(Indian Defense Review) : The MMRCA as a first step, will enable the IAF to hold its own against the PAF, and when it reaches its authorised strength, to face the PLAAF. The technical evaluation process has been transparent and gone on without a hitch. The AESA radar that the IAF had specified, will be a game changer not only for air combat but equally well during air-to ground operations. Finally, in the area of potential benefits, transfer of technology will enable India to realise her full potential in designing and manufacturing combat jets. The cost of each of these aircraft will be high, but if the Indian negotiators do their job well, the future is assured for the IAF and India.
The process of selection of the vendor in the medium multi-role combat aircraft (MMRCA) contract is in the final stages with only two contenders, the Eurofighter Typhoon and the Dassault Rafale remaining in the competition. Which of the two combat aircraft will the Indian Air Force (IAF) finally induct as the MMRCA is the question that is foremost in the public mind? Depleting Force Levels
The MMRCA proposal comes as challenges to India’s national security are increasing in intensity and complexity. IAF’s force levels have plummeted to an all-time low of 29 squadrons on account of normal attrition, retirement of obsolescent aircraft and interminable delay is the procurement of replacements. The currently authorised force level of 39.5 squadrons is unlikely to be restored before 2020. As India’s neighbors are aggressively modernising their air forces, the need to enhance the combat potential of the IAF acquires urgency.There are a number of factors that influence the selection of the MMRCA. The growing size and strength of the Pakistan Air Force (PAF) and of China’s Peoples Liberation Army Air Force (PLAAF) has a direct bearing on the numbers, and the quality of the MMRCA as would also facilitate understanding of the rationale for the MMRCA, its attributes and its impact on the IAF.The Impact of Air Power
The basic characteristics of air power are speed, reach, flexibility, mobility and lethality. Presently, even when India’s land forces possess far greater combat capability than they ever did, the IAF is still viewed as the principal rapid response component of Indian military power. In the prevailing scenario the possibility of limited war under the nuclear shadow being more likely, the role of the IAF has become even more critical.Indian air power therefore, must be potent enough to achieve air superiority to permit the three services to successfully carry out their assigned missions. For such a strategy to be successful, requires the IAF to maintain significant quantitative and qualitative superiority against Pakistan and sufficiently dissuasive power against China. India successfully managed to maintain superiority in force levels throughout the 1980s with a 2.9:1 advantage in combat aircraft over Pakistan. The current shortfall in combat potential has cut deeply into the comprehensive air superiority essential to India’s military strategy.
The PAF
Pakistan has managed to maintain its combat aircraft inventories, thanks to the support from the US and China. The PAF has 22 combat squadrons against the IAF’s 29. The IAF has around 630 combat aircraft, which, in comparison with Pakistan’s 380-odd fighters, constitutes a ratio of 1.6:1, clearly a far cry from the 2.9:1 superiority that the IAF enjoyed in the 1980s.he qualitative changes in the PAF make these numbers even more troubling. Pakistan is acquiring new F-16C/D Block 50/52 aircraft with advanced radars, electronic warfare (EW) systems, and advanced aerial weapon systems. Finances permitting, the PAF could have a 100-strong contingent of advanced F-16s in the coming decade. PAF is also scheduled to acquire 250 new Chinese FC-1/JF-17 aircraft which will form the core of its future combat capability. The F-16 and the JF-17 fleets together could constitute a force of some 350 respectable fourth-generation combat aircraft armed with advanced sensors and air-to-air weaponry.The PAF is also in the process of acquiring Beyond Visual Range Air-to- Air Missile (BVR AAM) capability for its fighter fleet, a lethal weapon system she did not possess earlier. These are the American AIM 120-C Advanced Medium Air-to Air Missile (AMRAAM) to arm the F-16C. The Chinese PL-12 (BVR AAM) for the new JF-17 Chinese jets, will allow the PAF to contest the Russian R-77 BVR AAMs, on board the Indian MiG-21 BISON and Su-30 MKI fighters. The PAF is also acquiring Airborne Early Warning (AEW) platforms, composed of four Swedish SAAB-2000 aircraft equipped with the ERIEYE phased array radar and four additional Y-8 AEW platforms from China. These acquisitions will enhance PAF’s air surveillance envelope, improve survivability of ground-based air defence network and enable combat aircraft to operate more effectively in both defensive and offensive missions against India.
The IAF still enjoys significant advantages over the PAF. It has a larger contingent of high performance aircraft; operates more BVR capable platforms ; its airplanes deploy better on-board sensors and electronic warfare systems; its pilots are more proficient in advanced air combat tactics including operations in a BVR environment. The IAF possesses superior combat support aircraft, better infrastructure and a continually improving integrated air defence network. However, India’s falling numbers of front-line combat aircraft will enhance risks and curtail flexibility. While these limitations will be less significant if the scale of conflict remains limited, they will become critical in the event of a large-scale war.
