Pune: A frontline Sukhoi jet of the Indian Air Force (IAF) crashed near Pune today but the two pilots bailed out to safety, an officer said.
"Today at around 1.15 p.m. a Sukhoi fighter jet, which took off from the Lohegaon Air Force Base for a sortie, presumably developed a technical snag and crashed," the base commander, Air Commodore V. R. Chaudhry told reporters.
"Two officers - Wing Commander Suhail, who was the pilot and Flight Lieutenant Nautiyal, who was the weapons system operator - ejected out of the aircraft after manoeuvring it over barren land," Chaudhry added.
The aircraft crashed at Wade-Bholai village, 20 kilometres from Pune.
The search for the aircraft's black box is on. The impact of the crash was such that the wreckage was strewn over a of one kilometre radius.
"While the preliminary circumstantial reason could be a technical snag, we are investigating the matter. Both the officers were highly competent. They showed great presence of mind and courage by steering the aircraft towards a safe location and thus avoiding any civilian damage," Chaudhry said.
"Both the officers have been taken to the Command Hospital in Pune," Chaudhary added.
He further said that the land belonged to the Sadhu Vaswani Mission.
The aircraft burst into flames on crashes but seven tenders were pressed into service by various agencies - military and civil - to douse the blaze.
Around 25 policemen from the Lonikhand police post that was closest to the crash site rushed to the spot after being informed by the villagers about an aircraft hurtling towards the ground.
According to the police, the villagers saw the two pilots bailing out of the aircraft and landing in an area named Hargude Vasti, half km ahead of the crash site.
This is the third crash of a Sukhoi Su-30 since its induction in 1997.
MAIDEN FLIGHT OF FIRST INDIGENOUS INDIAN AIRBORNE WARNING AND CONTROL SYSTEM
The first fully modified Aircraft for indigenously developed Indian Airborne Warning and Control System (AEW&C) took to skies yesterday, as part of its first maiden flight in Embraer facilities at Sao Jose dos Campos in Brazil with about 1000 Mission System Components provided by CABS, DRDO. These include the critical item – AESA (Active Electronic Scanning Antenna) Radar Antenna developed by DRDO and certified from ANAC, International FAR Certification Agency.
“The flight is a major milestone towards realizing the dream of indigenous Airborne Early Warning and Control System, which will put India into a select club of countries” said Dr. VK Saraswat, Scientific Advisor to Raksha Mantri congratulating DRDO Scientists and M/s Embraer Engineers on this achievement.
While this Aircraft will now undergo full certification process over next two years, India will receive two aircrafts by middle of next year. Here, the Mission Systems developed by various DRDO labs will be integrated with these aircrafts. Currently, these systems are undergoing ground integration and evaluation at the Centre for Airborne Systems (CABS), Bangalore.
Two of these systems will be delivered to IAF after detailed Test and Evaluation by 2013.
With the advent of this, India is looking forward to join the league of countries capable of developing and delivering such complex Airborne System of Systems to its user.
France's Dassault-led Rafale International team has announced its surprise at being eliminated from a Swiss fighter contest, and claimed that the selection of the Saab Gripen NG on cost grounds does not reflect Berne's previous evaluation of its aircraft.
The Swiss Federal Council on 30 November announced its intention to sign a deal with Saab next year for 22 Gripens, with its decision also having ruled out a Cassidian-led bid based on the Eurofighter Typhoon. It confirmed choosing the Swedish fighter due to factors including its lower acquisition and maintenance costs, but conceded that the selection marked a decision "not to position Switzerland at the highest European level as regards the performance of new combat aircraft".
In a statement issued late the same day, the Rafale industry team countered that "The Swiss-tailored Gripen only exists on paper", and claimed that its completion posed "technical development and production risk significantly increasing the financial efforts required of the Swiss authorities". It also challenged the customer nation's wider assumptions on cost.
"The Rafale's capacities would enable the Swiss confederation to meet its operational requirements with a smaller number of aircraft at an equivalent or lower cost, as was demonstrated during the assessments by the Swiss air force," it said.
Detailed flight evaluations of the Gripen, Rafale and Typhoon were completed in Switzerland in late 2008, with the nation having amassed almost a combined 130h on the rival types, including 60h on the French candidate.
Saab's Gripen programme has received a major boost, with the Swiss government confirming its selection of the type to replace its air force's Northrop F-5s.
Announced on 30 November, the decision to choose the Gripen comes at the expense of rival offers from Dassault, with the Rafale, and the Eurofighter consortium, which had been promoting the Typhoon.
"Saab is both proud and delighted that Gripen has been chosen as the Swiss air force's future multirole fighter aircraft," the Swedish manufacturer said. "Saab stands prepared to start negotiations and await the next steps of the process."
Switzerland had planned to select an F-5 replacement last year, having already conducted extensive flight evaluations with all three candidate aircraft. Its requirement had been set at about 22 aircraft, but was shelved in August 2010 when it became clear it could not raise the funds required to complete a purchase. The Swiss Federal Council will receive a final outline for a 22-aircraft deal in February 2012, the government has announced.
Saab chief executive Håkan Buskhe claimed in a statement that the Swiss decision underlines Gripen's position as "a world-class fighter system that provides the best value for money". The aircraft is already in operational use with the air forces of the Czech Republic, Hungary, South Africa, Sweden and Thailand.
