Thailand orders 3 submarines from China, may be S-20s

Thailand offered S-20 class (export variant of Type 041 Yuan class) submarine by China.

 The news shows that the Thai navy has picked Chinese submarines costing 12 billion baht (S$447.5 million) each to be commissioned in the force, a source on the procurement committee says. The majority of the 17-strong committee voted to buy three Chinese submarines, saying it was the “best value for money”. The rest were split between submarines from Germany and South Korea. The navy also received offers from Russia, Sweden and France.

S-20 class submarine from behind.

The source said China beat other competitors as it offered subs equipped with superior weaponry and technology. Its subs are also able to stay underwater longer. Deputy Prime Minister and Defence Minister Prawit Wongsuwon backs the submarine project, citing a growing territorial threat and an increasing number of maritime missions. He said many neighbouring countries are also deploying submarines.

Side view of S-20 class submarine.

General Prawit said he would forward to the cabinet the navy’s submarine procurement decision once it becomes available. Before the procurement panel made its decision, Gen Prawit was quoted by a navy source as saying that if the submarines were not bought by the current government, the navy might not have the chance to get them again. In 2011, the navy looked into the purchase of six German-made submarines at a cost of 7.7 billion baht. However, the project was rejected by the then Yingluck Shinawatra government.

Possible "Initial Operational Capability" (IOC) for the J-20 Mighty Dragon may occur in the 2017-18 timeframe

In November and December 2014 two additional prototypes of the Chengdu Aircraft Corporation's (CAC) J-20 fifth-generation fighter emerged, advancing its development towards a possible initial operational capability (IOC) of 2017-18. The J-20 programme currently features six known prototypes. Two are early technology development articles (serial numbers 2001 and 2002) that emerged in 2009 and 2010, while four are modified versions closer to operational prototypes (serial numbers 2011, 2012, 2013, and 2015) that all emerged in 2014.

Chinese aircraft spotters responsible for early internet photos report that the latest J-20 prototype, 2015, made its maiden flight from the CAC airfield on 18 December. Source: Chinese internet

No prototype numbered 2014 has yet to appear and may not, given the traditional Chinese view that four is an unlucky number. Chinese aircraft spotters responsible for early internet photos report that the latest prototypes, 2013 and 2015, made their maiden flights from the CAC airfield on 29 November and 18 December 2014 respectively. Both have most of the refinements seen on aircraft 2011, which emerged in February 2014: cropped canards and vertical stabilisers, a modified air intake, modified wing leading-edge extensions, and a new electro-optical targeting system (EOTS) under the nose. 

A view of the latest J-20 prototype, 2015, which made its maiden flight from the CAC airfield on 18 December. (Chinese internet)

 However, 2013 and 2015 lack the nose-mounted pitot tubes that featured on the earlier prototypes. In addition, number 2015 has longer and sharper-shaped rear-fuselage horizontal strakes. Although this aft surface does not appear to be movable, it may contribute to aircraft stability, as a similar - though movable - surface did for the Grumman X-29 technology demonstrator.

A detail of the strakes on the latest J-20 prototype, 2015. (Chinese internet)

 Early internet-sourced images have also emerged of the J-20's retractable refueling probe, placed on the upper starboard of the nose. The development status of an indigenous Chinese turbofan for the J-20, often referred to as the WS-15, remains unknown. There is speculation that early J-20 examples may use a version of the Russian Saturn AL-31 turbofan.

Z-18F Anti-Submarine Warfare and Anti-Surface Warfare (ASuW) Helicopter, PLAN's New Weapons System For Submarine Hunt

New graphic image of Next Generation Chinese Z-18F Anti-Submarine Warfare and Anti-Surface Warfare (ASuW) helicopter has appeared on Chinese internet. Z-18F ASuW helicopter is designed to independent as well as coordinated Anti-Submarine Warfare missions by finding, tracking and destroying enemy submarines.

It is outfitted with Sonobuoy launcher, forward looking infrared radar (FLIR) system mounted to starboard side, multi-mode 360° surveillance radar mounted under nose, a dipping sonar, and four weapon stations to carry anti-submarine torpedoes, depth charges and air-to-surface missiles.

Chinese PLAN's Military Options For Civilian Cargo Ships

The People's Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) is looking for new ways to expand its maritime logistical capabilities. While the PLAN has focused on both denying enemy naval forces access to waters near China, as well as operating in said water, China needs a significant maritime transport capability to move forces and materials that can decisively influence events on lands separated from the Mainland by oceans. This can be achieved with both specialized platforms, as well as through ships taken up from trade (STUFT), which is the practice of naval forces adding merchant marine ships to their order of battle in wartime.

