[V.Narayan]

Transport, Tanker, Reconnaissance Aircraft of the IAF

In each military arm there are those branches or regiments that attract the attention of the public while other equally important and hard working parts do not get to share the limelight in equal measure. With the IAF the fighter aircraft enjoy the public's eye and most readers on this forum would be familiar with names such as Sukhoi Su-30 MKI, Mirage 2000, MiG-21 and even yesterday's Gnat. The transport aircraft, the tankers and the most complex of them all Airborne Early Warning & Command (AEW&C) aircraft remain in the background.

This picture essay is on these machines that currently serve with the IAF and touches on some of them legends of yesteryears.

This is an essay for light reading with interesting factoids based on public information and not an aeronautical technical treatise. I have consciously kept away from jargon and abbreviations which would take away the joy of reading for the non-aviation reader.

India has a fleet of ~200 transport aircraft. Not a bad number but we don't have the right mix by lift capacity or vintage. This is a problem that plagues the IAF's procurement in most areas. Our lifting capacity peaked in circa 1990 and has very slowly declined thereafter from the mid-1990s with the withdrawal of the Antonov An-12's and the collapse of the Soviet Union.

HEAVY LIFTERS

These are the strategic work horses and long range heavy lifters. What is heavy lift has changed over the years from meaning a lifting capacity of 21 troops or 2 tonnes in 1942 to a lifting capacity of 150 troops or 77 tonnes today. The role of a heavy lifter, especially today is to rapidly move troops, light armour and equipment to the point where it is needed either to address an issue or serve as a deterrent and to do it quickly. The key characteristic is speed of response. So other than a meaningful payload the machine needs range and the ability to land on a short rough forward air strip. This includes the competence to find the air strip in the first place in an environment where radio navigation may not be desirable and do it at night. It also includes the capacity to be independent of ground support to turn the aircraft around and depart.

The IAF's strategic heavy lift capability unfortunately has not changed much between 1991 and today. Then we had ~40 IL-76 Russian aircraft and to day we have a mixed bag of 11 Boeing C-17's and 17 IL-76's. The theoretical lift capacity of the fleet was 1600 tonnes in 1991 and it is 1527 tonnes today.

Ideally our need is for ~45 heavy lifters to allow for adequate rapid lift to forward areas such as Ladakh, Arunachal etc plus cater to attrition, maintenance cycles, reserves. We only have about 60% of that number and over half the fleet is long in the tooth.

Boeing C-17 Globemaster

World's nos 1 military strategic heavy lift aircraft


The world's largest, most reliable, long range military heavy lift aircraft. Period. We would have liked to have 25 to 30 in our fleet but landed with 11 {out first order} because despite Boeing asking us if we want more as they were planning to close down the assembly line our Ministry of Defence took so long to answer that by then Boeing had shut down the line and we lost the opportunity for another generation to augment our depleting heavy lift assets. The Russian An-124 is larger and carries more payload but is basically a civil cargo lifter and does not have the C-17's ability to take off from hot and high air strips, descend steeply into or climb steeply out of restricted airstrips, reverse on the ground etc.


This is a 265 tonne machine that carries a 77 tonne payload. With a 71 tonne payload it goes 5200 kms with reserves and land at the destination in 1050 metres. Lightly loaded the aircraft can take off in 900 metres quite remarkable for a machine this size. The aircraft is powered by 4 Pratt & Whitney 18,360 kgf turbofans with reverse thrusters that allow it to self-reverse at remote air strips - a most useful facility in war. She carries 108 tonnes of fuel in the wings. The C-17 is much bigger than an Airbus A321 and slightly smaller than a A330.


The cargo compartment is 88 feet long by 18 feet wide by 12 feet 4 inches high. The cargo floor has rollers with holds for palletized cargo. The floor can be flipped to provide a flat floor suitable for tracked & wheeled vehicles. Cargo is loaded through a large aft ramp that accommodates rolling stock, such as a main battle tank or a tracked 155mm artillery gun or a Pinaka rocket launcher 8x8 or palletized cargo. Typical payloads could be 134 to 175 troops or 1 main battle tank plus cargo or 3 infantry combat vehicles plus cargo, or 3 Apache AH-64 attack helicopters and such like.


Photo depicting the large externally blown flaps* running over 2/3rds of the large 3800 sq feet wing. Plus, it has full span leading edge slats** all of this combine to give the C-17 its high sink rate and short take-off and landing ability. Unusually the aircraft can activate the reverse thrusters in flight to slow it down rapidly and help it make a steep descent much needed when landing in the Himalayas.

