Articles in Vol. 32.1 Jan-Mar 2017

Enhancing Firepower – BrahMos

Enhancing Firepower – BrahMos

By: Sqn Ldr Vijainder K Thakur | Issue: Vol. 32.1 Jan-Mar 2017 | Date: 17 Mar , 2018

Extending the range of the Brahmos-A would be technically far more challenging than extending the range of the surface launched variants of the missile, since the missile developers would be...

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China and Xinjiang

China and Xinjiang

By: Maj Gen Vivek Sehgal | Issue: Vol. 32.1 Jan-Mar 2017 | Date: 04 Jun , 2017

By launching repressive initiatives IN China, the regime has outlawed any kind of protest against the policies imposed on Xinjiang. It has also closed down the available space for expression of...

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National Security and the use of Armed Force

National Security and the use of Armed Force

By: Lt Gen SC Sardeshpande | Issue: Vol. 32.1 Jan-Mar 2017 | Date: 19 May , 2017

With all the churning and regurgitation on the national security canvas, as it gets closer and closer to every citizen in today’s world, how do we develop our national security awareness and...

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Will the Kamov Ka 226T meet India’s Requirements?

Will the Kamov Ka 226T meet India’s Requirements?

By: Gp Capt AK Sachdev | Issue: Vol. 32.1 Jan-Mar 2017 | Date: 18 Apr , 2017

On November 30, 2016, an Indian Army Cheetah helicopter crashed at Sukhna in West Bengal, killing three officers and injuring a soldier. Whether the Court of Inquiry finds the old age of the...

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China in Central Asia: Controlling the Narrative

China in Central Asia: Controlling the Narrative

By: Jabin T Jacob | Issue: Vol. 32.1 Jan-Mar 2017 | Date: 13 Apr , 2017

China’s ‘Belt and Road Initiative’ (BRI) of which the SREB is one part has generated apprehension in many of its host countries. There is often an extreme lack of transparency in many deals...

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Andaman and Nicobar Islands – Strategic Potential Untapped

Andaman and Nicobar Islands – Strategic Potential Untapped

By: Air Marshal Anil Chopra | Issue: Vol. 32.1 Jan-Mar 2017 | Date: 02 Apr , 2017

Post-26/11 Mumbai attacks, which were orchestrated from the sea, India has realised the threat potential from the Indian Ocean. The geographical configuration and the location of the Island chain...

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Beyond the S-400 Triumf

Beyond the S-400 Triumf

By: Maj Gen AK Mehra | Issue: Vol. 32.1 Jan-Mar 2017 | Date: 21 Mar , 2017

The proposed acquisition of the S-400 Triumf will undoubtedly impact capability of the adversary in conducting air operations and will be a valuable constituent of the Indian air defence...

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India’s Geostrategic Imperatives in 2017

India’s Geostrategic Imperatives in 2017

By: Lt Gen (Dr) JS Bajwa | Issue: Vol. 32.1 Jan-Mar 2017 | Date: 05 Mar , 2017

“When the facts change, I change my mind. What do you do, Sir?” — John Maynard Keynes With the dawn of every New Year, experts of the strategic community undertake an exercise to take stock...

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The Unmanned Route to Military Might: India’s Evolving Unmanned Systems

The Unmanned Route to Military Might: India’s Evolving Unmanned Systems

By: Gp Capt Joseph Noronha | Issue: Vol. 32.1 Jan-Mar 2017 | Date: 17 Feb , 2017

India’s holdings of unmanned systems are clearly inadequate for a country of this size. This is, perhaps, due to uncertain commitment from the users in the past, inadequate funding and...

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Enhancement of Security at Military Airfields

Enhancement of Security at Military Airfields

By: Gp Capt Johnson Chacko | Issue: Vol. 32.1 Jan-Mar 2017 | Date: 17 Feb , 2017

Effective enhancement of security needs to have components that carry out continuous gapless ‘Surveillance’ of the perimeter, through day and night, in all weather and outdoor conditions...

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IAF’s Combat Aircraft Shortfall: A Ticking Time Bomb

IAF’s Combat Aircraft Shortfall: A Ticking Time Bomb

By: Gp Capt AK Sachdev | Issue: Vol. 32.1 Jan-Mar 2017 | Date: 16 Feb , 2017

The Tejas is an aircraft the IAF can do without, although pressures to induct it have led to orders. Meanwhile, the sands of time, inexorably straining through the impassive hourglass of IAF...

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MBDA’s Mistral: Flexible, Versatile, Highly Effective

MBDA’s Mistral: Flexible, Versatile, Highly Effective

By: IDR News Network | Issue: Vol. 32.1 Jan-Mar 2017 | Date: 16 Feb , 2017

The Mistral missile is playing a very important role in MBDA’s product catalogue. This very short-range air defence missile system that can be used from various platforms – vehicles, surface...

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‘Make In India’ Fighter Aircraft: Strategic Options

‘Make In India’ Fighter Aircraft: Strategic Options

By: Air Marshal Anil Chopra | Issue: Vol. 32.1 Jan-Mar 2017 | Date: 15 Feb , 2017

Presently, 26 countries operate the F-16. Many will continue to do so for next 15 years or more. The F-16 is truly a global system with a globalised market and supply chain. Most importantly, the...

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Developing Stealth Technology: Lessons from the US XST/F117 Programme

Developing Stealth Technology: Lessons from the US XST/F117 Programme

By: Prof Prodyut Das | Issue: Vol. 32.1 Jan-Mar 2017 | Date: 15 Feb , 2017

Rene Descartes (1596-1650 AD) had observed, “If you begin with certainties, you will end up in doubts but if you are content to begin with doubts, you will end up in certainties”. The...

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The Indian Air Force: 2020 and Beyond

The Indian Air Force: 2020 and Beyond

By: Air Marshal Dhiraj Kukreja | Issue: Vol. 32.1 Jan-Mar 2017 | Date: 14 Feb , 2017

Formally established on 08 October 1932, the IAF will be celebrating its centenary of extraordinary service to the nation, in 2032. Beginning with just four Wapiti aircraft and six pilots, the...

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Beyond AgustaWestland: Challenges of Defence Acquisition

Beyond AgustaWestland: Challenges of Defence Acquisition

By: Prof (Dr) SN Misra | Issue: Vol. 32.1 Jan-Mar 2017 | Date: 13 Feb , 2017

In 1996, a Parliamentary Standing Committee on defence had advised the government to earmark at least ten per cent of defence allocation to Research and Development as against the historical...

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INS Khanderi: India’s Second Kalvari-Class Scorpene Submarine

INS Khanderi: India’s Second Kalvari-Class Scorpene Submarine

By: Danvir Singh | Issue: Vol. 32.1 Jan-Mar 2017 | Date: 10 Feb , 2017

The jewel in the crown in the modernisation of MDL is the new Submarine Assembly shop, a sprawling 10,000-square metre facility, which, in one go, will enable MDL to undertake concurrent...

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