The PLAAF
The PLAAF has traditionally outnumbered the IAF by an order of magnitude. In the early 1990s, the Chinese air force inventory was huge, consisting of around 5,000 airplanes. From the IAF’s perspective, this threat was manageable because the backbone of its combat capability consisted of about 3,000 obsolete second-generation fighters such as the J-6/MiG-19. Third-generation fighters particularly the J-7 E/G and the J-8, were few. The J-7 fleet included roughly 500 aircraft in varying configurations and the J-8s probably never exceeded 100 airplanes in the PLAAF inventory.The most capable combat component of the PLAAF was probably smaller than the IAF’s combat fleet for decades after 1971. Furthermore, the PLAAF’s poor combat support aircraft inventory, primitive integrated air defence system, left the force as a whole, a poor challenger to the IAF. India had an even better advantage in this regard as the PLAAF’s best airplanes were deployed mostly along its northern and eastern borders, against Russia, Taiwan and Japan. Also, Chinese air bases in the Tibetan region were extremely primitive. I Infrastructure available on the Tibetan plateau was inadequate to support any significant air operations against India. The balance of air power persisted until the year 2000 when on account of a concerted modernisation initiated in the 1990s, the largely obsolescent combat inventory was replaced by modern more capable platforms. Accordingly, the PLAAF inventory has shrunk dramatically from the 5,000 combat aircraft during the 1990s to 1,700 today.Along with the J-7s and J-8s, a smaller but rapidly growing fleet of advanced combat aircraft—over 350-odd fighters presently—the most prominent of which are, the Russian Su-27/30 and the indigenous F-10 which incorporates Israeli technology. The strength of the PLAAF will probably be around 1,700 aircraft in 2020, the proportion of advanced systems will keep increasing. It would be reasonable to expect PLAAF to have close to 500 Su-27/30s and 500 F-10s, as well as a small number of fifth-generation stealth fighters. The rest of the fleet would c consist of 300 F-7 and F-8 aircraft along with lightweight fighters –FC-1/JF-17 aircraft.
The up gradation is certain to result in a very capable air defence system, comprising comprehensive sensors, secure communication and data links, a robust command and control system and advanced SAMs. The large investments in intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) systems, space capabilities and cyber warfare have already attracted widespread attention. China is well on its way to becoming a genuine aerospace power rather than being merely an air force with high performance aircraft.
These improvements are also steadily becoming manifest in Southwestern China, which borders India. This region deploys 300 combat aircraft. The quality of this force has steadily improved with the deployment of fourth-generation aircraft such as the Su-27 and the F-10. Chinese capabilities in the Tibetan plateau has seen improvements in roads, railways, airfield infrastructure and fuel supply. The high elevation of the Tibetan plateau will entail reduced take-off weight restricting weapon load. This handicap can be partially offset through in-flight refueling. Unless India acts to stem the reduction in force levels of its fighter fleet, the IAF will face critical challenges.
In numerical terms, the IAF has to confront two adversaries, Pakistan and China, who routinely maintain close to 700 combat aircraft—equivalent to the IAF’s own strength—in the territorial regions contiguous to the Indian border. Although Indian superiority over Pakistani air power will continue in the foreseeable future. However, superiority of the IAF will diminish as the capability of the PAF improves. China poses a greater challenge. Not only is the IAF poised to lose forever its traditional numerical superiority where advanced combat aircraft are concerned, this segment of the PLAAF alone is likely to exceed the size of the entire IAF by 2020. When the larger transformation of the Chinese military is taken into account, the situation becomes serious indeed.
In terms of pure numbers, by 2020, the IAF will have to confront around 1,500 fourth- generation Pakistani and Chinese fighters not to mention cruise missiles, UAVs, ballistic missiles, electronic warfare, cyber and space warfare.
