March 7, 2022 | International, Aerospace
USAF launches huge upgrade program for its F-16s - Skies Mag
Long-awaited modernization plans finally move ahead for the U.S. Air Force's newest F-16 "Vipers."
August 14, 2020 | International, Aerospace, Naval, Land, C4ISR, Security
India announces ban on 101 imported arms. Who benefits, and who loses out?
NEW DELHI — To bolster self-reliance for its defense industrial base, India on Sunday released a list of 101 weapons and platforms that will be banned from import over the next seven years.
The list incorporates major armaments such as artillery guns, assault rifles, corvettes, sonar systems, transport aircraft, ammunition, radars, conventional diesel-electric submarines, communication satellites and shipborne cruise missiles.
In announcing the move, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh called it “a big step toward self-reliance in defense production in accordance with Prime Minister Narendra Modi's ‘Atmanirbhar Bharat,' ” or “Self-Reliant India.”
Singh added the decision will bring with it a great opportunity for the local defense industry to manufacture the items on the negative list by using domestic design and development capabilities.
“The embargo on imports is planned to be progressively implemented between 2020 to 2024,” the Ministry of Defense said in a statement. “The aim behind the promulgation of the list is to appraise the Indian defense industry about the anticipated requirements of the [Indian] armed forces so that they are better prepared to realize the goal of indigenization.”
The items on the list, worth a total of $53.4 billion, are to be manufactured in India, with local companies as prime contractors. Of these, about $17.3 billion will be either Army or Air Force programs, and defense contracts worth $18.6 billion will be meant for naval programs. The MoD said these orders will be placed with domestic companies within the next five to seven years.
The domestic industry will now stand a better chance to compete among itself and cater to local demand, an MoD official told Defense News.
“Foreign-origin technology transfer will be key. However, the Indian companies will be in the driver's seat,” the official said.
Domestic private companies have welcomed the government's move, but some defense experts doubt change will come.
Baba Kalyani, chairman of Bharat Forge Limited, said this decision is a strategic step that will “propel the Self-Reliant India narrative and bolster the Indian defense equipment-manufacturing industry.”
He added that the growth of the domestic sector will lead to self-reliance, reduced expenditure on imports, the saving of foreign currency, job creation and the revival of consumption, and that it will get India closer to its goal of a $5 trillion economy.
Jayant Patil, senior executive vice president of India's largest private defense company Larsen & Toubro, said the defense policy reforms will provide long-term visibility, which he said is needed to drive investment.
In contract, Vivek Rae, a former MoD chief of acquisitions, said the “gradual ban on imports of 101 weapons and platforms signals the strong intent of government to boost domestic defense production. However, some of these items are already made or assembled in India, and import content is also high. Therefore, business as usual will continue unless more orders are given to the private sector and import content reduced.”
Rae also noted the cost of items manufactured or assembled locally tends to be higher than the cost of imported items. The quality of locally produced materiel is also a concern for Rae.
The embargo may not adversely affect foreign original equipment manufacturers, as they can continue involvement in MoD acquisition programs, either by way of direct product orders or through technology transfer or collaboration with the Indian companies, in respect to items not covered by the list, according to Amit Cowshish, a former financial adviser for acquisition at the MoD.
It doesn't matter whether an embargoed item is made by a joint venture or any other entity, so long as it is designed and developed in India, Cowshish added.
Indeed, an MoD official confirmed that foreign original equipment manufacturers now can set up joint ventures with a majority control up to 74 percent. The ventures would be considered Indian companies and thus be eligible for manufacturing the embargoed items, the official explained.