Length 53m; Span 52m; MTOW 265t; Payload 77t; Cargo hold volume 535 m3; Take off run 2600m; Cruise 830 kmph Sweep 25 degrees; Fuel 108t; Range 4400 kms

MTOW - maximum takeoff weight; m - metres; t - tonnes; m3 - cubic metres
* these increase the wings lifting ability especially at slow speeds by 2X and more. **these reduce take-off and landing speeds, enable the wing to fly at higher angles of attack and improve control low and slow.

Ilyushin IL-76MD

IAF's first heavy lifter


Before the C-17, above, the Ilyushin IL-76 was the multi-purpose military heavy lifter of choice with 20 Air Forces around the world and over {hold your breath} 120 air cargo operators over the past 45 years. Its ruggedness and reliability married to a fully adequate payload, range and ability to operate from rough airstrips makes it the preferred choice of aircraft even today. During the Afghan occupation by USSR, {1980-89} the IL-76 flew almost 90% of the Russian Army & its equipment into that country and several aircraft got shot at by cannon fire, machine gun fire and shoulder launched heat seeking missiles. In this trial by fire the IL-76's ruggedness shone through. So much so that when the Americans and NATO launched their invasion of Afghanistan some NATO countries including Canada insisted on using only IL-76s to ferry their troops of occupation! It is one of the few military freighters to be equipped, in the wheel well fairings, with flare dispensers. and till recently the IAF fleet carried a twin 23mm cannon mounting in the rear beneath the tail. In Afghanistan the Soviets used the 23mm's to spary the ground behind the aircraft while taking off to deter wanna be Stinger missile shooters.

The IAF acquired 40 in the 1980s. About 17 are in service today sadly long in the tooth.


The IL-76 follows the now standard configuration for military freighters - shoulder mounted wings, T-tail and 4 engines. Those 51 metre wings are equipped with triple slotted flaps over 3/4ths of the wing, full span leading edge slats, spoilers and air brakes and four engines blasting exhaust into the flaps at take-off and landing. These features married to that massive 36-wheel undercarriage gives it great rough field capability needed in forward areas. It is powered by 4 Soloviev D-30KP turbofans developing 12,000 kgf of thrust each that give it a cruise speed of 750 kmph at 39,000 feet and a range of 4700 kms with a 40-tonne payload.


The IL-76's piece de resistance is its 80 foot long, 11 feet wide and 11 feet high cargo hold that can carry up to 47 tonnes. The aircraft is equipped with winches within the hold to pull in or haul out cargo on its own without need for ground equipment a very useful feature on a forward airstrip. Typical payload can be 126 troops or one main battle tank or 3 infantry combat vehicles or 5 155mm artillery field guns.

Length 47m; Span 51m; MTOW 190t; Payload 47t; Cargo hold volume 235 m3; Take off run 1700m; Cruise 750 kmph; Sweep 25 degrees Fuel 84t; Range 4700 kms

MEDIUM LIFTERS

Lockheed C-130J Hercules

The world's most prolific military transporter; in production for 70 years


The latest modernized variant of the military aircraft with the longest running production in history. When our Antonov An-12's retired in the 1990s we had a gaping hole in our military air transport capabilities in the 20-tonne class which normally should have formed the backbone of the fleet. That's where the Lockheed C-130J-30 fits in. The Americans have a comprehensive manner of nomenclature for their military aircraft. The 'C' means cargo aircraft; the 130 is the running serial number Americans allot to a design, so this was the 130th support aircraft design; J stands for Mark starting with A and going forward alphabetically; the '-30' stands for extended fuselage. We acquired 12. I wish we had acquired 36 which would have tallied better with our needs. But at $200million a machine these are not cheap.


The C-130 was the very first military transport aircraft to incorporate all the features needed to make an ideal military lifter - a folding rear ramp; a high single tail; landing gear fitted into fairings under the fuselage such that the cargo floor is at truck bed height; cockpit transparencies that allow the pilots to look straight down, winches & rollers in the bay and a large shoulder mounted high lift wing to allow for a STOL capability and engines mounted high to reduce ingestion of mud and dust at rough forward airfields. These aircraft also have a classified special operations capability.

Length 34m; Wingspan 40m; MTOW 70t; Powerplant 4 x 5637 ehp turboprops; Cruise speed 644 kmph; Range ~5200 kms with normal payload of 16t; Cabin length 19m; Payload 16t normal, 20t full load; Take off run 930m

ehp = effective horsepower i.e. hp going down the shaft plus the energy in the jet exhaust of a turboprop.

