[PraNeel]

The naval variant of Tejas flies for the first time with a tailhook used for landing on carrier ships on 23 July. Video Link
The project has been revived by the current defense minister.

[mpksuhas]

Video of yet to be handed over IAF Chinook & IAF (or is it army aviation?) Apaches -

https://youtu.be/1Nz_9wwMwUM

[stewie]

LiveFist found this stunning photo of IAF's "Mammoth" formation taken some time around 1987-88.

The Gnat lives up to it's name!

Article here: https://www.livefistdefence.com/2018...showed-up.html

[peterjim13]

Originally Posted by mpksuhas

Video of yet to be handed over IAF Chinook & IAF (or is it army aviation?) Apaches -

Wow ! What a proud moment. These machines have been thrilling us especially on Hollywood war movies and documentaries. Now that they have "Indian Air Force" written on them !

So is this the Tipnis Grey color ? Standard for our Airforce Fleet

[SmartCat]

Originally Posted by peterjim13

Wow ! What a proud moment.

One more 'proud moment' - deliveries of made in India Apache fuselages have started



Tata Advanced Systems facility in Hyderabad is likely to be the sole supplier of Apache fuselages for all global customers.
https://www.livefistdefence.com/2018...-schedule.html

[AlphaKilo]

Originally Posted by stewie

LiveFist found this stunning photo of IAF's "Mammoth" formation taken some time around 1987-88.
Attachment 1784965
The Gnat lives up to it's name!

Article here: https://www.livefistdefence.com/2018...showed-up.html

Ahh I miss the Foxbat so much! Still can send chill down the spine of an enemy who knows it can do a Mach 3 and that even some of today's frontline fighters cannot keep up with it.

[Foxbat]

Originally Posted by AlphaKilo

Ahh I miss the Foxbat so much! Still can send chill down the spine of an enemy who knows it can do a Mach 3 and that even some of today's frontline fighters cannot keep up with it.

I agree

According to western sources:

"A MiG-25PD recorded the only Iraqi air-to-air kill during the war. It shot down an F/A-18 on the first night of the war,[ in 1991] then went on to fire missiles at A-6 and A-7 attack aircraft, while avoiding escorting F-14 fighters. In another incident, an Iraqi Foxbat-E eluded eight American F-15's, firing three missiles at EF-111 electronic warfare aircraft and forcing them to abort their mission. In yet another incident, two MiG-25's approached a pair of F-15 Eagles, fired missiles (which were evaded by the F-15's), and then outran the American fighters. Two more F-15's joined the pursuit, and a total of ten air-to-air missiles were fired at the Foxbats, none could reach them."

It probably performed much better than stated as the Western media is known to downplay opponent's successes and exaggerate their own. Only many years after the Gulf war was this kill acknowledged, they earlier attributed all Iraqi Air Force kill claims as caused by Surface to Air missiles, same done is by the Israelis with the Arab Air Forces.

[AlphaKilo]

Originally Posted by Foxbat

I agree

According to western sources:

...

It probably performed much better than stated as the Western media is known to downplay opponent's successes and exaggerate their own. Only many years after the Gulf war was this kill acknowledged, they earlier attributed all Iraqi Air Force kill claims as caused by Surface to Air missiles, same done is by the Israelis with the Arab Air Forces.

Was expecting your post!!

And also don't forget the famous Indian Foxbat teasing our neighbour on its way back, letting them know of its presence on purpose with the sonic boom, with the challenge, catch me if you can!

I always used to remain awestruck at the those huge airintakes and the cockpit config. There used to be one of it under the R&AW/NTRO use (there was a pic of it in the internet), man those canopy covers with a small opening used to look menacing. I was really saddened to see it on its retirement flight. No matter what one might say about the quality, the Russian jets are the most beautifully made fighting machines especially the from the MiG office(first gen MiG 29's, MiG21 Bisons, Foxbat to name a few) imho. They are simple and get the job done.

[ads11]

Originally Posted by peterjim13

So is this the Tipnis Grey color ? Standard for our Airforce Fleet

Yes indeed that is the IAF Tipnis Grey. Apparently Boeing had strongly recommended that the IAF stick with the US Army standard brown or desert grey but the IAF chose to stick with their preferred colour scheme. I can see why they might wish to do so in terms of keeping a uniform look across their fleet and also to make sure maintenance wise they only need to stock Tipnis grey paint. I do have to say though, considering that one group of Apache's will be dispatched to the Western frontier, if indeed the desert scheme that the US Army uses might've been more handy given the similarities in the operational environment. Just a thought.

All that being said the Apache and Chinook are 2 of the best combat proven helicopters in their respective roles out there (bias or no bias) so their introduction to the IAF is a real boon. I think on the Western front they hypothetically have the opportunity to face the massed armoured divisions its was originally designed to be used against.

The Foxbat was pretty cool sure, and that story of the IAF doing a sonic boom on their way out is real gangster but it had problems. I remember reading that the engines needed replacing essentially if they did a full whack Mach 3 run.

I do believe there's a neat story that if timed correctly, an intercept by a Foxbat at full whack, at the right angle could have a small chance at getting at the real speed queen, the SR-71.

I would like to say in response to the previous post, Russian jets might be aesthetically pleasing but they've not been doing well in terms of reliability. Su-30MKI's have roughly 50% availability. As a caveat I will admit that as a whole, as combat air gets more complex availability rates have gone down drastically.

