The Dawn

Indian Empty Floating Hull Rust bucket & Flying Coffins

It was all over the news in July 2009. Bharat (aka India) claimed that she had endogenously designed a Nuclear Submarine. As usual the triumphant Bharati news media was effusive in its compliments about the prowess of BharatiEngineering. The news was followed up with extensive interviews by anyone who could talk. The theme was what it has always been, Bharat joins another exclusive club. Dr Anil Kakodkar, the Indian scientist told the reporter to listen to the reactor on board–knowing fully well that there was no reactor on the ship. When repeatedly cornered by the Indian journalist, he repeatedly lied about the submarine. He  referred to the engine noise and told the reported how quiet the sub was.

Dr Anil Kakodkar did refute the nonsense about the floating hull being indigenous. He “admitted” that there were Russian consultants and they helped with the reactor. However most of the news reports about the Arihant turned out to be  total nonsense, as the news reports about the Sub show.

If it were just the Arihant, this article would be really short. Let us look at the entire magazine of failures and corruption in the Bharati military industrial complex.

Indian “Nuclear Sub” not “Nuclear”: Sailing empty hull without reactor . This is a story of pretensions, hubris, arrogance, incompetence and inefficiency. We put together a potpourri of stories about the Bharati military establishment. Rust bucket Arihant: Delhi’s clunky, noisy Soviet era Charlie class tub assembled from Russian submarine kit. The trail of tears says about the country that cannot produce its own rifle but pretends to be “power”. Well it seems that its going to cost a nickle, and it seems the nicke is not being spent wisely. Delayed delivery to Delhi of Russian Frigates mirror issues of Admiral Gorshkov & Mig-35

• Delhi’s deeply frozen Israeli Missiles: Windfall profits for Delhi politicians but no Baraks
• Unmitigated failure: Indian Tejas scrapped. New Snecma plane?
• Aircraft Carrier “Admiral Gorshkov”: Delhi wanted a Lada, & now demands a Mercedes
• Russian FGFA: Tricolor paint
• Junk jets for Japan
• More Flying coffins?
• $10 billion for which plane?
• F-16s or F-35s
• Lockheed’s bait and switch
• Moscow sale to Delhi: Russian Mig 35s are simply Mig29s with new decals
• Delhi’s missiles Brahmos: Faster than the speeding bullet Abject failure in indigenous arms production forced Delhi to buy weapons without Transfer of Technology After Moscow’s grounding, when will Delhi ground the New Flying Coffins?

While in Indian Navy service, the submarine’s sea time was limited by propulsion system problems and there were unconfirmed reports about radiation hazards. The lease was for three years at its conclusion in 1991, India’s request for extension was turned down under intense US pressure by a beleaguered Soviet President Mikhail Gorbachev.

Meanwhile another nuclear submarine of the Akula class, which is being leased for ten years by Russia, is likely to join the Indian Navy later this year. According to experts, the new Chakra was leased to help India fill the void caused by the delays in the indigenous Advanced Technology Vessel project to build a nuclear powered, guided missile attack submarine, which was conceived 25 years ago during Indira Gandhi’s reign and the steel for it was cut 11 years ago. Readers should note that India has financed the completion of construction of the Akula class submarine under the USD 650 million deal signed in 2004 as part of the larger Gorshkov package.

In October 2008, an accident withits fire-extinguishing system flooded two compartments with Freon gas, killing 20 crew members and injuring 21 others on board the Akula class Russian nuclear submarine. The radiation levels may have exceeded limits but secrecy shrouded the incident and may have delayed the delivery of the sub to India. The sea trials were resumed on July 10 in the Sea of Japan following extensive repairs costing around USD 60 million. Meanwhile, sleazy wheeling and dealing, huge delays and financial irregularities continue to pervade all Indian defense deals. India had announced its plans to build six diesel-powered Scorpene SSK-class submarines at a naval dockyard in Mumbai at a cost of $1.8bn. However, opposition charges that the Indian government had paid $113m more than the estimated cost of the submarines, alleging that the extra money was paid as kickbacks and has called for the contract to be scrapped. The Indian Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) has also hammered the defence establishment for glaring lapses in the two biggest naval projects “acquisition of Russian aircraft carrier Admiral Gorshkov and indigenous construction of six French Scorpene submarines. On January 13, 2009, in a program on CNN-IBN TV News Channel, quoting the case of INS Sindhukirti, a frontline Kilo class attack submarine of the Indian Navy’s repair schedule lasting 10 years, it was revealed that it has been in dry dock at Vizag for a refit programme for close to five years now. It quoted CAG’s confidential report findings:

Only seven of India’s 16 submarines are available for combat at any time.10 of these 16 ageing submarines will be due for phase-out by 2012.To maintain current numbers, one submarine needs to be inducted every two years but there’s been no addition since 2001. India’s only submarine-making facility in Mumbai was kept idle for 12 years.The gaping hole in India’s naval capability is showing. Arihant will increase the reach and endurance of the Indian Navy, which seeks to become a true blue water navy and project its force beyond its borders. After launching the submarine, Prime Minister Singh said “we do not have any aggressive designs nor do we seek to threaten anyone.” However, speaking on the occasion, India’s Navy chief, Admiral Sureesh Mehta declared, ‘Today is the first visible step towards realization of creating the sea leg of our nuclear triad… It will provide us credible second strike capability.” India had become extremely belligerent after its nuclear tests on May 11 and 13, 1998, bullying and browbeating its neighbours to accept Indian supremacy till Pakistan’s tit-for-tat tests deflated the Indian ego. India’s “Blue-water Navy” aspirations. Sultan M Hali

• Rust bucket Arihant: Delhi’s clunky, noisy Soviet era Charlie class tub assembled from Russian submarine kit
• Delhi Duds: The fiasco of the IAFs Mig 29s
• The Delhi Dud Report on Indian Defense: Arms that don’t work
• Indian Tejas Light Combat Aircraft (LCA), continues to falter even after 25 years
• Tejas 1983: A dismal failure which became obsolete in the design phase
• Helicopters for India?
• The Admiral Gorshkov ripoff
• How Abdul Kalam Stole US secrets for Delhi’s rockets Delhi’s Tejas World Record: 500th Flying coffin crashes

• Russian FGFA: Tricolor paint
• Junk jets for Japan
• More Flying coffins?
• $10 billion for which plane?
• F-16s or F-35s
• Lockheed’s bait and switch

The Indian Air Force’s /Navy’s /Army’s armory is full of missiles that don’t work and bombs that don’t explode.

