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An ambitious Russia-India fighter plane project

The Russian Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-29 Fulcrum air-superiority fighter with a vectored-thrust engine stole the limelight at the November 11-15 Dubai Air Show. But this warplane will become obsolete in the foreseeable future. Fifth-generation fighters featuring entirely new engineering solutions will form the mainstay of national air forces in the 21st century.

On November 15, officials of Russia’s Sukhoi Military Aviation Complex and representatives of the Indian Defence Ministry held a round of talks on developing a fifth-generation fighter.

On October 18, President Vladimir Putin told a news conference that Moscow would develop such warplanes by 2015. Earlier, First Deputy Prime Minister Sergei Ivanov had said a prototype fifth-generation fighter would perform its maiden flight in 2009, and that serial production would start in early 2010. But most experts were not so optimistic and predicted that the first warplane in this category would not appear before 2012-2014 — which was more in line with Mr. Putin’s statement.

The world’s first fifth-generation fighter, the prototype U.S. F-22 Raptor fighter, took off on September 7, 1997. Two weeks later, Russia’s Sukhoi Su-37 Berkut, another prototype fifth-generation fighter, made a test flight.

Production versions of the F-22 Raptor and the U.S.-EU F-35 Joint Strike Fighter are currently available. The latter, referred to as a generation five-plus fighter, seems to out-perform the former.

Russia has so far failed to master production of the purely experimental Su-37, built by Sukhoi at its own expense. But the layout of the aircraft makes it possible to streamline various engineering solutions under the Advanced Tactical Aircraft (PAK FA) programme.

The U.S. and Europe spent over $20 billion on the F-35 JSF programme. Therefore, experts believe Russia should team up with a foreign partner to develop a fifth-generation fighter. It will take $600 million to $800 million to design the engine, the most expensive element, and $1.5 billion to launch serial production.

Russia and India began negotiations on the joint fifth-generation fighter programme in 2003. New Delhi insisted that the new aircraft be developed from scratch. Moscow was not very happy about this because it implied another expensive project. There have been some outstanding achievements, but bilateral military-technical cooperation has been marked by major setbacks and even conflicts. And this explains why it took India so long to get involved in the new fighter programme.

Both countries have faced serious problems, such as in the matter of upgrading the aircraft carrier Admiral Gorshkov. Under a bilateral contract, the Indian Navy was to have received the warship in 2008. However, Admiral Gorshkov will only have its trial run from 2010 to 2012.

Moreover, Russian bureaucrats have failed to approve the preparatory documents of the Multi-Role Transport Aircraft (MTA) project during the last two years and have nearly stopped it. New Delhi has said that it could withdraw from the project and develop the MTA together with Brazil or the European Union.

Tatyana Shaumyan, head of the Centre of Indian Research at the Russian Academy of Sciences’ Institute of Oriental Studies, said Russian red tape, inadequate fulfilment of contracts and delayed shipments have had an impact on bilateral relations. India is trying to protect itself from such negative developments.

The Indian Air Force floated a global tender for 126 combat jet planes worth $10 billion. Eighteen of the medium multi-role combat aircraft (MMRCA) will be purchased in flyaway condition and the remaining 108 manufactured in the country under a transfer of technology (TOT) agreement with the chosen supplier.

The 211-page request for proposal (RFP) has been sent to the manufacturers of six aircraft types: the U.S. F-16 and F-18 Super Hornet, the Swedish Gripen, the French Rafale, the Russian MiG-35 and a European consortium’s Eurofighter. Indian engineers and technicians who know all about the Russian aircraft production process will quickly master the relevant technologies.

The Indian leadership seemed inclined to cooperate with the U.S. and to acquire know-how for the F-35 JSF. However, Washington, which refuses to share technology even with its closest allies, put forward some rather harsh terms before New Delhi.

This October, Russia and India agreed to develop jointly the fifth-generation fighter and to manufacture it at Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) and Sukhoi Military Aviation Complex plants.

Defence Minister A.K. Antony said the agreement heralded a new stage in bilateral cooperation aiming to develop new-generation weapons and military equipment. This will become one of the most ambitious Russian-Indian military programmes.

The fifth-generation fighter must retain in-flight stability and control at 90-degree-plus angles of attack. The U.S., which faced similar problems, eventually preferred Stealth characteristics and supersonic cruise speeds to super-agility.

The future Russian-Indian warplane will probably outmanoeuvre any other similar aircraft because the F-22’s manoeuvrability is similar to that of the revamped Su-27 Flanker featuring vectored-thrust engines. This Russian plane features AL-37-FU engines with round rotatable nozzles and can attain supersonic cruise speeds. Its combat efficiency has been enhanced because the Su-27 can bank sharply at high angular speeds and along short trajectories in every plane.

In addition, the fifth-generation fighter will be fitted with advanced avionics, long-range weapons and other radio-electronic equipment to hit any conceivable target. The Indian electronics industry will provide an invaluable contribution to developing automated electronic counter-measures (ECM) systems, secure data-exchange networks and fire-control systems for long-range tactical missions. — RIA Novosti

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