[AlphaKilo]

Originally Posted by ads11

Yes indeed that is the IAF Tipnis Grey. Apparently Boeing had strongly recommended that the IAF stick with the US Army standard brown or desert grey but the IAF chose to stick with their preferred colour scheme...

Interesting info there. Thanks. I am sure the top brass in IAF know this and would redo the paintings to desert scheme once the birds are in our hands or might get the next lot painted in desert scheme.

Originally Posted by ads11

All that being said the Apache and Chinook are 2 of the best combat proven helicopters in their respective roles out there (bias or no bias) so their introduction to the IAF is a real boon. I think on the Western front they hypothetically have the opportunity to face the massed armoured divisions its was originally designed to be used against.

My only worry is the familiarity of this bird in our neighbourhood. I know that we are not anymore a Defence force focussed just on Pakistan but given the operational experience that PAF has with Apache's, it is not a huge secret that the Chinese might have had access to it too and might be quite familiar with it too. Also, the american birds always come with lots of strings attached unlike the Russian and French ones that we are used to.

Originally Posted by ads11

...
I would like to say in response to the previous post, Russian jets might be aesthetically pleasing but they've not been doing well in terms of reliability. Su-30MKI's have roughly 50% availability...

That has been a known issue of these Russian birds. On one hand, they managed to make some of the sturdiest helicopters like the Mil Mi-7/Mi-35 variants which are among the best for rugged use, their fighters don't induce so much confidence. After the collapse of the Soviet union and mismanagement of MiG, lead them to their appaling quality standards. Most of the russian equipment were made to work.

Not blaming the Russians on a whole, the recent news of a SU-30 MKI (brand new made by HAL) crashing on its predelivery test flight also shows how much efforts our HAL has been putting to maintain quality. There have been many such examples of shoddy worksmanship by HAL on these birds flown by well trained, highly motivated young/experienced fighter pilots of IAF.

I am wondering how are they going to maintain the quality with our Tejas. I just hope that they don't end up killing it because of their over-zealousness or shoddy quality control. Already there is news that IAF is not happy at all with the increase in cost for Tejas Mk. 1. A/B (next batch of delivery with some minor upgrades). The cost went up to some ~400 million which makes it costlier than a SU-30 MKI.

[V.Narayan]

Originally Posted by peterjim13

So is this the Tipnis Grey color ? Standard for our Airforce Fleet

Originally Posted by ads11

Yes indeed that is the IAF Tipnis Grey. Apparently Boeing had strongly recommended that the IAF stick with the US Army standard brown or desert grey but the IAF chose to stick with their preferred colour scheme. I can see why they might wish to do so in terms of keeping a uniform look across their fleet and also to make sure maintenance wise they only need to stock Tipnis grey paint.

A medium grey is the best overall single colour to merge in with the widest types of backgrounds from brown soil to mountains to the sky to the sea to tropical forests and yes even the desert. A grey chopper from 1000 metres away can be very easily mistaken for a rock - just as an example. That is one reason warships are painted grey and not blue or green which are the colours of the sky and the sea.

[PraNeel]

Ex Pitch Black 2018: IAF shares stunning video of SU30MKI & C-130 J aircraft's historic flight in RAAF Australia.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DSswBSNw2r8

In a tweet, the Indian Air Force said, “#ExPitchBlack18 : Today, IAF SU-30MKI & C-130 aircraft, undertook the Maiden Operations from RAAF base, Darwin, Australia. The Air-Warriors respond swiftly to challenges. They are resilient, flexible in their approach to work & quickly adapt to new environment. Jai Hind!!!”

An IAF contingent is currently at the Darwin Air Force Base in Australia to participate in the multinational air exercise Ex Pitch Black, one of the biggest exercises of its kinds. Officially inaugurated on Friday, the Indian Air Force has been at the centre of the exercise as it looks to build on regional partnerships, improve interoperability between nations and promote regional stability.

More than 140 aircraft and 4000 personnel from several countries are participating in the Operation Pitch Black in Australia.

The Indian contingent in Australia is being led by Group Captain CUV Rao and includes a Garud Team, four SU-30 MKI, one X C-130 and a X C-17 aircraft.

"After the recently-concluded Exercise Gaganshakti-2018, the IAF's engagement with the Indonesian and the Malayasian Air Forces and participation in the Exercise Pitch Black-18 in Australia, the IAF will once again showcase its capability to be an effective net security provider in the region," the IAF said in a statement earlier.

Operation Pitch Black will be on till August 17. The other countries participating - apart from hosts Australia - are France (New Caledonia), Singapore, Indonesia, US, Thailand, Malaysia, Canada, Germany, Netherlands and New Zealand.

[SmartCat]

Australia sees China as a threat. And since China operates 400 Sukhoi jets belonging to Su-27 family, I'm pretty sure they were glad to see IAF fly in with 4 Su-30MKIs to see how modern Sukhoi jets fare against their F/A-18s.

[PraNeel]

A huge step towards LCA Navy's flight test program came through the first taxi-in engagement with the tail hook. This will pave way for the in-flight engagement as part of carrier compatibility test.

[SmartCat]

Originally Posted by PraNeel

A huge step towards LCA Navy's flight test program came through the first taxi-in engagement with the tail hook. This will pave way for the in-flight engagement as part of carrier compatibility test.

Taxi-in engagement as in? Tejas was moving on tarmac? How did the tail hook snag the cable, without the aircraft wheels touching it first?