Mighty India Power

Interceptor test - a direct hit on target missile‎

2012-02-10T05:58:00.001-08:00

DRDO today conducted a successful test launch of the interceptor missile. DRDO’s Air Defence Missile AAD-05 has successfully hit the ballistic missile and destroyed it at a height of 15 kms off the Coast of Orissa near the Wheelers Island. A modified Prithvi missile mimicking the ballistic missile was launched at 1010 hrs from ITR Chandipur. Radars located at different locations tracked the incoming ballistic missile. Interceptor missile was ready to take-off at Wheelers Island. Guidance computers continuously computed the trajectory of the ballistic missile and launched AAD-05 Interceptor Missile at a precisely calculated time. With the target trajectory continuously updated by the radar, the onboard guidance computer guided the AAD-05 Interceptor Missile towards the target missile. The onboard radio frequency seeker identified the target missile, guided the AAD-05 Interceptor Missile close to the target missile, hit the target missile directly and destroyed it. Warhead also exploded and destroyed the target missile into pieces.
Radar and Electro Optic Tracking Systems (EOTS) have tracked the missile and also recorded the fragments of target missile falling into the Bay of Bengal. It is one of the finest missions where the interceptor has hit the incoming ballistic missile directly and destroyed it at a 15 kms altitude. The mission was carried out in the final deliverable user configuration mode.
India is the fifth nation to have these ballistic missile defence capabilities in the world.

Agni-IV among the world's best : VK Saraswat

2011-11-16T05:55:00.001-08:00

The Agni-IV, India's latest strategic nuclear-capable missile, is among the world's best and better than Pakistan's missiles, VK Saraswat head of its developer, Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), said here on Wednesday.

"I have no doubt that Agni-IV compares with what is available in its class of missiles like the Pershing (US medium range ballistic missile)," Saraswat said at a press conference when asked if India can now say its missile technology is superior to that of Pakistan.

"If I am comparing Agni-IV with Pershing-I or Pershing-II missiles in terms of technology...I am talking in terms of technology, not in terms of range, as Pershing missiles have higher range...it meets global standards," he said, to stress the point.

"Whether our missiles vis-a-vis our adversaries, it meets the Pershing standards or not, that you have to find out," he said in response to a comparison with Pakistan's ballistic missile programme.

"As far as I am concerned, we have state-of-the-art ballistic missiles," he added.

The test-flight of Agni-IV, India's most advanced long-range missile was “a stupendous success” on Tuesday, with the missile covering a range of more than 3,000 km in 20 minutes of fluent flight.

Second Successful Launch of the Indian Shourya Ballistic Missile

2011-09-25T11:12:00.001-07:00

India has tested the Shourya nuclear-capable surface/surface missile September 24, 2011, at the Integrated Test Range (ITR) at Chandipur off Orissa coast, about 15 km from Balasore. "The launch of the missile was perfect like in text book and followed the path exactly to the pre-defined target in the Bay of Bengal," S.P. Dash, director of the test range, said.

Authorities evacuated more than 2,000 people living close to the launch site in Orissa state - shifting them to temporary shelters, due to security concerns over the test.

This flight paves the way for its production and induction into the Services. It was designed and developed by the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO). It can carry both nuclear and conventional warheads. The missile can be used by both the Navy and the Army because it could perform various roles.

Mahindra-NAL C-NM5 conducts first flight

2011-09-21T03:08:00.000-07:00

Utility vehicles major Mahindra Group's maiden aircraft, the C-NM5, has completed a successful test flight, the company announced here Wednesday.

The 45-minute flight of the C-NM5, conducted Sep 1, tested the basic handling of the 5-seater all-metal aircraft.

Subsequent flights evaluated the aircraft stability and control under different flying conditions and further tests are continuing to comply with international regulatory standards before putting it up for global sales.

The aircraft has been developed in a public-private partnership between National Aerospace Laboratories and Mahindra Group's Mahindra Aerospace, with GippsAero, Australia (a subsidiary of Mahindra Aerospace), said Anand Mahindra, vice chairman and managing director of the $12.5 billion Mahindra Group.

India developing solar-powered UAVs

2011-08-21T20:47:00.001-07:00

After launching development of stealth UCAVs (unmanned combat aerial vehicles), India is now also looking at designing solar-powered spy drones which can cruise in the sky for several days at a time.

"We are looking forward to develop solar-powered unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) with a long range and endurance capability as we plan to diversify our expertise in UAV technology," Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) spokesperson Ravi Gupta said.

The one-of-its-kind UAV will be designed and developed to endure long-range sorties ranging up to a month in all weather conditions, Gupta said.

The high-altitude, long endurance (HALE) solar-powered UAV will not just reduce Indian military's carbon footprint but more importantly provide a cost-effective and flexible 24x7 ISTAR (intelligence, surveillance, target acquisition and reconnaissance) platform akin to "a pseudo-satellite" orbiting closer to the ground. Besides the armed forces, paramilitary personnel engaged in anti-Naxal operations are also looking forward to procure UAVs to snoop deep into forests inhabited by Left-wing extremists.

India to build its own stealth fighter jet.

2011-08-17T23:59:00.001-07:00

India is getting ready to add another fighter aircraft to its fleet with the DRDO working on an Advanced Medium Combat Aircraft. In a little over a decade from now the Indian Air Force will be needing replacements for its MiG-29, Mirage and Jaguar fighters. The DRDO through its Bangalore based Aeronautical Development Agency (ADA) will unveil the design for that replacement to the air force brass next year, an indigenous design for a stealth aircraft

Director General VK Saraswat DRDO said, "Our requirement is to look for a fighter aircraft which will be required after 2025 and that aircraft should have all capabilities in terms of agility, maneuverability, load carrying capacity, low radar cross-section, super cruise."

The Advanced Medium Combat Aircraft could be in the 20 tonne range and composite materials will comprise much of its structure. Weapons will be carried in internal concealed bays and It will be powered by two "Kaveri" engines.

"It will be powered by our modified 'Kaveri' engine. It will have additional features in terms of better fuel consumption, thrust vectoring, serpentine intakes and also some of the technologies critical for high fuel efficient and high turbine temperatures," said Saraswat.

Originally the Kaveri was to power the Light Combat Aircraft 'Tejas' but is yet to develop the required thrust forcing the authorities to opt for the GE414 engine. Given that experience, the DRDO through the ADA plans to collaborate with a foreign engine manufacturer to speed up the development and testing work.

Indo-Russian fifth generation fighter likely to compete in South Korean tender

2011-08-16T03:12:00.001-07:00

The export version of Russia's T-50 fifth-generation fighter, also called as the PAK-FA, is likely to compete in a South Korean tender for 60 fighter aircraft with advanced Stealth capability. The version is being jointly developed by India and Russia and will be ready to fly in 2016.

India's Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) will be a major beneficiary of this procurement as many of the aircraft electronics systems are to developed in India as part of the workshare agreement between India and Russia. The two countries are sharing the development cost of the project estimated at US$35 billion.

A RiaNovosi report quoting an unnamed official of the Moscow based Center for Analysis of World Arms Trade said that the South Korean Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA) had expressed an interest in having the T-50 compete along with Lockheed Martin's F-35 Lightening II Joint Strike Fighter, Boeing's F-15 Silent Eagle and the Eurofighter Typhoon. A report from Seoul said that the DAPA is likely to issue request for proposals late next year for the acquisition to happen by 2016-17. The PAK-FA is expected to ready for delivery in 2016-17 for both the Russian and India Air Forces.

The PAK-FA is scheduled to make its first pubic appearance at the Moscow International Air Show (MAKS 2011) currently on in the Russian capital. Two prototypes of the aircraft have been making test flights since 2010.

India plans to induct the FGFA by 2017. Defence Minister A K Antony had said during the Aero India 2011 show, "the difficulties in joining this programme are over. We've signed a deal with the Russians, and we will see the FGFA inducted by 2017".

Mikhail Pogosyan, chief executive of Russia's United Aircraft Corp said during a brief media interaction here that the Indo-Russian fifth generation project was on track.

The Prahaar Missile

2011-08-09T21:26:00.001-07:00

Prahaar (Sanskrit:प्रहार, Strike) is a solid fueled surface-to-surface guided short-range tactical ballistic missile by DRDO of India. It would be equipped with omni-directional warheads and could be used for hitting both tactical and strategic targets

DEVELOPMENT

The Prahaar is the latest missile to be added to India's arsenal of ballistic missiles and was developed keeping in mind the Indian Army's 'Cold Start' doctrine, which envisions a rapid thrust by armored regiments into Pakistan in the event of a provocation. The Prahaar would play a key role in disrupting and destroying enemy infrastructures as well as lines of communication before Indian ground forces move in.

The missile was developed with two main factors in mind:, accuracy and rapid response. Accuracy was important as it allows for the targeting of individual, 'tactical' targets, as opposed to an artillery strike or rocket barrage which is usually directed at broader areas of impact. The Prahaar is also designed to carry various types of sub-munitions or a unitary warhead. For example, it will be able to carry up to 400 AT/AP bomblets, scatterable mines, anti-runway munitions and similar loads, making it effective for a wide number of targets. The Prahaar's payload compartment is being developed by the DRDO in cooperation with Israel Aircraft Industries' (IAI) MLM Systems Integration Division and Israel Military Industries' (IMI) Rocket Systems Division.

The Prahaar was first test launched on 21st July, 2011 from the Integrated Test Range in Chandipur. The DRDO reported that the missile took off, reached a height of 35 kilometers, and hit a designated target in the Bay of Bengal 150 kilometers away with an accuracy of 10 meters. The total flight time was 250 seconds, or just under four minutes. The Prahaar fulfilled all test parameters.

DESCRIPTION

The Prahaar is a solid fueled single stage missile with which the Indian Army hopes to fill a crucial gap in it's surface-to-surface arsenal. As of now the Army can choose to either use it's Pinaka and Smerch Multi Barrel Rocket Launchers (MBRLs) for ground bombing or for a bigger punch choose the Prithvi missile which can carry warheads of more than 500 kg. However, there is a large gap between the MBRLs and the Prithvi, and it is precisely this gap which the Prahaar is to fill. Unlike the unguided rockets launched by the Pinaka or Smerch, each Prahaar missile is guided and has an accuracy of ±10 meters over a range of 150 kilometers.

The Prahaar missile system comes in sets of six missiles, all sharing the same launcher. With this, the missiles can either be fired singularly, or in a salvo with single and multiple target designations. The Prahaar missile system is intended for use primarily by the Army against enemy targets deep within enemy lines. Until now this role has fallen on the Indian Air Force, at the cost of many pilots' lives as well as lost aircraft, the Prahaar should greatly reduce the burden on the IAF in this regard. For this purpose it is speculated that even the Air Force would be interested by the Prahaar Missile system.

LAUNCH PLATFORMS

The Prahaar has been designed with mobility in mind and therefore it's primary launcher is a 8 x 8 Tatra Transporter Erector Launcher which has been developed by Tata. This is better known as the Road Mobile System which includes 6 separately enclosed Prahaar missiles as well as a state of the art command centre which allows for seamless communication between decision makers and the Prahaar missile batteries. As a result of this, once the launch command is given it takes less than 10 minutes for the missiles to hit their intended targets. Another aspect of the launcher is that missiles can be launched in any direction across the entire azimuth-plane, thereby eliminating the need to spend precious time maneuvering the launcher.

SPECIFICATIONS

Weight: 1280 kg
Length: 7.3 meters
Diameter: 0.42 meter
Warhead:200 kg
Propellant: Solid
Operational range: 150 km
Speed: Mach 2.03 (2160 km/h)
Launch platform: 8 x 8 Tatra Transporter Erector Launcher

India’s first indigenous aircraft carrier to be launched in Dec

2011-08-03T01:08:00.000-07:00

Air Defence Ship

The construction of the first indigenous aircraft carrier 'Air Defence Ship' at Cochin is scheduled to be completed by December after which the 40,000 tonne vessel will be launched, the Lok Sabha was informed.

"Regarding the ADS being constructed at the Cochin Shipyard limited (CSL), 75 per cent of hull work has been completed and is expected to be launched in December 2011, after which further work will be undertaken prior to its commissioning," Defence Minister A K Antony said on Monday in reply to a query.

He said Indian-made warship quality steel was now available in the country, which will reduce the country's dependence on foreign sources.

"With the infrastructure and experience, indigenous aircraft carrier-sized ships can be built at CSL. Now Indian-manufactured warship quality steel is available, which will reduce dependence on foreign countries," he said.

Outlining India's plans to have an aircraft carrier on both the seaboards, the minister said, "To maintain effective presence in our area of interest, Indian Navy should be capable of deploying Carrier Task Forces in two geographically separated locations."

Commenting on the work on the Admiral Gorshkov project in Russia, Antony said, "The refit and modernisation works on board the INS Vikramaditya are progressing in an earnest manner."

"Consequent to signing of supplementary agreements in March 2010, the Russian side has increased the manpower and material resources considerably for the project. A majority of the equipment and systems have been installed on board the ship. The delivery of the ship is scheduled in December 2012," he said.

Air Defence Ship Evolution

A plan was announced in 1989 to replace the aging British-built carriers with two new 28,000 ton aircraft carriers.The first vessel was to replace the Vikrant, which was set to decommission in early 1997. A contract for a design study then was signed in 1989 with DCN (Direction des Constructions Navales) International (currently known as DCNS) of France for a vessel of about 25,000 tons and with a speed of 30 knots. Construction was to start at the Cochin Shipyard (CSL) in 1993 after the Indian Naval Design Organisation had translated this design study into a production model.

However, in 1991, the Committee on Defence Expenditure informed the Indian Navy to abandon plans for large aircraft carriers and shift the design effort to the Italian Garibaldi Class due to budgetary constraints. The Garibaldi was once the world's smallest aircraft carrier. The ship's flight deck is 174 meters in length and 30.5 metres in width, and the forward 15 meters of the flight deck rises to a gentle ski ramp of about 4 degrees. Garibaldi, with a full load displacement 13,370 tons, commissioned in 1985. The ship is a 10,000 ton standard displacement aircraft carrying cruiser capable of carrying 18 helicopters or an air squadron of vertical or short take off and landing (VSTOL) aircraft. The ship's crew is 550 officers and ratings plus 230 air staff. The ship has necessary the technical facilities for the employment of HARRIER II AV-8B PLUS aircrafts to provide antiaircraft and antiship capabilities at distances greater than the capacity of the current shipboard missiles.

In September 1993, then-incumbent Chief of Naval Staff - Admiral L. Ramdas - restated the commitment to have a large aircraft carrier ready for trials by 2000, yet no firm decision had been made to provide funds or begin construction.

As of 1995 the Indian-designed and Indian-built air-defense ship was proposed as a replacement for India's two aging British aircraft carriers. At that time the Air Defence Ship was projected as being a 17,000-ton vessel capable of carrying between twelve and fifteen aircraft. Although few design details emerged, the roughly 30 percent increase in displacement, from 13,370 tons to 17,000 tons, implied a roughly 10 percent increase in dimensions, suggesting a flight deck about 190 meters [620 feet in length and 33.5 meters [110 feet] in width.

This was refined in 1997 to a 24,000 ton Air Defence Ship of domestic construction, based on a design developed by the Direction des Constructions Naval, a French firm. However, the design was modified by the Naval Design Organisation to suit the India requirements. GE Marine Engines had a manufacturing and technical license assistance agreement with Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd. (HAL) for the assembly, inspection and test of marine LM 2500 gas turbines selected for Indian Navy Frigate and Air Defense Ship programs.

In May 1999 the Government approved the indigenous construction of an Air Defence Ship (ADS) of around 24,000 tons displacement. The vessel is the largest and broadest ship ever to built in India. Indian press reports of 11 April 2001 announced that the Indian Cabinet Committee on Security (CSS) approved the awarding of a construction contact to Cochin Shipyard for the construction of three Vikrant-class aircraft carriers -- based on a French design -- that would displace more than 30,000 tons. Another report stated that The 250-meter carrier would have a displacement of 32,000 tons which made it almost five times larger than the 6,700-ton INS Delhi, the largest and heaviest warship built in the country so far.

In 2001, CSL released a graphic showing the 32,000-ton STOBAR (Short Take-Off But Arrested Recovery) design with a pronounced ski jump. The design of the island and sensor suite was considerably different from a model displayed at Def Expo '99.

In February 2002, current Chief of Naval Staff - Admiral Madhvendra Singh revealed that the 32,000-ton ADS design was 250 meters long, capable of speeds of 32 knots with a crew of 1500 personnel. On March 21, 2002 the Defence Minister Shri George Fernandes, in a written reply to Dr. (Shrimati) C. Suguna Kumari and Shri A. Narendra in Lok Sabha, stated that the Navy had reassessed their requirement and had proposed building a larger vessel displacing 37,500 tons and measuring 252 meters by almost 57 meters with a speed of 28 knots. It was probable that with a full load, the ADS will exceed 40,000 tons.

The misnomer ADS was adopted by the navy to ward off objections to the Navy going in for an aircraft carrier, especially by the IAF when the SU-30s were being acquired. In August 2006 the Chief of Naval Staff Admiral Arun Prakash stated that the designation for the vessel had been changed from Air Defence Ship (ADS) to Indigenous Aircraft Carrier (IAC).

India building space shuttle

2011-08-01T23:08:00.000-07:00

India is working towards realising its dream - to create a re-usable satellite launch vehicle. An engineering model of what scientists at the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) call the re-usable launch vehicle, is currently housed at a secure and secret facility in Kerala. Covered with special heat resistant tiles, soon it will roar skywards.

A reusable launch system (or reusable launch vehicle, RLV) is a launch system which is capable of launching a launch vehicle into space more than once. This contrasts with expendable launch systems, where each launch vehicle is launched once and then discarded.

The news about Indian Space Shuttle is not new. In the end of 1980s and beginning of 1990s India had plans to develop the small Space Shuttle named Hyperplane that would to be orbited by non-reusable launchers. Then plans differed to project Avatar RLV as a single-stage system.AVATAR (Aerobic Vehicle for Hypersonic Aerospace TrAnspoRtation) is a single-stage reusable spaceplane capable of horizontal takeoff and landing, being developed by India's Defense Research and Development Organization along with Indian Space Research Organization and other research institutions; it could be used for cheaper military and civilian satellite launches.
When operational, it is planned to be capable of delivering a payload weighing up to 1,000 kg to low earth orbit.

"We are dreaming about a fully re-usable vehicle, there are several elements we need to understand as of now we have a technology demonstrator," said Dr K Radhakrishnan, Chairman, ISRO.

The unmanned Indian space shuttle will be initially launched vertically like a rocket and in the first few flights it will be dropped back into the sea, but later it will make a landing like any other aircraft.

