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India-Pakistan
India Puts MiG-29 Upgrade Back on Track to Approval
2008-02-10
NEW DELHI — After nearly a year of stalemate in Indo-Russian defense deals, the Indian Defence Ministry has cleared a contract to upgrade 67 Indian Air Force MiG-29 fighter jets by Russian Aircraft Corp. (RSK) MiG. Final approval will be given by the Cabinet Committee on Security at its next meeting, sources said. Sources reported that India had agreed to pay about 10 percent more than RSK’s original bid of $800 million, but a senior Defence Ministry official declined to confirm that. “The price has been settled to the satisfaction of the Indian Air Force,” the official said.

India denied RSKÂ’s request to be prime contractor, reserving the right to buy the subsystems for the upgrade, which include precision-guided missiles from IsraelÂ’s Rafael and may include avionics and electronic-warfare gear from Elbit of Israel and Thales of France.
This is what they did with the Su-30s - add Israeli and French gear to the Russian airframe.
The upgrade also would include better computers, the Phazotron Zhuk-M radar, and a fire-control radar to guide advanced air-to-surface missiles and laser-guided bombs, the Air Force official said.
which would make the Indian Mig 29s the most capable ones around
The service proposed the upgrade in 2003 after Pakistan obtained beyond-visual-range missiles. The upgrade would extend the life of the fighter aircraft from 25 years (2,500 hours) to 40 years (3,500 hours), an Air Force official said.

In 2004, the Indian Navy ordered 16 MiG-29K aircraft to be mounted on the decommissioned Russian aircraft carrier Admiral Gorshkov, which is being refitted for India. Air Force officials also plan to upgrade their MiG-27s, MiG-21s, and Mirage 2000 Hs, and to buy 126 new combat jets and more Su-30 MKI aircraft.

The Air ForceÂ’s 33 squadrons could shrink to as few as 28.5 squadrons in the next few months, thanks to the impending retirement of MiG-23s and MiG-25s and delays in various aircraft procurement efforts, ministry sources said.
If this happens, the Pakistan Air Force (PAF) would have numerical superiority over the Indian Air Force for the first time in 60 years. The PAF currently has 30 squadrons and plans to increase the number to 34 this year.
Not very likely. If there is one thing an illiterate Indian politician from the cowbelt understands, it is "Pakistan will have more warplanes than India". I predict a panic order - additional Su-30s or perhaps older F-16s from reserves - to make up squadron numbers in the interim.
Posted by:john frum

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