Missile Deal This Week, Mirage Upgrade Starts Next Month

Good news ! The sooner the better.

and this will take 10 yrs to complete..
so by the time we finish this upgrade the only opponent we can use it against will be in sub Saharan Africa

Shiv ji when is LSP7 flying ?

@gautam
well said.

Such a great news!!! ;)) I hope that Rafale will also be selected in MMRCA deal!!Jai Hind!!!

what will happen to the RDY-2 Radar and other avionics ? why dont they fit them in Mig-21 a/c? though not an easy task ,but it is possible which our pvt defence industry can do with the help dassault!!!

Someone is making 30 mil/plane easy on this deal.

@anonymous 8:19PM
Just coz I used a chinki sounding name doesnt mean I am chinese,.look at the content of my comment!

Now the reply:

Indian security doctrine is not based against Pakistan threat alone…FYI

And just coz pakistan eats grass, doesn't mean we will too !

I was referring to the unusually long time frame of execution of this deal (which if you look at earlier posts, even shiv has mentioned the same)

My personal hunch is that this deal is a hedge against the MMRCA, so that we get crucial french avionics technology, immaterial of which way the MMRCA competition goes and Get it much earlier! (check 1st batch of planes gets upgraded in only 1yr)

And that should help us do a technological leapfrog in terms of avionics technology and which should help us greatly in AMCA and FGFA.

@anon 7:29
The only issue with the Mirage upgrade is the 9-10 year frame(but is that the final schedule and can it be pushed?Who knows),otherwise Mirage 2000s will still be an asset to us 10 years down the line too in our context.The Chinese threat to us I think is still on the ground,given the terrain of our borders with them.What will be crucial for us is to have well equipped mobile mountain divisions with, mobile artillery,light tanks, full air-defence and helicopter elements.Any future conflict between us will be more of a clash with the Chinese seeking to punish us swiftly and suddenly without prolonging a conflict.Our foremost aim should be to have fully deployed ground forces locally to deter any Chinese moves.This is not to discount the air-force at all,but given that the army is raising 10 new divisions I think in the China context we have to be very strong on the ground. I still think in the medium term PAF remains our biggest threat for the IAF.

@anon 1:07,
As I have said in my post,I am not at all discounting the Air-force.The air assets being developed are the bare minimum required and are essential for providing air cover to the vast air support operations by transport aircraft for that region.But,for any substantial offensive air operations against the Chinese,we need much much more.I still think the main danger from China is the launch of a quick massive attack,on a wide area, to grab as much land as possible and inflict maximum damage to teach India a lesson. A repeat of 1962.The only way to deter that is to have a capable and well equipped mountain divisions on the ground.These divisions must have light tanks,light 155mm guns,Rocket artillery at least of Pinaka grade, pref smerch where possible.Air-defense elements and lot of helicopters.Our guys are working on it,though the arty part is the main worry. The IA talks of additional 10 divisions or almost 100,0000 soldiers for the Indo-China border.Air power alone is not effective on mountainous positions nor does air power occupy land.For that you need boots on the ground.For China to mount a decisive effective attack on the defensive Indian positions it will require at the least 1:5 ratio of men.That is a huge commitment and such large scale mobilization will not be easy to conduct undetected.India's best bet against China is deterrence on the ground.If extensive air power is to be used,that means the conflict is going to be much wider and longer.We have to much more prepared in that scenario with an aim not to win n necessarily,but retain that much capability to extract the maximum costs from the enemy. For that we also better get our nuke-subs,Agni -Vs,Air-Craft carriers online ASAP.

@anon 4.25pm: I did not discount IA in such a scenario at all. I just said that IAF will be much more involved from the front-line unlike in the past.

To think that any future conflict will be similar, either strategically or tactically to a 1962 like conflict is foolish, at best.

We are moving towards a much more network centric warfare where the WW2 era differences b/w air and ground combat is blurring fast.

Secondly, your underlying assumption (questionably ?) is that India in any such circumstance will primarily fight a defensive war and the theater of battle invariably will be in Indian territory.

Again this is something which is a baggage of history.
The requirement of IAF is exactly to counter this thought process, as with a size-able air power we can destroy their supply lines/infrastructure in their territory, before encircling their invading forces in our territory.

To clarify again, I am not taking anything away from IA, its not a either/or game b/w IA and IAF, rather its much a combined arms kind of scenario, that we are gradually moving towards. And the only thing stopping us, is our own mindset!

@anon 12:11,
You are correct and in fact the Indian Forces are moving on those lines. Exercise Sudarshan Shakti at this moment is testing such concepts.Indian forces are also identifying points where India can strike across on the India-China border.Having said that, indications particularly from political leadership is that a conflict with China is the last thing anyone wants and no one certainly wants a spread out and deeper conflict with China.The push back in development for India and China will be very serious.The aim I think is to develop such forces on the ground, backed with such strike capability in air and on surface to make any invader pay such costs that the an attack becomes less of a feasibility.1962 happened because our forces were not spread out in strength,did not have capability akin to what they were asked to do and they simply melted away due to a combination of bad leadership,lack of equipment and firepower.Where the IA did fight,they gave it back well.

The pakis have a pathological and ingrained hatred for India and I think they will never change fundamentally.The Chinese look on self-interests and a sense of superior nationalism.India is looked upon as small player which should know its place and it should not enter into foolish quests to be equal to China.India is to be tolerated and it must know it place and not raise its voice.And if it does not,it must be punished and tught a lesson.The message to send across is the Chinese may think what they like on their side,but if they get any funny ideas will throw them a beating to remember.This i think is in the medium term.
In the longer term however your concerns will arise, as competition for resources arise between us,China may start taking a harder position and be more assertive.For that i think we should go radical and actually start thinking on lines of some Asian Nato. Pakistan as of in the long term increasingly may become an appendage of China.

in this perod of mmrca india loose gating of mirag blue print