Video on the C-130 in IAF service
https://www.google.com/search?q=c-13...id:D1aUbGmHy1w

Antonov An-32

IAF's 'hot and high' work horse


The work horse of the IAF transport fleet. Over 100 in service. They are now 30 to 40 years old and urgently in need of replacement. The aircraft equivalent of a go anywhere 4WD vehicle. Designed by the Soviets to an IAF specification for a medium lifter with excellent hot and high capability as well as reasonable STOL performance and the ability to operate from rough forward airstrips. The Antonov bureau took the Antonov An-26 airframe, fitted it with the largest engines they could fit and that raw power gives the An-32 its real world military performance and butch looks. As has often happened with IAF procurement, back in c.1980 we turned down the Soviet offer to license build the aircraft and the engines in India as we lacked a cohesive vision of developing an aeronautical ecosystem. Had we gone down that path we could have been flying greatly upgraded indigenous versions today instead of license assembling C-295s described below.


This aircraft can takeoff from 50 degree C temperatures of a desert to the airstrip of Daulat Beg Oldie at an altitude of 16,700 feet.

Length 24m; Wingspan 29m; MTOW 27t; Powerplant 2 x 5112 ehp turboprops; Cruise speed 470 kmph; Range ~1300 kms with a full payload; Cabin length 16m; Payload Volume 66m3; Payload 6.7t

Airbus C-295

Our tactical lifter to be


With both the An-32 {above} and the Avro HS748 {below} getting very long in the tooth the IAF finally selected the Airbus C-295 as its new tactical lifter with an order for 56 and a plan for a further 15 for the Navy and the Coastguard. Fortunately, 4 decades late, we are displaying strategic vision by having Tata set up a new plant to build these aircraft and hopefully that plant will become a private sector alternative to HAL's monopoly and give the IAF an alternative supplier for this and other aircraft in the future. The C-295's capability, as with all great aircraft, is in its wing design and engines that can develop full power at, IIRC 37 degrees C.

Length 25m; Wingspan 25m; MTOW 21t, with 23t overload; Powerplant 2 x 2644 ehp turboprops with emergency power of 2919 ehp; Cruise speed 482 kmph; Range ~1500kms with a full payload; Payload 7t or 73 troops; Takeoff run 950m

UTILITY TRANSPORTS

Avro HS.748

The odd ball in our inventory


The aircraft that isn't a military lifter, can't carry much, can barely fit a jeep let alone a field gun, does not possess a rear loading ramp, has limited cargo volume and that struggles with hot and high take-offs. This machine which BTW I love, has no place in our inventory except that a ruthless and overbearing defense minister of yesteryears took a fancy to it and ordered it from Avro in 1960 without the IAF being aware or consulted or ever having test flown the machine. Such was the way the MoD was run in the late 1950s and early 1960s till the 1962 Indo China war put paid to this sort of conduct. We assembled about 89 of these at HAL of which 72 were destined for the IAF. 57 of those now all over 35 years of age are still in service. Mind you it is a decent passenger commuter airliner just that it isn't a military freighter. Think of taking a Maruti Ecco and say now you will be used as a construction site dumper. Sadly, the IAF soldiers on with a wholly inadequate and inappropriate asset.

Length 20m; Span 32m; MTOW 19t; Payload 5t; Take off run 4100 feet; Cruise 450 kmph; Fuel 5t; Range 1200 kms at full payload

Dornier Do 228

Utility maid of all work


One of the best acquisition decisions we took. An outstanding machine with a strong power to weight ratio, low drag, a super critical* wing and fowler flaps**. The latter two generate large lift at slow speeds giving it a STOL capability and ability to patrol low and slow like needed by the Navy and the Coast Guard. It is the flying Maruti Gypsy of the Indian Armed forces. Used by the IAF as a utility light transporter where a larger more expensive machine is not needed. Its competent hot and high capability married to its STOL abilities make it a decent go anywhere machine. And its solid German engineering shows out in its despatch reliability.

Length 17m; Wingspan 17m; MTOW 6.5t; Payload 2.2t; Cruise speed 430 kmph; Stall speed 150 kmph; Range 1100 kms with a full payload; Take off run 1500 feet

*A super critical wing design delays the onset of the wing drag wave. Net net it creates less drag for a given lift.
** Fowler flaps are high-lift devices situated at the trailing edge of the aircraft wings. When deployed, they slide backward and downwards, increasing the wing's surface area and camber, producing a large amount of lift. It’s like having the power to change the shape of the wing. Most airliner we fly in today use some variant of a fowler flap

AIRBORNE EARLY WARNING

Beriev A-50

Long range early warning and air direction control

The mission personnel of the 15-man crew derive data from the large Israeli EL/W-2090 surveillance radar with its antenna in an over-fuselage rotodome, which has a diameter of about 9 metres. Detection range is 650 kilometres (400 mi) for air targets and 300 kilometres (190 mi) for ground targets. The EL/W-2090 uses the active electronically scanned array (AESA)*, an active phased array radar. This radar has a electronically steered beam making a physically rotating rotodome unnecessary. AESA radars operate on a pseudo-random set of frequencies and also have very short scanning rates, which makes them difficult to detect and jam.