ISRO belives that this technology can drastically reduce the cost of launching satellites to space.

DRDO to make sun-powered UAVs (Drones) that can fly for 15 days

2011-04-26T18:47:00.001-07:00

After launching development of stealth UCAVs (unmanned combat aerial vehicles), India is now also looking at designing solar-powered spy drones which can cruise in the sky for several days at a time.

"Yes, Army and IAF have asked us to develop the solar-powered HALE UAV. Initial work is in progress for such a drone which can undertake a 15-day continuous flight over 30,000-feet,'' DRDO's chief controller R&D (aeronautics) Dr Prahlada told TOI.

The drone will harvest solar energy during the day, storing it in fuel cells to provide power for electric motors for night flying. "Solar efficiency is low but we are looking at a payload of around 50kg (sensors, cameras etc). We will seek some collaboration from either US or European companies,'' said Dr Prahlada.

This comes at a time when several international aviation majors are doing cutting-edge research on solar UAVs . Boeing , for instance, is developing a UAV with a 400-feet wingspan, called Solar Eagle, which can operate continuously for an astonishing five years. It is being described as a "zero-maintenance, launch-and leave UAV''.

With remotely-piloted spy as well as combat drones being seen as major force-multipliers or game-changers in modern-day warfare, DRDO has launched a series of UAV programmes for Indian armed forces, which have largely depended on Israeli drones like Searchers and Herons till now.

As was first reported by TOI recently, this includes the secretive AURA (autonomous unmanned research aircraft) programme to develop UCAVs capable of firing missiles, bombs and PGMs (precision guided munitions).

The Cabinet Committee on Security has also now cleared a Rs 1,500 crore DRDO project to develop the Rustom-H MALE (medium-altitude, long-endurance) drone, capable of operating for 24 hours with a 350-kg payload. "Its first flight will take place in two years,'' said Dr Prahlada.

Then, of course, there is the smaller Rustom-I drone, with 8-12 hour endurance and a 100-kg payload, as well as the already-developed Nishant UAV, which has a 4.5 hour endurance level.

Army, in fact, has projected a requirement of seven "troops" (akin to squadrons) of Rustom drones. As for Nishants, Dr Prahlada said, "Army has already inducted four such drones, which can be launched from hydro-pneumatic launchers without the need of runways, while eight more are being manufactured.''

"Nishants can carry electro-optical, electronic intelligence and communication intelligence payloads so the home ministry is also interested,'' added.

ISRO plans joint moon mission with NASA

2011-04-20T18:36:00.001-07:00

Another dimension to the ''moon mission'' may open up as Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) is planning a joint mission with United States’ National Aeronautics Space Administration’s (NASA) Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) to collect samples from the moon.

“This (project) is in the planning phase, alongside India’s lunar mission programme activities centered around ‘Chandrayaan II,” ISRO Chairman K Radhakrishnan told a news conference here after the successful launch of PSLV-C16 from Satish Dhawan Space Centre, 100 km North of Chennai.

NASA is planning to execute this mission in the year 2016, while the ISRO will provide the “communicating orbiter” of the project, besides chipping in with a few scientific instruments, he said. That will be called the “Moonrise Mission.”

PSLV-C16 launch video

2011-04-20T18:35:00.001-07:00

PSLV successfully launched

2011-04-20T18:31:00.001-07:00

Reaffirming its workhorse tag, India's Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) today completed its 17th successful mission in a row when it launched the country's remote sensing satellite Resourcesat-2 from the spaceport of Sriharikota.
Today's successful launch by PSLV-C16 , which also carried two nano satellites, has again demonstrated India's commercial launch capabilities in the multi-billion dollar global market in the sector.
After overcoming the lone failure of PSLV-D1 launched on September 20, 1993, it has been a success story all the way for the ISRO's homegrown four-stage launch vehicle.
Since 1994, PSLV, designed and developed by ISRO's Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre in Thiruvananthapuram, has launched a total of 44 satellites, including 25 from abroad.
Among the key launches undertaken by the PSLV are India's maiden moon mission Chandrayaan-I in October 2008, four Cartosats and Resourcesat-1.
A standard PSLV version is 44 metres tall with a lift off weight of 295 tonne and designed to launch 1600 kg satellites in 620 km sun-synchronous polar orbit and 1050 kg satellite into geo-synchronous transfer orbit.
PSLV has become "a more versatile vehicle for launching multiple satellites in polar SSOs , Low Earth Orbits and geosynchronous transfer orbit," ISRO said.
The launch vehicle has four stages using solid and liquid propulsion systems alternately.
With its variant configurations, PSLV has proved its multi-payload, multi-mission capability in a single launch and its geosynchronous launch capability.

Indian Pursuit Of Ballistic Missile Defence Program – Analysis

2011-04-10T21:27:00.000-07:00

Recently India conducted a successful ballistic missile defence test which was capable enough to intercept and kill the incoming missile. This shows that Indian ballistic missile defence program comprising of long range tracking radar, command and control system and the interceptor, is maturing at a faster pace. As a result, the South Asian strategic stability would be challenged as there are diversification of threats and limited response options, BMD adds value to the complexity of the region.

Read More...

ISRO to launch three satellites on April 20

2011-04-08T21:23:00.000-07:00

ISRO today announced that it will launch three satellites, including an advanced remote sensing satellite to study and manage natural resources, on April 20.

"Preparations for the launch of Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV-C16) carrying Resourcesat-2 satellite are progressing well at Satish Dhawan Space Centre, Sriharikota. In this mission, PSLV-C16 will launch Resourcesat-2, Youthsat and X-Sat satellites," the space agency said.

Missile interceptor test successfull

2011-03-06T08:39:00.000-08:00

India today successfully tested a ballistic missile interceptor from a defence base in Orissa as part of its endeavour to create a shield against incoming enemy missiles.

The indigenous interceptor 'Ballistic Missile Defence System' was fired from Wheeler Island off the Orissa coast near Dhamra in Bhadrak district, about 170km from here at 9.37am.

It successfully destroyed the incoming ballistic missile. A modified version of Prithvi II was used as the target enemy missile and was fired from the the Integrated Test Range at Chandipur on sea in Balasore district, about 70km away from Wheeler Island across the sea.

The interceptor was fired five minutes after the target missile was fired.

Chandrayaan found water on moon, NASA confirms

2011-02-13T18:36:00.001-08:00

In a major announcement relating to India's moon mission - Chandrayaan-1, NASA has confirmed the discovery of water on the moon by Chandrayaan-1. This was announced by Nasa's Hubble Space Telescope, one of the most powerful space observatories in the world,

The Chandra Altitudunal Composition Explorer (CHACE) on the night of November 14, 2008 made the dicovery. The CHACE was one of the three instruments on board Chandrayaan-1's indigenous Moon Impact Probe (MIP), which was dropped on to the Moon surface.

The HST was launched in 1990 by Nasa space shuttle Discovery. HST's confirmation was announced recently by the American Astronomical Society which was made public on Saturday. It is a major boost to India's space programme.

Referring to the AAS endorsement, Tirtha Pratim Das, a scientist who was a part of the CHACE project, said in Vikram Sarabhai Space Centres internal journal 'Voyage' : "The CHACE experiment on board the Moon Impact Probe (MIP) in Chandrayaan-1 mission made the first successful measurement on the lunar day-side atmosphere on 14th November, 2008."

According to Das, the analysis of the data revealed the presence of water in significant amount on the moon.

"Scientists from the west have for the first time acknowledged the published work of direct evidence of water on the moon by India.", the project manager of CHACE, Syed Maqbool Ahmed, said

Ahmed's response to the space telescopes confirmation assumes significance for two reasons. First, the credit for India's lunar discovery was snatched by Nasa in 2008-09 and Indian space scientists are extremely upset about this.

LCH in Aero India 2011

2011-02-13T03:27:00.001-08:00

The HAL Light Combat Helicopter (LCH) is a multirole combat helicopter being developed in India by Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) for use by the Indian Air Force and the Indian Army.

Development of Prospective Multi-Role Fighter (PMF) launched

2011-02-13T03:22:00.003-08:00

The Russian aircraft manufacturer United Aircraft Corporation (UAC) is entering a new era of cooperation with India, with the launching of the development of Prospective Multi-Role Fighter (PMF). Embarked December 2010 by UAC, Irkut and HAL, it was inaugurated in a press conference held at Aero-India 2011. Mikhail Pogosyan, recently nominated the new general director of UAC presented his view of the evolving cooperation between the two countries.

“The 5th Generation fighter is a most important step for the future relationship of the two countries’ said Pogosyan. The Russian T50 providing the basis for FGFA has already performed 40 flights and is undergoing ground testing, using three test articles, undergoing various static ground tests. Two additional T50 prototypes will join the test unit this year, accelerating the development progress. Pogosyan expects the program to complete the first phase next year. He assured that the Indian concern for sharing technology in the program was well covered in the contract, to the mutual satisfaction of both sides.”We are moving into a new level of cooperation, based on good and sound basis proven with MiG-27 3rd generation and Su-30 fourth generation aircraft.”

ISRO-NASA Moon mission announced

2011-02-13T03:22:00.001-08:00

Space commission have announced a Indo-US joint moon mission. The commission gave ISRO the go-ahead to partner with Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) of the US, which has sent missions to Mars and Venus, for the project. The mission called Moonrise is slated for launch in 2016 and now it's for NASA to take the final call on the proposal.

ISRO Chairman K Radhakrishnan said the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) has invited proposals under its New Frontiers Programme announced in 2009. He said the proposal was an outcome of India-US cooperation announced during the visit of President Barack Obama to India last year.

As per the cooperation agreement, ISRO will send a satellite to orbit around the moon to transmit data to control centers from the robotic rover JPL plans to send to the lunar surface.

NDTV News

Eighth India Aero Show (Intro Video)

2011-02-06T03:24:00.000-08:00

The 8th Aero India air show kicks off with some of biggest, fastest and deadliest aircraft on display. Once again, it's the Indian air force's multi-billion dollar fighter deal that's the focus of the show.

The 62nd Republic Day Celebrations

2011-01-29T20:23:00.001-08:00

The 62^nd Republic Day Celebrations : Flag Hoisting Ceremony by Hon'ble President of India
Followed by Republic Day Parade from Rajpath

Webcast by National Informatics Centre

LCA Tejas – News Video

2011-01-10T08:09:00.001-08:00

Tejas inducted in IAF

2011-01-09T23:14:00.001-08:00

India's first locally designed and manufactured Light Combat Aircraft 'Tejas' is formally inducted into the Indian Air Force (IAF) at a ceremony in Bangalore. Tejas was handed over to the Indian Air Force on Monday for what is called an initial operational clearance.

IAF has already placed orders with Hindustan Aeronautics Limited for 40 aircrafts, which is seen as a replacement for the MIG 21's.

The multi-role supersonic aircraft have undergone a series of tests. Tejas has completed all test points for low level flights, off the coast of Goa.

It has also conducted operations in the extreme climate of Leh and operated from an IAF air base in the South Western Air Command.

DRDO finalizing high altitude interception tests

2011-01-09T22:56:00.000-08:00

DRDO is finalizing the missile defense test that will attempt to intercept an incoming target at an altitude of more than 93 miles - nearly twice the reach of previous intercepts.

Defense Research and Development Organization Director General V.K. Saraswat told journalists "the trials are expected later this year."

India's missile interceptors have successfully brought down missiles nearly 50 miles above the earth's surface during the earlier trials. DRDO researchers ultimately aims to increase the interception altitude capabilities to as much as 186 miles.

India's missile defense program is comprised of extended-range radars and interceptors. The missile shield has had three successful tests in slightly more than four year

H A P P Y N E W Y E A R 2 0 1 1

2010-12-30T19:33:00.001-08:00

We wish all of our readers and family members a very Happy New Year 2010. Let the new year 2011 brings you all health, happiness, and much prosperity.

________________________________________________
And ye, who have met with Adversity’s blast,
And been bow’d to the earth by its fury;
To whom the Twelve Months, that have recently pass’d
Were as harsh as a prejudiced jury -
Still, fill to the Future! and join in our chime,
The regrets of remembrance to cozen,
And having obtained a New Trial of Time,
Shout in hopes of a kindlier dozen.
~Thomas Hood

India develops Laser Guided Bomb

2010-10-24T10:21:00.001-07:00

India has developed its first Laser Guided Bomb (LGB), a weapon that can hit a target with greater accuracy, with technological support from Instrument Research and Development Establishment (IRDE).

The LGB uses a laser designator to mark or illuminate a target. The reflected laser light from the target is then detected by the seeker which sends signals to the weapon's control surfaces to guide it towards the designated point, he said.

Bangalore-based Aeronautics Development Establishment (ADE) has developed the guidance-kit for 1000-pound LGBs and these are designed to improve the accuracy of air-to-ground bombing by IAF.

The guidance kit of LGB consists of a computer control group (CCG), guidance canards attached to the front of the warhead for providing steering commands and a wing assembly attached to the aft end to provide lift.

India had already carried out two successful flight trials of LGB for the IAF to test the effectiveness of the guidance and control systems at Chandipur integrated test range in Orissa early this year.

LGBs are manoeuvrable, free-fall weapons requiring no electronic interconnect to the aircraft and attack the target with higher accuracy and reliability.

The LGBs were first developed by USA in 1960s. Later, Russia, France and Britain also developed them.

India to launch series of military satellites

2010-10-10T08:59:00.001-07:00

India plans to launch a series of indigenously built military satellites with surveillance, imaging and navigation capabilities to keep a watch on its neighbourhood and help guide cruise missiles, a top defence scientist said today.

"There will be a series of (defence) satellites. I cannot give you the numbers because they are classified," V K Saraswat, Scientific Adviser to the Defence Minister, said here.

"Each year, you will find one or two satellites going up," added the Secretary, Defence R & D and Director General of Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO).

Mostly, these satellites are dedicated to different defence applications and would have payloads which are for surveillance, imaging, navigation and communication.

"You should be able to see with very high resolution and precision the movements of troops and things like that (in the neighbourhood)," Saraswat said. "You should be able to see what are the new buildings and new facilities which have come up".

India would be able to send data and commands through these satellites to cruise missiles. "So it will have tremendous applications", he said.

These defence satellites would be indigenously built and launched from home soil only given the "security sensitivity", Saraswat stressed.

"The Army, Navy and Air Force each have their own requirement and it won't be appropriate to say how many each of them would need, due to security considerations," Saraswat said.

India has taken up development and launch of these defence satellites under its space-based surveillance programme, which has a road-map for setting up satellites for all applications for the Army, Navy and Air Force, he said.

"Now, this road-map has been given to the Department of Space and it is making its own schedule for launching these satellites. We have only one Department of Space and we have huge requirements...," he said.

Saraswat said India has already launched some satellites under this programme.

Agni-II Plus getting ready

2010-10-09T18:59:00.001-07:00

Scientists at the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) are working on an upgraded version of the Agni-II missile which will be more accurate and powerful than its predecessor.

The first tests for the Agni-II Plus will be carried out in two months. The new missile will be better than the Agni-II. It will perform better at various levels. The newer version will be better in terms of accuracy, strength and distance covered.

India developing highly secure operating system

2010-10-09T18:51:00.001-07:00

The Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) is developing a futuristic operating system to protect its sensitive data from cyber attacks, including hacking. This was announced by V.K. Saraswat.

Two software engineering centres located in Bangalore and New Delhi will be working on the operating system.

"Though it will be a real-time system, source code and architecture will be proprietary, giving us the exclusivity of owning a system unknown to foreign elements and protect our security system," Saraswat said after unveiling a training facility at the Centre for Artificial Intelligence and Robotics (CAIR), a defence lab in this tech hub. The new operating system will reduce the organisation's vulnerability and susceptibility to cyber attacks from internet. The first of its kind initiative will be used to secure the defence systems for computing in various research areas such as molecular computing and bio-molecular computing, used by the security formations.

50 scientists, 25 each for each of the centers pooled from various defence labs in Bangalore and New Delhi will be working on the project. The defence laboratory tied up with the Indian Institute of Science (IISc) Bangalore, Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) in Chennai apart from other universities and industries.

ISRO successfully tests propellants system of GSLV-M III

2010-09-09T22:26:00.001-07:00

The Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) successfully tested the propellant system of the body's soon-to-be launch mega vehicle, in the Tamil Nadu's Mahendragiri district on Thursday.

In a landmark experiment, a team of eminent scientists and experts from ISRO carried out the static testing of the liquid core stage of the Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle Mark III (GSLV-M III).

Lasting for 200 seconds, the test was deemed a 'success' by the ISRO chief K. Radhakrishnan.

Radhakrishnan said there was just one other test that was required to be undertaken before giving the green signal for the final launch of the satellite carrier into space.

"The GSLV-M III, has three propulsion elements that give power to the rocket. The first one is solid motor...solid means solid propellants used in the rocket motors. Two such rocket motors have been used. Then the second stage is the liquid stage that will be tested today, and the third stage is the cryogenic stage which we are developing," explained Radhakrishnan.

The ISRO is using indigenously developed Cryogenic Upper Stage (CUS) for the first time since the launch of the mega shuttle, GSLV-D3, in April this year.

"We are developing GSLV-M III vehicle to put heavier communications satellites, that is, satellites with mass of four tons into a geostationary transfer orbit," said Radhakrishnan.

The ISRO chief also informed that the indigenous complex cryogenic rocket technology was a remarkable scientific advancement and could revolutionize space vehicles in the future.

The GSLV-M III, which is currently under advanced stage of development, uses two solid strap-on boosters (S200), L110 liquid stage and a cryogenic upper stage C-25.

India to Build Stealth Destroyers

2010-09-08T10:27:00.001-07:00

The Indian Government has sanctioned $6.5bn of funding to build four stealth destroyers for the navy under Project-15B, a senior Defence Ministry official has said.

The four new 6,800t destroyers will be built at the Indian Navy’s Mumbai Mazagon Docks with greater stealth, advanced sensors and weapon packages, according to defensenews.com.

The destroyers will be fitted with a 1,000km range nuclear-capable cruise missile and an extended-range surface-to-air missile system being developed by the Defence Research and Development Organisation with Israel.

Construction of the destroyers will begin only after the three stealth warships under Project 15-A are completed.

The navy currently has 140 vessels and ordered 39 additional warships and six conventional submarines worth over $10bn in July 2010.

ISRO to achieve yet another milestone

2010-09-07T10:53:00.001-07:00

The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) will achieve yet another significant milestone in its space programme when it conducts a full duration static test of Liquid Core Stage for ccccclaunch vehicle, being developed to put four tonne class satellites into orbit.

The crucial test would be conducted on September 8 at the Liquid Propulsion Systems Centre (LPSC) at Mahendragiri in Tamil Nadu.

Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre Director P S Veeraraghavan told UNI that the tests would be conducted for a full duration of 200 seconds. He said, earlier 200-second test had to be aborted after 150 seconds following a minor leak in the configuration of a particular unit. The leak was identified and the problem rectified.

BRAHMOS cruise missile test-fired from Orissa coast

2010-09-05T01:08:00.001-07:00

India today test fired the 290-km range BRAHMOS cruise missile. This condusted at the Integrated Test Range (ITR) at Chandipur off Orissa coast as part of trials by the defence forces to fine-tune its capability.

India and Russia are jointly designing the BrahMos missile, which is capable of carrying conventional warheads up to 200-300 kg and has a range of 290 km, to be in line with the international regulations.

6000kmph missile to be built.

2010-09-05T00:40:00.001-07:00

India will become the first country to have hypersonic missile with speed of over 6,000 km per hour. This will be jointly developed with Russia and the agreement for this will be signed during the visit of President Dmitry Medvedev to India. Currently the speed of the missiles is nearly half of the new missile proposed. The missiles is expected to be ready by 2015-16.

BrahMos Engines to be produced in India

2010-08-29T04:14:00.001-07:00

The Indian-Russian venture BrahMos Aerospace Ltd. is planning to make the engines for Brahmos missiles in India. This is told by , BrahMos Aerospace CEO Sivathanu Pillai said on Friday. The engines will be produced at the Brahmos plant in Kerala. Currently it is being manufactured in plant in Russia's Orenburg, where the requirement is expected to exceed its capabilities.

The BrahMos missile has a range of 290 km (180 miles) and can carry a conventional warhead of up to 300 kg (660 lbs). It can effectively engage ground targets from an altitude as low as 10 meters (30 feet) and has a top speed of Mach 2.8, which is about three times faster than the U.S.-made subsonic Tomahawk cruise missile.

Established in 1998, BrahMos Aerospace, a joint Indian-Russian venture, produces the BrahMos supersonic missiles. The sea- and ground-launched versions have been successfully tested and put into service with the Indian Army and Navy. The air and underwater version are planned for the tests. A lot of nations around the globe has shown interest in the missile.

Agni-V ready for test-firing

2010-08-27T07:13:00.001-07:00

India's indegenous 5,000-km range Agni-V nuclear-capable missile is ready for test-firing. This was announced by Defence Minister AK Antony in Hyderabad after laying foundation stone for expansion of the Mishra Dhatu Nigam Limited (Midhani) defence public sector company.

The missile was developed following the denial of technology to India. "The denial has only given us an opportunity to develop a 5,000-km range missile," Antony said.

He said Indian scientists working in many critical areas have proved that India can overcome sanctions and denials. "When we face denial, we should take it us a God-sent opportunity and a challenge," he told the scientists present on the occassion.

The missile is capable of hitting targets in northernmost China and is India's only inter-continental ballistic missile (ICBM).

Micro Air Vehicle to be ready in four months

2010-08-26T09:20:00.001-07:00

The Aeronautical Development Establishment (ADE)’s first micro air vehicle (MAV) by the end of the year.

ADE, along with the National Aeronautical Laboratory, has designed and developed MAVs for counter-terrorism, urban warfare and relief and rescue operations

Micro and nano air vehicles are used to provide information in real time, while taking videos and transmitting the same back to the ground, enabling minimum reaction time. With miniaturisation being of paramount importance in developing the platform, efforts are on to design MAVs of 100 mm to 200 mm in size, and weighing less than 200 gm. The currently developed MAV weighs 300 gm.

Air-to-land BrahMos getting ready

2010-08-26T09:01:00.001-07:00

The air-to-land version supersonic missile is almost ready, A Sivathanu Pillai, CEO and Managing Director of BrahMos Aerospace, said on Wednesday. "All the modifications have been completed. We are now in the process of readying with the missile". This air-to-land supersonic missile "very precisely" attacks the target, he added.

The hurdle is in getting the Sukhoi-30 MKI aircraft, in which the missile has to be fitted, requires to be modified to take the extra load of the missile. Initially two Sukhoi-30 MKIs is planned to be modified. The modifications are expected to take two years. Since the BrahMos supersonic cruise missile is "heavier" and "elaborate", the Sukhois, which could carry other weapons, needed to be modified "exclusively" for BrahMos, including in the context of pilot's console and "mission computer should take the (extra) load" and interface issues. These missiles would be inducted by the IAF after 2012 after the test flights.

The BrahMos missile is also capable of launching from underwater and it can go against ship target and land target. The underwater tests are being planned.

Times of India report - China wary of India's military might: US

2010-08-20T10:27:00.001-07:00

The fleet-footed Dragon may be rapidly spreading its wings across the globe but remains a wee bit wary of the flat-footed Elephant next door.
The US Pentagon's latest assessment of the expanding military might of China, which has now overtaken Japan to become the world's second-largest economy, holds that Beijing is "concerned" with the "strategic ramifications of India's rising economic, political and military power". Consequently, "to improve regional deterrence", the 2.25-million strong People's Liberation Army has moved "more advanced and survivable" solid-fuelled CCS-5 nuclear-capable ballistic missiles closer to the borders with India.
Read more: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow/6328056.cms

India may export BrahMos

2010-08-20T06:13:00.000-07:00

Once the Indian defence requirements are met, India may look for exporting the BrahMos supersonic cruise missile. This was told by the Defense Minister A.K. Antony said in a written response to a question in the Parliament. The agrement between India anad Russia on the Brahmos allows the foriegn sale. The two countries have signed an agreement on the missile, which has been approved by the Indo-Russian Inter-Governmental Commission for Military Technical Cooperation.

Several countries have shown an interest, he said, but no decisions have been made about who the customers would be or when the BrahMos will be available for export. The move already has the approval of the Indo-Russian Intergovernmental Commission for Military Technical Cooperation for Export.

The BrahMos missile could become one of India’s major contributions to the world arms export market between 2010-2020. The system is superior to other available platforms on three counts: The speed, touching almost 3 Mach, its modular design which allows modifications for launch from virtually any platform, and the affordable price. Now BrahMos intends to take a next higher step and would be developing hypersonic cruise missiles capable of Mach 5 to Mach 7.

While there were reports that more than 10 states have already evinced interest in purchasing this missile, further details were unavailable.

India to launch satellite to monitor sea water levels

2010-08-12T07:07:00.001-07:00

India will launch a satellite to monitor sea water levels in collaboration with the French space agency, Minister of State for Science and Technology Prithviraj Chavan said on Wednesday.
The satellite, called Saral, will carry an altimetre (ALTIKA) for studying the sea surface heights and an ARGOS payload, which is a satellite-based data collection platform.
"The project is a joint project of the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) and the French National Space Agency (FNSA). The ALTIKA and ARGOS payloads are built and supplied by the French space agency. The satellite building and launching are the responsibilities of ISRO," Chavan told the Lok Sabha.

GAGAN - a Satellite Based Navigation System (SBNS) to be launched tomorrow

2010-08-09T07:49:00.001-07:00

The Union Minister for Civil Aviation, Shri Praful Patel will launch the GAGAN – a Satellite Based Augmentation System Services over India and neighbouring regions. GAGAN stands for GPS Aided Geo Augmented Navigation. This system will provide enhanced navigation performance for critical applications like Civil Aviation, Marine Navigation, Train & Road Transport, Precision Farming, Search and Rescue (SAR) operations, Surveying and Mapping (Geodetic & Geodynamic), Mining etc.

With the service being launched, India will be the 4th Country in the World to have Satellite Based Navigation System. GAGAN will be compatible with other SBAS systems such as the Wide Area Augmentation System in the US, the European Geo-stationary Navigation Overlay Service (EGNOS) and the Multi-Functional Satellite Augmentation System in Japan.

The project is based on a signal broadcast from a geo-stationary satellite, GSAT-4. The system involves the measurement of positioning errors from GPS satellites at 18 ground stations on the subcontinent. This data is fed into a central processing centre, which generates a model of the state of the ionosphere based on these results. Corrections can then be generated for random points anywhere in the country.

India develops futuristic anti-missile directed energy weapons

2010-08-03T10:53:00.001-07:00

India is developing a series of directed energy weapons (DEW) to improve the anti-ballistic missile capability, local media reported on Tuesday.
A laser weapon of the DEW family are being developed, which could fire a beam with a potency of 25 kilowatt. This type of laser weapon would intercept a ballistic missile in its terminal phase within the range of seven kilometers, Indian newspaper the Indian Times quoted Anil Kumar Maini, the Defense Research and Development Organization (DRDO)'s Laser Science and Technology Center director, as saying.
The ballistic missile would explode as its shell temperature is heated to 200-300 degrees Celsius by the laser beam, the Director explained.
The DEW is a sophisticated weapon that could destroy a target by emitting and transferring the energy to a target in an aimed direction. Some types are in development in some countries. Among the DEW, laser weapons usually generate high-energy pulses against targets.
According to the weapon development roadmap by the Indian Ministry of Defense, the DEW would be one of the top priorities for the Indian advanced weapons development over the next fifteen years, said the report.
A gas dynamic laser-based DEW is also being developed by The Center. It could be flexibly deployed by a moving vehicle, Maini said.
In the future, the Indian laser weapons could be carried by three services' platforms, such as the Air Force's transport planes, fighters and the Navy's destroyers and submarines, according the report.
If their developments are smooth, the Indian new laser weapons test would be conducted within several years by DRDO.
On February 12, 2010, a U.S. high-powered airborne laser weapon shot down a mocked ballistic missile, and became the first successful test for a airborne DEW to destroy a ballistic missile.
India has carried out two anti-ballistic missile interception tests by launching the anti-aircraft missiles since the beginning of this year. Among them, the July's test succeeded while March's test failed due to the anti-aircraft missile's radar failing to track the mocked target.

India conducts missile interception test, direct hit at Endo Atmospheric level

2010-07-26T10:44:00.001-07:00

India today flight tested fourth consecutive successful Interceptor Missile test against Incoming Ballistic Missile in Endo atmospheric regime at 15 Km altitude at 1005 hrs and achieved direct Hit.

The Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) made, single stage Interceptor Missile fitted with Directional Warhead and other advanced systems has neutralized the target which was mimicking incoming enemy Ballistic Missile.

To mimic the incoming enemy’s ballistic missile trajectory, a target missile was launched from Launch Complex – III, ITR Chandipur. Interceptor Missile fitted with directional warhead was launched from Wheeler Island and destroyed Target Missile which broke into fragments and was tracked by various Radars and other sensors. All weapon system elements including Command and Control, Communication and Radars performed satisfactorily.

Present among the user representatives’ were Air Marshal PK Barbora, PVSM, VM, ADC, Vice Chief of Air Staff, IAF and Maj Gen VK Saxena, ADG, Army Air Defence, Indian Army.

India conducts missile interception test, direct hit at Endo Atmospheric level

ISRO's great expectations

2010-07-20T10:03:00.003-07:00

Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) chairman K Radhakrishnan was upbeat when he met the media after the successful launch of PSLV-C15 and gave details of the future programmes like Chandrayaan-2 and the manned mission.

He made it clear that the manned mission involved just putting astronauts in space and not on the moon. Chandrayaan-2 was in its advanced stages of design. The idea was to make a soft landing on the moon and release a small rover for lunar exploration that can be controlled from ground. The rover prototype model has already been made and the project would be ready for launch by 2013.

For the manned mission, at least two astronauts would be sent to space. While the launch vehicle was almost ready, ISRO is working on the capsule design. A crew escape system in case of emergency is vital for a manned mission. It has now been defined.

After the capsule is ready, it would be sent unmanned to space in 2013 using PSLV to monitor it in orbit for at least seven days. If all goes well, astronauts would next be put in space using the capsule with GSLV-MK3 as the launch vehicle.

The avionics of the project is currently under development. “We have to put in place a proper environmental control life support system with thermal controls. For launching human beings and bringing them back, a high reliability vehicle is important. New facilities that we need include a new launch pad, a facility to take care of crew before they go and after they come back, a mission control centre and an astronaut training centre,” the scientists said.

The government had approved a pre-project study for Rs 95 crore in 2006. Proposals have been submitted and approval awaited.

“The existing PSLV can’t be used. It has to be modified. We have two launch pads right now but none can be used for the manned mission. A third launch pad is now being proposed for which a location has been identified. Approvals are now awaited. A second vertical assembly building programme also has to be initiated. The entire manned mission project would cost close to Rs 1,000 crore,” said Satish Dhawan Space Centre director M C Dathan.

ISRO to launch more satellites this year

2010-07-20T10:03:00.001-07:00

After successfully placing five satellites in orbit on Monday, India's space agency ISRO said it will launch more satellites this year and efforts were on to put two Indians in space orbit.
"We will launch GSat-5, a communication satellite, using GSLV (Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle) rocket. The other launch will be Resourscesat-2, a remote sensing satellite, using the rocket PSLV (Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle)," Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) chairman K Radhakrishnan said in Sriharikota.
He was talking to reporters after five satellites, including the advanced high resolution cartography satellite Cartosat-2B, were placed in orbit following the successful launch of the PSLV rocket from the spaceport here, about 80 km north of Chennai.
He said: "The next PSLV rocket will carry multiple satellites - Resourcesat-2 and two small satellites."
According to ISRO officials, the organisation has all the sub-systems to assemble the PSLV rocket. The launch is slated before October this year.
"The work on assembling the GSLV rocket will start on Wednesday and the launch is expected to be by September-end or October first week," said PS Veeraghavan, the director at the Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre.
On the manned mission planned by ISRO, Radhakrishnan said the space agency has laid the road map to put two humans in orbit for seven days.
"For manned mission we have to have the orbital capsule-module to carry the humans - life support systems and escape systems for the astronauts in case of an emergency. The systems are being designed and the concept has been reviewed," said S. Ramakrishnan, the director of the ISRO's Liquid Propulsion Systems Centre.
"The first phase is to design the orbital vehicle. Once it is built the design will be evaluated by launching it in a PSLV rocket. That will give us confidence. The avionics needed for that rocket is complex and have to be developed."
"The first phase will look at the critical technologies needed for human flight and the second phase is to get the human rating for the rocket and the orbital vehicle," said Radhakrishnan.
The second phase of the human flight mission is to build a new launch pad and astronaut training centre.
"The new launch pad and accompanying facilities needed for human space flight will involve an outlay of Rs 1,000 crore," said MC Dathan, the director of the Satish Dhawan Space Centre.
Earlier in the day, five satellites weighing 819 kg were placed in orbit.
Over 20 minutes after the blast off, the PSLV rocket first released the Cartosat-2B followed by Alsat-2A and the three small satellites. This was the first successful launch after Radhakrishnan took over as ISRO chairman last year.
"With the launch of Cartosat-2B, ISRO will have 10 remote sensing satellites in orbit - IRS 1D, Resourcesat 1, TES, Cartosat 1, 2 and 2A, IMS 1, RISAT-2, Oceansat 1 and 2," S. Satish, the ISRO director (publications and public relations), said.
India is a world leader in the remote sensing data market and earns a sizeable amount.

India evaluating Patriot ground-based air defence system

2010-07-20T10:00:00.001-07:00

India is evaluating the advanced Patriot ground-based air defence system for its ballistic missile shield and the US has provided "classified" material to it on the weapon unit, which was successfully used during both Desert Storm and Operation Iraqi Freedom, Patriot's manufacturer Raytheon said on Tuesday.

"A number of exchanges have taken place between the government of India and the US and information has been given to India at the classified level," Joseph Garret, Vice President of the company's Patriot Programmes told PTI.

Replying to questions, he said tests of the Patriot system, which has been procured by 12 countries, by India's Defence Research and Development Organisation and other agencies had been "highly successful".

On India developing its own missile defence shield, Garret said, "Patriot system gives a major boost to any country's defence capability. India may be developing its own system, but Patriot is a combat-proven weapon system."

Fresh trial of ballistic missile likely next week

2010-07-20T09:59:00.001-07:00

Balasore, July 20: Preparations have begun as India plans to conduct a fresh trial of its tactical ballistic missile to build a credible defence shield for intercepting and destroying incoming missiles, informed sources.

The Advanced Air Defence (AAD) missile test is likely to be conducted early next week, sources added.

The trial may be conducted on July 26 or 27.

The test involving coordinated flight of missiles hostile missile and the interceptor missile would involve both the ranges of Interim Test Range Dhamra as well as Chandipur.

During the trial, the interceptor missile would shoot down an incoming `enemy missile' as part of its efforts to build a credible ballistic missile defence shield.

The Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) has built both the missiles, according to sources.

India's Akash missile ready for production, induction

2010-07-14T10:35:00.001-07:00

After several years of delay, India's indigenously developed Akash surface-to-air missile is now ready for production and induction in the armed forced.

The Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), which has received orders worth Rs 27,000 crore from both the Indian Army and Indian Air Force for the weapon system, is all set to start the production process along with its industry partners.

“The weapon system for the Akash missile is now ready for production and induction.

“This is a major milestone for DRDO and its industry partners. It is also an essential step towards indigenously developing more complex air defence weapons for the future,” a DRDO official was quoted as saying by Financial Express.

The Indian Army had recently placed an order for 12 batteries of the medium range Akash missiles. Earlier this year, the IAF had ordered six Akash missile squadrons in addition to two squadrons already procured by it. Each squadron comprises 125 Akash missiles.

The medium range anti-aircraft missile Akash was developed under the Integrated Guided Missile Development Programme (IGMDP) of India. The missile was intended to replace the Russian-made SAM-6 Kvadrat missiles.

The Akash surface-to-air missile. A DRDO photo

Manned flight, next on ISRO's list

2010-07-13T07:45:00.001-07:00

An unmanned test crew module will be put into orbit by ISRO in 2013 as a prelude to the country’s maiden manned mission to send two Indians into space. ISRO also said on Monday that a third launch pad, at a cost of Rs 1,000 crore, is proposed to be built at Sriharikota, where the rocket that will take the Indian astronauts into space, will be assembled and blasted off. ISRO chairman K Radhakrishnan said the space agency plans to launch the first test unmanned mission with an unmanned capsule on PSLV, which will be put into orbit and recovered soon after the mission.

Talking to reporters here after the successful launch of remote sensing satellite Cartosat-2B and four other satellites by the PSLV rocket, he said that in the next three months ISRO will launch GSLV-F06, which will carry a communication satellite, and PSLV-C16 with a remote sensing satellite on board.

ISRO has prepared a road map with an initial plan to put two humans in orbit around earth, keep them there for seven days and bring them back safely, Mr Radhakrishnan said.

