The Indian defense analyst should open their eyes a little wider. If US really want to strengthen its important ally India then why dont they sell India the F22 Raptors. Why dont they sell us some thing better than Hercules. india is know to buy junk and not the quality. India should buy its armaments depending on its immediate threat...China, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka. It will be a Herculiar disaster if India goes for the Hercules.
Trust USA to dump its obsolete technology on India at exhorbitant prices. More such garbage is soon to follow in form of F-16 that is competing in MRCA contract(F-16 was first introduced in 1970s).
Let me put it this way, it's like Ambassador car in India keep bringing new versions of amby by changing grill, head light etc every few years but the fact remains amby still remains a decades old model.
If I am not mistaken, Hercules was first introduced in 1950s or 1960s. Upgrades may have followed with passage of time but still it is decades old model.
Similarly if you even add new electronic package in F-16 aircraft, would it be able to compete with 5th generation aircraft like F-22 or PAK-FA in terms of stealth, supercruise etc. The answer is no becoz body shell etc of F-16 will still remain the same.
India has this obsession of buying outdated junk like C-130 etc at exhorbitant prices(this deal is worth more than 1 billion dollars just for 6 Hercules).
By 2010 European consortium were anyway introducing new aircraft A400M which would have been a lot better than Hercules.
But politicians constantly want cuts in arms deal so deliberately buy outdated technology stuff so there can be repeat orders every few years(and more commissions earned in each arms deal).
RE:C-130 aircraft sale to India
by hi on May 31, 2007 07:51 PM
We will buy in 2010 from EU consortium also the new A400M sure. Don't worry. We have lot of requirement in the defense sector, you know because of whom, like you.
C-130 HERCULES is an AGED technology ,a PRIMITIVE DESIGNED AIRFRAME , and are poor performers than ANTONOVs and TUPOLEVs...we can go for TURBOPROPs of ANTONOV OR TUPOLEV ...INFACT US is fed up of Accident prone and Poor Airframe design of these Old Plane
RE:Marketing strategy from US
by hi on May 31, 2007 11:14 AM
who is talking foolish here. Hercules is one of the wonderful heavy lifting plane available in the world. We have less of that kind of airplanes to lift army equipments.
RE:RE:Marketing strategy from US
by Satyendra Dubey on May 31, 2007 06:28 PM
Hi hi Pls get thru the records ...C-130 profile is full of tragedies speially while LANDING and abrupt change in stress on Wings...ANTONOV & TUPOLEVs are better and they also offer TURBOPROPS
RE:RE:RE:Marketing strategy from US
by imran patel on May 31, 2007 07:11 PM
Well I disagree...Assuming that it is a C130J model, I believe it is a good deal. The original C130 was used in the Korean war. The C130J is the latest version that is being used by the USAF, Royal AF, Australian AF Danish AF & Italian AF.
Rule of thumb for IAF...Buy eqiupment that is currently being used my the US/Russia/France/Etc and was commissioned recently. I agree on the F16 jets...that is a waste...We should be buying the 5th generation aircraft...like the F22 Raptor...Very expensive though Here is a good link on whats new in fighter aircrafts... http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fighter_aircraft#Fifth_generation
RE:RE:RE:RE:Marketing strategy from US
by Gayatri Sharma on May 31, 2007 07:39 PM
imran do you even think US is going to sell its F-22 Raptor to any country. It is the only aircraft in the world which has stealth and go cruse supersonic without its after burner and not to forget it is also equiped with thurst vectoring (apart from the SU-37 and Euro fighter)and this is the kind of technology US is going to keep it for themself.
The next thing you are going to say is why not buy the B-22 or the F-117.
RE:RE:RE:RE:RE:Marketing strategy from US
by ram on May 31, 2007 08:51 PM
There is no need for stealth when fighting against pakistan, bangladesh, nepal and sri lanka. all india needs is a good old b52 with fully mechanical cockpit. I am not even sure if we have RADAR coverage in all parts of the subcontinient. Most airports do not have radar guidance for landing.
No need of hydraulics, we should be Ok with levers and pulleys.
We should make our own flights, though it is primitive. Then only we can progress. Tomcats, eagle raptors will perish in the indian heat.
Do you think India needs these thrust vector power to dog fight the pakis. Does india has the centrifuge for G force practice. Are there people with good phsysical endurance, beacuse i have never seen any indian in india (age25)who can run 10 miles.
In a country which has the most polluted airspace, these engines would have to be cleaned after every flight. And in a land where people can only do progrmming in Java, I am just amazed how these planes are maintained. I dont see any real engineers and technicians in India apart from JAVA and dot net people.