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September 21, 2020 | International, Aerospace
Florence Parly cherche à rassurer sur les prélèvements de Rafale pour la Grèce
La ministre des Armées Florence Parly assure que les prélèvements de Rafale sur la flotte de l'armée de l'Air au profit de la Grèce, qui compte acquérir 18 avions de combat français dont plusieurs d'occasion, seront réalisés "avec infiniment de sérieux" pour éviter tout impact. Revenant sur la vente de Rafale à la Grèce, la ministre des Armées Florence Parly cherche à rassurer, en promettant de minimiser l'impact pour l'armée de l'Air de la France. Dans un contexte de tensions accrues avec la Turquie voisine, Athènes a annoncé samedi son intention d'acquérir 18 Rafale, dont six appareils neufs et douze d'occasion, selon le Premier ministre grec Kyriakos Mitsotakis, qui a évoqué de premières livraisons à la Grèce en 2021. "C'est une excellente nouvelle pour l'Europe", a insisté Florence Parly, interpellée en commission défense de l'Assemblée nationale sur le risque de trou capacitaire pour l'armée de l'Air, très engagée sur de multiples fronts mais qui va devoir céder à Athènes certains appareils sur sa flotte actuelle de 102 Rafale. "C'est ma priorité de m'assurer que de tels prélèvements n'auront pas d'impact opérationnel sur nos forces. C'est ma responsabilité première", a réagi Mme Parly. "Nous examinons ces possibles prélèvements avec infiniment de sérieux", a-t-elle assuré. "Est-ce à dire qu'il n'y a pas de marge de manoeuvre, qu'il n'y a pas de solution intelligente? La réponse est évidemment non", a poursuivi la ministre. "Il y aura un petit creux sur une période qui reste à définir mais on fera en sorte de minimiser l'impact au maximum pour l'armée de l'Air", commente-t-on au ministère des Armées, en soulignant notamment que "l'armée de l'Air rénove 55 Mirage qui permettent d'assumer un certain nombre de missions". Entre 2022 et 2024, Dassault Aviation doit produire 28 appareils pour la France. En fonction de la cadence de production, tout ou partie des 6 avions neufs grecs pourraient être finalement prélevés sur les 28 à produire pour Paris. "Nous ne pouvons pas à la fois vouloir promouvoir une politique de préférence européenne et puis nous désoler lorsque la Grèce fait ce choix", une première pour un pays européen, a poursuivi la ministre devant la commission parlementaire, en vantant également "une très bonne nouvelle pour notre industrie" dans un contexte économique profondément assombri par la crise sanitaire. "Sans les exportations d'armement, nous ne pourrions pas assurer à nous seuls l'entretien et la pérennité des chaînes industrielles", a-t-elle insisté. En outre, "les activités d'exportation permettent aussi de réduire le coûts d'acquisition pour nos armées des capacités dont nous avons besoin". https://www.capital.fr/economie-politique/florence-parly-cherche-a-rassurer-sur-les-prelevements-de-rafale-pour-la-grece-1380855
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January 29, 2021 | International, Aerospace
Boeing gets U.S. approval to offer F-15EX to India
By Aditi Shah Boeing will compete with Sweden's Gripen and France's Rafale among others for the Indian air force's plan to buy 114 multi-role aircraft to replace its Soviet-era fleet. Ankur Kanaglekar, director, India Fighters Lead, Boeing Defense, Space & Security, told reporters discussions on the F-15EX had taken place earlier between the two governments. “Now that we have the marketing licence it allows us to talk to the Indian Air Force directly about the capability of the fighter. We have started doing that in a small way,” he said, adding conversations were expected to gather pace during the Aero India show next week. India and the United States have built close defence ties, with the Indian military buying over $20 billion worth of weapons in the last 15 years. Lockheed Martin is also pitching its F-21 fighter to the Indian air force, offering to build the plane in the country to win the deal estimated to be worth more than $18 billion. Boeing is bullish on India for both its defence and commercial aviation businesses, even as the COVID-19 pandemic has hit demand for air travel, forcing airlines to first get their finances in order before ordering new planes. Boeing expects domestic passenger traffic to return to 2019 levels by the end of this year, Salil Gupte, the company's India head said, adding international traffic would return to pre-COVID levels only by 2023. One of the planemaker's biggest customers is Indian low-cost carrier SpiceJet Ltd, which has a large order for its narrowbody 737 MAX planes. Boeing on Wednesday got the green light from the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) to return its 737 MAX planes to service after a 22-month ban and Gupte said it was working to get approvals from the Indian regulator. https://www.reuters.com/article/idUSKBN29X0UP