India and Ukraine together will create a new multifunctional transport aircraft for military transport aviation and domestic civil transportation. The experts came to the conclusion that he may well be a replacement of the previously frozen Russian-Indian project Multi-role Transport Aircraft (MTA).
Aggressive marketing of the Ukrainian delegation at the international exhibition of arms and equipment Defexpo India 2016 has yielded results. Indian company Reliance Ltd Defence and aviation Ukrainian state concern “Antonov” agreed on joint creation of a multipurpose transport aircraft for the needs of the military, paratroopers, as well as commercial use in India. We are talking about 500 machines with a total cost of 350 billion Indian rupees ($5.3 billion) for 15 years. This was reported in the Indian company. The agreement was signed at Defexpo India 2016. The entire Ukrainian delegation held eight talks with the defence Minister of India and the high command of the armed forces. During the exhibition, the parties signed 15 memorandums of cooperation.
“Reliance Defence Ltd jointly with state Corporation “Antonov” will jointly present the project to various requirements, including for the creation of passenger aircraft 50 to 80 places in the basic configuration, but also in all variations, including transport and other military purposes,” the company said.
Already defined the place of production of the aircraft is the first Indian integrated Aerospace Park in the airport center Meehan Nagpur city, Maharashtra state, in Central India. This fits into the concept of the government of India is to create on the territory of their country — Make in India.
The partnership involves the development of a military medium-lift aircraft to perform tactical and strategic tasks with two cost-effective turbofan jet engines.
The aircraft should be able take off from short airstrips in remote and unprepared airfields, including unpaved surface.
“A small number of tactical capabilities of this aircraft is offset by modern avionics and navigation systems with fly-by-wire control system used in any weather and time of day”, — added in Reliance Defence Ltd.
India requires more than 200 medium-sized turbofan aircraft as the basis of all shipments of air force, army and Marines. From the point of view of the civil market for medium-haul aircraft could successfully “plug a hole” in the Indian regional airline that would connect approximately 350 unused runway in the country. It falls under the new policy of the Ministry of civil aviation.
The agreement was signed by Chairman of Defence Reliance Anil Ambani and the first Deputy Secretary of the national security Council of Ukraine Oleg Gladkovsky, responsible for military-technical cooperation and export control. Anil Ambani is an Indian business tycoon, the owner of Reliance Group, recently acquired another Indian company, with which the Indian government encouraged Russia to do business in the defense sector.
Recall that the Indian air force already operate more than a hundred transport aircraft An-32 of the Ukrainian production and some time ago decided to extend their operation.
Earlier, sources in the defence Ministry of India reported that a joint Russian-Indian project of the military transport aircraft Multi-role Transport Aircraft (MTA) is almost frozen. This information is later confirmed in the Russian Aviation complex Ilyushin.
The reasons for the suspension of the project, the Indian side called the requirement of a sharp increase in the cost of development of transport of Russia and the dissatisfaction of the Indian air force a number of technical characteristics of the ITA. A senior Indian air force then announced plans to hold a global tender for the new aircraft. Obviously, the Ukrainian proposal seemed attractive to the Indians.
The agreement between Russia and India on the development and construction of the MTA was signed in 2007. Production planned to expand in Russia and in India. Both parties had to invest in JV for $300 million To the Russian air force wanted to produce 100 cars for India is 45, and 60 aircraft to sell to third countries.
Interviewed aviation experts agreed with the assumption that the contract may well be a replacement of the previously frozen Russian-Indian project Multi-role Transport Aircraft.
Realistic called joint development of the aircraft , the Executive Director of the Agency “AviaPort” Oleg PanteleiV. “”Antonov” there is a family of aircraft in various segments of the An — 148, An-158 and An-178.
It’s almost ready line of aircraft, which fits into the range, referred to in the agreement”, — said Panteleev.
In his view, this line of planes on the request of the Indian side can be modified from the point of view of the applied aggregates and avionics. In addition, India and Ukraine there are, though not perfect, but the experience of cooperation on repair and modernization of the transport aircraft An-32, though now we are not talking about replacing him.
“The formal signing of this agreement should not be interpreted as the position of the government of India in respect of ITA. On the other hand, the MTA project almost from the birth of distinguished extraordinary lethargy, and its feasibility was in doubt”, — said Panteleev.
In the case of Ukraine, in his opinion, India may get a more cooperative partner, who unlike Russia will not negotiate preferences on the composition of the onboard equipment and the degree of participation of its manufacturers in the project.
According to analyst edition Aviation Explorer Vladimir Karnozov, to bury the MTA project sooner, though, because the agreement had not been reached with the government of India and a private company. “If only because Russia and India formed a joint venture company, which is engaged in the MTA project, and it has not been closed,” — said the expert. In his opinion, the issues are the claimed features of the Indo-Ukrainian aircraft which, on the one hand, will carry up to 80 passengers, with another — to have a transport modification.
“Very little in the world of aircraft serve both as passenger and as a military transport, especially ramp.
This plane will never be any good passenger or military transport.
While we are talking about joint development of the aircraft, if it will appeal the Indian air force, they will place the order. But he liked it, need to do a lot of work for 5-10 years,” he said.
Experts agree that, despite the state of the industry and the severance of ties with Russia, Ukraine, undoubtedly, has kept the groundwork and expertise in the production of transport aircraft and can be a partner in India. “They have a very strong design Bureau, plants in Kiev and Kharkov, motor-building enterprise”, — said Kurnosov.
It should be noted that this is not the first time that India, after long negotiations with Russia chooses another supplier of aircraft. So, literally at the beginning of the 2016 Delhi has preferred Russian MiG-35, French Rafale.