The Indian MMRCA
The situation is now clearer with the IAF needing to augment force levels initially by 126 MMRCA subsequently increasing to 200, and restoring the authorised level of 39.5 squadrons. The IAF has opted for a fourth –generation system for some very sound reasons. – An advanced fourth generation system will enable the IAF to face it’s potential adversaries. The fourth-generation system will require a mid -life upgrade in a decade and by then, the Indo-Russian Fifth Generation Fighter Aircraft (FGFA) would be entering the IAF’s inventory. The FGFA along with the Tejas will form the combat fleet of the IAF in the 2020s.Qualitative Requirements
The IAF evaluated the six competitors for the MMRCA contract against 660 technical benchmarks and narrowed to two aircraft-the Eurofighter Typhoon and the Dassault Rafale. Besides the extensive tests in their home locations, the competitors were also subjected to rigorous tests in three locations- Bangalore, Jaisalmer and Leh to evaluate the comparative performance under conditions of humidity, extreme heat and high elevation. These two aircraft have qualified on the basis of their technical superiority in aerodynamic efficiency and high altitude operations. Priority for the IAF is to select the aircraft with the right mix of technology, sensors, avionics, weapons, aerodynamic effectiveness along with favourable Transfer of Technology (TOT) provisions. The IAF clearly recognises that the success of operations would be greatly enhanced by the ability to attack a wide range of targets with precision munitions, especially at night and in adverse weather. The important characteristics that the IAF emphasised as essential in the RFP were-Aerodynamic Effectiveness, Sensors and Avionics, Defensive Countermeasures Suites (DCS) and finally weapons.Aerodynamic Effectiveness
Aerodynamic effectiveness is a function of a fighter’s airframe design, engine thrust and the flight control system. While stability is the key for Air-to-Ground operations, agility remains critical for aerial combat. In spite of the advancements in Air-to- Air missiles, agility enables the platform to position itself quickly for the kill or to ward off an incoming missile threat. In the Air-to Ground regime however, stability will enable the platform to track targets with accurately and launch weapons with precision..Other considerations are care- free handling, low takeoff and landing speeds and supercruise, the ability to fly at supersonic speeds at dry power, which will offer savings in fuel consumption as well as longer loiter times.
Sensors and Avionics
The heart of a multi-role fighter is the Radar capable of performing both Air-to-Air and Air-to-Ground functions equally well. The IAF has asked for the Active Electronically Scanned Array (AESA) Radar. Unlike earlier Radars that had a single Transmitter/Receiver (Tx/Rx), the AESA has hundreds of individual low powered Tx/Rx modules whose separate emissions collectively form the radar beam. The AESA radar is characterised by high power (hence longer range), low noise (difficult to detect by enemy ESM platforms), ability to detect, locate and track targets, while simultaneously avoiding being jammed through frequency hopping techniques. It’s ability to map as well as perform other Air-to-Ground functions by night and in bad weather, enables it, more than any other technology today, to help pilots achieve that crucial advantage, which is necessary to win the air war.Besides the AESA, sensors such as Infra Red Search and Tracking (IRST),Forward Looking Infra Red (FLIR) pod, superior EW systems that permit effective and safe penetration to targets in the face of integrated air defence systems, weapons delivery systems that ensure a high probability of successful attack and a variety of specialised munitions that would be necessary for executing the various ground attack operations – interdiction, maritime strike, battlefield strike etc, make up the total package.
The aircraft also should have superior combined multifunction displays, helmet-mounted sights and head-up displays as well as Hands-On Throttle And Stick (HOTAS) controls for ease of pilot response. In the area of Systems Integration, both the European competitors in the MMRCA program have demonstrated better sensors and more effectively fuse the information derived from them to ease the pilot’s workload during combat.
Defensive Countermeasures Suites (DCS)
The contemporary DCS is an integrated package that include:-- Radar Warning receiver (RWR)-that locates, identifies and prioritizes threat emissions,
- Self- Protection Jammer that is capable of precisely capturing and accurately retransmitting the received target Radio Frequencies (RF) to jam or degrade them thus preventing successful attacks,
- Missile Approach Warning System that alerts the mother aircraft that it is being illuminated by laser range finders or by infra-red missiles,
- and finally expendables like Chaff or Infra-red flares, including Active Towed Radar Decoy which trails a device that emits a RF jamming signal in order to decoy attacking missiles away from the mother aircraft.
Weapons
This last consideration will be broad brushed by design, as the list of weapons that can be carried by any one of these fighters will change with the availability and ease of modification on the mother platforms. Suffice it to say that in general, there will be Air-to-Air missiles, guns and Air-to Ground weapons (Bombs, Rockets and guided missiles).The IAF has also demanded core design data associated with key technologies, such as engines, radar and EW components, and systems integration more generally and that the winning contender be prepared to share complete manufacturing technology. Some specific characteristics of the Typhoon and the Rafale are covered in the succeeding paras.The Eurofighter Typhoon
The Eurofighter Typhoon is a twin-engine canard-delta wing multirole aircraft designed and built by a European consortium of four companies: Alenia Aeronautica, BAE Systems, CASA of Spain and EADS through a holding company, Eurofighter GmbH, which was formed in 1986. The aircraft has high agility at supersonic speed and the only one of the competing fighters with supercruise capability.Eurofighter is offering the Tranche-3 Typhoon for the Indian requirement, equipped with the Captor-E (CAESAR) AESA radar, likely to be available at the time of delivery. EADS has also invited India to become a partner in the Eurofighter Typhoon program, if the Typhoon wins the contract, and will be given technological and development participation in future tranches of the Typhoon. Bernhard Gerwert, CEO of EADS Defence Department, elaborated that if India becomes the fifth partner of the Eurofighter programme, it will be able to manufacture assemblies for new Eurofighters. EADS also offered to include thrust vectoring nozzles (TVNs) with the Typhoon’s EJ200 engines for India. Thrust vectoring will improve operational capabilities, and reduce fuel burn by up to 5 percent and increase thrust by 7 percent while cruising at supersonic speeds.
