December 2009 ~ ASIAN DEFENCE

Thursday, December 31, 2009

U.S.A to Consider Japanese Participation in F-35 Fighter-Jet Project

12:59 PM ASIAN DEFENCE No comments

Tokyo and Washington are contemplating Japanese participation in a multinational project to develop the F-35 stealth fighter, sources in both governments said Tuesday.The move is intended to clear the way for Japan to adopt the F-35 as its mainstay fighter jet, because countries not participating in the project won't be allowed to acquire it at an early date.Tokyo's participation would be limited to developing components to be provided exclusively to the Air Self-Defense Force so as not to conflict...

Kaveri project: DRDO gets nod for tie-up with French firm

12:55 PM ASIAN DEFENCE 3 comments

Ravi Sharma The Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) has been given the go-ahead by the government to take up an offer of French firm Snecma to ‘partner’ with the Gas Turbine Research Establishment (GTRE) for jointly developing the Kaveri aero engine. Senior GTRE officials told The Hindu that talks with Snecma “could start early next year.” The Kaveri’s eventual user, the Indian Air Force now appears to have softened its opposition to the tie-up, they said. The Rs. 2,839-crore...

Insurgency on Rise in Bajaur, Mohmand after Allied Forces Removed Security Posts

12:48 PM ASIAN DEFENCE 7 comments

Military spokesman Maj-Gen Athar Abbas has said that militants have been flushed out of South Waziristan while their hideouts have also been destroyed. In an exclusive interview with Geo correspondent Asim Ali Rana on Thursday, Maj Abbas said the militants are on the run. He rebuffed report about the presence of Quetta Shura, terming it baseless. He said insurgency has started again in Mohmand and Bajaur Agenc after allied forces removed their security posts along border areas in Afghanistan.Security...

First US Air Force MC-12 Arrives at Bagram Airfield

7:02 AM ASIAN DEFENCE 2 comments

Airmen welcomed the first Air Force MC-12 to be based in Afghanistan Dec. 27, 2009. The aircraft brings another capability to Operation Enduring Freedom, because the MC-12 is not just an aircraft, but a complete collection, processing, analysis and dissemination system of Airmen committed to securing Afghanistan and protecting Afghan and coalition lives. (U.S. Air Force photo/Senior Airman Felicia Juenke) by Tech. Sgt. John Jung The newest aircraft to the Air Force's inventory arrived Dec. 27,...

Indian Army Hunts for CornerShot Weapon

6:52 AM ASIAN DEFENCE 9 comments

Having learnt lessons from the 26/11 terror attacks in Mumbai, the Army has launched a global hunt for suitable weapon systems `for shooting around the corner' for its troops involved in counter-terrorism operations. These `cornershot' rifles and pistols, with detachable high-resolution video cameras and monitors mounted on them, will help Army special forces like the Para-SF units to effectively tackle terrorists in urban warfare scenarios. "Such close-quarter combat weapons will help our...

V-22 Osprey Pilot is Teaching Private Pilot Ground School in Afghanistan

9:56 PM ASIAN DEFENCE 2 comments

Capt. Gabriel Glinsky, a V-22 Osprey pilot currently deployed in Afghanistan, is teaching a private pilot ground school to a class of about 15 fellow Marines. By Dave Hirschman It’s been said that physical peril has a way of focusing the mind—and if that’s so, then Capt. Gabriel Glinsky’s U.S. Marines should make excellent students.Glinsky, a V-22 Osprey pilot currently deployed in Afghanistan, is teaching a private pilot ground school to a class of about 15 fellow Marines. The students, mostly...

Pakistan Army to Purchase 20 SuperCobra Gunship Helicopters from US

9:38 PM ASIAN DEFENCE 21 comments

By Amin Ahmed The Pakistan Army is likely to seek US Foreign Military Financing (FMF) to acquire 20 SuperCobra helicopters to reinforce its fleet of ageing Cobra attack helicopters, which are being extensively used in operations against terrorists in tribal regions. According to the Pakistan Assistance Strategy Report published by the US State Department, the army envisions acquiring the SuperCobra helicopters. The helicopters alone, it said, would cost at least $500 million and the total...

Turkey to start production of Air Defense Radar

1:26 PM ASIAN DEFENCE 3 comments

Turkish National Defense Ministry and ASELSAN struck a deal worth of $71 m on Air Defense Radar, KALKAN, purchase, state TV said. ASELSAN, introducing its 100% domestic production of Air Defense Radar, will begin the mass production of KALKAN, TRT said. With its high quality specifications, ASELSAN's KALKAN -shield in English- has been designed, produced and tested by 100% domestic means, the report said. Following a series of laboratory and field tests the machine made it to the inventory...

Turkey's UAV Related Efforts have Suffered From Setbacks

1:22 PM ASIAN DEFENCE No comments

Turkey is adding great importance to the development and use of unmanned aerial vehicles, or UAVs, for military purposes, but some of its related efforts in recent years have been facing setbacks, risking the country's planned capabilities for these aircrafts.Such pilotless aircrafts are cost-effective and extremely useful. Militaries operating them do not put the lives of their personnel at risk. Such aircrafts are mainly used for reconnaissance, surveillance and intelligence purposes, and in...