Mr Radhakrishnan said all new elements for the unmanned launch have been designed. “We have gone to system concept reviews. The first level of definitions and specifications have been drawn up,” he said. “We need to have the orbital vehicle, namely the capsule and its design and then develop the environmental control and life support system, which will be followed by crew escape system that will be very vital in case of mission abort,” he said. These modules will be evaluated by launch of PSLV unmanned mission, he said, adding it would give them confidence, help evaluate the total system for its survival in the space environment on how the entire system behaves. To a question on whether ISRO had set a timeframe for the manned mission, he said, “I don’t want to commit the date unless we start the programme”.

Mr Radhakrishnan said scientists will work on the crew model, which will have an environmental control life support system. “We are also working out a very high reliability vehicle, capable of putting crew module with adequate number of persons,” he said.

Mr Dattan, director of SDSC said a proposal has been given to the government for approval to set up a third launch pad at a cost of Rs 1,000 crore. “Preliminary design of the third launch pad is now going on with various experts. Location of the launch pad has also been finalised taking into account the safety measures,” he said. “

Once approval is obtained, the third launch pad and other infrastructure activities for the manned moon mission will come up,” he added.

“We also propose to set up one more vertical assembly building, similar to what we have now. This will be capable of assembling the existing and forthcoming advance vehicles,” he said.

Mr Dattan said the programme has already been initiated and will start once government accords approval.

PSLV launch successful, 5 satellites placed in orbit

2010-07-12T07:35:00.001-07:00

In a textbook launch, India's Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) on Monday successfully placed into orbit, the remote sensing satellite Cartosat-2B and four other satellites, after a perfect lift off from the space-port in Sriharikota.

At the end of an over 51-hour countdown, the 44.4 metre-tall four-stage PSLV-C-15, costing Rs 260 crore, blasted off from a launch pad at the Satish Dhawan Space Centre with ignition of the core first stage and placed the satellites in orbit one after the other.

Visibly relieved scientists, headed by ISRO chairman Dr K Radhakrishnan, cheered as ISRO's workhorse PSLV soared into clear skies at 9.22am from the spaceport in the East Coast in Andhra Pradesh, about 100 km north of Chennai.

The PSLV launch assumes significance as it comes about three months after ISRO suffered a major setback on April 15 when the Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle (GSLV-D3), which was launched using an Indian-designed and built cryogenic engine for the first time, failed and fell into the Bay of Bengal.

Cartosat-2B is an advanced remote sensing satellite built by ISRO. This is the latest in the Indian remote sensing satellite series and the 17th in this series.

Cartosat-2B is mainly intended to augment remote sensing data services to the users of multiple spot scene imagery with 0.8 metre spatial resolution and 9.6 km swath in the panchromatic. Cartosat-2 and 2A, two Indian remote sensing satellites in orbit, are currently providing such services.

A set of four satellites including Studsat built by students of seven engineering colleges in Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka, Alsat from Algeria, two nano satellites from Canada and Switzerland, and a pico (very small) satellite called Oceansat 2 accompanied Cartosat 2 on its trip to orbit.

Planning Commission Vice-Chairman Montek Singh Ahuluwalia, and former ISRO chief Dr K Kasturirangan witnessed the launch.

"It has been a wonderful experience. The ISRO has made the country proud," Ahluwalia said, congratulating the scientists after the perfect take off.

The Cartosat-2B carries a panchromatic camera similar to that of its predecessors - Cartosat-2 and 2A and was capable of imaging a swath (geographical strip of land) of 9.6 km with a resolution of 0.8 metre.

The multiple spot scene imagery sent by Cartosat-2B camera would also be useful for village/cadastral level resource assessment and mapping, detailed urban and infrastructure planning and development, transportation system planning, preparation of large-scale cartographic maps, preparation of micro watershed development plans and monitoring of development works of village.

Alsat from Algeria, weighing 116 kg, is also a remote sensing satellite. The two nano satellites, NLS 6.1 and NLS 6.2, weigh six kg and one kg each. Studsat weighs less than one kg.

Besides launching 17 Indian satellites, PSLV has also launched 22 foreign satellites during 1994-2009 into polar sun synchronous, geosynchronous transfer, highly elliptical and low earth orbits and has repeatedly proved its reliability and versatility.

One important modification compared to the previous flights of PSLV is the use of dual launch adopter to carry two large satellites, ISRO sources said. Soon after injection into the orbit and separation from the PSLV C-15 fourth stage, the two solar panels of Cartosat 2B will be automatically deployed, they said.

Attributing the success of PSLV C-15 to the entire team behind the mission, ISRO chairman K Radhakrishnan said, "We had an excellent flight. It injected precisely the five satellites. The entire ISRO team is behind the success".

In an apparent reference to the failure of GSLV D3 cryogenic stage, the space agency's first mission after he took over as its chief, he said his team of scientists were inspired to work "especially after the last few weeks after a serious problem that we faced." "And I also want to say we have understood the problem with regard to the indigenous cryogenic engine and stage. We will confirm it in a few weeks with a few tests and then we will come back", he said.

ISRO outlines plans to send Indians into space

2010-07-12T07:32:00.001-07:00

An unmanned crew module will be put in orbit around the earth by a modified Polar Satellite Launch (PSLV) in 2013 as a forerunner to the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) sending two Indians into space, S. Ramakrishnan, Director, Liquid Propulsion Systems Centre, ISRO, said here on Monday.

India has plans to send two Indians into space in a low-earth orbit and they will stay in space for about a week before returning to the earth. A third launch pad, at a cost of Rs.1,000 crore, will be built at Sriharikota, where the rocket that will take the Indian astronauts into space will be assembled and launched.

Mr. Ramakrishnan told a press conference here, after the successful PSLV-C15 flight, that the module in which the Indian astronauts would go into space had already been designed. The life-support systems, the thermal-proofing on board the module and the crew escape system in case of an emergency had already been defined. “We are also planning a launch pad abort for the crew in case of an accident,” Mr. Ramakrishnan said.

ISRO Chairman K. Radhakrishnan explained that the ISRO needed a highly reliable vehicle to take humans into space. Such rockets were called human-rated vehicles. Certain crucial facilities such as a new launch pad for sending human beings into space had to be built at the spaceport in Sriharikota. Facilities to handle the astronauts when they returned to the earth also needed to be built here. In the first phase of India’s Human Spaceflight Programme, these critical technologies including the re-entry technology would be developed. In the second phase, a human rated vehicle would be developed. In the third phase, astronauts would be trained to go into space. Normally, it took three years to train an astronaut, Dr. Radhakrishnan said.

Narayanamoorthy N., Chief Executive, Human Spaceflight Programme, Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre (VSSC), Thiruvananthapuram, said the most important technology to be developed was the crew escape system. In the programme’s first phase, the module that would take the crew into space and a PSLV with a modified first stage would be built. An unmanned module, it would be identical to the final module. A host of technologies including life-support systems aboard the module and avionics would be developed in India with the help of research laboratories and industries, Mr. Narayanamoorthy said.

The location for the third launch pad site had been decided upon, said M.C. Dathan, Director, Satish Dhawan Space Centre, Sriharikota. It would boast of a vehicle assembly building where not only the ISRO’s current but future vehicles would be stacked up.

R.R. Navalgund, Director, Space Applications Centre, Ahmedabad, said Cartosat-2B, launched on Monday from Sriharikota, could be used in a variety of ways, depending on the imagination of the user. The images taken by its panchromatic camera could be used for planning roads in villages, building harbours, preparing accurate maps, keeping a watch on encroachments, and for various infrastructural activities, said Dr. Navalgund.

(Cartosat-2B’s images will have a resolution of 0.8 metres. In other words, the satellite from a height of 637 km, can take pictures of objects on the earth, which are three-feet long. The images can be used for estimating the acreage and the yield of crops; for finding out various types of forests and how thick the vegetation is; for laying ring roads and digging new canals; keeping a watch on mangroves and coral formations, and estimating the amount of water available in reservoirs and big lakes).

Mr. P.S. Veeraraghavan, Director, VSSC, said a Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle (GSLV - F06) will lift off from Sriharikota by the end of September or the first week of October this year. The stacking of its stages would begin in the second launch pad from July 14 (Wednesday).

A PSLV-C16 rocket would put in orbit Resourcesat-2 by the middle of October. It would also put in orbit two other satellites. The stacking of the PSLV-C16’s four stages would begin in August at Sriharikota.

ISRO launches RH rocket with student’s payload

2010-07-09T10:52:00.000-07:00

ISRO has successfully launched the RH 200 rocket, which had a part of its payload developed by students from Vellore Institute of Technology University (VITU) in Tamil Nadu.

The RH 200 rocket, a technology demonstrator flight, was launched on July 7 from Thumba Equatorial Rocket Launching Station (TERLS) attached to Vikram Sarabhaio Space Centre, a VSSC release said today.

The payload developed by the VITU students was part of ISRO's initiative of encouraging varsity students as partners in payload development.

The students' payload comprised tri-axial accelerometers, power switching module and safe arm relay unit matching the requirements of RH 200 rocket, the release said.

The tri-axial accelerometer can monitor accelerations in all three directions. The power-switching module is for the power control of the payload.

The faculty and students of VITU had taken keen interest during the development and test activities of these payloads at various work centres, it added.

The students of the Indian Institute of Space Technology (IIST) were also progressing well in their attempt to make the first indigenous "students' rocket" with support of the experts from VSSC.

In its endeavour to handhold the student community, ISRO has included a picosatellite designed by undergraduate students across India, in its forthcoming PSLV-C15 mission.

The decision was taken with the aim to provide hands-on experience in frontier areas of space technology such as design, fabrication and realisation of a space mission at a reduced cost.

After the successful flight of the Advanced Technology Vehicle ATV D01, this was a major step to demonstrate the performance of super capacitors in flight pyro systems activation. The flight successfully tested the super capacitor developed by VSSC.

So far TERLS has recorded 2291 flights of sounding rockets and this is the 395th flight of RH 200 rocket.

Astra test-fired for second consecutive day

2010-07-07T06:19:00.001-07:00

India on Wednesday test-fired Astra, the indigenously developed beyond visual range (BVR) air-to-air missile at Chandipur near here, hours after carrying out the first night trial of the weapon.

The sophisticated missile was fired from a launcher at the Integrated Test Range (ITR) complex, about 15 km from here, at 2.07 pm, defence sources said.

The second consecutive trial comes after the missile was test-fired for the first time for night trial in inclement weather conditions on Tuesday night. The data generated were being thoroughly examined by Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) scientists, the sources said.

The single stage, solid-fuelled Astra is more advanced in its category than the contemporary BVR missiles and is capable of engaging and destroying highly manoeuvrable supersonic aerial targets, DRDO scientists said.

The 3.8-metre-long missile, which has a diameter of 178 mm, can carry a warhead containing explosives weighing 15 kg and can be fitted to any fighter aircraft.

It is intended for eventual integration with the IAFs Sukhoi-30 MKI, MiG-29, Mirage-2000, Jaguar and the Tejas Light Combat Aircraft, the sources said.

Describing Astra as a futuristic missile, the scientists said the weapon could intercept targets at supersonic speed (mach 1.2 to 1.4).

Before being made fully operational, the complex missile system will undergo some more trials, though tests of its navigation, control, air frame, propulsion and other sub-systems have been validated, the sources said.

Though the exact range of Wednesday’s trial was not disclosed, DRDO scientists are working to ensure Astra performs effectively at different altitudes — one cruising at an altitude of 15 km with 90 to 110 km range, another at an altitude up to 30,000 ft, having a range of 44 km and the third at sea level with a range of 25 km, the sources said.

The trials of Astra, conducted on January 11 this year from the same base, were successful.

PSLV-C15 rescheduled for July 12:ISRO

2010-07-05T09:43:00.001-07:00

The launch of ISRO`s Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV-C15) fixed for July12th, 2010. A marginal drop in the pressure in second stage of the vehicle was noticed during the mandatory checks carried out on the PSLV-C15 vehicle. This is the new date for the launch of PSLV-C15 mission which has been decided after preliminary results of the analysis obtained.

PSLV-C15 is planned to launch India`s Cartosat-2B, an Algerian satellite ALSAT-2A, two nano satellites NLS 6.1 and NLS 6.2 from University of Toronto, Canada and STUDSAT, a satellite built by students from academic institutions in Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh.

Cartosat-2B is declared to be launched on the date July 12 from Sriharikota in Andhra Pradesh

India all set to roll out indigenous naval LCA

2010-07-05T09:35:00.001-07:00

India is all set to roll out its indigenous naval Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) at the Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) facility in Bangalore on Tuesday, which will be witnessed by Defence Minister A K Antony.
"The first indigenous naval Light Combat Aircraft – the LCA (Navy) NP1 - is scheduled to roll out from HAL Aircraft Research and Design Centre (ARDC) hangar on July 6," a Defence Minister official said here on Monday.

An important milestone for the naval programme of Bangalore-based Aeronautical Development Agency (ADA), the aircraft would be brought out of the hanger where it was assembled part-by-part during the roll-out.

Navy Chief Admiral Nirmal Verma will be the chief guest at the event. The aircraft is being readied for induction into the Navy and for deployment on board the Indigenous Aircraft Carrier (IAC), currently under construction at the Cochin Shipyard, by 2015.

Following the roll-out, the Naval LCA, with state-of-the-art technologies and punch, will be ready for the phase of systems integration tests leading to ground runs, taxi trials and flight trials.

Once the ground based tests are completed , the 'NP1' is expected to fly by the end of this year and the NP2 is likely to fly by the end of 2011.

The government had sanctioned the LCA (Navy) programme in 2003 and the first stage of development included design and fabrication of a trainer and a fighter - NP1 and NP2 respectively - along with a Shore Based Test Facility (SBTF) at Goa naval air base, which has already come up.

The SBTF is being used to simulate carrier take off and arrested landing and as a training facility for future pilots of the naval LCA.

It is also being used for training on the newly acquired MiG-29K fighter jets, bought from Russia to be operated on the Admiral Gorshkov aircraft carrier, which is under a repair and refit programme in a Russian shipyard. The LCA (Navy) NP1 would be flying with the GE-F-404-IN20 engine and is designed for Ski-jump Take Off But Arrested Recovery (STOBAR) operations.

The only carrier-borne aircraft in the light category in the world, Naval LCA will be operating with a wide variety of operational weapons and equipment like the Beyond Visual Range (BVR) missile, anti-ship missiles, conventional bombs, air defence guns, counter-counter measures and drop tanks.

The ADA is responsible for design, development, ground test and flight test of both the Naval and Air Force versions of the LCA. HAL is the principal partner of ADA in this task.

The Indian Navy, the Centre for Military Airworthiness and Certification (CEMILAC) and Directorate General of Aeronautical Quality Assurance (DGAQA), all have played an important supporting role in the development of the Naval LCA right from its inception, the officials said.

Astra missile likely to be test fired

2010-07-05T09:33:00.001-07:00

Astra, the Beyond-Visual-Range Air-to-Air Missile (BVRAAM), is likely to flight tested from the Integrated Test Range (ITR).

While two days are slated July 6 and July 7, sources said most likely the flight testing of the missile would be carried on July 7 (Wednesday) and a team from production unit has reportedly reached this place.

On the last occasion on January 11 this year two trials of the missile were conducted successfully.

The sophisticated missile is envisaged to intercept and destroy enemy aircraft at supersonic speeds in the head-on mode at a range of 80 km and in tail-chase mode at 20 km.

The missile is intended for the Indian Air Force's Sukhoi Su-30MKI, Mirage 2000H, Mirage 2000, MiG-29, MiG-21 Bison and Tejas combat jets, as also the Indian Navy's Sea Harrier jump jets.

Astra, which uses solid propellant, can carry a conventional warhead of 15 kg.

It is the smallest of the missiles developed by the DRDO in terms of size and weight.

It is 3.8-metre long and has a diameter of 178 mm with an overall launch weight of 160 kg.

The missile could be launched from different altitudes - it can cover 110 km when launched from an altitude of 15 km, 44 km when fired from an altitude of eight km and 21 km when the altitude is sea-level .

Besides, plans were afoot to test-fire its indigenously designed and developed Advanced Air Defence (AAD) missile from the ITR in the last week of this month when India eyes to develop a full fledged multi-layer Ballistic Missile Defence system, and accordingly preparations for the trial were underway.

DRDO develops UAV 'Netra' to aid in anti-terrorist operations

2010-07-03T22:43:00.001-07:00

India's defence research agency DRDO has developed an Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) specifically for anti-terrorist and counter insurgency operations, which will be inducted into the armed forces by the year-end.
The 1.5 kg UAV, called 'Netra', is a collaborative development project between ideaForge, a company formed by a group of Indian Institute of Technology, Powai, alumni and one of Defence Research and Development Organisation's Pune-based labs, Research and Development Establishment (Engineers) (R&DE) Pune.
DRDO scientist Dr Alok Mukherjee, who demonstrated the UAV, here yesterday said Netra would be ready for induction into the services within the next six months after it is subjected to some more trial tests.
"The UAV is capable of operating in all the conflict theatres, including urban quarters, in a situation similar to that of the 26/11 terror attacks.", he told reporters here yesterday.
Mukerjee said the estimated cost of Netra is Rs 20 lakhs, but the price could vary if additional components like thermal camera are added as per the requirements of the security agencies concerned and their use.
IdeaForge, vice-president (Marketing and Operations Unmanned Systems) Amardeep Singh said the UAV has been designed to carry out surveillance in an area of 1.5 KM Line of Sight (LOS) and has an endurance capacity of 30 minutes of battery charge.
Apart from that, Netra is equipped with a resolution CCD camera with a pan/tilt and zoom to facilitate wider surveillance. It can also be fitted with thermal cameras to carry out night operations.
Singh said the operational altitude of the UAV is 200 meters maximum, having a vertical take-off and landing capacity (VTOL) and is equipped with a wireless transmitter. In addition to that, the in-built fail-safe features allows Netra to return to base on loss of communication or low battery.
Asked if the UAV could function in all-weather condition, Singh said the machine cannot be operated in rainy conditions but research is being carried out to make Netra function even during monsoon.

DRDO working on more advanced version of Arjun MBT: Saraswat

2010-07-02T09:46:00.001-07:00

After receiving orders for 124 more Arjun main battle tanks, the DRDO has decided to supply an advanced version of the weapon system to meet the requirements of the Army.

"We will have the modifications (on Arjuns) that the Army is looking for," Defence Research and Development Organisation chief V K Saraswat said here on Thursday.
He was asked if the DRDO had any plans of delivering a more advanced version of Arjun to the Army as part of the next order. The DRDO chief was talking to reporters on the sidelines of a function to mark the golden jubilee of the Institute of Nuclear Medicine and Allied Sciences (INMAS).

