Having won in January 2012 the "legendary" by the standards of all known defense contracts, the Indian MMRCA tender for the production and supply of 126 Rafale multi-role fighters to Delhi, the French company Dassault Aviation continues to "rake a lot of problems" associated with the promotion of machines in the composition of the Indian Air Force. These difficulties are associated primarily with the high cost of the aircraft, which reaches 200 million dollars per unit, while no unique characteristics of the Rafali can surprise their potential buyers in the 21st century. Despite the high angular velocity of a steady turn in close air combat, providing excellent "energy" maneuvering, the ability to fly with large angles of attack and a high thrust-to-weight ratio, these aircraft are completely inferior to competitors in maximum flight speed (for Raphael it is no more than 1900 km / h), as well as in the implementation of super-maneuverability modes available to fighters with the OVT system (Su-30MKI, Su-35S, F-22A "Raptor" and various versions of the MiG-29).
From the licensed production of 108 Rafaley in India and the direct purchase of 18 aircraft from France, Dassault slowly slipped to an order for one regiment of 36 aircraft, the delivery of which looks ridiculous against the background of the Indian-Russian FGFA program, as well as numerous contracts of OJSC "Company" Sukhoi "for the supply of multipurpose fighters of the Su-27SK and Su-30MK2 / MK2 / MKV / MKM family to China, Vietnam, Venezuela and Malaysia. While the French continue to drive up the price of their Rafals, linking it to the provision of additional services and warranties, the Indian Ministry of Defense is focusing all efforts on the deep modernization of more than 230 super-maneuverable Su-30MKI fighters, as well as the production of light tactical fighters "Tejas". The latter, possessing modern avionics of the "4 ++" generation and promising flight characteristics, will fill the empty "multipurpose" cell of fighters "for every day", which was supposed to include 126 "Rafale", and the updated Su-30MKI will hang over fleets and air forces of neighboring Pakistan and China, being the main instruments of military and political pressure.
The Super-30 program provides for a comprehensive modernization of the Indian Su-30MKIs to increase the operational life until 2040. According to the Indian media, Russian-Indian consultations on the organization and timing of the start of work on the Sushki upgrade package have now been resumed. Despite the fact that the aircraft has been working on the new electronic design for more than 5 years, the Super-30 program has not yet been implemented in the hardware of even one Su-30MKI.
The current growing interest from the Indian side in the program is connected with several circumstances at once: the appearance of tactical fighters of the 4 ++ / 5 generations in the PRC (Su-35S, J-10B, J-11B, J-15S, J-20 and J- 31), the adoption by the Pakistani Air Force of 3 AWACS aircraft ZDK-03 "Karakoram Eagle" of the Chinese corporation CETC, the conclusion of a 75 million contract for the modernization of the Pakistani F-16A / B aircraft fleet to the level of F-16C / D Block 52 with the possibility of using long-range missiles AIM-120D, as well as the end of the permissible service life of the MiG-21 and MiG-27 fighter-bombers. As you know, in India, cases of plane crashes with the participation of the MiG-27 have become more frequent due to problems with the power plant - TRDF R-29-300. More than 20 vehicles were lost from 2001 to June 2016. More than 120 MiG-27s are subject to immediate decommissioning, which forces the Indian Air Force to quickly close this gap with the modernization of the Su-30MKI.
"Super-30" will transform the usual "thirty" into the most advanced two-seater aircraft complex of the transition generation generation. The onboard radar complex is planned to be updated by installing a new radar with an active phased array. The current N011M Bars radar with PFAR, in conjunction with the R-27ER / EM, R-77 (RVV-AE) air-to-air missiles or Indian Astra in the version with a ramjet engine, makes it possible to win a long-range air combat fighters such as Typhoon, Rafale, F-16C Block 52/60 and F-15E with standard weapons in the form of MICA-EM / IR and AIM-120C-5/7 missiles. At the same time, when the enemy uses longer-range missiles (MBDA "Meteor" and AIM-120D), the risks for the pilots of the Su-30MKI increase manifold, as well as in air battles with modern Chinese fighters of the J-15S type. The Bars range of 165 km for targets with RCS of 3 m2 is already absolutely insufficient for complete control of the air situation in which fighters with RCS within 1 m2 operate (Super Hornet, F-35A), while RCS itself Su-30MKI reaches huge values of 10-15 m2, which makes it possible to detect the "Drying" at a distance of 180 to 220 km (in relation to such radars as AN / APG-79/81 / 83SABR or CAPTOR-M and RBE-2) …
The Su-30MKI radio-transparent fairing has an inner diameter of more than 900 mm, which is absolutely acceptable for the installation of most modern PFAR or AFAR radars with increased energy capabilities and resolution. It can be both "Irbis-E" and a simplified modification of the Sh-121 radar, which can later be used in the armament control complex of the promising FGFA fighter.