1. Harpy missile procured from Israel for a whopping Rs 750 crores lies useless after it developed Navigational and homing troubles.
2. Popeye II missile that costs Rs 350 crores, which is an air to surface missile, that never even passed the initial tests since the wings were faulty.
3. Sea Eagle — a subsonic anti-ship missile which cost close to a Rs 120 crores is no longer usable as the components are not available.
4. Anti-radiation missiles, some of which were procured from Russia have malfunctional seekers — parts that used to seek out the target.
5. Sitaphal — the cluster bomb, is not in use since key components have become unavailable
6. 450 kg high speed low drag bomb too had not been put to use due to the mismatch in components.
7. 32 MiGs crashed in last five years
8. Electric golf carts which cost about $243,000, were allegedly bought with money designated for electric wheelchairs in military hospitals and on track alignment reconnaissance vehicles. Indian army chiefs claimed they had spent 10 million rupees (£127,000) on silent reconnaissance vehicles for missions beyond enemy lines.
9. Mazagon Docks (MDL) at Mumbaidelivered the first frigate in 1972, the twelfth, in 2002. In short, the shipyard took 30 years to build a dozen ships. Since 2000, it has had six destroyers/frigates on order, the first of these may join the Navy in 2011.
10. Indian Army is short of over 11,387 officers, Defence Minister A K Antony told the Lok Sabha today.While the Navy was short of 1,512 officers, the shortage in the Air Force was 1,400, he said in a written reply.
11. Indian Air Force for bought Hawk advanced trainer aircraft in 2004 on the basis of its requirements in 1987, compromising operational and training requirements of the service. IAF for took 22 years to finalize the deal for the aircraft, the need for which was felt in 1982 and this aircraft that was supposed to help IAF in crashing problem have itself started crashing and is facing corruption charges and faces spare part shortages.
12. In an examination of 18 contracts between 2003 and 2006, CAG had found that in 16 cases single bidders were left in the fray at the final stage during pre-qualification of bids after trials. And in the remaining six instances, there were only two bidders each, thus defeating the very concept of competitive bidding.
13. The report, tabled in Lok Sabha said that three decade-old radar network has left the country vulnerable to enemy attack.
14. CAG report states that no more than 48 per cent of India’s submarine fleet is available for waging war, should India be attacked.
15. The report also castigates the performance of the newly acquired sonars costing Rs 168 crore as being unsatisfactory.
16. The report also sounded a grave alarm about the status of India’s air defence, which are based on outdated, 32-year-old technology.Shortage of key radars was to the tune of 76 per cent making India particularly vulnerable to air attacks.
17. It says that’Second-hand’ Gorshkov costlier than new warship
18. As per CAG report, the platform is scheduled to be delivered by 2012 and would be due for its second refit in India by 2017. Moreover, the CAG report predicts that the Russian shipyard might as well fail to stick to the scheduled delivery date. Final price tag of Gorshkov to be close to $.2.9 billion
19. Exhaustive trials of the new-generation Krasnopol ‘precision guided ammunition’ procured by the Indian Army were so accurate that fire almost killed some soldiers of an artillery observation unit. The Army, which had procured over 3,000 rounds of the Russian artillery ammunition, fired from the 155 mm Bofors Gun, at a cost of over Rs 500 crores, found it to be wildly inaccurate.
20. Nearly half of Russian air-to-air missiles with IAF have homing, ageing problems: CAG report
21. The R 77 (RVV-AE) BVR missiles, fitted on board the Su-30 MKIs, MiG-29s and MiG-21 Bisons, were bought from Russia starting 1996. More than 2,000 missiles were ordered after the Kargil conflict and 1,000 have been delivered. The CAG report, which will be released soon, is based on evaluations of the missile — its range is close to 90 km — during ground tests, inspections and test firing by the IAF. The missiles were bought at a “cost of Rs 2 crore each” but their failure during tests, says the CAG report, has affected the “operational preparedness” of the IAF. “All figures in the report are based on air force records. Everything is verified by the IAF,” an official said.
22. As many as 56 military aircraft have crashed in the last three-and-a-half years — a rate of more than one aircraft a month
23. Worried over the pace of the indigenous Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) Tejas programme, the Indian Air Force has suggested that the deadline for the fighter’s initial operational clearance (IOC) be postponed.software integration of crucial equipment like the Israeli-built multimode radar (MMR) withthe aircraft was yet to be completed. The lack of a radar meant that crucial points on the flight envelope were yet to be tested.The ADA has still not provided HAL with the digital flight control computer and air data computers which have to be integrated into the LCA programme’s Limited Series Production 3 (LSP3) aircraft. The new LSP3, which was scheduled to make its first flight in June 2008, is now expected to do so only in September. Both the IAFand the ADA have bemoaned the low sortie generation by HAL. Just 11 sorties were undertaken in April, 24 in May and 23 in June. Officials claim that a minimum run rate of 30 sorties a month is required to meet the present IOCdeadline. HAL officials, however, deny that sortie generation is the primary reason behind the delays. “With two aircraft withdrawn from the flight test programme, we have just five aircraft to generate sorties,” said an official. “And even the available aircraft are not fully fitted to undertake the flights that are required.
24. India’s 20-year, nearly $500 million effort to develop a homegrown engine for the Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) has come to a standstill with the Air Force rejection of a co-development offer from France’s Snecma.
25. 40 indigenously-built advanced light helicopters (ALHs) the Indian Army has bought for Rs 1,747 crore (Rs 356 million) have a technical flaw that prevents them from flying to heights of 6,500 metres, thus affecting operational preparedness in high altitude areas like the Siachen glacier, India’s audit watchdog says.”The ALH was not able to fly above 5,000 metres, though the army’s requirement stipulated an ability to fly upto 6,500 metres.
26. Barak-1 is never tested against the modern antiship missile
27. Brahmos missile is only tested to ranges of 25 to 50 km inland attack mode