Saraswat said that the DRDO had already started working on the mark II version of the tank, which will incorporate a number of modifications that have been sought by the Army.

"We have to make certain modifications in the tank, which we call the Arjun mark II version. Development process on mark II is already in progress and our scientists and the Army are working together," Saraswat said.

The DRDO chief said the decision by the Army to place orders for 124 more Arjuns will ensure that the assembly line of the tanks is "engaged".

Army has till date placed orders for 248 Arjun tanks of which 124 have already been delivered to it. The orders for additional 124 tanks was placed after the comparative trials in March and April this year.

The comparative trials between the Arjun and the Russian T-90 were carried out to decided the future of the tank in the Army, during which the indigenous tanks reportedly performed satisfactorily.

The DRDO wants the Army to place orders for at least 500 Arjuns to recover its investments before staring work on the futuristic main battle tank for the service.
Commenting on the role of INMAS during the recent Mayapuri radiation leak case here, Saraswat said, "INMAS also has the expertise of detecting nuclear radiation and we provided the fastest response to the casualties there. We were able to send our teams within four hours and we also found out the level of radiation."

India to test missile defence shield once again in August

2010-07-02T09:43:00.001-07:00

It's a no-brainer that with two long, unresolved borders with nuclear-armed China and Pakistan, India needs to develop an effective missile defence shield as soon as possible. The good news is that India is planning another test of its fledgling ballistic missile defence (BMD) system next month.
BMD systems, however, are incredibly complex. They have to detect, classify, track and then hit a fast-incoming hostile missile with interceptors or anti-missile missiles with virtual pinpoint accuracy, all within a matter of minutes. No one, after all, wants nukes to leak through the so-called shield. And if there are multiple enemy missiles, it becomes all the more formidable.
Even the BMD systems of US, Russia and Israel are yet to be proven in actual conflict. The US, of course, has spent billions of dollars on its missile defence systems like Patriot Advanced Capability-3, Aegis BMD-3 and THAAD (terminal high-altitude area defence) system, the last of which was tested as recently as Tuesday.
But DRDO remains upbeat about its seemingly unrealistic claim that Phase-I of its two-tier BMD system, designed to track and destroy hostile missiles both inside (endo) and outside (exo) the earth's atmosphere, will be "ready for deployment'' as early as 2012.
Phase-I is designed to intercept enemy missiles with a 2,000-km range, while Phase-II is meant to tackle 5,000-km range missiles, as reported by TOI earlier. While Phase-I interceptors fly at 4.5 Mach high-supersonic speeds, Phase-II ones will have hypersonic speeds of 6-7 Mach.
"The next test is going to be conducted in August during which we will try to intercept a missile at an altitude of 15-20 km,'' DRDO chief V K Saraswat told reporters here on Thursday.
This will be the fifth test of the Phase-I BMD system. The first three tests, in November 2006, December 2007 and March 2009, when the enemy missiles were `killed' at altitudes of 48-km, 15-km and 80-km respectively, were successful. But the fourth, on March 15 this year, had flopped.
"The anti-missile system is a two-tiered one, where you first launch the target (enemy) missile and then you launch the hit missile. Since the target was not launched as planned (on March 15), the anti-missile system did not trigger,'' explained Saraswat.
This may well be true but DRDO has a long way to go before it can boast of successfully deploying an effective missile shield, with overlapping networks of advanced early-warning and tracking radars, fail-safe command and control posts, and robust land and sea-based interceptor missile batteries.
DRDO is yet to test Phase-I in an integrated mode, with both the two-stage exo and single-stage endo interceptors together, to first engage outside the atmosphere and then intercept the `leakers' inside to ensure the required near 100% kill probability.
Capable of handling multiple targets, the BMD system will have to be repeatedly tested for a variety of flight envelopes before it go in for production and subsequent deployment.

GSLV relaunch with indigenous cryogenic engine in one year: ISRO

2010-07-01T09:19:00.001-07:00

The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) is planning to relaunch the Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle (GSLV) with a home-grown cryogenic engine in a year's time after the failure in April this year.
"We have come across a few scenarios after detailed analysis of the failure. Now the immediate task is to test it on the ground and we look forward to relaunch it next year," ISRO chairman K Radhakrishnan told reporters on the sidelines of the 117 birth anniversary celebrations of Professor PC Mahalanobis at the Indian Statistical Institute in Kolkata.
The five earlier versions of the GSLV had Russia- supplied cryogenic engines. India's cryogenic upper stage (CUS) engine was meant to replace the Russian engines.
The GSLV D-3, the satellite launch vehicle showcasing the country's indigenous cryogenic technology, trailed off its designated course and went out of control shortly after the lift-off on April 15.
The rocket, along with its two payloads -- satellites GSAT-4 and GAGAN -- crashed into the Bay of Bengal minutes after blastoff.
The failed mission caused loss of the GSLV-D3 rocket costing about Rs 180 crore and the satellites valued at Rs 150 crore.
The launch was the key to India's space programme as it would have made it the sixth nation to successfully deploy cryogenic technology, joining US, Russia, Japan, China and France.

After two setbacks, Isro set to launch five satellites on 12 July

2010-07-01T09:15:00.001-07:00

After two setbacks this year, India’s space agency is set to launch five satellites on 12 July, including one that can shoot pictures of small objects on land and compress the time needed for building high-resolution maps by half.

Isro had deferred the launch of its workhorse polar satellite launch vehicle (PSLV) scheduled in May after it found leaks in the rocket’s second stage. The leaks were detected when pressurized nitrogen was pumped in the rocket as part of tests on the launch pad.

The same rocket will be fired now, following repairs and further tests, said an Isro official from Sriharikota. He did not want to be named.

“Even if the leak is minor, it takes many days to rectify and certify it fit,” said U.R. Rao, a former chairman of Isro. “In space, you don’t take risks.”

The rocket will also launch Alsat-2A, a remote sensing satellite from Algeria and India’s first African customer, two nano satellites from the University of Toronto, and Studsat, a small satellite built by engineering students in Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh.

Isro’s commercial arm, Antrix Corp. Ltd, has already signed a second satellite launch from Algeria for next year.

So far, PSLV has launched 39 satellites, nearly half of them from India, in 16 missions.

Isro expects Cartosat-2B to join two other satellites that are already in orbit—the Cartosat-2 and 2A—and return more high-resolution images to earth and provide complete coverage of the subcontinent, said S. Satish, director, Isro.

Cartosat-2B has a high resolution of 0.8 metre, allowing it to photograph objects the size of a typical bicycle.

Typically, satellites that can snap high resolution images can cover a small width or swath of 10km. To cover a larger area, a satellite would have to come back to a specific spot repeatedly, which would take a long time as it would have to complete one orbit of the earth to do this. A constellation of three satellites, on the other hand, can cover the entire country.

“It is like a camera; you want sharp images you need to be closer. You can go farther to cover a larger area, but you won’t get minute details,” said Rao.

As for the GSLV, Satish said a panel that’s studying what led to its crash is set to announce its report next week.

India hopes to launch 'Chandrayaan-2' by 2013

2010-06-30T18:53:00.001-07:00

The chairman of Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) K Radhakrishnan has said India is preparing to launch its second moon mission 'Chandrayaan-2' by 2013.
"The Chandrayaan-2 we are planning to have in the year 2013 and by that time we should have our GSLV (Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle) flying with the Indigenous Cryogenic Engine Stage that's the target with which we are working," Radhakrishnan told reporters in Kolkata.
Radhakrishnan said some snags have been identified in flight-testing of the Indigenous Cryogenic Engine, which is being analysed.
He said this would be sorted out in about a year.
"A flight testing of the Indigenous Cryogenic Engine Stage, in April, and as you know we had some snags there. We went through a very detailed analysis as to what happens and why it happens and we have come to a couple of scenarios in which such a snag would have occurred and our immediate task is to confirm that through testing on the ground and then prepare for the next flight testing. This should happen in year from now," he added.
The Chandrayaan-2 is the second unmanned lunar exploration mission that ISRO is pursuing.

‘Tarkash’ Launched on 23 Jun 10

2010-06-27T10:37:00.001-07:00

The second of the three follow on Talwar class stealth frigates being built by Yantar Shipyard, Kaliningrad, Russia was ceremoniously launched on 23 Jun 10 by Mrs Ramma Dewan, wife of Vice Admiral D K Dewan, the Vice Chief of Naval Staff. The launching ceremony was attended by Governer of Kaliningrad Region, The Commander-in-Chief of Baltic Fleet of Russian Federation and other senior dignitaries from the Russian side in addition to Senior Indian Navy officers posted in Russia.
The frigate, christened ‘Tarkash’ during the ceremony, belongs to the elite Talwar Class of ships, three of which namely Talwar, Trishul and Tabar are already in service with the Indian Navy. The first follow on ship, christened ‘Teg’ was launched on 27 Nov 09. These frigates have been constructed to suit Indian Navy’s specific requirements and are highly potent platforms. Their mission in Navy spans the entire spectrum of Naval warfare, viz Air, Surface and Sub-surface. The ships are capable of operating in Blue waters, and are at the forefront of the Indian Navy task forces.
The features of the follow-on ships have been upgraded to a higher level of sophistication with the experience gained by the Navy in operation of the first three ships. ‘Tarkash’, which means ‘Quiver’, will also carry supersonic Brahmos missile system with vertical launch capability, which is an Indo-Russian joint venture. True to its name, Tarkash carries cutting edge weaponry which includes advanced Surface to Air missiles, 100 mm Caliber Guns (artillery), Close Range Guns, Torpedos, Rocket Launchers and associated Fire Control Systems. The ship will also carry one Russian built Anti-Submarine Warfare helicopter Ka-31.
The ship is powered by four powerful Gas Turbines giving it a top speed of 30 knots. The vessel is fitted with state-of-the-art Navigation, Communication and Electronic Warfare Equipment. It is also equipped with highly advanced Radar and Sonar systems for early detection and warning. ‘Tarkash’ is scheduled to join the Indian Navy in the second half of 2011, post commissioning in Russia.

ISRO plans to launch satellite to study greenhouse gases

2010-06-27T10:36:00.001-07:00

With growing importance being placed on climate change and mitigation strategies, India's space agency ISRO is in the process of launching a satellite to study greenhouse gases,
"In the next 2-3 years, ISRO will carry out the first of the launches which will be dedicated to (studying) greenhouses gases like carbondioxide, carbon monoxide, nitric oxide and things of that kind," Planning Commission Member and former chief of ISRO, Dr K Kasturirangan told reporters here today.
The satellite was in design stages and the Ministry of Environment and Forests, which will play a substantial role in the funding of this project, has asked ISRO if the measurements relating to the gases could be made globally.
"The US and Japan have already put such satellites and the idea is to see if India can look at the greenhouse gases using satellite sensors," Kasturirangan said.

ISRO may launch nano satellite in September

2010-06-27T10:35:00.001-07:00

The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) is likely to launch in September a nano satellite being built by students of SRM University in Chennai, a senior official said on Saturday.
"The satellite is being built by the students. It has to be tested before it can be included as a payload. Perhaps in September, the satellite may be launched," V S Hegde, Scientific Secretary ISRO said.
The space agency is also planning soon to launch Cartosat, a cartography satellite, he told reporters on the sidelines of Indian Youth Science Congress, which was held at SRM University campus.
On the failure of ISRO's GSLV that flew with indigenously developed cryogenic engine in April this year, Hegde said "The failure analysis committee is looking into the causes. The committee is expected to submit its report soon".

LCA's Naval version prepares to roll out

2010-06-25T19:18:00.001-07:00

India's first indigenous Naval Light Combat Aircraft, the LCA (Navy) NP1 is scheduled to roll out from the Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) Aircraft Research and Design Centre (ARDC) design hangar on July 6.

The Defence Ministry has said that the aircraft will be an important milestone for the prestigious Naval Program of Aeronautical Development Agency (ADA), Bangalore.

The Chief of The Naval Staff Admiral Nirmal Verma would be the Chief Guest at the function.

'Roll-Out' is a significant milestone when the aircraft is brought out of the build hangar, where the aircraft is actually assembled part by part, ready for the phase of systems integration tests leading to Ground runs, taxi trials and flight.

Once the ground based tests are completed, the NP1 is expected to fly by the end of this year and the NP2 is likely to fly by the end of 2011.

The aircraft, with state of the art technologies and punch, is designed to operate from the future Indigenous aircraft carriers the Navy plans to acquire.

The LCA (Navy) program was sanctioned by the Government in 2003.

The first stage of development includes design and fabrication of one Trainer and one Fighter, NP1 and NP2 respectively, along with a Shore Based Test Facility (SBTF) at Goa.

The SBTF will be used to simulate carrier take off and arrested landing.

The NP1 would be flying with the GE-F-404-IN20 engine and is designed for ski jump take off and arrested landing.

The only carrier borne aircraft in the light category in the world, it will be operating with a wide variety of operational weapons and equipment like the Beyond Visual Range (BVR) missile, Anti-ship Missiles, Conventional bombs, Air Defence guns, CCM's and drop tanks.

The Indian Navy, the Centre for Military Airworthiness and Certification (CEMILAC) and Directorate General of Aeronautical Quality Assurance (DGAQA), in the development of its aircraft, have played an important role right from its inception supporting the program.

Nag hits a moving target in 3.2 seconds

2010-06-14T09:16:00.001-07:00

Anti-tank missile Nag on Sunday was successfully test-fired from the Army's Field Firing Range at Shamirpet, near here. This time it hit a moving object. Last Sunday (June 6), it destroyed a stationary target and proved its capability of destroying a target at a close range of 500 metres in three seconds.

This Sunday, Nag smashed the moving target in 3.2 seconds after its launch at 10.30 a.m., a Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) official told TheHindu. The test-firing was conducted by missile scientists from the Defence Research and Development Laboratory (DRDL) after the Army requested for a close range launch on a moving target. The missile punched a hole as it pierced through the target, which was specially developed by Hyderabad-based Delta Technologies in collaboration with DRDL.

Director of Research Centre Imarat (RCI), S.K. Ray, RCI Associate Director S.K. Chaudhuri, Director of Missile Systems Quality Assurance Agency Commodore S. Patel and other DRDO officials were present.

With the land version of the missile already proving a maximum range of four km in the user trials held in the last two years in Rajasthan, the official said Nag had a higher lock-on before launch range compared to contemporary third generation anti-tank missiles. As the missile is expected to be cleared for induction by the Army after the final validation trials next month, the pre-production process was on at Bharat Dynamics Limited here.

Equipped with an active Imaging Infra-red seeker to make it highly accurate, the missile has top-attack capability to defeat the armour of modern-day tanks. The missile carries a highly potent HEAT (high explosive anti-tank) warhead and could be launched during both day and night.

Supersonic fighter is on its way

2010-06-13T10:59:00.001-07:00

India’s fighter strength has been declining in the recent years, as the MiG-21s that comprises the bulk of its fleet are lost in crashes, or retired due to age and wear. While the buzz might be around the multi-billion dollar medium multi-role combat aircraft (MMRCA) deal for the purchase of 126 fighter planes for which American, Russian, French, Swedish and European fighter makers are hot in the race, but that still leaves replacement of the MiG-21 fleet.

In such a scenario, the news that Tejas, India’s second indigenous jet fighter design, after the HF-24 Marut of the 1950s, successfully undertook its maiden test flight this month, has brought cheers to the country’s defence establishment. With this successful flight, the indigenous light combat aircraft (LCA) programme is close to the initial operations clearance, which is expected to be completed by December this year, according to Defence Research Development Organisation (DRDO). The remaining effort will mostly revolve around flight testing and demonstration of sensors and weapon performance. In a nutshell: After long delays, Tejas is scheduled for induction into Indian Air Force (IAF) service in December, 2010.

Tejas is being built by Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd (HAL) for the Indian Air Force (IAF) and the Indian Navy. The LCA was designed by Aeronautical Development Agency (ADA) in Bangalore. The IAF has a requirement of 140 single-seat fighters and 20 two-seat LCA trainers for squadron service in the next 10 years. It has ordered 20 LCAs, which are scheduled to be delivered by 2013. Development is underway for the naval version of the LCA, which can be operated from an aircraft carrier. Two naval prototypes will be manufactured and flown to obtain clearance for deck operations.

Tracing its history, the LCA project was sanctioned in 1982 with a budget of Rs 560 crore to develop a F-16 class fighter aircraft to replace MiG-21 fighters in the IAF. Analysts inform that close to Rs 6,000 crore has been spent in the country’s efforts to upgrade its national defence capabilities through home-made production of fighter planes.

Tejas is claimed to be the world’s smallest, light weight, multi-role combat aircraft designed to meet the requirements of Indian Air Force as its frontline multi-mission single-seat tactical aircraft to replace the MiG-21 series of aircraft. The

Tejas design has been configured to match the demands of modern combat scenario such as speed, acceleration, maneuverability and agility. The LCA integrates modern design concepts like static instability, digital fly-by-wire flight control system, integrated avionics, glass cockpit, primary composite structure, multi-mode radar, microprocessor based utility and brake management systems.

Senior scientists from Aeronautical Development Agency (ADA), National Aerospace Laboratories (NAL) and Aeronautical Development Establishment (ADE) have been involved in the development and flight test planning of the newly integrated flight control software which was used by the test aircraft.

According to PS Subramanyam, programme director, ADA, the Tejas team is now heading to central India to carry out hot weather trials.

Designed as a single-engine tactical fighter, Tejas has a compound delta-wing platform to achieve weight reductions. The wing design, combined with a blended-wing body, delivers high performance. The design allows the aircraft to be integrated with guided air-to-surface and anti-ship weapons for multi-role and multi-mission capabilities. The fuselage is a thin walled and integrally stiffened structure, designed to sustain internal pressure without stiffener debonding. It features complex shapes and contours using integral structures in large scale.

The glass cockpit is equipped with a head-up display (HUD) and two multifunction displays (MFDs) that provide the required information to the pilot.

The HUD displays critical information required in close combat situations. The modern avionics systems and an effective pilot-vehicle interface are installed in the cockpit. The hands on throttle and stick (HOTAS) concept ensures the availability of all flight controls during adverse conditions.

Among others, Tejas features an integrated digital avionics suite, configured around the MIL-STD-1553B bus system. The 32-bit mission computer (MC) can perform mission-oriented computations, flight management, reconfiguration/redundancy management and in-flight system self tests.

On the weapons side, Tejas is claimed to be a precision weapon launch platform with seven hardpoints to carry a range of air-to-air missiles, anti-ship missiles, unguided rockets and conventional/retarded bombs. The air-to-air missiles include Astra BVRAAM, Vympel R-77 and R-73. The air-to-surface missiles are Kh-59ME TV guided stand-off missile and Kh-59MK laser-guided stand-off missile.