The new radar will be able to detect Pakistani F-16C Block 52 at a distance of 270 - 300 km, and the Chinese J-31 stealth and J-11B licensed - 200 and 400 km, which will make it possible to start DVB at the same time, or even earlier than the enemy will do it. Obviously, in accordance with the Super-30 program, the Indian Thirty can receive a package for reducing radar signature, expressed in the use of structural elements made of radio-absorbing materials, as well as the use of radio-absorbing coatings according to the technique implemented in the airframe of the Su-34 fighter-bomber (the radar signature is reduced to 3, 8-5 m2 in the frontal projection). It is likely that the smaller cross-sectional area of the Su-30MKI cockpit will make it possible to achieve RCS within 2-2.5 m2.
One of the proposed options for the modernization of the Su-30MKI airframe in accordance with the Super-30 program (published on the Indian Internet): a 20-degree camber of the stabilizers, horizontally oriented air intakes, an internal weapon compartment between the air channels and engine nacelles, and a teardrop-shaped continuous lamp for reduction of EPR. The idea is certainly good, but its implementation in the "hardware" of 272 Indian "Sushki" will require several billion dollars (not counting the replacement of onboard radars)
The new radar for the Su-30MKI will have more modes of operation, including surface scanning with a synthetic aperture. Enemy surface ships and ground vehicles will be detected 50-70% farther than Bars did, plus the ability to clearly classify these units at a distance of over 150 km will appear. A radar with AFAR with a range of more than 300 km, as well as the presence of a system operator, will put the modernized Su-30MKI on one stage with the Su-35S purchased by China, but with a 10-fold numerical superiority. An excellent impetus to accelerate work on the "Super-30" is the integration of the supersonic anti-ship missiles "BrahMos", as well as the design of the hypersonic "BrahMos-2", which today allow the Indian Air Force to dominate any naval strike group of the Chinese fleet, covering their own.
As a result of the Indian MMRCA tender, the American proposal for the F-16IN Block 60 multi-role fighter was rejected for several reasons at once: the maneuverability in the BVB (lower than that of the Rafale), the "morally" outdated platform (the MiG-35 has much better, plus super-maneuverability), single-engine power plant, far from the best performance of the AN / APG-80 radar
According to The Financial Express, an American delegation will arrive in India since July 27, consisting of representatives from Boeing, Lockheed Martin, Raytheon, General Atomics and Honeywell, which will discuss the delivery of a missile weapons, as well as the deployment of facilities for the licensed production of American transitional generation fighters. It is known that India has already abandoned the improved American F-16IN Block 60 "Super Viper" in favor of the French "Raphales". But now the situation for US corporations is even more difficult. Nevertheless, the delegation will try to conclude pre-contractual agreements for the supply of 5th generation F-35A fighters and the organization of licensed production of the F / A-18E / F "Super Hornet". Boeing Military Aircraft, headed by CEO Shelley Lavender, is working to promote the latest aircraft. India's Defense Ministry is slated to acquire 90 American fighters that will fill the gap from the abbreviated Raphael contract.
Boeing hopes to interest the Indian arms market with a twin-engine multi-role fighter with a high-performance AFAR-radar AN / APG-79 and a deck-based capability, Lockheed is betting on Lightning 2's low radar signature. But if their modernization potential has already reached the top point (neither the Super Hornet, nor the F-35A technically will receive radars with a 400-kilometer operating range), the versatility of the Super-30 program is able to bypass almost any western proposal on a steep bend.