*AESA radars scan electronically and not through a physically rotating radome. In short they are more precise, more resistant to jamming and can detect much smaller targets amidst the clutter of the land or sea surface.


The A-50 can simultaneously control several fighter aircraft for either air-to-air intercept or air-to-ground attack missions. The A-50 can fly four hours at 1,000 kilometres (620 mi) from its base at a maximum takeoff weight of 190 metric tons (420,000 lb). The aircraft can be refuelled by Il-78MKI tankers described below to help it stay in the air much longer.

Length 50m; Wingspan 50m; MTOW 190 tonnes; Engines 4 x 16,000kgf turbofans; Top speed 900 kmph; Range 7500 kms; Patrol 4 hours at 1000 kms radius

ERJ-145 Netra AEW & C

The unsung hero of the IAF and of our indigenous R&D capability. The NETRA is an Indian airborne early warning and control system mounted on a Embraer ERJ-145 regional jet platform. The AESA radar has a 240-degree coverage out to ~250 kms and a full suite to control and direct combat aircraft and communicate on one hand and provide electronic support to the attacking combat aircraft on the other. With one refueling the aircraft can stay on patrol at high altitude for 8 to 9 hours. One of these was deployed during the Balakot strike proving its worth. The IAF has 3 in service.

TANKERS

Ilyushin IL-78MKI

Air-to-air refueling tanker


Air to air refueling is needed, as the term suggests, to extend the range or endurance of an aircraft that then enables it to patrol longer or further or conduct a very long range deep strike mission. The mother aircraft i.e. the tanker needs to be able to fly as fast as the slow cruise speed of the fast combat jets or as slow as the top speed of the propellor driven machines it may be called upon to fuel mid-air. The tanker trails a drogue that looks like a giant badminton shuttlecock at the end of a long pipe. The receiving aircraft carries a fixed receiving pipe called a probe. The pilot of the receiving machine carefully glides his aircraft's probe into the mating drogue. With the wake turbulence of the large tanker 50 metres ahead of it the receiving aircraft will encounter a fair degree of buffeting. The exercise requires greater skill than apparent. From the tanker the operation is controlled by a crew member seated in a control cabin in the tail.


The IL-78MKI is a modified late model IL-76 fitted with wing and fuselage tanks and three refueling drogues, one on each wing and one in the centre on the fuselage. Fitted with Chobham pods of the UK which are compatible with both Western, Russian and Indian designed aircraft. It carries up to 74,000 kgs of transferable fuel payload and transfer is done at the rate of 900 to 2200 litres per minute depending on the absorbing capacity of the receiving aircraft. Unlike Western tankers the IL-78MKI are not designed to serve as transports for troops and cargo.

Cruise speed 850 kmph; Fuel transfer payload at 1000 kms radius, 74 tonnes; at a 3000 kms radius, 40 tonnes; MTOW 210 tonnes

ELECTRONIC WARFARE & RECONNAISSANCE

Electronic reconnaissance, signals intelligence and the third leg electronic warfare are the quiet dimension of air warfare. Electronic deception started in World War II with (now) simple acts of dropping aluminium chaff to spook radars or jamming known beams being used as navigation & bombing aids. Today with the miniaturization of hardware and the geometric increase in use of electronics to communicate, search, aim, deceive ELINT, Electronic Intelligence or Signals Intelligence, and its active part EW, Electronic Warfare, are a vital subset of managing the air battle.

Signals intelligence operational platforms are employed by the IAF to collect signals intelligence, which is intelligence-gathering by interception of signals, whether between people or between machines or mixtures of the two. As sensitive information is often encrypted, signals intelligence often involves the use of cryptanalysis. However, traffic analysis—the study of who is signaling whom and in what quantity—can often produce valuable information, even when the messages themselves cannot be decrypted.

The IAF operate about 10 aircraft in this category. All use a business jet as a platform for their range and ability to cruise at above 40,000 feet which keeps them above of the usual commercial air routes. Understandably not much information is available in the public domain of the equipment and capabilities of these aircraft.

Gulfstream III

1125 Astra

Global 5000

VIP

Boeing 777-300ER

India's VIP aircraft


Two of these are used to transport the Prime Minister, President & Vice President mainly. These extended range Boeing 777's are fitted with encrypted satellite communication facilities, an advanced navigation aids, an advanced missile warning system, a missile deflecting shield and electronic countermeasures so as to provide protection from any ground-based or airborne threats and flares and glares for misleading the missile. They are fitted with heavy shielding to protect the wiring and crucial electronics from the electromagnetic pulse associated with a nuclear blast. In a VIP mode it is never likely to carry a full passenger payload - thus we could assume its range in VIP mode is ~16,000+ kms - enough to reach any country's capital from New Delhi other than some on South America's West coast - an asset to enable our leadership to fly non-stop. They used to be called Air India One but I do not know what happened after Air India's privatization. A much needed asset given India's emphasis on its external affairs and our position in the world; temporarily rehashed Air India 747's are not adequate now.