A 23mm twin-barrel GSh-23 cannon is also mounted on the fighter aircraft.

The advanced multimode radar (MMR) track-while-scan feature allows the tracking and engaging of multiple targets simultaneously. It also provides ground mapping and look-down shoot-down capabilities. The sensor suite provides threat detection, and a low visual signature that helps the aircraft to perform better in close air combat environments. The LCA can also be fitted with additional sensors for guidance, navigation and reconnaissance purposes.

Most importantly, Tejas is powered by a General Electric F404-GE-IN20 turbofan engine. The engine is rated to supply 53.9kN dry thrust and 85kN thrust with afterburn. Fuel tanks are integrated into the fuselage and wings, and auxiliary fuel tanks of 800lt and 1,200lt can be fitted under fuselage to extend the range. An in-flight refuelling probe is also fitted to the starboard side to further extend Tejas’s range and endurance.

India’s efforts to become self-reliant by taking up home production of Tejas aircraft were marred by hitches in the development phase. Through the use of modern design techniques, the indigenous effort might take to the skies soon.

Pak stares at India, India at the world

2010-06-13T10:55:00.001-07:00

ISLAMABAD: When a senior security official here was asked why Pakistan was not developing long-range missiles, unlike in India, his answer revealed how these two nuclear foes' geopolitical priorities may be diverging. "We don't have ambitions like India has, so we don't need to develop any further long-range missiles," he said.
"Our missiles cover the entire India, so that's it." Indeed, India has raised eyebrows developing a new long-range missile with a capacity to hit most of China, a signal of how New Delhi's focus is tentatively moving away from an obsession with Pakistan to more global issues.
For decades, these two countries, which have gone to war three times since independence from Britain in 1947, have been synonymous with each other. Diplomats often like to talk of India-Pakistan as "hyphenated".
But India is trying to move from that old beat, seduced more by its growing role in the global economy, its stellar growth and preoccupations with other security issues like China than dealing with what many Indians deride as a "failed state". Pakistan, meanwhile, often seems stuck in its obsession with India, mired in conspiracy theories, reflecting what critics say are decades-old fears that do little to bring regional stability.
It's an imbalance that may help redefine how these nations reach for peace as well as create new risks, making an aspiring and globalised India more vulnerable to regional tension, while making Pakistan frustrated it is losing out to its neighbour. "India sees itself as playing a global role and looks at the region as a stepping stone for its aspirations," said Siddharth Varadarajan, strategic affairs editor for India's The Hindu. "Pakistan sees its ability to be noticed globally as related to its tensions with India." Take China. India is focused on boosting trade with China as part of its growing economic clout in Asia, while ensuring security over a disputed border. The two sides fought a brief but bloody border war in 1962.
For Pakistan, China is simply source of diplomatic support and weapons to counter India. In Afghanistan, where both countries are seen in a proxy war for influence, Indian officials laud $1.2 billion aid as their ability to help bring regional stability through "soft power".
Pakistan sees that as an effort to push it out and wants Indian aid scaled down. The imbalance has already produced tensions with the United States. Washington wants Pakistan to stop worrying about India and focus more on Taliban militants on its Afghan border. President Barack Obama hinted at frustration over Pakistan earlier this year when he said that (Pakistan's) "obsession with India as the mortal threat to Pakistan has been misguided... their biggest threat right now comes internally". Those kind of comments irk Pakistan, where policy makers still see India trying to gain the kind of influence it has in its other South Asian neighbours, like Nepal.
"There are American efforts to persuade us to put troops on our Western border," said Riffat Hussein, chairman of the department of defence and strategic studies at Pakistan's Quaid-e-Azam University. "But no one here is fooled by that." The signing of a US civilian nuclear agreement with New Delhi is another source of tension. For New Delhi, the deal was about having access to the global nuclear power market. Islamabad looked on enviously as Prime Minister Manmohan Singh was feted in Washington. Its request afterwards for a similar deal has fallen on deaf ears.
Pakistan worries India's new global role will make New Delhi more arrogant, with fewer incentives for peace when it feels too important to ignore.
Those fears may be exaggerated. Singh, born in Pakistan before Partition in 1947, says India cannot really take its global place without peace in South Asia, with a second attack like Mumbai in 2008, which New Delhi blames on Pakistan-based militants, capable of derailing investor confidence in India's globalised economy. "The most cost-effective thing would be to engage Pakistan to improve the atmosphere to a point where you can reduce the possibility of another Mumbai," said a senior Indian official on condition of anonymity. "We know if we have to get on with it (India's global push), we have to move beyond Pakistan." India is far more vulnerable to economic shock from another major border build-up than it was in 2002, the year of the last major border crisis that saw the countries nearly go to war again. It still has most of its army on the border and steep rises in defence spending are also linked to a perceived Pakistan threat.
So if India has one eye on global affairs, it always has the other on Pakistan, a fact not lost on Islamabad. While former Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf offered concessions over the disputed Kashmir region in a failed attempt to reach a peace deal with India a few years ago, his attempts to refocus away from an Indian threat may have proved just a blip. Under new army chief Ashfaq Kayani, one of the most powerful men in Pakistan where the civilian government is weak, there has been a return to talk of the Indian threat, a sign critics say of Pakistan's growing domestic problems. Conspiracy theories about India, often linked to the United States, abound in Pakistan. With growing militancy, attacks and social problems, they won't go away soon.
"The more you lose on the economic front, on bad governance, the more you tend to externalise your problems and fears," said Imtiaz Gul, chairman of Centre for Research and Security Studies."Our conspiracy theories typify that tendency."

Flight tests of laser-guided bombs conducted

2010-06-09T10:56:00.000-07:00

The user trials of laser-guided bombs developed by the Aeronautical Development Establishment (ADE) were conducted on Wednesday by Indian Air Force (IAF) aircraft over the Pokhran range in Rajasthan.

The ADE is a unit of the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO).

The flight tests with the laser-guided bombs were conducted after extensive simulation, design validation and ground experiments.

A series of flight evaluations was done earlier and one of them took place in January.

A DRDO press release said the flight tests had demonstrated the accuracy, reliability and performance of these precision air-launched bombs.

A number of high technology components were developed by the Indian industries for this advanced weapon package, which had reached the maturity level, a DRDO official said.

India working on UAV anti-collision system

2010-06-04T10:54:00.001-07:00

Indian aerospace scientists have developed an in-flight collision avert system that prevents unmanned aerial vehicles from crashing into enemy aircraft or other objects.

The model predictive static programming algorithm protection system, developed at the Indian Institute of Science, uses a series of installed collision guidance algorithms as instructions that allow the UAVs to detect objects, especially if they are flying low.

This includes tall buildings, towers and other aircraft, including commercial passenger planes.

The MPSP Algorithm can also be used in medium- and long-range missiles to ensure they don't crash into objects such as anti-missile missiles as they approach their own target. MPSP can redirect the missiles back on course to their target without loss of accuracy.

The developer, Radhakant Padhi, 37, said he has been working on algorithms for aerospace for more than a decade and perfected the algorithm technology during his project related to advanced missile technology at the Indian Institute of Science in Bangalore.

In 2005, Padhi developed an advanced version of the algorithm, called the MPSP algorithm, while working on one of India's missile guidance systems.

Padhi also said he received $80,000 of funding from Air Force Research Lab in the United States to further develop the MPSP Algorithm.

AFRL, operated by the U.S. Air Force Materiel Command, controls the Air Force science and technology research budget. The laboratory was formed in 1997 at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio. It was a consolidation of the four Air Force laboratory facilities of Wright, Phillips, Rome, and Armstrong as well as the Air Force Office of Scientific Research.

It has worked with NASA, Department of Energy National Laboratories, Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency and other research organizations within the U.S. Department of Defense. Projects include the X-37, X-40, X-53, HTV-3X, YAL-1A, Advanced Tactical Laser and the Tactical Satellite Program.

AFRL, as with similar technology research establishments in the United States, is facing a staffing problem as 40 percent of its workers are set to retire over the next two decades. The country also isn't producing enough scientists to keep up with job vacancies.

One reason for the personnel shortage is a large percentage of science and engineering graduates in the United States are foreign citizens who aren't eligible for work because of security clearances needed for many of the jobs. Government statistics show that 60 percent of all doctoral candidates in the sciences are foreign-born, a report in The Boston Globe newspaper said last year.

"If the requirement is you have to be a U.S. citizen, then you have a large pool that simply isn't eligible," said Mark Regets, a senior analyst at the National Science Foundation who tracks science and engineering graduates and workforce.

Air Force Materiel Command is looking to fill more than 5,000 positions by October 2011, many of them in chemistry, physics, and electrical, aeronautical and environmental engineering. Jobs include researching cleaner fuels, laser-guided weapons, UAVs and cyberprotection.

India to develop missiles with France

2010-06-04T10:53:00.001-07:00

After Russia and Israel, India is now all geared up to finalise a missile co-development project with France to manufacture a new range of Short Range Surface to Air Missiles (SRSAM) for the armed forces.
Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) of India and the French missile manufacturer Matra BAE Dynamics Alenia (MBDA) will jointly work on this project, according to a news report in the Indian Express.
The defence deal is likely to be signed in the coming months.
Jean-David Levitte, Diplomatic Adviser to French President Nicolas Sarkozy, had last year said that the new system may be the Maitri, and may incorporate technology from India's Trishul SAM and MBDA's MICA.
The project according to the report was initiated in 2007 and has taken more than three years to finalise.
The next-generation low-level, quick-reaction missile which will be inducted by the Army, Navy and Air Force, could also be made available for export.

India To Induct Agni 5 Missile By 2011

2010-06-04T10:52:00.001-07:00

India will induct its 5,000 km range nuclear-capable Agni 5 missile by 2011 to allow it to join the group of nations possessing Inter-Continental Ballistic Missile, the Defense Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) said Tuesday.
"Work is progressing satisfactorily in the development of Agni 5, which is expected to become a reality next year. With this, DRDO would have given India a comprehensive indigenous strategic capability," Press Trust of India (PTI) quoted DRDO chief V.K. Saraswat as saying.
The Agni 5 will be the first canisterised, road-mobile missile in India's arsenal. It will be able to carry multiple warheads and will have counter-measures against anti-ballistic missile systems.
The Agni 5 is a three stage solid fueled missile with composite motor casing in the third stage. Two stages of this missile will be made of composite material.
The missile will utilize a canister and will be launched from it. Sixty percent of the missile will be similar to the Agni III missile. Advanced technologies like ring laser gyroscope and accelerometer will be used in the new missile.

First flight of Tejas aircraft LSP-4

2010-06-03T09:52:00.001-07:00

Tejas aircraft LSP-4 launched itsfirst flight today at a supersonic speed of 1.1 mach that left behind a significant milestone in the aircraft industry. The aircraft of this limited series departed at 1110 hours from HAL’s airport at Bangalore. It landed after a supersonic fly in the air for 40 minutes.

The IAF will finally take control of this aircraft that will be delivered to them in December this year.

The director of aeronautical development agency, P Subramanya said that this launch was a major bench mark for the LSP after the maiden flight flew with supersonic speed.

In order to prove the capabilities of the combat aircraft, DRDO intends to build eight more LSPs under the LCA program.

"The aircraft took off at 1110 hours and landed 40 minutes later. The Test Pilot, Group Captain Suneet Krishna, flew the aircraft to an attitude of 11 kms and went supersonic, touching 1.1 Mach speed," the defense ministry officials said.

Subramanya added that the next step would be to trial the aircraft out in hot weather conditions so the aircraft will now be flown to central India.

The scientists that were involved in the development of the flight included the seniors from ADA, the aeronautical development establishment and also the national aerospace laboratory.

This program was being worked upon from the 80’s by the DRDO which now plans on getting the required IOC (initial operational clearance) for Tejas. DRDO also aims at getting this clearance by the year 2011, and apply for the final operational clearance that it intends to receive by 2012. the final induction of the aircraft into the IAF is worked upon aiming at making the aircraft ready as early as 2012.

‘Indian rockets to soon use atmospheric oxygen as fuel’

2010-06-03T09:50:00.001-07:00

A Rohini sounding on its way to space. Developments in aerospace technology will enable rockets to use atmospheric oxygen as fuel.

In an attempt to make its rockets lighter and carry heavier satellites, the Indian space agency is planning to flight test by the end of this year its own air-breathing engine that will use atmospheric oxygen as fuel.

Air-breathing engines use atmospheric oxygen and burn it with the stored on-board fuel to generate the onward thrust.

Conventional rockets carry both oxygen and chemical fuel on board.

“We will be doing a series of ground tests of the air breathing engine soon. We are planning an actual launch of a sounding rocket - ATV D02 - powered by such an engine by the end of this year,” an official of Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) told IANS on condition of anonymity.

The rocket will fly from Sriharikota, India's rocket port located around 80 km from here.

In March, ISRO flew an advanced technology vehicle D01 (ATV-D01) weighing three tonnes from Sriharikota.

ATV-D01, the heaviest sounding rocket developed by ISRO, carried a passive scramjet (supersonic combustion ramjet) engine combustor module as a test bed for demonstration of air breathing propulsion technology.

A scramjet consists of a tube through which inlet air is compressed by the high speed of the vehicle, a chamber where fuel is combusted, and a nozzle through which the exhaust jet leaves at higher speed than the inlet air.

Jet engines use a compressor to squeeze air into the engine, then spray fuel into the compressed air and ignite it to produce thrust by funnelling it through the back.

The advantage of air breathing engine is that it makes the rocket lighter - as oxygen is not carried - enabling it to carry heavier satellites.

Further, it reduces the cost of launch and will help make ISRO a very cost competitive player in the global satellite launch industry.

However, as air breathing engine systems can operate only during the atmospheric phase of flight, they will have to be adapted along with the conventional chemical rockets.

India may soon get its own UAV: HAL chairman

2010-05-23T05:39:00.001-07:00

India is likely to come out with its indigenous Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) in the coming two to three years, a top official of the country’s only aircraft manufacturing company, Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL), has said.

Talking to media persons on the margins of the inaugural test launch of the Light Combat Helicopter, HAL chairman Ashok Nayak disclosed that work is on for developing India’s very own UAVs.

“There are some projects going on in collaboration with the Defence Research and Development Organization (DRDO),” Nayak said.

“May be after two to three years, the HAL might come out with India’s own UAV. We have already developed one, Lakshya, but it was on a smaller scale. Now, we are developing the Lakshya’s MAK-II,” he said.

Nayak added that the Lakshya’s MAK-II would be used for ‘air to air practice’, and pointed out that it will not be used for combat or surveillance purposes.

Expressing immense pleasure at the successful test flight of the LCH, which has been developed by the HAL itself, Nayak described it as a very important achievement.

Responding to a question about the time by which the LCH is likely to be ready for induction in the armed forces, Nayak said it would take at least two years.

“It will take 500 flights, two years to get operational clearance, and all the weapon and ammunition system would be tested and after that it would be inducted in the airforce. We strongly believe it’ll be inducted in the India Army also

India's combat chopper takes to the skies; induction by 2014

2010-05-23T05:31:00.001-07:00

India's first indigenous combat helicopter capable of participating in anti-Naxal and counter terrorism operations on Sunday took to the skies, marking its first official flight at the HAL airport in Bangalore.
The Light Combat Helicopter (LCH), designed and developed indigenously by the Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) in four years since the project began in 2006, is likely to be ready for induction by the Army and Air Force before 2014.
Witnessed by IAF Vice Chief Air Marshal PK Barbora and Defence Production Secretary RK Singh, the 10-minute flight display caught the attention of those present at the venue, with the 5.8-tonne chopper showcasing its manoeuvrability and stability, including one of the most difficult moves --reverse slide.
Defence Minister AK Antony and IAF Chief Air Chief Marshal PV Naik did not attend the event in view of the tragic air crash of a civilian flight in Mangalore yesterday which claimed 158 lives.
"It is a red letter day for not only HAL, but the whole nation. I am quite positive the aircraft will meet all IAF requirements in this class of helicopters. The first display has been superb," Barbora said at a function soon after witnessing the maiden flight of the LCH.
He said very few countries around the world had the capability to indigenise a helicopter of this class, but at the same time cautioned HAL that it must learn from its past mistakes and not repeat them.
Barbora said though the helicopter was bulky and heavy, it was a versatile aircraft and the problems with its weight would be solved as years go by.
Singh, in his address, said LCH was a "truly fine" machine and the indigenous development of the helicopter had both strategic and economic reasons.
He said it was important for a country to be independent of other nations when it comes to its defence production and research and development capabilities.
Moreover, import of weapons led to job creation in other country, as India spent billions every year to equip its armed forces.
"I would like to set a deadline of four years from now for the LCH to be inducted into the armed forces and I feel it is a reasonable time frame for HAL to achieve," he added.
HAL Chairman Ashok Nayak said the Defence PSU had already bagged an order for supplying 65 of these combat helicopters to the IAF and the Army was showing keen interests in buying a large number for its Army Aviation wing.
The IAF currently operates two squadrons of combat helicopters comprising Russian-origin Mi-25s and Mi-35s.

India to fire over 5000 km range Agni V in 2011

2010-05-17T08:58:00.001-07:00

After the successful launch of the Agni II missile, India is all set to test fire its first Inter-Continental Ballistic Missile, Agni-V, in Mach-April 2011.

Agni V is being designed by adding a third composite stage to the two-stage 3,500-km Agni-III, having a range of over 5000 km to carry multiple warheads and will have countermeasures against anti-ballistic missile systems.

It is a three-stage solid fuelled missile with composite motor casing in the third stage. Two stages of this missile will be made of composite material. The Agni V will be the first canisterised, road-mobile missile in India.

Buoyed by the success of the Agni II missile, Dr W Selvamurthy, DRDO's Chief Controller Research and Development, said: "We are now working on Agni V, which has a range capacity of more than 5,000 kilometres. It is a strategic missile being developed by the Defence Research and Development Organisation."

"It will be ready by next year. We hope during March-April next year. It will be an Inter Continental Ballistic Missile."

The Strategic Force Command on Monday successfully test fired Agni II, an Intermediate Range Ballistic Missile (IRBM) with a range of 2000 km, from Wheeler Island off the coast of Orissa at 9:18 a.m., meeting all mission objectives.
"Agni II is a strategic missile, which has a range capability of 2,000 km. It can carry a nuclear warhead," said Dr Selvamurthy.

"We have successfully test fired this today. The Strategic Force Command has carried this out. They have done the whole operation themselves and our scientists have been observing the whole operation.

"It has gone very well. All the mission objectives have been successfully met. This has been inducted in the Armed Forces. It was successfully test fired from the Wheeler Island," he added.