"H1138", built at Huangpu Wenchong shipyards in its first military contract, is China's answer to the U.S. Mobile Landing Platform, which allow for larger and cheaper platforms to stage amphibious operations involving hovercraft and other amphibious/littorial vehicles, compared to conventional amphibious warfare ships. The H1138 is 50,000 tons, with a deck area of almost 4,000 square meters.

The "H1183" is a 50,000 ton displacement cargo ship with a giant staging platform installed at its waterline, which can accomodate a wide variety of hovercraft, helicopters, fast craft and armored fighting vehicles. Soon after its May 2015 commissioning, the H1183 was spotted carrying a Zubr class heavy amphibious assault hovercraft. The H1183 was launched by Huangpu Wenchong Shipyard, as the smaller Chinese equivalent to the U.S. Mobile Landing Platform. Its 33 meter by 120 meter submergible platform is large enough to carry up to three Type 726 hovercraft, which can transport one main battle tank from sea to land. MLP type vessels are intended to complement traditional landing platform docks by providing additional, cheaper sealift capacity for seabasing away from existing land bases, peacetime prepositioning, special force operations and disaster relief.

A Soviet designed Chinese Zubr hovercraft is carried by hull "H1183" MLP. The H1183 can carry multiple Zubrs, each of which can travel 60 knots over water, carry 150 tons of tanks, artillery and infantry, and is armed to the teeth with Gatling cannons, hundreds of 140mm rockets, MANPADS missiles and mines. MLPs could carry these gigantic attack hovercrafts to anywhere in the world, without being restricted by the Zubr's 300 mile range.

On June 17, Chinese government issued orders for civilian shipbuilders to ensure that five types of civilian ships, container, roll-on/roll-off, multipurpose, bulk carrier, and break-bulk cargo carriers, will be technically compliant for emergency mobilization during wartime. The official China Daily newspaper notes that the Royal Navy took similarily advantage of augmented civilian shipping during the Falklands War. Additionally, the U.S. military used Special Middle East Shipping Agreements to book air cargo space during the Gulf War.

China has one of the world's biggest shipbuilding industries by volume, which produced 39.05 million dry weight tons in 2014.

These technical changes will likely include the ability to install military grade communications and defense systems when needed, as well as stronger damage control mechanisms such as additional firefighting equipment. Such militarized new ships would likely be used not for limited skirmishes in the South or East China Seas, but rather in support of sustained maritime, amphibious and regional power projection campaigns, such as around the Taiwan Straits, Gulf of Aden or North Korea. Given China's status as one of the world's largest shipbuilder by displacement, including those five categories of transports, and a large merchant marine fleet, the PLAN will not come up short when mobilizing immediate SHUFT capacity.

While most people would be familiar with RO/RO ferries and transports as a way to get across the English Channel, or onto Nantucket, the PLA uses mobilized RO/RO ferries as a way to cheaply and quickly move troops and vehicles by sea.

Roll-on/roll-off (RO/RO) carriers are especially interesting given that while they normally transport cars and other automobiles, which drive onto and drive off of them at ports. As shown by U.S military practice during the Gulf Wars, RO/RO carriers can be easily mobilized to dock at a captured or friendly port to quickly drop off a battalion from its ramps. If Chinese amphibious or special forces capture an enemy port, a RO/RO carrier could be brought in to quickly disperse mechanized infantry to seize the surrounding city in a rapid campaign. RO/RO carriers would also allow for the speedy deployment of follow on logistic equipment, and anti-access systems like surface to air missiles. \While China's global economic and infrastructure projects are primarily motivated by civilian concerns, it would be likely that the PLA would mobilize them for wartime usage. 

WZZ51/Type 92 armored personnel carriers, armed with 25mm autocannons, quickly roll onto a commandeered RO/RO ferry during exercise. A properly trained battalion of several dozen tanks or other armored vehicles could exit a RO/RO ferry in half an hour, to launch a rapid amphibious attack.

PLAN Commissioned Y-8GX6 (Y-8Q) ASW Aircraft (High New 6) with the North Sea Fleet

To some, the lacking of a dedicated turboprop anti-submarine like the US P-3 Orion is the area of greatest deficiency for the PLAN, especially in the neighborhood filled with advanced nuke and AIP equipped subs. If High New 6 platform is proven to be successful, we expect to see more of them in the future. After all, the PLAN has three fleets and they can all use additional ASW assets. 

