is a common theme of the strategy, aiming to “accelerate India’s rise,” so that it becomes a “net provider of security and a major defense partner.” A “strong Indian military” should be able to “effectively collaborate” with the U.S., and its ground forces can provide a strong counter to China. The strategy says the U.S. wants to “expand our defense trade” with India and transfer technology to it that will enhance its capabilities as an ally.

Toward that end, the U.S. wants to help India engage militarily “beyond the Indian Ocean,” and assist its efforts toward “domestic economic reform.” The U.S. plans to provide military, diplomatic, and intelligence assistance to India, to help with “border disputes with China and access to water, including the Brahmaputra and other rivers facing diversion by China.” The U.S. would work with India and Japan to finance projects that “enhance regional connectivity between India and countries of the region.”..."

Source: https://www.airforcemag.com/secret-paci ... ter-china/

[Corsair1963]

I wouldn't expect to see the Biden Plan to be much different.....

[spazsinbad]

How India May Rely On Its Navy To Offset China
20 Jan 2021 Saurabh Joshi

"...• India is considering the purchase of a third aircraft carrier

... • Navy officials are leaning toward western aircraft in order to remain interoperable with allies in the Pacific...

...A large part of the discussion concerns assets the Indian Navy should pursue—specifically, a third aircraft carrier and its associated aircraft. Naval aviation capabilities are key for India to dominate the Indian Ocean region along with its Quad (Quadrilateral Security Dialogue) partners: Australia [not much NavAv from Oz], Japan and the U.S....

...Regional security, including that of sea lines of communication, remains an important objective for the Indian Navy but is now more important than ever. India sees as imperative the need to offset the PLA across the Himalayas by controlling access to sea lanes across the Indian Ocean, from the Straits of Malacca to Hormuz and the Gulf of Aden. Since no navy can accomplish this on its own, India may opt to acquire platforms that offer a high level of interoperability with allies.

Wish List
The Indian Navy intends to have a fleet of 445 aircraft by 2030, with a number of acquisitions already planned: 57 fighters, 111 utility helicopters, 123 multirole helicopters and 24 Sikorsky MH-60R helicopters are on order. The list also includes additional Boeing OP-8I long-range maritime reconnaissance aircraft. The navy had an original requirement for 31 of the aircraft, of which nine are in service. Three more have been ordered, and a further six are expected to be ordered, though the service also has an increasing interest in unmanned platforms after the recent lease of two General Atomics MQ-9B UAVs.

Plans to purchase a new, third aircraft carrier are just one piece of that naval aviation expansion. The navy had already been contemplating spending about $25 billion long before the eastern Ladakh crisis transformed earlier assumptions. The service has plans to build a twin-engine deck-based fighter (TEDBF) to enter service in the early 2030s.

The third aircraft carrier, a 65,000-ton catapult-assisted-takeoff, barrier-arrested-recovery (Catobar) flat-deck (priced at $6.15 billion), which envisages the launch of fixed-wing reconnaissance aircraft in addition to fighters, is the only one of the lot that has yet to be approved. The battle within the defense ministry over the purchase of a third aircraft carrier is likely to be fought over the next year or two....

...“The third carrier and naval aviation will be essential for the time when the Chinese begin to assert themselves in the Indian Ocean region,” Sinha says.

Australia, Japan and the U.S. all announced plans in 2020 for significant expenditures to counter Chinese military capabilities in the Indo-Pacific region.

Prakash puts the acquisition plans in perspective. “Although these seem like large acquisition plans, in reality many of these are filling long-standing voids in capability and not enhancing it,” he says. “But a third aircraft carrier and the planned 57 new fighters are what will constitute a substantive accretion.”

Singh told news media in December that the navy intends to make its case for the third aircraft carrier to the government, pending responses to outstanding requests for information. “As a navy, we are absolutely clear of the utility of the third aircraft carrier, because air operations are absolutely integral to naval operations—air power at sea is absolutely required. And it is required here and now, that kind of air power,” he said....

...Western Shift
Something else that stands out is that Western equipment are the likeliest choices in all these programs. The Boeing F/A-18 Super Hornet and the Dassault Rafale M are preferred over the in-service Mikoyan MiG-29K. The F/A-18 conducted ski-jump tests in August to prove operability with India’s existing short-takeoff, barrier-arrested-recovery carrier operability requirement.

“To replace the MiG-29s, we’ve taken up a case for the [57 multirole carrier-borne fighters] we are trying to do along with the Indian Air Force,” Singh said in December. The MiG-29K is not Catobar-capable, also a requirement for the Indian Navy....