Boeing 737 BBJ

VIP Transport


Three Boeing 737 BBJ's are used for shorter range and for domestic transport of the President, Vice-President and Prime Minister and other senior officials.

HISTORICAL

Fairchild C-119G

Our very first dedicated military cargo aircraft; our only three engine aircraft


Our first major IAF buy from USA in 1953 and then the only one for another 59 years! This was our first large military transport which carried 5X the payload compared to the Dakota's {see below}we had till then. It was America's first modern military transport after WW-II and the twin tail boom design was characteristic of the 1940s as a stable aerodynamic design for an integrated tail fin & ramp was only perfected a few years later. In the 1962 Indo-China war C-119's delivered the light AMX-13 tank to Ladakh surprising the Americans as to what their machine was capable of and by association what the IAF was capable of. In later years we fitted a Rolls Royce Orpheus jet on the upper fuselage to increase power to weight ratio. These thus became one of the rare aircrafts to have piston engines for cruise power and a turbojet for augmenting power at takeoff and climb. 86 of these served us from 1953 to 1984.

Antonov An-12

Outstanding Russian medium lifter that brought us into the modern era


One of the first major imports from the USSR that helped build our strategic bridge with that nation. Our first modern military transport with a rear ramp, four engines, range and a very useful 20-tonne lift capability. 65 of these were procured and were even used as makeshift but effective bombers against Pakistan. Daily operations by An-12's formed a permanent air bridge with Ladakh and Arunachal Pradesh. These machines rendered yeoman service to the nation giving us a world class military lift capability at very affordable rupee payment terms. They were retired in 1990s after 25 to 30 years of service.

Caribou, DHC-4

Short Take-Off and Landing wonder


The yesteryears equivalent of a medium heavy transport helicopter of today. The ultimate STOL military transport aircraft that achieved its STOL ability purely from outstanding wing design and not from brute power to weight ratios. It was in the '50s and '60s what the Mil Mi-17V helicopter is today. It could carry 26 to 30 fully equipped troops or 4 tonnes of cargo about 400 kms cruising gently at 300 kmph. It could take-off from an amazingly short 220 metres and land in even less. The IAF had 26 in service and used these, from 1963 to 1991, mainly in the Northeast where they provided yeoman service. Today the same work is performed by medium & heavy lift helicopters written about here https://www.team-bhp.com/forum/comme...ed-forces.html (Indian Aviation: Helicopters of the Indian Armed Forces)

In December 1971 we achieved total air superiority over East Pakistan and these Caribou's were used as night time bombers over Dhaka cruising slowly for an hour at a time and lob one bomb over the ramp every five minutes to prevent the Pakistani leadership from getting any sleep at night! In the interrogations that followed one Pak general referred to these bombings and how he had been harassed by it and suffered lack of sleep for ten days. Unconventional but effective.

Douglas C-47, Dakota

Dakota forever


The venerable and forever famous Dakota transport - the first modern airliner as we understand the term; the most produced airliner built in history; and the only aircraft to have served in the armed forces of over 100 nations. Its proudest moment in IAF history came in November 1947 when Dakota's airlifted troops into Srinagar airfield when it was already under fire from Pakistani forces and the enemy had already occupied the perimeter of the airfield and was closing in on the sole runway. That airlift in those precious hours of 3rd November 1947 saved Kashmir from being overrun by the Pakistani irregular forces and Kashmir being lost to India forever. The only road from Punjab to Srinagar was via what had now become Pakistan. Airlifting troops 25 at a time was the only shoestring solution. By modern measures this was a modest aircraft but rugged as hell. It carried 25 troops or 2.3 tonnes of cargo at 330 kmph about 1500 kms.

THE FIRST EVER

Armstrong Whitworth Atlanta

IAF's first ever cargo mover



The very first transport aircraft of the IAF was the Armstrong Whitworth Atalanta. Most aviation enthusiasts have never heard of it and most IAF personnel might not know this either. The Atalanta was an inelegant 1930s vintage 4-engine machine that could haul 15 to 20 fully equipped troops at 190 kmph over a practical range of ~800 kms. Advisory: In case of strong headwinds land earlier! A very humble start. Between 4 and 5 served with the IAF in the 1940s in World War-II. By the end of the war, they were all gone. The Atalanta was not one of those pedigree aircraft of the time like the German Junkers Ju52 or the American Douglas C-47 but nevertheless even though only eight were ever built it finds its place in the history annals of the world's 4th largest Air Force.