• Moscow sale to Delhi: Russian Mig 35s are simply Mig29s with new decals
• Delhi’s missiles
• Brahmos: Faster than the speeding bullet
• Abject failure in indigenous arms production forced Delhi to buy weapons without Transfer of Technology
• After Moscow’s grounding, when will Delhi ground the New Flying Coffins?

The Curse:

Wednesday, July 29, 2009: The Russian Akula II SSN (nuclear attack submarine) that was supposed to be delivered to India this year, will finally complete sea trials, after undergoing $60 million in repairs and revisions. For months, however, the Russian Navy had problems completing these sea trials. The Russians couldn’t get enough qualified sailors and civilian technicians to serve on the boat. This is because, while first undergoing sea trials last November, there was an accidental activation of the fire extinguisher system. This killed twenty sailors and civilians, and injured more than twenty. There were 208 people aboard the sub at the time, most of them navy and shipyard personnel there to closely monitor all aspects of the sub as it made its first dives and other maneuvers. The source of the fatal accident was poor design and construction of the safety systems on the sub. This accident led to sailors and shipyard technicians being fearful of going to sea on the boat. So the sea trials had to suspended for a while, making the sub ineligible for transfer to the Indian Navy. A year ago, Indian officials acknowledged that it was leasing at least one Russian Akula II, which was to enter Indian service in 2009.

Late last year, Indian submarine sailors went to Vladivostok, the Russian city on the Pacific, near the naval base where the new Akula II boat is based. These Indian submariners are apparently the crew of the leased boat, that apparently will be called the INS Chakra (the same name used by the Charlie class Russian sub India leased from 1988-91). It’s believed that the Indians have the option to back out of the lease if the sea trials don’t work out. Traditionally, when a new ship losses lots of people during sea trials, it is regarded as “cursed” and unlucky. Sailors can be a superstitious, especially when there are dead bodies involved.

The 7,000 ton Akula class subs first entered service 23 years ago. So far, 16 have been built, but only nine of these are active. The rest are in various degrees of retirement, because not enough trained sailors, and operating funds, are available to keep all sixteen of Russians latest SSNs in service. An Akula II requires a crew of 51 highly trained sailors. The Indian money enabled Russia to complete construction on at least two Akulas. These boats were less than half finished at the end of the Cold War. This was another aftereffect of the collapse of the Soviet Union. Several major shipbuilding projects were basically put on hold (which still cost a lot of money), in the hopes that something would turn up. In this case, it was Indians with lots of cash.

The Indian crew was, apparently, to take possession of the INS Chakra this Summer, and take it back to India. But until Russia can lift the curse from this boat, and get enough sailors on board to complete the sea trials, the Indians will have to wait. Bonuses and threats have apparently gotten enough sailors to run the sub II through its sea trials. So it looks like the Indians will get their Akula II before the end of the year. Terms of the lease have not been released, but it has been reported that the lease is for ten years, at $65 million a year ($178,000 a day). The Indians are using INS Chakra to train crews for its own nuclear subs (one was just launched and two more are building). The INS Chakra is more advanced than the new Indian boats (which are based on the Charlie class boats, which were all retired by 1994), and this will enable the Indians to carefully examine this more advanced design. SP. Quote: ‘Terms of the lease have not been released, but it has been reported that the lease is for ten years, at $ 65 million a year ($ 178,000 a day).‘ Saeed Khan