The Dassault Rafale
The Rafale is a French twin-engine delta-wing multi-role fighter aircraft, designed and built by Dassault Aviation. Being 100 per cent French provides Dassault a distinct edge over its competitors on the issue of technology transfer. Dassault has also offered to fit the Kaveri engine into the Rafale, which, if chosen, would greatly improve commonality with the LCA Tejas aircraft.The French government has also cleared full technology transfer of the Rafale as well as the transfer software source codes which will allow Indian scientists to re-program the radar or any sensitive equipment if needed. If selected, it will be built to the F3+ standard, which is due to be equipped with a multi-mode AESA radar to provide the aircraft with advanced air-to-air and air-to-ground capabilities, an integrated IRST along with other sensors. These sensors support a highly manoeuverable delta-wing airframe, which, unfortunately, has not yet realised its full potential because of its underpowered M88-2 engines which are scheduled to be replaced by the M88 ECO in the future.Cost Analysis
The overall cost of this project is expected to be around $10-15 billion. Besides the purchase cost, the maintenance and upkeep costs need to be factored in as these cover seventy percent of the total lifecycle costs of an aircraft. There are three processes that have to be gone through, while arriving at the costs. The first is the commercial bid, followed by the offset bid, and then there is the transfer of technology. The final price, L1, is a composite of these three factors.Hence, the Indian negotiation team will have to strike a hard bargain to include vital aspects of transfer of technology, source codes for the AESA, Electronic Warfare systems and other critical sensors besides ensuring that Indian public and private sector companies are given commercial contracts in the manufacture of this fourth generation fighter. So the deal will go in favour of the company that provides the best technology at the best available price.
The Importance of the MMRCA to the IAF
The IAF can be satisfied that the technical evaluation has been completed in time and without any impediments. The new aircraft will be important to the evolution of the IAF and the contract is designed to account for at least one-third of the nation’s aircraft over the course of thirty years. The numbers alone will give the IAF the vital edge over the PAF and when the squadron strength reaches or exceeds 39.5, then even China.The model for air-to-air combat has changed in the past decades, from fighters engaging in within visual range combat directed by ground control stations to BVR engagements supported by tankers and AWACS. Such combat requires superior sensors for both air and ground targets. Thus the IAF will see many changes with the induction of the MMRCA mainly in the regime of Sensors and Avionics, specifically the AESA radar. This highly capable radar will support both Air-to- Air and Air-to-Ground operations.
Technology Transfers and Offsets. The Defence Research and Development Organisation has been facing difficulties in developing an indigenous and effective radar and engines for the LCA. Therefore, it should view the MMRCA competition as an opportunity to energise the country’s aviation capabilities through substantial technology transfers, especially in the areas of sensors, avionics, EW systems and weapons, where India still lags behind the major powers. The Indian Ministry of Defence has already levied the most demanding offsets requirements for the MMRCA competition. Unlike the standard condition which requires foreign suppliers to plough back 30 percent of the procurement value through either direct purchases of Indian products or direct investment in Indian defence industries or organisations engaged in defense R&D, the MMRCA contract demands a whopping 50 percent of the contract value to be invested in building up Indian defence capabilities which should help India become a world class fighter aircraft designer and manufacturer.
Conclusion
The MMRCA as a first step, will enable the IAF to hold its own against the PAF, and when it reaches its authorised strength, to face the PLAAF. The technical evaluation process has been transparent and gone on without a hitch. The AESA radar that the IAF had specified, will be a game changer not only for air combat but equally well during air-to ground operations. Finally, in the area of potential benefits, transfer of technology will enable India to realise her full potential in designing and manufacturing combat jets. The cost of each of these aircraft will be high, but if the Indian negotiators do their job well, the future is assured for the IAF and India.
(Air Marshal Raghu Ranjan, former Dy Chief of Air Staff)
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