WORLD FORCE LEVEL's

The chart below shows the relative size of the world's military lift fleet of 7 major & relevant Air Forces. The US Air Force has not been included as they are larger than rest of the world and a comparison is pointless. Here Utility transports and primarily peace time passenger transports have been excluded.




Reference:
Encyclopedia of Modern Military Aircraft by Paul Eden
Brassey's World Aircraft & Systems Directory 1997
Jane's All world's Aircraft 2011

[Aditya]

Thread moved out from the Assembly Line. Thanks for sharing!

[neerajku]

Super write up sir if I may. Would have loved to hear about Canberra and MIG 25. Canberra , a bomber to begin with , modified one was used for reconnaissance later in life. MIG 25 was used till Kargil and now respectfully retired. Bth supposedly very durable and capable aircrafts.

[fhdowntheline]

A great thread about the fixed wing workhorses of our Air Force, often deglamorized, but critical to our needs . A big shout to the C17 and C130 crews who recently undertook the relief material trips to Turkiye and Syria. The lack of focus on strategic and tactical needs of the Air Force is a long, sordid saga that has been covered ad nauseum, and can be pointed to the rather pacifist approach that we took at the beginning of our nationhood.
That our air warriors have overcome the challenges and achieved mission objectives during crises is a glorious story on the other hand. I just hope that the focus on equipment continues to remain a top priority because no matter what philosophical tropes are espoused, a nation is only as good as its hard power and the resultant deterrence. I would like to hear views on the Airbus A400M and A330 MRTT planes which are some of the more recent designs as also the Chinese Y-20 , which is their atmanirbhar design.
I feel that for the size of our nation, we need an overall IAF fleet more than 50 % of what we currently possess, at any given point of time. Perhaps we also need to create a specialized Agniveer program to train pilots for short/medium term flying, beyond which they can look at options like commercial aviation. This may be a win-win for the country.

[skanchan95]

Great writeup and compilation as always Sir. A treat to read.

Originally Posted by V.Narayan

ELECTRONIC WARFARE & RECONNAISSANCE

A lesser known, secretive but important Aircraft operated by the ARC/IAF/RAW were/are ex-Air India Boeing 707s. Two were modified for this role and atleast one of them (K2899) was operational till last year.


K2899 was ex-Air India VT-DXT "Trishul".


The 707s were modified for the role of Signal intelligence and had flown extensively during the Kargil War, and was instrumental in tracking a lot of electronic intelligence.

The aircraft was upgraded with a host of new Israeli equipment in the mid-2000s.

Chances are that the old ex-Indian Airlines B737-200s that was being used by the IAF for VIP duties before the arrival of the B737-700BBJs too was modified for EW role.

[Amukherjea]

Well written history. Had the fortune of flying two of the types extensively and two others not mentioned in the article.
One should add DHC 3 Otter STOL aircraft a mini DHC 4. Two Squadron of which did yeomen service in hills particularly in North East where it operated out of 700 feet strips to keep our army supplied and used as ambulance to take out battle casualties from forward areas.
And then the IL-14. In 1956 first one of which was gifted by Russians to the prime minister then for VIP usage. Later a full Squadron was purchased and for quite some time used in Leh area for daily air maintenance.
They used to work along side the Packets for daily trips to Leh from Srinagar. It could not carry any large payload because of its design. IAF flew these from 1961 to 1975 or so.
Also history would not be complete without mentioning the TU-124 medium range 2 engined Russian transporter. 3 of them came to India I think in 1966. They served the Air Hq Communication Sqn for long flying the President prime minister etc.
Unfortunately it was pretty short range and even Delhi Chennai was critical in terms of fuel.
One was lost in Jorhat at night with Prime Minister Morarjee on board who survived ɓut all flight crew members died.

[Jeroen]

Another excellent (military) aviation thread with tonnes of information. Many thanks.
I had no idea the IAF has (had) this many different c planes.

Jeroen

[superbad]

Very interesting article, as always. Would just like to issue a correction to the below :-

Originally Posted by V.Narayan

The venerable and forever famous Dakota transport - the first modern airliner as we understand the term; the most produced airliner built in history; and the only aircraft to have served in the armed forces of over 100 nations. Its proudest moment in IAF history came in November 1947 when Dakota's airlifted troops into Srinagar airfield when it was already under fire from Pakistani forces and the enemy had already occupied the perimeter of the airfield and was closing in on the sole runway. That airlift in those precious hours of 3rd November 1947 saved Kashmir from being overrun by the Pakistani irregular forces and Kashmir being lost to India forever. The only road from Punjab to Srinagar was via what had now become Pakistan. Airlifting troops 25 at a time was the only shoestring solution. By modern measures this was a modest aircraft but rugged as hell. It carried 25 troops or 2.3 tonnes of cargo at 330 kmph about 1500 kms.