 

From The "Anatolian Eagle-2015"

World no closer to Cold War-style nuclear standoff, Putin tells global media chiefs

Russia’s deployment of 40 additional nuclear ballistic missiles in response to the US military buildup in Europe doesn’t mean the world is at greater risk of a nuclear war, President Vladimir Putin told the heads of global news agencies.

A combination photo shows the Yars land-based mobile missile system and the Abrams tank.

The Russian head of state held a late-night meeting with top executives from 12 foreign news agencies on the sidelines of the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum. Most of the event was held behind closed doors and not recorded.

 

The extra deployment is necessary to protect Russia and is a response to a growing threat from the West, Putin explained as EFE, a Spanish news agency, later quoted him as saying. Pentagon is reportedly considering placing additional American heavy weapons, including artillery, in Europe. Washington says it is needed to protect its NATO allies from an aggressive Russia. 

“Russia is not an aggressor and does not favor increasing the level of tension… but is obliged to respond to Western actions targeting Moscow,” EFE cited Putin as saying, without using direct quotes. The meeting was apparently held under so-called Chatham House rules, where participants’ comments cannot be reported directly without their express permission. 

“The increase in belligerent rhetoric between Russia and the US does not mean the world is at greater risk of nuclear confrontation,” the agency added, summarizing the Russian leader’s response. 

Putin also commented on the seizures of Russian state property in European countries, intended to enforce a Hague court ruling to pay billions of dollars in damages to shareholders of the now-defunct oil giant Yukos. The Russian president said Russia cannot fail to react to the asset seizures, but would not elaborate, saying it was up to lawyers to come up with a solution. 

He added that the arbitration court’s decision to order Russia to pay $50 billion in compensation is based on the European Energy Charter, which Russia has not ratified. It makes the decision unlawful, because the court was acting beyond its jurisdiction, Putin said, according to EFE. 

Commenting on the recent G7 summit in Bavaria and the statement by Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper that Russia was not welcome in the group, Putin implied that Harper would act as instructed by Washington on this issue.

"I don't want to offend anyone, but if the United States says Russia should be returned to the G8, [Canada's] prime minister will change his opinion," Putin told The Canadian Press. 

Putin reiterated his calls for Western powers to pressure the government of Ukraine to stick to its obligations under February’s Minsk peace agreement, a ceasefire deal between Kiev and rebels in the east of the country, which appears to have completely broken down in the past few weeks. The Russian president also said that the government of Petro Poroshenko must stop the economic blockade of the rebels in the east, implement constitutional reform and call local elections in the Lugansk and Donetsk regions, AP reports. 

Putin denied allegations by Kiev and its foreign backers that Moscow is sending troops and weapons to eastern Ukraine. He said that once Kiev stops trying to solve the crisis by force, and the Ukrainian government returns to seeking a political resolution to the crisis, the rebels would no longer need to take up weapons to defend themselves. 

In response to other questions, Putin defended Russia’s right to host the FIFA 2018 World Cup, insisting that the country had won the right to host the event fairly. He said that people claiming that the selection was marred by corruption in FIFA should present the evidence of their allegations. 

Source: RT News

Is India's Main Battle Tank Finally Doomed?

Last week, the Indian Army released a global request for information (RFI) inviting responses by 31 July to develop a multi-purpose Future Ready Combat Vehicle (FRCV) in order to replace older license-built Soviet-era main-battle tanks (MBTs).

“The Indian Army is planning to design and develop a new generation, state-of-the-art combat vehicle platform for populating its armored fighting vehicle fleet in the coming decade. This vehicle, which will be called the future ready combat vehicle (FRCV), will form the base platform for the main battle tank which is planned to replace the existing T-72 tanks in the Armored Corps,” the RFI reads.

The Indian military envisions the FRCV system as a platform for as many as 11 different tracked vehicles, including light tracked, wheeled, bridge layer and trawl tanks, self-propelled howitzers (SPH), air defense guns, artillery observation post and engineering reconnaissance vehicles, and armored ambulances.

Additionally, the RFI notes that the FRCV “should be in the ‘Medium Tank’ category” and should “match contemporary MBTs in engagement ranges, all weather day/night fighting capability, depth of penetration and variety of ammunition.” The Indian Army wants the new FRCV ready for induction by 2025-27 – a deadline that almost certainly will have to be extended given India’s defense procurement track record.

