Aerospace Diary

AIN DEFENSE PERSPECTIVE  »  AUGUST 9, 2013 by    NEELAM MATHEWS A line-up of MiG-29Ks belonging to Indian Navy squadron 303, which was commissioned in late May for service aboard the INS Vikramaditya. (Photo: Indian Navy) August 9, 2013, 10:30 AM India will launch its 37,500-ton  indigenous aircraft carrier ( IAC -1)  on August 12 at the Cochin Shipyard in Kerala. The ship is scheduled for induction by the end of 2018. Meanwhile, the former Russian aircraft carrier  Admiral Gorshkov , now the  INS Vikramaditya,  conducted final trials in the Barents Sea this week with its squadron of MiG-29K combat jets embarked. It is due to be delivered by year-end, after a delay of more than four years. Designed by the Directorate of Naval Design, the  IAC -1 will be named  INS  Vikrant . It is 260 meters (850 feet) long and 60 meters (200 feet) wide. Powered by four gas turbines, it will be capab...

AIN NEWS LIVE FROM AEROINDIA  »  2013 by    NEELAM MATHEWS Northop Grumman's E2-D Advanced Hawkeye airborne early warning and communications platform is being considered for an Indian requirement that could total 18 aircraft. [Photo: Northrop Grumman]. February 5, 2013, 6:15 AM Northrop Grumman is at the Aero India show highlighting capabilities in intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance ( ISR ) including airborne early warning and control ( AEW &C) systems and the E-2D Advanced Hawkeye for maritime reconnaissance and unmanned aerial vehicles. “There is a strong interest in the E2-D,” said Tom Trudell, manager, international business development,  AEW  and BMC2  programs. An E-2D Advanced Hawkeye crew workstation and flyable cockpit simulator are part of the  U.S.  defense group’s display at the show. The Indian Navy’s current requirement is for one squadron of four  AE...

Neelam Mathews December 3, 2012 A transparent sounding Chief of Indian Navy,   Admiral DK Joshi, minced no words at the Navy Day press conference, spiced with doses of subtle humor. Joshi informed Aerospace Diary that work on the Indian Aircraft Carrier-2 had started two years ago and ‘all options were being evaluated including arresting gear and it would take a “final shape” by mid- 2013. “We (then) hope to start requirement approvals.” This puts to rest all those critical of the IN saying no work had started on the IAC-2, a     sure recipe to another delayed program. An AEWC lands aboard the aircraft carrier USS Harry S. Truman   What is prime ofcourse, on everybody’s mind, is whether the carrier will opt for the catapult or ski-based design, which will determine the kind of aircraft that will be procured. Joshi was clear: “”if we are going in for big programs, we want a capability for operating that will have usage for the next 50 years...