INDIAN ARMED FORCES CHIEFS ON
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SP's MAI - Issue No. 19 | October 1-15, 2015

Issue Features

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  MILITARY / CHIEF OF THE AIR STAFF (IAF) INTERVIEW
  Scaling new heights!

  On the occasion of the 83rd Anniversary of the Indian Air Force (IAF), Air Chief Marshal Arup Raha, PVSM, AVSM, VM, ADC, Chief of the Air Staff and Chairman, Chiefs of the Staff Committee, spoke to Jayant Baranwal, Editor-in-Chief, SP’s M.A.I.

• 

  AEROSPACE
  Asia increasingly important for light military rotorcraft manufacturers

  In its latest study on the light military rotorcraft market, Forecast International projects that 1,304 light military rotorcraft will be produced from 2015 through 2024. The value of this production is estimated at $19.9 billion in constant 2015 US dollars.

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  INTERNAL SECURITY / BREACHES
  Angelina Jolie criticises UN Security Council

  UN Security Council A ctor Angelina Jolie recently criticised the UN Security Council by its division over Syria’s four-year conflict which now had led to millions of Syrian refugees going homeless.

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  CORPORATE
  Finmeccanica approves merger and spin-off operations

  The Board of Directors of Finmeccanica has approved the merger operations in Finmeccanica SpA of the companies Oto Melara SpA and Whitehead Sistemi Subacquei SpA, as well as the partial spin-off to Finmeccanica SpA...

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  MILITARY / REPORT
  Giving economic muscle to strategic partnership - Modi in the US
  By Ranjeet Kumar

  India and US have already achieved a bilateral trade of US $ 100 billion and aim to raise this to the level of US$ one trillion by 2030.

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  AEROSPACE
  Spirit AeroSystems completes first fuselage for Bell V-280 Valor

  Spirit AeroSystems Inc announced it has completed the first fuselage to Bell Helicopter for the joint multi-role technology demonstrator programme. The unit was designed and assembled in Spirit’s rapid prototyping facility in Wichita, Kansas, in just 22 months.

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  INTERNAL SECURITY / BREACHES
  Ukraine bans French actor Gerard Depardieu

  French actor Gerard Depardieu has been banned from Ukraine because he is considered “a threat to national security,” according to reports in the media.

• CORPORATE
  Reliance Defence and Abu Dhabi Ship Building sign MoU for naval and commercial services

  Reliance Defence Limited (RDL), a fully-owned subsidiary of Reliance Infrastructure Limited, has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Abu Dhabi Ship Building (ADSB)...

• 

  MILITARY / REPORT
  First defence deal of Modi regime with the United States
  By Ranjeet Kumar

  Even before Prime Minister Narendra Modi ushered into the meeting room of President Barack Obama in the Headquarters of the United Nations...

• 

  AEROSPACE
  Boeing, US Air Force KC-46A tanker completes successful first flight

  The Boeing and US Air Force team successfully completed the first flight of a KC-46A tanker aircraft today, taking off from Paine Field recently at Boeing Field in Seattle. This was the first flight of a KC-46A tanker-configured aircraft...

• INTERNAL SECURITY / BREACHES
  Nawaz Sharif's security breached

  The security of Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif was breached recently when he, along with his family, was returning to the federal capital from Murree.

• CORPORATE
  Antonov and WB Electronics to work on unmanned aircraft complex

  On September 22, 2015, at Arms and Security fair, a memorandum of understanding was signed between Antonov Company, part of the state concern Ukroboronprom, and WB Electronics of Poland.

• 

  MILITARY / VIEWPOINT
  Defexpo — Killing the concept
  By Lt General P.C. Katoch (Retd)

  The excuse that the India Trade Promotion Organisation (ITPO) cannot make Pragati Maidan available for Defexpo 2016 is truly laughable unless ITPO has been handed over to Pakistan

• 

  AEROSPACE
  Lockheed Martin and Norway celebrate rollout of first F-35A

  Ceremonies were held at the Lockheed Martin F-35 production facility celebrating the rollout of the first F-35A Lightning II for the Norwegian armed forces. The event marked an important production milestone for the future of Norway’s national defence.