Consequently, in the meantime, India will do well to continue upgrade its 1900 strong T-72 MBT force. New Delhi has so far failed to successfully mass-produce an indigenously developed modern main battle tank.

The recent RFI could also very well ring the final death-knell for India’s indigenously developed third generation Arjun MK-I main battle tank – a poorly designed vehicle (e.g., too much heavy armor versus too little horsepower) that encountered repeated delays due to a flawed procurement and testing process. Almost eighty percent of the 124-strong Arjun MK-I tank force is currently grounded due to more than 90 technical issues.

India has been working on an improved version of the Arjun, the MK-II, which has done very well in comparative trials with license-built Russian tanks such as the T-90M. It displays more than 93 improvements over the older version and contains 60 percent locally manufactured components. However, a decision to indigenously develop a new anti-tank missile to be fitted onto the MK-II will, in all likelihood, delay the induction of the upgraded platform.

Saudi Arabia: America’s Military Proxy, Waging War on the Middle East and Iran

Today seeing a barrage of news accumulating about another special friend, Saudi Arabia, aka Britain’s biggest arms market last year, an overview of the last quarter follows.

At the closing session of a two-day Arab League summit held in the Egyptian resort city of Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt’s president el-Sisi announced that some Arab leaders had agreed to form a united military force to combat the “challenges” the region is facing. A high-level panel would work under the supervision of Arab chiefs of staff to work out the structure and mechanism of the force: roughly 40,000 elite troops, backed by jets, warships and light armour.

At the time, a Saudi-led coalition was already pressing ahead with air strikes against positions of Houthi fighters and their allies in Yemen. The United States voiced support for the intervention and sent two warships to assist with the naval blockade, but it was criticised by the European Union, Russia, and the United Nations. Saudi Arabia had been moving heavy equipment and artillery near its border with Yemen, following the Houthis seizure of the central city of Taiz.

A month later FT View described this ongoing military action as ‘an increasingly aggressive proxy war with Iran in the Middle East, backing Sunni regimes and trying to counter Iranian influence in Syria, Iraq and Bahrain. Several months of war in Yemen have already claimed more than 2,000 lives. The FT writer’s advice:




[T]he Saudi leadership should think again. In Yemen, Riyadh has given a brutal demonstration of its air power and marshalled a range of Arab nations to back its effort. But air strikes have not weakened the Houthis and a political settlement remains beyond reach. Nor has Saudi Arabia much cause for celebration in its fight against Iran across the region. The kingdom can claim some victories, notably the return of a military-backed government in Cairo. But its lavish funding of proxies has not yielded stability in Syria, Iraq or Libya.







On May 10th the FT Review reported that the UN’s humanitarian co-ordinator for Yemen said that “indiscriminate bombing” contravened international humanitarian law, but Riyadh says the naval blockade was ordered by the legitimate Yemeni government of President Abd Rabbu Hadi — in exile in Riyadh — and cited a UN Security Council resolution calling for an arms embargo against the Houthis.

The humanitarian crisis in Yemen has been described as “catastrophic” by the UN with 20 million civilians – 80% of the population – in need of aid. In May and June there were accounts of the suffering caused by the Saudi-led blockade of the country in place since late March, which has nearly exhausted:
dwindling supplies of fuel, staples such as rice, medicines and other basic goods are so scarce in north Yemen that prices have risen as much as tenfold, according to Oxfam
fuel shortages, which pose a grave threat to Yemen’s water and electricity supplies, as well as to its transport network.

On June 7th the BBC reported that peace talks between Yemen’s Houthi rebels and the government will take place in Geneva on 14 June. UN chief Ban Ki-moon called on all parties to enter the talks in good faith and without pre-conditions. Its Middle East Editor, Sebastian Usher, says that the government – now mostly in exile in Saudi Arabia – and the rebels have confirmed that they will attend the peace negotiations.

But as Owen Jones says, after giving a devastating account of brutality and injustice, such allies “are up to their necks in complicity with terrorism, but as long as there is money to be made and weapons to sell, our rulers’ lips will remain stubbornly sealed”.

Copyright Political Concern 2015

Putin says Russia beefing up nuclear arsenal, NATO denounces 'saber-rattling'

President Vladimir Putin said on Tuesday that Russia was concerned about an anti-missile defense system near its borders, after announcing that Russia would add more than 40 intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBM) to its nuclear arsenal this year.

"We will be forced to aim our armed forces ... at those territories from where the threat comes," Putin said.