The Agni missile is a family of medium to inter-continental range ballistic missiles developed by India. It comprises of Agni I, Agni II, Agni III and Agni V. By Praful Kumar Singh

Agni-II test fired successful

2010-05-17T08:56:00.001-07:00

India on Monday successfully test-fired nuclear-capable Agni-II ballistic missile, with a range of 2000 kilometers from the Wheelers Island off Orissa coast.

The trial was conducted with a special strategic command force (SSC) raised by the Army with necessary logistic support provided by various laboratories of the Integrated Test Range (ITR) and Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) scientists.

The Agni missile family is envisaged to be the mainstay of the Indian missile-based strategic nuclear deterrence.

The Agni-II is a medium range ballistic missile (MRBM) with two solid fuel stages and a Post Boost Vehicle (PBV) integrated into the missile's Re-entry Vehicle (RV).
The Agni's manoeuvring RV is made of a carbon-carbon composite material that is light and able to sustain high thermal stresses of re-entry, in a variety of trajectories.

The missile is part of the Agni series, which includes Agni-I of 700-kilometer range and Agni-III of 3,500-kilometer range.

India, France collaborate on satellite

2010-05-06T19:51:00.001-07:00

India is collaborating with France to launch a satellite within a year to collect data related to climate change, Environment Minister Jairam Ramesh told the Rajya Sabha thia week.

“ISRO (Indian Space Research Organisation) is planning to launch Megha Tropiques satellite in polar orbit within a year. It will provide data on atmospheric humidity, radiation budget and amount of precipitation to study the climate,” he said.

India and France are jointly developing the scientific payloads for the satellite, he added.

India Commissions First Indigenous Stealth Frigate INS Shivalik

2010-04-29T10:30:00.001-07:00

INS Shivalik fires a 90R missile from her RBU-6000 launcher during weapons trials in late 2009.

Antony Calls Upon Industry to Boost Ship Building Programmes of Indian Navy

16:30 GMT, April 29, 2010 The Indian Defence Minister Shri AK Antony today called upon the Indian Industry to give their best in developing the country’s ship building programmes. Commissioning INS Shivalik, the first of three new stealth frigates for the Indian Navy in Mumbai, he said, over the years there has been a distinct shift in our policy from a “Buyer’s Navy’ to a ‘Builder’s Navy”.
He said the ship building industry has to modernize itself through indigenous efforts and minimize its dependence on imports. “We must continue with our efforts to transform and modernize our shipyards, so that they can not only meet the domestic demands but also achieve latest international standards in quality construction. We must be able to produce quality ships in a shorter time frame at competitive costs. I strongly urge all the participants of the Indian industry to give their best in developing our ship building programmes”.
He said time and again history has taught us to maintain a strong and vigilant navy. “Our maritime heritage dates back to the ancient times. Though we have come a long way in re-establishing our capabilities on the high seas since our independence, we still have a lot to achieve before we can consider ourselves a really potent naval force. History has time and again held out lessons in maintaining a strong and an eternally vigilant Navy”, the Defence Minister said.
Shri Antony said the security situation in and around our immediate neighbourhood poses several security related challenges. He reiterated that we have to maintain high levels of operational readiness at all times.
Shri Antony described the commissioning as a red letter day for the Indian Navy, our Armed Forces, the ship building industry and the entire nation. He said India’s long coastline and ever expanding exclusive economic zone make it imperative to defend our main land as well as maintain the sea lanes of communication. With the commissioning of the stealth frigate, he expressed confidence that the maritime interest will further secure.
INS Shivalik and the follow-on-ships of the Shivalik class (namely, Satpura and Sahyadiri) have been conceived and designed by Indian Navy design teams. The Shivalik class will be the mainstay frigates of the Indian Navy in the first half of the 21st century.
The incorporation of numerous new design features aboard INS Shivalik effectively reduces the probability of her being detected at sea. The in-built structural, thermal and acoustic stealth features augment the potent capability of the ship to address threats in all dimensions of maritime warfare.
The weapon-sensor fit of the Shivalik is controlled through a Combat Management System called ‘CMS-17’, designed and developed by the Indian Navy and manufactured by Bharat Electronics (Ghaziabad). The system allows the seamless integration of the ship’s systems as well as with the weapons and sensors of other Fleet ships, thus enabling the concept of ‘Co-operative Engagement Capability’ (CES). With her ability to detect and engage surface, air and sub-surface assets of the enemy at extended ranges, this ship represents very significant combat-potential.
With modern LM 2500 Gas Turbine propelling her to speeds in excess of 30 knots (or over 55 kmph), the ship is a true greyhound upon the seas. The ship’s electric power is provided by four Diesel Alternators, which together produce 4 Mega-Watts of power – enough to light-up a small town. The power generation and distribution on board is controlled through an ‘Automated Power Management System’ (APMS), which enables the optimal use of electricity at all times. The two Multi-Role helicopters that would be embarked on Shivalik will provide for enhanced surveillance and attack capability.
The Shivalik is also equipped with a proven defense against Nuclear, Biological and Chemical attack. The state-of-the art ‘Total Atmospheric Control System’ (TACS) ensures filtration of the air going into the ship at all times. In addition, it ensures the complete removal of radioactive, chemical or biological impurities, thereby protecting the crew and shipborne systems even when operating in areas contaminated by nuclear, biological or chemical agents.
The ship’s domestic requirements of fresh water are met through two Reverse Osmosis plants, while a fully automated galley, ensures that the crew can be fed Indian, Continental and Asian meals, including freshly baked bread and home-made ice cream.
The accommodation arrangements for the 35 officers and over 250 crew members of the Shivalik has been provided by M/s Godrej, whose advance ergonomic design ensures crew comfort and space management.
Among those present at today’s ceremony included the Chief of Naval Staff Admiral Nirmal Verma, the Defence Secretary Shri Pradeep Kumar, the Secretary Defence Production Shri RK Singh, the Chairman and Managing Director of Mazagon Dock Limited Rear Admiral (Retd) HS Malhi, Defence Attaches and Consul Generals of different Countries.

India planning to launch 10 satellites in a year

2010-04-28T10:00:00.000-07:00

The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) is planning to launch 10 satellites in a year to better communication network and improve disaster management, the government revealed Wednesday.

"ISRO is planning to launch 10 satellites in a year. The actual number of satellites to be launched will be decided based on national developmental priorities," Science and Technology Minister Prithviraj Chavan said in the Lok Sabha.

"The aims and objectives of these satellites include natural resources management, augmenting the communications infrastructure, satellite navigation, disaster management support, space science research and planetary exploration," the minister added.

He said the action plan of the department in this context will include augmenting the technical infrastructure within ISRO and enhancing the production capabilities in the Indian industry in the 12th Five-Year Plan period (2012-17) to meet projected demand.

IAF to induct one squadron of land attack BRAHMOS

2010-04-27T16:40:00.000-07:00

Based on the approval of the Government to induct the BrahMos missile into the Indian Air Force (IAF), a contract has recently been signed for the production and induction of one squadron of land attack version of the BrahMos in mobile complex. The Government has also approved development of Air launched version of the BrahMos missile to be fitted with Sukhoi SU-30 MK-1 to be ready in 2012.

BrahMos supersonic cruise missile jointly developed by India and Russia is a world leader in the cruise missile family. The missile has a range of 290 km weighing three tonnes, and flying at a maximum speed of 2.8 times the speed of sound. It is configured for universality for multiple platforms like ship, submarine, road mobile complex. For the air launched version the missile has been modified with a reduced weight of 2.5 tonnes. The missile has been proved in successive successful flight trials from various platforms and proved to be highly reliable, accurate and lethal. The missile system has already been inducted in the Indian Navy and Indian Army.

The Joint Venture was established in 1998 with a share capital of US $ 250 million through an Inter Governmental Agreement between India and Russia, sharing the technologies for the development of this advanced weapon system for ship and land applications. The share capital was increased by an additional US $ 50 million in 2005 for the development of the air version.

This information was given by Defence Minister Shri AK Antony in a written reply to Shri Pradeep Majhi in Lok Sabha today.

ISRO to launch Cartosat-2B on May 9

2010-04-26T08:24:00.001-07:00

India's advanced, high-resolution remote-sensing satellite Cartosat-2B would be launched on May 9 at 9.23 am from Sriharikota spaceport, ISRO said on Monday.

"It will be launched at 9.23 am on May 9 by PSLV-C15," Indian Space Research Organisation spokesperson S Satish told PTI.

The highly agile satellite is expected to give a boost to the tasks of infrastructure and urban planning. The on-board camera would provide scene specific spot imageries for cartographic and a host of other civilian applications.

Satish said the Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle would carry onboard four more satellites along with the Cartosat-2B - an Algerian satellite weighing 117 kg, one nano satellite each from Canada and Switzerland, and StudSat, a pico satellite (under one KG) developed by engineering students from Bangalore and Hyderabad.

Weighing around 700 kg, Cartosat-2B is designed for an operational life of five years and would give pictures of 0.8 metre resolution.

Meanwhile, ISRO has constituted a failure analysis committee to probe the recent failure of the GSLV-D3 mission whose main objective was to flight-test the indigenous cryogenic engine and stage for the first time.

S Ramakrishnan, ISRO's Director (Projects) at Thiruvananthapuram-based Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre, would chair the committee, which has been asked to submit the report within two months, sources in the space agency said.

The national panel of experts which included former chairmen of ISRO and eminent personalities, would then look into the report and the recommended corrective measures. This panel, after a thorough review, had given the go-ahead for the GSLV-D3 mission.

Tejas makes successful flight

2010-04-23T08:42:00.000-07:00

The maiden test flight of the most advanced of the nine 'Tejas' aircraft was today successfully carried out, bringing the indigenous Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) programme "very close" to the Initial Operations Clearance.

It is the ninth test vehicle to join the flight line to undertake development flight trials of the LCA Tejas towards operational clearance for induction in the IAF by the end of the year, Defence Research Development Organisation said.

"Successful, copy book maiden test flight of Limited Series Production-3 (LSP-3) is significant on many counts," it said in a statement.

"With this successful flight, the LCA (Tejas) programme is very close to the Initial Operations Clearance, which is to be completed by December 2010. The remaining effort is mostly the flight testing and demonstration of sensors and weapon performance," it said.

Indigenous INS Shivalik, a step towards making of a blue-water navy

2010-04-22T11:36:00.001-07:00

In a bid to build a blue-water navy capable of operating across oceans, India is all set to commission the first of the Shivalik-class multi-role frigate with stealth features.

The hard to detect warships will form a crucial component of the Indian Navy after getting commissioned on April 29. It is equipped with a mix of Indian, Russian, Israeli and Western weapons and sensors.

Director-General Naval Design Rear Admiral K N Vaidyanathan said new design features give the ship enhanced operational capabilities in terms of survivability, stealth, sea keeping, ship handling and weapons.

The Shivalik-class vessels are being built entirely in India and have Club anti-ship missiles, Shtil surface-to-air missiles, Barak air and missile defence systems and RBU 6000 anti-submarine warfare rockets.

"The total indigenous efforts account for over 60 percent of ship cost. It also has stealth features against radar and heat seekers and through technical means its underwater signatures have also been reduced," said Rear Admiral Vaidyanathan.
"The cost of building each Shivalik class frigate will be close to Rs 2,800 crore," Rear Admiral Vaidyanathan added.

The Shivalik is being built at the Mazagaon Dock Ltd (MDL) at Dockyard Road in Mumbai. The construction is under the massive modernisation that the Indian Navy is undertaking to increase its fleet strength.

The other two frigates of this class are named Satpura and Sahyadri. While Shivalik was launched in 2002, Satpura and Sahyadri were launched in 2004 and 2005, respectively. These ships are now undergoing sea trials and are named after hill ranges.

According to sources, the second of these ships is to be commissioned by the end of this year, and the other in the series in 2011.

The commissioning of Talwar-class frigates, which were designed and built in Russia, precedes these three Shivalik class ships.

The follow-on of the Shivalik class would be of Project 17 Alpha, under which a total of seven ships will be built.

Indian Navy's Directorate of Naval Design envisaged the project way back in 1997. The design, construction and equipment development for Shivalik is a watershed in 50 years of indigenous warship building efforts.

40 Indian fighter jets to be fitted with BrahMos missiles

2010-04-22T11:34:00.001-07:00

BrahMos supersonic cruise missiles, which is a joint venture of India and Russia, will be fitted on the Indian Air Force's 40 Su-30MKIs fighter aircraft.

CEO and MD of BrahMos Aerospace Dr A S Pillai said: "The inclusion of BrahMos cruise missile will make the aircraft unique in firepower."

Dr Pillai was speaking to a Russian news agency at the Defence Services Asia-2010 exhibition here.

He also added that the first trials of the air-launched version were set for 2011 and the first test-flight with the missile on-board is scheduled for 2012.

The supersonic cruise missile has a range of 290-km and flies at a speed of 2.8 Mach.

The BrahMos missile is a successful joint venture of India''s Defence Research and Development Organisation and Russia's NPO Mashinostroeyenia.

BrahMos missiles sea and ground-launch versions have already been successfully tested and put into service by the Indian Army and Navy.

Students add to space odyssey

2010-04-17T21:42:00.001-07:00

City students achieved a milestone in Indian space history on Saturday with the handing over of India's first pico-satellite to Isro.

Nitte Meenakshi Institute of Technology (NMIT) played host to the prestigious event on Saturday and a large crowd gathered to witness it. The first of its kind in the country, the satellite was designed by a consortium of seven engineering colleges from Bangalore and Hyderabad.

NMIT principal H C Nagaraj said the satellite weighs less than 1 kg. It has a volume of 1.1 litres and is designed to operate in the Low Earth Orbit (LEO). The payload of the satellite consists of a CMOS camera capable of capturing images with a ground resolution of approximately 90 metres.

The satellite, which was developed at a cost of Rs 55 lakh, will send the image and telemetry data from the orbit to the ground station Nastrac (Nitte Amateur Satellite Tracking Centre). Its mission life is estimated to be six months.

"Work on Studsat began about one-and-a-half years ago. It was initiated by the students and Isro provided great encouragement throughout the project. Students did face a few obstacles while working on it but with support from their advisor N R Shetty and principal, they managed to overcome the hiccups," said project coordinator Jharna Majumdar.

The team of Studsat said: "We took on this project because of our interest in aerospace. In fact, it happened when we attended the 58th International Astronautical Congress (IAC) in Hyderabad in 2007. Students from different engineering colleges of Hyderabad and Bangalore who attended IAC initiated the project. The realization that the project is no longer a dream, but a reality, is so exciting. Words can't capture the way we feel."

This pico-satellite, the lightest one in India, has gone through a number of critical environmental tests. The team presented a paper titled, 'Studsat — a student pico-satellite for imaging', at the IAC 2008 in Glasgow, Scotland. They won the Hans Von Muldau Award for the best team project, awarded by the International Astronautical Federation and sponsored by Deutsche Gesellschaft fur-Luft-und Raumfahrt.

The satellite is scheduled to be launched along with Cartosat-2B in Pslv C-15 in the first week of May.

Indian Ballistic Missile to be Tested by March 2011

2010-04-16T19:19:00.000-07:00

India intends to conduct a test launch of its new Agni 5 ICBM by March of next year.

Researchers said the weapon is in the final stages of development. It would be intended to carry a conventional or nuclear payload up to approximately 3,000 miles.

"Hopefully, the Agni 5 ICBM will be ready for its maiden test launch by March 2011," said W. Selvamurthy, a chief controller within India's Defense Research and Development Organization.

Other missiles in the Agni line have all proved to function in testing, prompting optimism for the latest version, according to Selvamurthy.

"Besides Agni 5, we are also working on developing a strong interceptor missile system which can be launched from air to surface, surface to surface or deep in the waters," Selvamurthy said.

W. Selvamurthy, a scientist and chief controller at the organization, reaffirmed the government's intention to test the Agni 5 missile by early next year. The three-stage missile would have a flight range of about 3,000 miles and could carry a conventional or nuclear payload weighing 1.5 metric tons, he said.

The extended range of the weapon makes it essentially an ICBM, according to Selvamurthy.

The Indian army's planned deployment of the Agni 3 missile is still pending, the scientist said. That missile is designed to fly nearly 2,200 miles and could carry nuclear payloads.

Selvamurthy commented on India's possible induction of antisatellite technology. "DRDO has not taken up an antisatellite space program. But if required, it is well prepared to develop and design such a mechanism," he said.

Meanwhile, the science organization has also made significant moves to protect Indian military personnel from biological, chemical or nuclear agents, Selvamurthy said.

“The DRDO has invented a ‘portable gas chromatograph’ which can detect chemical warfare agents. This has been converted into a three chemical paper which will be placed on the uniform and any change in color will enable the soldiers to detect chemical contamination,” he said.

The organization has also developed a system for diagnosing diseases such as anthrax, plague and H1N1 influenza, along with remotely operated vehicles that could be used to identify chemical and radiation contamination, Selvamurthy said

ISRO to launch Cartosat-2B on May 9

2010-04-16T05:48:00.000-07:00

Undeterred by the GSLV-D3 mission failure, India is going ahead with the launch of an advanced remote-sensing satellite Cartosat-2B, now tentatively fixed for May 9 from Sriharikota spaceport.

The high-resolution spacecraft, designed for an operational life of five years, is slated to be launched from the first launchpad on May 9 around 10 am, ISRO spokesperson S Satish told PTI in Bangalore on Friday.

Yesterday's GSLV-D3 mission to flight-test the indigenous cryogenic engine and stage for the first time ended in failure after the rocket veered off course and plunged into the sea.

GSLV and PSLV missions are independent of each other. ISRO officials said there is no change in its earlier announced plans to launch PSLV in the first half of May -- now fixed for May nine.

"It (Cartosat-2B) will give pictures of 0.8 metre resolution," ISRO Chairman K Radhakrishnan has told PTI. In simple terms, the single panchromatic camera on board this cartographic satellite would be able to identify and take pictures of a moving car.

Thus, this highly-agile satellite, weighing around 690 kg, is expected to give a boost to the tasks of infrastructure and urban planning. The camera provides scene specific spot imageries for cartographic and a host of other civilian applications.

India to send two astronauts by its own rocket by 2017

2010-04-13T21:07:00.000-07:00

India will send two astronauts to space by 2017 in its own spacecraft and the Rs12,400 project is likely to be approved before the Independence Day, ISRO chairman Dr K Radhakrishnan has said.

With this achievement, India would join the select club of America, Russia and China which have such human space flight capabilities.

The ISRO has submitted the Rs12,400 crore project for indigenous astronaut launch programme which involves launching of Indian astronauts, using an Indian rocket from Indian soil.

The proposal is pending for the last two years but Radhakrishnan hopes the approval may come before the Independence day.