Actually the Srinagar airfield was not overrun by the enemy, they had reached till Baramulla, but they turned back to Pakistan to deposit the loot they had amassed so far. This gave our forces valuable time to land in Srinagar & stage a fightback. Of course, none of this was known to the troops of the 1st Battalion of the Sikh Regiment in the first Dakota to land in Srinagar (the civilian signal transmitter at Srinagar airport was not synced to the frequency used by the Indian Army/Air force). Hence, it circled the airfield a number of times just to be sure & then landed.
Nevertheless, the Dakota aircraft made an invaluable contribution to the 1947-48 war effort & was the sole reason why Srinagar did not get overrun by the enemy.

[gasi511]

Super write-up, brilliant mix-up of history and the current ownership structure of the IAF. The numbers don't lie, procurement of the defence equipments by the armed forces is marred by the bureaucratic lethargy, distrust and pointless competition between our bureaucracy and defence forces not to mention the gargantuan pension and salary bills.

[ads11]

What a pleasant surprise to start the day. Great to see these humble workhorses get some limelight.

Had no idea that the Soviets offered An-32 license production, inclusive of the engines! Such a shame. Like you said, hopefully bringing Tata into the fold for the C-295 order will be a belated but welcome change for the future.

It's not just the IAF that rues not ordering more C-17s, it's basically all the operators who tried to call Boeing's bluff.

I think military airlifters are probably pound-for-pound the most VFM platform in any nation states forces. The reason being is that beyond their utility in war time or towards ostensibly military use, it's their unparalleled ability to be of use in disaster relief. Just look at the recently concluded Operation Dost after the Turkey earthquakes. Those airlifters were able to take Indian NDRF personnel and kit there in relatively short time in a highly visible mission, furthering Indian soft power as a result when it comes to international affairs. For another highly visible demonstration, think back to all the images of C-17s during the fall of Kabul, evacuating people - IAF C-17s acquitted themselves just as well there, earning positive mindshare amongst the public and brownie points for the govt. And even in the domestic context, their ability to bring large amounts of aid and assistance to affected areas is going to be yet more easy brownie points.

Given their size and the optics of the relief missions these aircraft are integral to, you'd think that purchase orders for these would be an easy sell to any politician and their base. It baffles me that they always seem a bit of an afterthought. I'm not sure if this is a consequence of the "fighter mafia" bias in air force leadership globally. I don't imagine very many generals from the transport and logistics arm making it to the top.

I think the importance of military airlifters can be seen from the simple fact that after the J-20 fighter, the PLAAF project that had the most impetus was it's Y-20 transport.

On another note, I absolutely LOVE the factoid about the Fairchild C-119! I had no idea about this aircraft and the fact it was the IAF that retrofitted a jet to it. There's so many gems in terms of creative thinking I feel from the mid 20th century when it comes to military aircraft. Please share more! Such a treat to read.

Rating a deserved 5 stars as always!

[HooghlyBoy]

IIRC, I had read that Dakota's were used for Air Drop of Tangail in East Pakistan in 1971 War, where Gurkha Regiment jawans had parachuted down from them. The BBC didn't have any photo of the Original Air Drop so RAW Chief RN Kao gave them an old File photo which was published by them stating that more than 5000 troops have been air dropped.
This led to very fast surrender from the Pakistan Army as there was a naval blockade in Karachi and Bay of Bengal and complete Air superiority over East Pakistan.

[Air_Kerala]

Fascinating read Narayan Sir. Adding to the thread,the IL-76 is known as “Gajraj” in the IAF and the NATO codename is “Candid”. Peace

[sukhbirST]

Really appreciate the efforts for bringing to life all these aircraft which otherwise have been dusted to history. For ordinary Indian this is excellent knowledge sharing with complete details which is not easy to source. Have first-hand experience of flying with AVRO HS 748 and AN 32. Qualified as Air Navigation Instructor on AVRO HS 748 in 1996. Also saw single engine fire during one of the training sorties on AVRO. Can’t forget those busy learning days.

[V.Narayan]

Thank you, all, for reading the article, for your kind words and for posting your comments. :-).

Originally Posted by fhdowntheline

I would like to hear views on the Airbus A400M and A330 MRTT planes which are some of the more recent designs as also the Chinese Y-20 , which is their atmanirbhar design.

Dear@fhdowntheline, I'll write my views on the weekend on all three aircraft. What the Chinese have achieved with the Y-20 is a testimony to their comprehensive approach to developing their aeronautical industry in a holistic way in contrast to our 'fiefdom' approach since the 1970s. Cautionary note - My views may upset some readers.