Putin made his comments a day after Russian officials denounced a U.S. plan to station tanks and heavy weapons in NATO member states on Russia's border. Putin said it was the most aggressive act by Washington since the Cold War a generation ago.

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U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry expressed concern over Putin's missile announcement and said no one wanted to see backsliding "to a kind of a Cold War status."

Kerry told reporters at a news briefing that Putin's stance could be posturing but he added, "Nobody should hear that kind of announcement from a leader of a powerful country and not be concerned about what the implications are."

Tension has flared anew between Russia and Western powers over Moscow's role in the Ukraine crisis, in which pro-Russian separatist forces have seized a large part of the country's east after Russia annexed Crimea from Ukraine in early 2014.

The European Union and United States imposed economic sanctions on Russia. But Washington and Moscow are still bound by a 2010 Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (START) that caps deployed strategic nuclear warheads at 1,550 each and limits the numbers of strategic nuclear missile launchers to 800 by 2018.

"More than 40 new intercontinental ballistic missiles able to overcome even the most technically advanced anti-missile defense systems will be added to the make-up of the nuclear arsenal this year," Putin, flanked by army officers, said in a speech at an arms fair west of Moscow.

ICBMs have a minimum range of more than 5,500 km (3,400 miles). Putin gave no more details of which missiles were being added to the nuclear arsenal.

Putin said later on Tuesday that Russia wanted Ukraine to repay the $3 billion bailout bond under former Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych according to an agreed repayment schedule.

Putin said he thought the Minsk peace deal on Ukraine was balanced and fair and that if Russia did not agree with its contents it would not have signed it.
Source: Reuters 

World’s 10 Most Powerful Militaries - A Global Firepower Ranking Biased On Inheritant Ethics

The folks at Global Firepower ranked the world’s 10 most powerful militaries. They examined the defence forces of 68 countries in order to compile the rankings, taking into account manpower, land systems, air power, naval power, resources, logistics, finances and geography covered. They measure 40 different stats about a country, including number of aircraft carriers, available manpower, and labor force, to produce a Power Index, in which lower numbers equal more firepower.

World’s 5th biggest armed force, Pakistan army is not in the ranking. What’s the reason? I don’t know. Anyway, check out the world’s top 10 most powerful militaries, with some accompanying stats.

If anyone wanna examine then please visit folloeing link: http://www.globalfirepower.com/

Pakistan eager to secure first ever-order for the JF-17 at Paris Air Show

PARIS: All eyes will be on the sky at the International Paris Air Show with flying displays by around 40 aircraft each day, including fighter jets such as Pakistan’s new JF-17 Thunder, France’s Rafale, and Ukraine’s Antonov 178.

PAF JF- 17 Aircraft parked at Le Bourget.

Pakistan is eager to secure its first-ever order for the JF-17 at the international event as Canada’s Bombardier is particularly hungry for sales, after its new C Series aircraft struggled through development delays and difficult market conditions.

Airbus has also confirmed it will display its A400M military transport plane for the first time since a fatal crash in Spain last month caused by a massive engine failure.

With air passenger numbers set to double to six billion annually by 2030, the world’s premier air show in Paris will next week focus on green issues even as the aircraft sales war remains centre stage.

The Paris Air Show brings together some 315,000 visitors and 2,260 exhibitors from 47 countries, with much of the attention focused on which big manufacturers, particularly Airbus and Boeing, will land the most orders.

But the event happens to be hosted in the same Le Bourget venue outside Paris that will welcome world leaders later this year as they try to hash out a global deal to curb greenhouse emissions.

So it is little surprise that this year’s air show, running June 15 to 21, will put a special focus on environmental issues and innovations.

Top industry officials, government ministers and environmental experts will meet on June 18 to discuss air travel’s impact on the climate, and there will be a week-long exhibition on the subject called “The Sky of Tomorrow”.

“Building planes that emit less and less CO2 remains a leading challenge for the aeronautic industry,” said Marwan Lahoud, president of GIFAS and one of the event’s organisers.

“The Paris Air Show will be the chance to see the results and innovations achieved by manufacturers direct from the source,” he added.

Attendees will include Nobel peace prize co-laureate Philippe Ciais of France’s Climate and Environmental Sciences Laboratory, French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius, and a host of top air industry honchos.

The air industry’s contribution to climate change is complex and controversial.

Although planes are thought to be responsible for only around two percent of global greenhouse emissions, some researchers have found that the different types of gases released and their high altitude may have more powerful short-term effects.

