India seeks new SIGINT and COMJAM aircraft

India has issued a request for information (RFI) for signals intelligence (SIGINT) and communications jamming (COMJAM) aircraft, with deliveries to begin two years after a contract signature.
The RFI for seven aircraft, which was issued by the Indian government in late July, is for five SIGINT and COMJAM platforms, plus two more for SIGINT alone.
As noted in the request, the aircraft should have a range of at least 4,000 n miles and an endurance of eight hours; a minimum speed of Mach 0.75; have a minimum cruise altitude of 45,000 ft; should be capable of operating from airfields that are 3,300 m above mean sea level.
Mission requirements include seven operator workstations; electronic intelligence (ELINT) equipment operating in the 90 MHz–40 GHz bandwidths; communications intelligence (COMINT) equipment in the 30 MHz–18 GHz bandwidths; and electronic support measures (ESM) with a minimum range of 400 km. The aircraft’s self-protection will include a countermeasures dispensing system (CMDS), a radar warning receiver (RWR), a missile approach warning system (MAWS), and direct infrared countermeasures (DIRCM).

Janes