In a bid supported by the Swedish government, Saab's proposal will lead to the establishment of "a long-term strategic industrial co-operation aimed at creating sustainable high-tech jobs, transferring technology and generating export business," the company said.
It previously pledged to at least meet a 100% offset requirement linked to a Gripen NG purchase, while Stockholm also expressed possible interest in the Swiss-built Pilatus PC-21 as a potential replacement for its Saab 105 jet trainers.
If confirmed, a win in Switzerland will provide a much-needed boost to Saab's status as a fighter manufacturer, after its Gripen was eliminated in another high-profile contests in India.
The Swiss air force has an active inventory of 41 F-5E fighters and 12 F-5F trainers, as listed in Flightglobal's MiliCAS database. The service also has 33 Boeing F/A-18C/Ds in its combat aircraft fleet.
* Swiss to buy 22 JAS-39 Gripen
* Gripen the cheapest option among bidders
* Critics slammed Gripen for poor performance in tests
* Greens want deal put to referendum (Adds details, reaction)
ZURICH, (Reuters) - Switzerland has chosen to replace its fighter jet fleet with 22 of Swedish defence and aerospace group Saab's JAS-39 Gripen, Defence Minister Ueli Maurer said on Wednesday, dealing a blow to French rivals.
Neutral Switzerland has wrangled for the past three years over how to replace its ageing Northrop F-5E/F Tiger fighters, purchased in 1976 and 1981, with up to 33 new aircraft.
"With the Gripen the cabinet has opted for a fighter jet that fulfils military requirements, but at the same time can be tolerated financially over the medium and long-term by the defence ministry and the army," the government said in a statement.
Saab shares were up 9.3 percent to 118.70 Swedish crowns by 1548 GMT.
The hotly contested Swiss deal was seen as laying down a marker in the European aerospace sector.
Other bidders included the Rafale built by France's Dassault Aviation and EADS's Anglo-German-Italian Eurofighter Typhoon.
The 3.1 billion Swiss francs ($3.41 billion) price tag for the 22 Gripen was considerably less than rival bids, Maurer told a news conference in Berne.
The purchase of new jets is politically contentious in Switzerland and has been plagued by delays and a funding squeeze.
Last year the cabinet said it would push back the purchase of new fighters until 2015, giving ministers time to come up with a financing plan.
In September the Swiss lower house of parliament increased the defence budget to 5 billion francs from 2014 to finance a 100,000-strong army and the purchase of new fighter jets.
The Swiss decision faces opposition from some parliamentarians and within the military. Swiss media reported the Gripen fared worse in evaluation tests than the Rafale and the Eurofighter.
The Green Party, which has long opposed replacing the fighter jets, said on Wednesday it would fight the decision in parliament and call a referendum on the issue.
Dassault has yet to find a foreign buyer for its multi-role Rafale, billed as one of the most effective fighters in the world but also one of the most expensive.
Saab has already sold its jets to Sweden, the Czech Republic, Hungary and South Africa. ($1 = 0.9102 Swiss francs)
GENEVA — The Swiss government said on Wednesday it will purchase 22 Swedish-made Gripen fighter jets to replace its ageing F5 fighter fleet in an estimated 3.1 billion Swiss franc (2.5 billion euro) deal.
"The Federal Council has decided to acquire 22 Saab Gripen fighter planes to replace the obsolete F5 Tiger," a statement said.
The planes were selected over the French Dassault Rafale and the EADS Eurofighter, also being considered for the multi-billion Swiss franc contract.
The candidates had been subjected to a robust evaluation lasting several years, the government said, and by opting for the Gripen had chosen a jet which "fulfils military demands" while being financially sustainable.
The planned purchase will be put to parliament as part of the government's 2012 arms programme.
During its last session the Swiss parliament charged the government with launching the acquisition process for new planes by the end of the year.
"This decision allows us to acquire a high performance plane without compromising other military branches or their essential equipment," said the government.
During a press conference in Bern, Swiss Defence Minister Ueli Maurer described the model as "technically excellent" while estimating the cost of the deal at up to 3.1 billion Swiss francs -- said to be the cheapest of the three options.
Saab shares rose in Stockholm after the announcement, gaining 9.6 percent to 119 kronor (13 euros/17.6 dollars).
The choice came as a relative surprise in Switzerland after media reported several days ago that the Swedish plane had not fully passed technical tests. A Paris-based analyst specialising in the air defence industry said the Rafale option was considerably more expensive and had little chance of winning the contract however.
Saab admitted it made "huge concessions over the price to ensure it got the contract", the analyst said, while adding that the deal could still be put to a referendum if there was sufficient opposition.
Saab said Wednesday it was "proud and delighted" over Switzerland's decision.
"Given that Switzerland is known globally for applying (the) highest procurement standards and requesting state-of-the art technologies, Saab is both proud and delighted that Gripen has been chosen as the Swiss Air Force's future multirole fighter aircraft," Saab said in a statement.
The Swiss selection "confirms that Saab is a market-leader in the defence and security industry and that Gripen is a world-class fighter system that provides the best value for money", Saab CEO and president Haakan Buskhe said.
Courtesy (AFP)