"We expect that the government will give us approval in a couple of months," the ISRO chief told.

"As of now what we have is a pre-project study. The astronaut programme will be implemented in phases," he said.

Asked if an announcement would be made in the prime minister's Independence day speech, the ISRO chief said, "The approval and announcement could happen even before that".

The first phase is to test the unmanned crew module - a service module in space four years from now.

After that the Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle (GSLV) will be used to launch the Indian astronauts, he said.

The Rs12,400 crore will be needed over seven years for setting up of several ground facilities like launch pads, the mission control centre, astronaut training centre and all permanent assets on the ground.

"What goes into the orbit will be (costing) about Rs3000 to 4000 crores," he said.

He outlined the benefits to be rendered by such project.

"When this programme is proved in the human space flight with the long term vision that we have, 30-40 years from now, probably you could have a new source of energy. You will have several technologies which will be giving benefit to the other sectors in the economy," Radhakrishnan said.

India to re-test ballistic missile defence shield

2010-04-12T01:49:00.000-07:00

India will conduct afresh the trial of its tactical ballistic missile in June to build a credible defence shield for intercepting and destroying incoming missiles, a top defence scientist said today.

"We will conduct a flight test of the anti-missile system again in June to build the ballistic missile defence shield against incoming medium- or long-range missiles," Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) director-general VK Saraswat said here.

Admitting that the earlier test conducted on March 15 at the integrated test facility on Wheeler Island off Orissa failed when one of the two rockets involved in the trial deviated off the course, Saraswat said investigation into the incident revealed that the system did not work and the target was missed due to fuel leakage.

"Analysis of the earlier trial revealed that there was a leakage in the target missile leading to system failure. We are rectifying it to ensure the next flight test in June will hit the target and demonstrate our advance capability in developing the missile defence shield against any adversary missile attack," Saraswat said on the sidelines of an event.

The fresh trial will also be conducted in the endo-atmospheric (within the earth's atmosphere) region, at an altitude of 100km, and subsequently in the exo-atmospheric (out of the atmosphere) region.

India plans to deploy the first phase of the defence shield by 2012 after completing a series of trials and evaluating their target range.

"As in the previous trial, a target missile will be launched as an incoming missile and intercepted with another missile," Saraswat, who is also the scientific adviser to the defence minister, said after delivering a keynote address at a convention organised by the Aeronautical Society of India.

The sophisticated ballistic missile defence system is built to thwart any incoming missile from entering the air space of the country.

The state-run DRDO has developed the Advanced Air Defence (AAD) system for endo-atmospheric interception and the Prithvi Air Defence (PAD) missile for exo-atmospheric interception.

Success of cryogenic rocket launch will make India a leader in rocketry

2010-04-11T05:50:00.000-07:00

The indigenously developed cryogenic rocket, scheduled to be launched on Thursday, involves the highest level of technology and its success will make India one of the world leaders in rocketry, according to a top space scientist.

"It's actually going to be a major milestone, and it's one of the path-breaking development that we have done," former chairman of Indian Space Research Organisation G Madhavan Nair who has been involved in the project said.

"Without anybody's assistance, India has really developed the cryogenic technology. We have set our goals and worked for it and we have achieved it. (It's) Not to show about our strength and things like that," he said.

The former secretary in the department of space and ex-chairman of the Space Commission said with the select band of countries which had mastered the technology not ready to share technology with India, New Delhi had no option but to go in for indigenous development in the mid-1990s.

In the first half of 1990s, when India sought to acquire cryogenic technology from Russia, the US successfully exerted pressure on Moscow not to part with it.

India subsequently used five of the seven "ready-made" cryogenic stages supplied by Russia in the homegrown GSLV flights.

After one-and-half decades of research and development, India is now set to flight-test the home-made cryogenic stage and engine in the GSLV-D3 flight scheduled to be launched from the Sriharikota spaceport on April 15.

In his tenure as the director of ISRO's Liquid Propulsion Systems Centre from 1995-99, India's efforts towards indigenous development of cryogenic technology took concrete shape and vital infrastructures were built and critical technologies were developed.

Nair, who has accomplished 25 successful missions during his six year tenure as Chairman of ISRO before retirement last year, also echoed the nervousness of ISRO scientists ahead of the ambitious mission.

"....but at the same time, one has to be really concerned about the first flight. Anxiety is there", he said but added that whatever needs to be done has been done, including qualification tests and various reviews by experts. "We hope that the flight will be alright".

Nair said development of cryogenic technology was a challenging job. "Our engineers and scientists have toiled and they have really mastered the technology".

"This is the highest levels of technology in rocket," Nair said. "So, that way we are mastering that. I think we are becoming one of the world leaders in rocketry," he said.

Sub-sonic 1,000-km range cruise missile "Nirbhay" being developed

2010-04-11T05:19:00.000-07:00

India is developing a sub-sonic 1,000-km range cruise missile "Nirbhay" which can be used for a "variety of applications", a top military scientist said today.

The 1000-kg "missile is getting into some shape", Dr V K Saraswat, Scientific Advisor to Defence Minister and Chief of Defence Research and Development Organisation said.

He also said the flight-trial of air-to-air missile 'Astra', having a range of 45 to 100 km, is on the cards.

Saraswat was delivering the keynote address at a national convention on 'The Frontiers of Aeronautical Technologies', organised by the Aeronautical Society of India here.

He said India's armed forces are looking for long duration loitering missiles which can enter "enemy territory", search targets such as radars, concentration of assets and "a variety of movements of enemy", "home-on" the targets and "bang" them.

"We need to develop (loitering missiles)", he said.

ISRO GSAT-4 : The Satellite details

2010-04-11T00:46:00.000-07:00

GSAT-4 is the nineteenth geostationary satellite of India built by ISRO and fourth in the GSAT series. Its three GSAT predecessors were launched by GSLV during 2001, 2003 and 2004 respectively. After its commissioning, GSAT-4 will join the group of India’s eleven operational geostationary satellites.
Some of the new Technologies being tested in GSAT-4 include:
• Electric Propulsion System
• Bus Management Unit
• 1553 Bus for Data Communication
• Miniaturised Dynamically Tuned Gyros
• 36 AH Lithium Ion Battery
• 70 V Bus for Ka band TWTAs
Besides, the Technology Experiments carried onboard GSAT-4 are:
On-board Structural Dynamics Experiment to monitor on-orbit structural dynamic behavior of the satellite during various phases of the mission corresponding to various flight/mission and satellite configurations
Velocity Measurement Package to measure the incremental velocity imparted to GSAT-4 during LAM firings and station keeping manoeuvres Thermal Control Coating Experiment to study the degradation characteristics of thermal control materials in space environment with time
The cuboid shaped GSAT-4 has a lift-off weight of 2220 kg of which propellants weigh 1155 kg and the dry mass of the satellite is 1063 kg. GSAT-4 structure is based on ISRO’s standard I-2000 bus. The two solar arrays (each with two panels) of GSAT-4 together generate about 2800 W of power.
GSAT-4 is the first geostationary satellite of ISRO to employ integrated Bus Management Unit (BMU) which combines the functions of Telemetry, Telecommand, Sensor Electronics and Control Electronics. BMU acts as the brain of GSAT-4.
Like its INSAT and GSAT predecessors, GSAT-4 has a conventional chemical propulsion system for orbit raising and station keeping manoeuvres. Besides, GSAT-4 is the first ISRO satellite having Electric Propulsion Sytem (EPS) to perform North South Station Keeping. The satellite will demonstrate the capabilities and advantages (very high Isp, meaning efficiency) of EPS employing state-of-the-art stationary plasma thrusters.
GSAT-4 at a glance:
Structure : I-2000
Overall Size (m) : 2.4 X 1.6 X 1.5
Liftoff mass (kg) : 2220
Generated Power (W) : 2760
Payload Power (W) : 1785
Propulsion (Chemical) : MMH as fuel and MON-3 as Oxidiser
Propulsion (Electric) : Xenon based stationary plasma thrusters (four)
Mission Life : > 7 years
Orbital Location : 82 deg E longitude in GSO
GSAT-4 Payloads:
GSAT-4 carries communication as well as navigation payloads. They are:
• Ka – band bent pipe and regenerative transponder
• GAGAN payload operating in C, L1 and L5 bands
Of these, Ka-band Transponder operates on 30 GHz uplink and 20 GHz downlink. This payload provides 8 spot beams covering entire India. Spot
beams allow frequency reuse through geographical separation. The payload also comprises beacon transmitters in 30 GHz and 20 GHz to facilitate propagation studies. Ka band payload also has the facility of RF tracking and antenna pointing.
New technologies incorporated in Ka-Band Payload include Multiple Spot Beams (eight) with Frequency Reuse, Double Frequency Conversion, Very High Stability Local Oscillator and Onboard Base band Processing and Switching.
The advantages of using a regenerative transponder are many. It allows the use of smaller ground terminals at the user end by incorporating efficient processing on-board the satellite. Regenerative transponder also increases system flexibility by facilitating network interconnection on-board satellite without the use of a hub, which in turn results in increased capacity, reduced errors and greater throughput.
Each of the 8 beams will have 8 narrow band channels of 64 Kbps and one wide band channel of 2048 Kbps. Interconnectivity between the narrow band channels within the same beam or with any of the other beams is possible.
Similarly, interconnectivity is possible with wide band channels between any of the beams or all beams can be used together in broadcast mode. Another objective of this payload is to develop advanced Digital Signal Processor based subsystems, implement various interface protocols and verify interconnectivity of terminals between multiple beams.
The intended applications for Ka band include Wide band Multimedia Services, Mobile Information System, SPACE LAN, e-Commerce and High Bandwidth Internet.

The second payload carried by GSAT-4 is GAGAN, which is a navigational payload operating in C, L1 and L5 bands. Essentially, the GAGAN payload of GSAT-4 forms the space segment of GAGAN Satellite Based Augmentation System (SBAS) developed by India. GAGAN stands for GPS Aided Geo Augmented Navigation. Through SBAS, the positional information from the GPS satellites is improved by a network of ground based receivers and the same is made available to any user through geostationary satellites.
GAGAN is a Wide Area Differential Global Positioning System (WADGPS) employing a geostationary satellite overlay system. It was conceived to provide a position accuracy of better than 7.6 metre needed for the precision landing of civilian aircraft. The GAGAN system consists of the Space Segment, the Ground Segment and the User Segment. The GPS
and Geostationary overlay system form the Space Segment while the Ground Segment comprises Indian Reference Stations (INRES), Indian Master Control Centre (INMCC) and Indian Land Uplink Stations (INLUS). The User Segment consists of SBAS receivers capable of receiving GPS signals and corrections from the Geostationary satellite.
In the GAGAN architecture, Data from INRES is transmitted to INMCC. This data is processed by INMCC and sent to INLUS. INLUS transmits the corrected GPS information and time synchronisation signal to a geostationary satellite. The satellite then transmits a GPS like signal on L-band frequency. Accuracy of the order of 3 meter horizontal and 4 meter vertical is feasible in such a system.
Thus, GAGAN navigation payload of GSAT-4 receives the correction signals sent by Indian Land Uplink Stations in C-band and translates these into GPS L1 and L5 band signals and transmits these navigation signals. These signals can be received by GPS SBAS receivers, thus enabling them to get a highly accurate and reliable navigational fix.
The Technology Demonstration Phase(TDS) of GAGAN was successfully completed in August 2007. As part of the TDS, eight Indian Reference Stations (INRES) were installed at eight Indian airports. They are linked to the Indian Master Control Centre (INMCC) located at Kundanhalli near Bangalore. In June 2009, the final operational phase (FOP) of GAGAN was initiated.

Geostationary Satellites of India : Ushering in a Revolution
GSAT-4 is the nineteenth Indian geostationary satellite built by ISRO. In the past two and a half decades, India’s geostationary satellites have revolutionised the country’s telecommunications, TV broadcasting and Weather Monitoring sectors. More recently, ISRO’s INSAT and GSAT series of satellites circling the Earth in the 36,000 km high geostationary orbit have brought in a revolution in India’s healthcare and educational sectors. Besides, they have been instrumental in taking the benefits of space technology directly to the doorsteps of rural India through Village Resource Centres (VRCs). Today, geostationary satellites are an integral part of India’s national infrastructure. The country has about 200 communication transponders in geostationary orbit that operate in S, C, Extended C and Ku bands.

INSAT system has become a major catalyst for the expansion of television coverage in India. Satellite television (DTH) now covers 100% area and 100% population. The terrestrial coverage is over 65 percent of the Indian landmass and over 90 percent of the population. Around
30 million of TV Receive Only (TVRO) terminals were distributed and operational all over India by various DTH service providers.
Similarly, a total of about 650 Earth stations and nearly 120,000 VSAT terminals are operating in INSAT telecommunications network providing 9600 two-way speech circuits. Besides, Mobile Communication Services are also offered by the INSAT system.

Two of India’s geostationary satellites – INSAT-3A and KALPANA-1 – are also providing meteorlogical services by sending weather imagery and relaying meteorological data collected by automatic Data Collection Platforms established in various parts of the country. At the same time, the Search and Rescue Transponder onboard INSAT-3A has picked up many distress signals and thus has enabled the saving of many lives through timely search and rescue operations.

India has a dedicated geostationary communication satellite called EDUSAT for educational field. Currently, about 52,000 classrooms from primary to university level as well as those in the non formal educational sector are in the EDUSAT network facilitating the extension of quality education to students in semi urban and rural areas.
Additionally, India’s geostationary satellites have facilitated the extension of quality healthcare services to rural India. Presently, 306 remote/rural/district/medical college hospitals and 16 Mobile Telemedicine units are connected to 60 specialty hospitals in the ISRO telemedicine network.
This apart, as per the relatively recent Village Resource Centre (VRC) initiative, India’s geostationary satellites have been instrumental in taking the benefits of space technology directly to the Indian villages by providing the much needed connectivity.

In this context, coupled with the growing demand for geostationary communication transponders, the launch of GSAT-4, which is a technology demonstrator for advanced satellite communications, acquires added significance.

Launch of first satellite for Indian Regional Navigation Satellite system next year

2010-04-11T00:43:00.000-07:00

The project is the Indian counterpart of the Global Positioning system

The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) intends to launch the first in a constellation of seven satellites envisaged for the ambitious Indian Regional Navigation Satellite System (IRNSS) project, GPS' Indian counterpart, by the end of next year.

“The subsystems [of the satellite] are under various stages of fabrication at ISRO's centres. At least four such satellites [each with a life in excess of seven years] are required to make it operational. After launching the first satellite using a PSLV in the last quarter of 2011, periodic launches would take place every six months. Which means by 2014, we would have the IRNSS optimally functional,” said ISRO sources here.

Range of applications

IRNSS, which will have a range of applications including personal navigation, will be India's answer to the U.S.-operated GPS, Russia's Glonass, European Space Agency's under-development Galileo, and China's emerging constellation, Compass.

“The problem with the existing constellations is that they are controlled by defence agencies in those countries. While Galileo is a pay-to-use system, Compass is military-controlled. On completion, IRNSS will have all-weather, round-the-clock coverage over the Indian landmass with an extended coverage of about 1,500 km around it,” said the sources.

Meanwhile, the GPS-Aided Geo Augmented Navigation (GAGAN) payload in GSAT-4 which would be placed into the geosynchronous transfer orbit — before the satellite self-adjusts into its geostationary orbital home at 82 degree east longitude — by the eagerly-awaited April 15 flight of GSLV-D3 with indigenous cryogenic upper stage will provide a position accuracy of better than 7.6 metres required for precision landing of civilian aircraft.

The navigational payload, operating in C, L1 and L5 bands, will form the space segment of GAGAN Satellite-Based Augmentation System (SBAS). “We are planning the launch of GSAT-8, with another GAGAN payload, by this year-end. A third satellite, GSLV 8 or 9, with GAGAN payload would also be launched in succession,” the sources said.

Independent function

GAGAN and IRNSS, once it comes into being, will function independent of each other. The ground segment of GAGAN comprises Indian Reference Stations (INRES) Indian Master Control Centre (INMCC) at Kundanhalli, near Bangalore, and Indian Land Uplink Stations (INLUS). ISRO has already set up eight such reference stations at eight Indian airports in collaboration with Airports Authority of India during the technology demonstration phase of GAGAN and 14 more are in the pipeline.

GAGAN's user segment consists of SBAS receivers capable of receiving GPS signals and corrections from geostationary satellite.

“Data from INRES is transmitted to INMCC. This data is processed by INMCC and sent to INLUS. INLUS transmits the corrected GPS information and time synchronisation signal to a geostationary satellite. It then transmits a GPS-like signal with an accuracy of the order of 3 metre horizontal and 4 metre vertical [which can be accessed by GPS SBAS receivers],” explained an ISRO media hand-out.

Indigenous Keveri to be tested on a Russian aircraft

2010-04-10T00:16:00.000-07:00

Nearly two decades after defence scientists began work on an indigenous fighter engine Kaveri , officials said Kaveri will be tested on a Russian aircraft in the next two months.

Scientists of Gas Turbine and Research Establishment or GTRE, the DRDO unit have integrated the engine, developed in Bengalurum on an Illyushin 78 transport aircraft in Russia.

"In the next one and half months, it will fly," said T Mohana Rao, director of GTRE.

"In ground trials, the engine has performed more than expectations.All issues have been addressed, including the after burner," Rao said.

Kaveri was first conceived as an engine for Tejas, the light combat aircraft developed by Aeronautical Development Agency based in Bengaluru.

Tejas is now being powered by General Electric-404 engines due to delays in development of Kaveri.

India has floated a tender to decide on either an upgraded GE engine on Eurofighter engine for Tejas.

Kaveri be used for future versions of the fighter aircraft.

"Gas turbine engine technology is most complex. that is he reason for the delays" Rao said.

Parallely, GTRE is going with Snecma of France to build more powerful

engines for Tejas.

Now Snecma will bring in the core, called “Eco”for the new engine and integrate with systems developed for Kaveri.

The Kaveri programme has cost the exchequer nerarly Rs 2800 crore.

Aeronautics Research & Development Board (AR&DB) of DRDO has taken a new initiative called “coherent directed research” in the area of gas turbines.

In this top down approach, DRDO, taking into account futuristic national programmes would support, encourage, nurture,monitor and exploit the design, research, development and manufacturing capability of academic institution& R&D establishments, industries and other think tanks to carry out frontline work in

bringing out nextgen gas turbine engine system.

This program called “GATET” envisages about Rs 100 Cr investment in 3 years and participation of 100 R&D centres and as many as 1000 scientists, engineers and technicians.

"In five to six years, we will have a huge talent pool and technologies for Gas turbine through this programme," said Rao