Turkey to Take Decisions Regarding ABM, F-35 and Transport Helicopter in 2010

1:13 PM ASIAN DEFENCE No comments

Turkey is set to make crucial defense decisions in 2010 as the US offer to join a missile shield program and multibillion-dollar contracts are looming over the country's agenda. If a joint NATO missile shield is developed, such a move may force Ankara to join the mechanism despite the possible Iranian reaction, analysts say Turkey is preparing for critical decisions next year on joining a U.S.-led air defense program to counter ballistic missile threats from rogue states and issuing multibillion...

India is getting ready to fight China and Pakistan simultaneously: Indian Army chief

9:12 AM ASIAN DEFENCE 21 comments

Shimla-based Indian Army Training Command, headed by Lt-General A S Lamba is getting ready for something Indian Military never was ready before. Indian Air Force, Navy, and Army is ready to face Pakistan and China at the same time. India’s 1.13-million strong Military is now panning to handle two major war fronts at the same time. India considers Pakistan and China as part of the same camp. India knows the next war will be between India and “Pakistan +China.” India will get indirect support from America and Russia, but Indian Military will have...

Egypt agrees to buy up to 24 US F-16 fighters

11:42 PM ASIAN DEFENCE 1 comment

By Jim Wolf; Editing by Steve Orlofsky Egypt clinched a deal with the U.S government last week to buy 20 advanced Lockheed Martin Corp F-16C/D fighter aircraft valued at $1.6 billion, the U.S. Defense Department said Tuesday.The first of the new batch, known as block 50/52, are expected to be delivered in early 2012, a spokesman for the Defense Security Cooperation Agency said. The Pentagon told Congress in October that Egypt was seeking as many as 24 F-16C/D block 50/52 models. It said at the...

Pilot son lost to MiG-21 crash, father turns to help school he saved

11:37 PM ASIAN DEFENCE 1 comment

Flight Lieutenant Manu Akhouri’s greatest passion was flying. As a child, his only toys were planes and helicopters and he would rush out to see aircraft flying past. His father, Colonel Sanjay Akhouri, doesn’t know whether the students in a government school at Bhisiana village of Gidderbaha did the same when Manu’s plane went down nearby on September 10, reportedly as the 24-year-old made his best to ensure he didn’t crash into the building. Three months later, he has decided to help students at the Government Senior Secondary School who...

Yea-End Review – 2009 Indian Ministry of Defence

11:34 PM ASIAN DEFENCE 2 comments

The country’s march towards indigenization and strengthening of the Armed Forces through modernization and state-of-the-art weapons acquisitions were the highlights of the Ministry of Defence during the year 2009. The Navy took a giant leap with the launching of the first indigenously built nuclear propelled strategic submarine named ‘Arihant’ in July. The Indian Navy is well on its way to acquire a lethal punch in the years ahead when it gets the first indigenous aircraft carrier. The keel for the carrier was laid in Kochi in February. The Navy...

Two Airmen were killed When Old Missiles Exploded :India

8:41 AM ASIAN DEFENCE No comments

In yet another case of mishandling of ammunition, two airmen were killed and at least three others injured when old missiles exploded while being transported at the Pokhran firing ranges near Jaisalmer on Monday. The mishap apparently took place when the missile and their propellants, whose shelf-life had expired, were being off-loaded from a truck at the Chandan range. ''The old ammunition had been brought from Gujarat for disposal at the range. IAF has ordered a court of inquiry into the incident,'' said an official. This comes soon after a...

Pakistan has now an eye in the sky (Saab-2000 ERIEYE AWE&C )

8:05 AM ASIAN DEFENCE 21 comments

With the delivery of Sweden’s SAAB AWE&C aircraft Pakistan has gained the capability of having an eye in the sky and advance monitoring system. A formal ceremony on Tuesday will be held to be attended by PAF Chief Air Marshal Rao Qamar Suleman. Early this month PAF received first of its four Saab 2000 Airborne Early Warning & Control aircraft from Sweden. According to an official media release the aircraft landed at one of the PAF’s Main Operating Bases, marking achievement of a major...

Indian Navy to receive Nerpa Nuclear Submarine Next year

7:47 AM ASIAN DEFENCE 12 comments

By Vinay Shukla India would receive its first new generation Nerpa Akula-II class nuclear attack submarine by March next year on a 10-year lease with the vessel being inducted into the Russian Navy prior to its transfer. The Nerpa submarine was today formally inducted into the Russian Navy with the raising of St Andrews Flag, shipyard officials said. The commissioning of the submarine coincided with Prime Minister Vladimir Putin's visit to the region, but it was not clear whether he was present...

South Korea to Build Nuclear Plants in U.A.E. Under a $20.4 billion Contract

1:57 AM ASIAN DEFENCE No comments

By Ayesha Daya and Shinhye Kang Korea Electric Power Corp. shares surged after it led a group of bidders that won a $20 billion contract for four nuclear plants in the United Arab Emirates, beating General Electric Co. and Areva SA, the world’s biggest builder of atomic plants.The order announced yesterday is the first nuclear project awarded by a Gulf Arab nation and will be South Korea’s first export of atomic plants. Korea Electric’s winning group included Doosan Heavy Industries & Construction...