...These programs paint a seascape of almost exclusively Western platforms wearing the navy roundel over the Indian Ocean. This will inevitably enhance the scope of interoperability with Western navies, with which India has conducted a growing number of engagements. These include increasingly complex exercises, coordinated patrols, intelligence sharing and exchange of supplies via logistics agreements.

“There is no question that these plans, as they stand, will represent a long-overdue shift away from poorly supported Russian toward Western platforms and systems,” Prakash says. “The naval air arm is showing the way in this regard.”

Sinha adds: “This shift toward Western kit is not only about high-tech platforms, but also about partnering with democracies with a convergence of strategic interests.”

Source: https://aviationweek.com/defense-space/ ... fset-china

[spazsinbad]

Super Hornet ski jump take off https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=km-wzCVBKSM

[Corsair1963]

Sounds like India would like some Super Hornets for their New Aircraft Carrier. (i.e. Vikrant)


Yet, how many decades will they have to wait for them???

[spazsinbad]

I give in. How many DECADES?

[spazsinbad]

Indian Navy’s First Indigenous Aircraft Carrier Vikrant Catching Up To China
30 May 2021 H I Sutton

"The Indian Navy’s first indigenous aircraft carrier, INS Vikrant, is expected to start sea trials soon. She will be India’s second aircraft carrier joining the Russian built INS Vikramaditya. When she joins the fleet she will be a key component to India’s ability to face China’s growing naval capabilities....

...[China's] third carrier, which is under construction in Shanghai, will be comparable in size to the US Navy’s Ford Class super-carriers.

At 45,000 tons the Vikrant will be around 67% the size of China’s existing aircraft carriers, which displace around 65,000 tons. But her compact dimensions belie capabilities which are overall quite comparable to China’s first two carriers, the Liaoning (CV-16) and Shandong. And her deck area is around 85% of the size.

Although the construction of the Indian and Chinese ships overlaps, in many respects the Indian carrier is a generation newer in design. Design of Vikrant started in 1999 while the Chinese ships are rooted in 1970s Soviet technology. Vikrant was launched in August 2013 and has been fitting out in Kochi since then....

...The Indian Navy is looking at a more modern fighter to replace the Fulcrums. The main contender is the Hal TEDBF (Twin Engine Deck Based Fighter). This compact canard design is hoped to fly in 5 years time. In the meantime the Indian Navy may order a smaller number of interim carrier fighters with the Boeing Super Hornet and Dassault Rafale as talked about contenders....

...It is unlikely that India will ever operate more carriers than China going forward, those days have passed. But with two carriers the gap will be manageable. Especially as China is unlikely to commit all its carriers to the Indian Ocean in the event of a conflict. With investment in aircraft, India can maintain a strong position in the carrier game."

Photo: "...satellite imagery (from Maxar via Google Earth) shows the compact dimensions of Vikrant. Although the Indian carrier is smaller, the two ships are broadly comparable." https://g7a6v6x7.rocketcdn.me/wp-conten ... mpared.jpg

Source: https://www.navalnews.com/naval-news/20 ... -to-china/

[milosh]

TEDBF is design to be quite similar to Rafale M so if it fails they could just buy Rafale M. Indian domestic engine have M88 core so even engines are similar.

So smart decision by navy, they have option B if Tejas repeat.

[weasel1962]

Had the impression TEBDF will be using F414s.

[h-bomb]

Sounds like India would like some Super Hornets for their New Aircraft Carrier. (i.e. Vikrant)


Yet, how many decades will they have to wait for them???

None they will most likely be out of production by 2030, unless the F/A-XX goes down in flames.

[Corsair1963]

Sounds like India would like some Super Hornets for their New Aircraft Carrier. (i.e. Vikrant)


Yet, how many decades will they have to wait for them???

None they will most likely be out of production by 2030, unless the F/A-XX goes down in flames.

I wouldn't doubt that an Indian Order appears out of nowhere in order to save the Super Hornet.....

[madrat]

Super Hornet when they already have Rafale? They'd be better off Rafale M if they need a naval fighter. If they want American then we already floated F-16IN to them which is better in both dollars and sense.

[Corsair1963]

Super Hornet when they already have Rafale? They'd be better off Rafale M if they need a naval fighter. If they want American then we already floated F-16IN to them which is better in both dollars and sense.

You really expect India to make logical choices in her defense spending???

[Corsair1963]

Also, with no more orders for Super Hornets from the USN. The production line will shut down shortly. This would make the offer to send it do India as very attractive for both parties....