It is learnt that the Chinese JF-17 was cheaper but could not match the technical parameters of the Tejas Mk-IA variant and the offer of maintenance of the Su-30 fleet as proposed by India.
The US Air Force's (USAF) two newest fifth-generation supersonic multirole F-35A aircraft made a historic debut at Aero-India here on Monday, drawing strong interest and adding lustre to the five-day marquee event.
While reserving the verdict, the apex court had said that the pricing details of Rafale jets could only be discussed after it decides on whether to make it public.
Top HAL sources say the AMCA, which is being developed as the IAF's next-generation stealth fighter, is slated to be assembled at HAL Nashik.
'If they aim to remain aligned with the public sentiment, as any democratic government should, then they must respond. Why else would the prime minister have cut short his visit to Saudi Arabia? And why would he have instructed the home minister himself to travel to Srinagar to assess the situation firsthand? This suggests that something is indeed being planned. I am quite certain of that, although the exact form it will take remains to be seen.'
The Southeast Asian nation has been focusing on modernising its military in the face of myriad security challenges as well as decades-long territorial disputes with China in the South China Sea.
There could be significant announcements about India's purchase of Kamov-226T helicopters, S-400 air defence missile systems, and the long-delayed contract for joint development of the Fifth Generation Fighter Aircraft.
Officials and diplomats in Moscow said the two countries are expected to sign 8-10 agreements covering a wide spectrum of bilateral ties, including cooperation in civilian nuclear field, energy, space and defence.
With both aircraft likely to meet the IAF's performance requirements, the winning bid could be the one that offers the lowest cost and the best industrial proposal.
The navy is pushing hard for IAC-2 to be a 65,000-tonne, flat deck carrier that is designed and built in India, with technical and tactical consultation from the US navy -- the global masters in aircraft carrier operations.
The two countries are also likely to ink a deal for a joint venture to build a multi-role transport aircraft and further discuss Moscow's offer to New Delhi to invest in the joint development of a fifth generation fighter.
HAL's sustained, long-term income will come from the design, development, manufacture, overhaul, and upgrade of a family of helicopters designed for deployment on India's 21,000-foot-high Himalayan frontier with Pakistan and China.
INS Vikramaditya is not the only thing on Defence Minister AK Anthony's agenda during his current visit to Moscow. Also on the anvil is the Fifth Generation Fighter Aircraft joint development project which, if finalised and signed, could emerge as India's largest joint defence programme costing around 11 billion dollars, reports Nandan Unnikrishnan.
Boeing's plan involves setting up an Indian factory and the aerospace ecosystem to build the Block II Super Hornet.
HAL is also integrating the Advanced Short Range Air-to-Air Missile onto the Mark 1A. Each Tejas will carry two of these missiles.
'With Pakistan's 'first use doctrine' threatening the use of nuclear weapons early in a war with India, the S-400 will shield vulnerable targets like Delhi and Mumbai, complicating Pakistan's targeting calculations.'
The ministry had spent 82 per cent of that amount till the start of this month.
Air Chief Marshal B S Dhanoa said the IAF is "always cautious and alert" to check any untoward aerial movement on the border.
'While fighter pilots must not be sent into combat in inferior aircraft, an obsessive quest for outright combat superiority will leave an air force short of numbers,' says Ajai Shukla.
This is perhaps the most authoritative portrayal so far of Indian air power as a threat to China.
Air Chief Marshal Bhadauria said the recent induction of Rafale jets along with previous acquisitions of C-17 Globemaster aircraft as well as Chinook and Apache helicopters have provided the IAF with substantial tactical and strategic capability enhancement.
Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar has asked the Indian Air Force to focus on safety and conservation of available resources as he interacted with top commanders in New Delhi just days after India decided to buy 36 Rafale jets.
The attorney general admitted that there is no sovereign guarantee, but asserted that there is a letter of comfort by France which would be as good as a governmental guarantee.
Defence Minister A K Antony and his Russian counterpart Anatoly Serdyukov, who met in New Delhi over the last two days, also decided to take forward the joint fifth generation combat jets and mutirole transport aircraft projects over the next 10 years, under which India would get about 250-300 FGFAs and 45 MTAs
Noted security expert Ashley J Tellis has said that it was imperative for India and the United States to collaborate on developing the former's naval capability by developing next-generation aircraft carriers.
The chief of air staff said Chinese actions along the frontier including in the Ladakh sector are being monitored constantly and the IAF's overall preparations are part of continuing efforts irrespective of challenges from China.
The Chinese navy's growing aggression in the Western Pacific is bringing together a range of allies.
The long-delayed aircraft carrier INS Vikramaditya will be inducted into Indian Navy by Defence Minister A K Antony during his Russia visit slated between November 15-17.
The outgoing Tejas chief said the aircraft will join the IAF fleet by 2021-22.
India's multi-billion dollar Rafale fighter jet contract with France continues to be stuck in the doldrums even as the two countries have agreed to "fast-track" the negotiations.
Two B-1B Lancer supersonic heavy bomber jets of the US Air Force on Tuesday joined the American exhibits at Aero India at the Yelahanka air base, in a reflection of the deeper strategic ties between the two countries.
The IAF is down to 34 squadrons. This will dip to 30 squadrons by the end of this decade, as nine squadrons of MiG-21 and MiG-27s retire.
So keen is Moscow that India buy its helicopter -- Kamov-226T -- that President Vladimir Putin personally took up the issue with PM Narendra Modi during their summit meeting last year
The trio said the top court had relied upon 'patently incorrect' claims made by the government in an unsigned note given in a sealed cover in the court.
The MiG-35 is Russia's most advanced 4++ generation multipurpose fighter jet developed on the basis of the serial-produced MiG-29K/KUB and MiG-29M/M2 combat aircraft.
The IAF chief stressed on the ongoing development of advanced landing ground along the Himalayas.
Taking on the Congress over the Rafale deal, the defence minister asserted that 'there is something different between defence deal and deal in defence.'
The apex court said there was no occasion to doubt the decision-making process in the multi-billion dollar Rafale deal.
India and Russia are involved in talks to sort out the nuclear liability issues before they sign an agreement for setting up Units III and IV of the Kudankulam power plant in Tamil Nadu during Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's annual summit with President Putin in Moscow next week.
Even as three Rafale fighters line up in Bengaluru for eye-popping aerobatics displays at the Aero India 2015 exhibition this week, senior ministry of defence sources say the proposal to buy the French fighter is "effectively dead".
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