By Ilya Kramnik,
MOSCOW : The Aero India-2009 air show, which opened on February 11, ended. Although nothing sensational took place there, as no winner of India’s tender for the delivery of 126 fighter jets was announced, the air show was successful and promising for Russian-Indian military-technical cooperation.
The $11 billion tender, which could end as soon as this year, was the main interest of the air show. The contender countries tried to show off their products, displaying the aircraft before and during the air show. The Eurofighter Typhoon made a near-record long flight from Germany to the UAE en route to Bangalore.
Russia staked on the high capabilities of the Mikoyan MiG-35 fighter family during the demonstration flights, in which the aircraft showed excellent aerobatics performance. In addition, the plane carried India’s retired Air Marshal (Retd) Harish Masand and pilot Suman Sharma, with the latter having an opportunity to steer the aircraft. Both said the plane’s flight performance and avionics were outstanding.
As for India’s representatives, no formal announcements were made on their impressions in relation to the tender. Despite that, some forecasts can be made judging from the news about other deals. During the air show, it was reported that the Moscow-based Chernyshev MMP plant, the manufacturer of engines fitted to MiG-29s, had already supplied 16 jet turbines for eight MiG-29Ks of the fighter batch ordered by India. All of these 16 planes are due to be delivered this year.
It was also confirmed that maintenance centers for Sukhoi and Mikoyan fighter aircraft will be built in India. Similar facilities are already under construction in Malaysia, where Russian models are also deployed with the Air Force.
Given India’s specifics, similar to those of many other Asian countries, we shouldn’t expect an official announcement from India on their impression of the aircraft exhibited until the eleventh hour. With Asian tenders, it has always been slow and uncertain. The establishment of a maintenance center for MiG-29s, which have been ordered by the Indian Navy, makes it promising, however, for the technologically similar MiG-35 to win the tender.
The aircraft offered for the tender will undergo flight and missile firing tests beginning this spring. Russia is offering the single-seat MiG-35 and twin-seat MiG-35D.
Aside from MiGs, India and Russia have a number of other aviation partnership programs. In the near future, India is set to receive the first of the modified Il-76 early warning aircraft fitted out with Israeli-made radio-electronic equipment.
India has shown significant interest in Soviet and Russian-made helicopters, as well as airplanes, since the 1960s. During the Aero India-2009, it was mentioned that Russian-made helicopters could be assembled in India and China.
Rosoboronexport representatives say the Bangalore air show was a success for them, presenting new opportunities for the promotion of Russian aerospace manufacture in the region. Given the industry’s importance for the Russian economy, new orders from India would be very desirable.
(The opinions expressed in this article are the author’s and do not necessarily represent those of RIA Novosti.)