Originally Posted by skanchan95

A lesser known, secretive but important Aircraft operated by the ARC/IAF/RAW were/are ex-Air India Boeing 707s. Two were modified for this role and at least one of them (K2899) was operational till last year. The 707s were modified for the role of Signal intelligence and had flown extensively during the Kargil War, and was instrumental in tracking a lot of electronic intelligence.The aircraft was upgraded with a host of new Israeli equipment in the mid-2000s. Chances are that the old ex-Indian Airlines B737-200s that was being used by the IAF for VIP duties before the arrival of the B737-700BBJs too was modified for EW role.

Sandesh, you always bring out these most useful nuggets of Information, always factual & correct. Thank you :-) I hesitated to place those Boeing 707's as they are RAW/ARC aircraft and two of the old B737-200's were converted to ELINT roles too. I couldn't locate those photos you posted. You have quite a knack.

Originally Posted by Amukherjea

Well written history. Had the fortune of flying two of the types extensively and two others not mentioned in the article.
One should add DHC 3 Otter STOL aircraft a mini DHC 4. Two Squadron of which did yeomen service in hills particularly in North East where it operated out of 700 feet strips to keep our army supplied and used as ambulance to take out battle casualties from forward areas. And then the IL-14. In 1956 first one of which was gifted by Russians to the prime minister then for VIP usage. Later a full Squadron was purchased and for quite some time used in Leh area for daily air maintenance. Also history would not be complete without mentioning the TU-124 medium range 2 engined Russian transporter. One was lost in Jorhat at night with Prime Minister Morarjee on board who survived ɓut all flight crew members died.

I did not cover these given that they operated in smaller numbers like several others - Vickers Viscount, de Havilland Devon, Lockheed Constellation etc. The Historical section was meant to only touch upon a few prominent or interesting examples. I don't think I made that clarification clear. I'll add a piece on all three over the weekend. I once had an ex- IAF Squadron Leader in my employ who had flown the IL-14. In his opinion it was a horrid little aircraft

Originally Posted by superbad

Very interesting article, as always. Would just like to issue a correction to the below :-

Thanks for the correction.

Originally Posted by sukhbirST

Really appreciate the efforts for bringing to life all these aircraft which otherwise have been dusted to history. For ordinary Indian this is excellent knowledge sharing with complete details which is not easy to source. Have first-hand experience of flying with AVRO HS 748 and AN 32. Qualified as Air Navigation Instructor on AVRO HS 748 in 1996. Also saw single engine fire during one of the training sorties on AVRO. Can’t forget those busy learning days.

Great to have an Armed Forces Officer with us Please share your experiences to the extent you can.

Originally Posted by ads11

On another note, I absolutely LOVE the factoid about the Fairchild C-119! I had no idea about this aircraft and the fact it was the IAF that retrofitted a jet to it. There's so many gems in terms of creative thinking I feel from the mid 20th century when it comes to military aircraft. Please share more! Such a treat to read.

The C-119G had an almost zero climb rate at Leh with one engine out even when lightly loaded. This is a polite way of saying refuses to take off! So HAL & the IAF collaborated to install the Gnat's Rolls Royce Orpheus 2050 kgf turbojet to give it a boost at take off and climb in hot & high conditions. The USAF did something similar fitting two smaller GE turbojets slung under the wings. Integrating co-ordination of thrust and controls of two different types of engines must have had its challenges in a era before digitized electronics. An old IAF pilot {now deceased} I once spoke to on this point said they simply kept the turbojet fixed at 90% RPM till they had climbed to a safe altitude and then switched it off.

Originally Posted by neerajku

Super write up sir if I may. Would have loved to hear about Canberra and MIG 25. Canberra , a bomber to begin with , modified one was used for reconnaissance later in life.

Team BHP is a one stop shop. Article on the MiG-25 below.

https://www.team-bhp.com/forum/comme...air-force.html (Indian Aviation: MiG-25 Foxbat in the Indian Air Force)

We operated a few Photo Reconnaissance PR.7's from late 1950s to early 2000s. You are right that one was used over Kargil in 1999, got hit by a heat seeking missile, lost one engine and still returned to base on the other. Another Mark PR.7 {referred to as Mark PR.57 and 67 in IAF service} was shot down over Rawalpindi in 1959 while on a peace time photo recce sortie. Given its bomber role in 1965 and 1971 more Maha Vir Chakra medals were awarded to Canberra crews than to all other aircraft types combined. It tells us something of the risks they took deep inside enemy territory.

[Jeroen]

I had not heard about the Netra AWACS plane. So I looked it up.

Came across this quite detailed article. Very interesting, very impressive!

https://www.drdo.gov.in/sites/defaul...April_2021.pdf

Jeroen