The industry’s global mouthpiece, the International Air Transport Association, has set a target of being carbon neutral by 2020 and halving CO2 emissions by 2050, primarily through increased use of cleaner fuels.

But an EU attempt to impose a tax on the most polluting airlines collapsed in 2012 in the face of opposition from Chinese, Indian and American companies.

Despite that, many firms are seeking to cash in on the trend for greener technologies.

Airbus will show off its prototype, all-electric plane, the E-Fan, at next week’s air show.

And EGTS International will demonstrate its “Green Taxiing” system that allows planes to taxi on the ground without the main engines, using a back-up power unit to drive motors on the wheels.

But while many visitors are looking up, industry insiders will have their eyes firmly on the bottom line, watching the all-important competition for sales among the big manufacturers.

The industry needs between 300 and 400 sales next week to keep its production lines ticking over through 2020, said Ben Moores, a senior analyst at IHS Aerospace, Defence and Security.

Airbus chief Fabrice Bregier said 2015 may not break records, but was set to be a good year with “several hundred” orders lined up.

Boeing’s Randy Tinseth said the Seattle-based company had “a lot of things in the pipeline on the mid and long-haul planes.”
Airbus narrowly pipped its US rival at the last show in 2013, registering $39.3 billion in confirmed sales to Boeing’s $38 billion.

That year’s show saw a total of $115 billion in orders for the industry as a whole.

The commercial aviation sector remains buoyant, breaking records last year with 2,888 orders, according to Deloitte Global, a consultancy.

But the defence sector is struggling, it said, led by declines in the United States which has shed 168,000 jobs since 2010.

Paris is a particularly important venue for smaller companies that have fewer chances to show off their wares.

The show opens to the public on June 19 for the final three days.

Chang Bogo-class submarines for Indonesia

Chang Bogo class submarines of Indonesian Navy under construction in S. Korean Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering. It's based on German Type 209/1200 submarines.

The Republic of Korea submarine ROKS Lee Eokgi (SS 071) leads a formation of U.S. and coalition forces during Rim of the Pacific (RIMPAC) 2010 exercises.

DSME signed a contract with Indonesia on for the supply of three Improved Chang Bogo class submarines. These submarines will be equipped with Atlas Electronic CSU 90 hull-mounted passive and active search-and-attack sonar and flank sonar arrays, Indra's Pegaso RESM system and Aries low-probability of intercept radar, L-3's MAPPS integrated platform management systems and Sagem's Sigma 40XP inertial navigation systems. These subs will be of 1400 tons displacement.

The Chang Bogo class submarines are armed with 8 bow 533 mm torpedo tubes and 14 torpedoes. The ships are also armed with Sub-Harpoon missiles and can be armed with 28 Mines in place of Torpedoes and Harpoon. The class is armed with SUT - Surface and Underwater Target Torpedoes.

Class overview and general characteristics of the "Type 055 Advanced Destroyer" of PLAN!

 

Source: Wikipedia

Bangladeshi Air Force's (BAF) Let L-410UVP-E20 turboprop transport aircraft

Bangladesh preparing to receive first of three L 410 transports

Czech manufacturer Aircraft Industries has completed the first of three L 410UVP-E20 twin-turboprop transport aircraft for the Bangladeshi Air Force (BAF). The aircraft, 3011/OK-JPG (c/n 3011), was being flight tested before delivery at the company's factory in Kunovice in late March.

The current BAF transport fleet includes three Antonov An-32s, two of which were delivered in 1990 and the third in 1995, and four 1960s-era ex-US Air Force Lockheed C-130B Hercules, delivered from 2002. In 2012, the US Congress was notified of a possible sale of four ex-USAF C-130Es to Bangladesh, but nothing further has been heard of that potential deal.

From: Jane's

India got worried even at economic development!

Indian External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj said on Sunday that Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi “very strongly” raised the issue regarding China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) during his recent visit to Beijing, and termed the project “unacceptable”.

“Prime minster during his visit took up the issue very firmly and spoke very strongly that the CPEC going through PoK (Pakistan-occupied Kashmir) is unacceptable,” Swaraj said at a press conference.

Further, Swaraj communicated Modi’s concerns regarding the $46 billion project, and said that the Indian government had summoned a Chinese envoy to apprise over the corridor that is to run through Pakistani Kashmir.

The external affairs minister added that an Indian envoy in Beijing had also raised the same issue.

During Chinese President Xi Jinping’s visit to Pakistan in April, the 3,000 kilometre-long CPEC was announced.

Source: The Express Tribune