• INTERNAL SECURITY / BREACHES
  Harvard University computers hacked

  In June this year, Harvard University uncovered ‘an intrusion’ on its computer networks. The discovery, which was made June 19, affected two IT systems that impacted eight colleges and administrations, the school said.

• CORPORATE
  Indonesian arms maker Pindad signs deal with UAE

  Officials from Indonesia’s state arms manufacturer Pindad and the United Arab Emirates have signed a defence agreement that could open up a world of opportunity in terms of weapons deals...

• 

  MILITARY / VIEWPOINT
  Fighting Falcon Made in India
  By Air Marshal B.K. Pandey (Retd)

  The F-16 has a long and impressive track record of operations around the world and is regarded as one of the most successful combat platforms in the history of military aviation

• 

  AEROSPACE
  Airbus Helicopters delivers 15th NH90 NFH to France

  Airbus Helicopters, the French Defence procurement agency (DGA – Direction générale de l’armement) and the French Navy marked the handover of the 15th NH90 NFH multi-mission naval helicopter...

• CORPORATE
  GA-ASI confirms plans to open RPA Training Academy

  General Atomics Aeronautical Systems Inc (GA-ASI), a leading manufacturer of remotely piloted aircraft (RPA) systems, radars, and electro-optic and related mission systems solutions...

• 

  MILITARY / REPORT
  INS Kochi named after traditional home of Destroyers
  By Rear Admiral S. Ramsay (Retd)

  The ship design incorporates the most advanced design concepts for improved survivability, stealth, sea-keeping and manoeuvrability.

• 

  AEROSPACE
  Czech pilots reach 20,000 Gripen flight hours

  Defence and security company Saab participated in the 2015 NATO Days and Czech Air Force Days at Ostrava, Czech Republic, earlier in September. At this event, Czech Gripen pilots were honoured for reaching the milestone of 20,000 Gripen flight hours.

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  MILITARY / SPOTLIGHT
  Indian Air Forces's new Aerobatic Team

  The Indian Air Force celebrates its 83 anniversary on October 8, 2015. The new Surya Kiran Aerobatic Team (SKAT) comprising of four Hawk aircraft...

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  AEROSPACE / UNMANNED
  Thales launches Watchkeeper X

  Thales’s new modular Watchkeeper X system reflects a growing need for high-end military-standard Intelligence, Surveillance, Target Acquisition and Reconnaissance...

• 

  MILITARY
  Parrikar asks DRDO to focus on core defence technology areas

  The Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar asked the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) scientists to concentrate on core activities factoring the defence technology requirements of the armed forces.

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  AEROSPACE / UNMANNED
  USS Gonzalez tests Puma at sea

  The guided-missile destroyer USS Gonzalez (DDG 66) conducted testing of an unmanned aircraft system during a Composite Unit Training Exercise.

• 

  MILITARY
  Spanish Minister of State for Defence visits India

  Spanish Minister of State for Defence Pedro Arguelles Salaverria was on a two-day visit to India from September 27, 2015. He called on the Minister of State for Defence Rao Inderjit Singh.

• AEROSPACE
  Egypt buys 50 Russian Alligator helicopters

  Russia and Egypt have signed an agreement on supplies of 50 helicopters of the Ka-52 Alligator family and Moscow does not rule out delivery of the deckbased version of these helicopters that were designed...

• MILITARY
  Visit of First Training Squadron to Seychelles during overseas deployment

  Indian naval ships Tir and Sujata, alongwith Indian Coast Guard ship Varuna, comprising the First Training Squadron, entered Port Victoria, Seychelles, on October 1, 2015, as part of their Overseas Deployment during Autumn Term 2015.

• AEROSPACE / UNMANNED
  Sagem and AOI – Aircraft Factory agreement on drones

  Sagem (Safran) and Egyptian manufacturer AOI-Aircraft Factory have signed an exclusive commercial and industrial collaboration agreement concerning the Patroller surveillance drone system...