Category Archives: Military Acquisitions

Submarine import trap

Posted on February 4, 2013 by Bharat Karnad

The Indian Navy has quietly and without fuss built up a great reputation for itself as a strategic-minded service. Its plans for distant defence are the best articulated, and its procurement of naval hardware is mission-appropriate, reason why the government … Continue reading →

Posted in Asian geopolitics, civil-military relations, Defence Industry, DRDO, Europe, Great Power imperatives, India's strategic thinking and policy, Indian Air Force, Indian Navy, Indian Politics, Military Acquisitions, Relations with Russia, Russia, russian assistance, russian military, South Asia, Strategic Relations with the US & West, Technology transfer, Western militaries | 2 Comments

Tu-22 M3M line for China, Admiral Joshi, General Bikram

Posted on December 11, 2012 by Bharat Karnad

Holidaying from blogging for the month of December, except three things steamed me up, enough any way for me to write this. 1) A knowledgeable friend called to say China had bought off the entire production line of the  Tu-22M3M … Continue reading →

Posted in Asian geopolitics, China, China military, India's China Policy, Indian Air Force, Indian Army, Indian Navy, Military Acquisitions, South Asia | 30 Comments

Revisting 1962, with ifs and buts

Posted on October 11, 2012 by Bharat Karnad

Many years ago, Air Marshal B.D. Jayal (Retd), former Air Officer Commanding-in-Chief, South Western Air Command, one of the most thoughtful airmen around, recalled how he and his mates of 1 Squadron sat in their transonic Mystere IVA fighter-bombers lined … Continue reading →

Posted in Asian geopolitics, China, China military, civil-military relations, Geopolitics, India's China Policy, India's strategic thinking and policy, Indian Air Force, Indian Army, Indian Politics, Military Acquisitions, Nuclear Policy & Strategy, Nuclear Weapons | 27 Comments

School of Hard Knocks

Posted on September 27, 2012 by Bharat Karnad

George Tanham’s scathing 1995 RAND Report on the Indian Air Force excoriated the service leadership for much of the Service’s ills – doctrinal incoherence, multiplicity of combat aircraft types in the inventory that has produced logistics, servicing, and training nightmares, … Continue reading →

Posted in Defence Industry, DRDO, India's Pakistan Policy, India's strategic thinking and policy, Indian Air Force, Indian Army, Military Acquisitions, Pakistan, Pakistan military, Strategic Relations with the US & West, Technology transfer, United States, US. | 12 Comments

Vikramaditya delay & IN Sqdn 303

Posted on September 12, 2012 by Bharat Karnad

Just got back from the College of Naval Warfare at INS Mandovi, Goa, after a talk at the CORE (Combined Operational Review and Evaluation) program. There learned that Carrier Vikramaditya (ex-Gorshkov) won’t be inducted before April-May 2013. A Russian crew is … Continue reading →

Posted in India's strategic thinking and policy, Indian Air Force, Indian Navy, Indian Ocean, Military Acquisitions, Relations with Russia, Technology transfer | Leave a comment

Streamlining Defence

Posted on August 2, 2012 by Bharat Karnad

When talking to uniformed officers in higher military training institutions and forums, I try to emphasise the perils of an industrial age military. The country has far to go to get anywhere near the technologically-efficient, cyber-savvy, 21st century modern armed … Continue reading →

Posted in Asian geopolitics, China military, DRDO, Great Power imperatives, India's China Policy, India's Pakistan Policy, India's strategic thinking and policy, Indian Air Force, Indian Army, Indian Navy, Military Acquisitions, Nuclear Weapons, Pakistan, Pakistan military, Special Forces, US., Western militaries | 4 Comments

Fork in the road to defence ties

Posted on July 20, 2012 by Bharat Karnad

In the past several years India has dashed headlong into military acquisitions without thinking through their implications. This is par for the course for the Indian government wedded to ad hoc policies and decisions concerning the most serious aspects of … Continue reading →

Posted in Asian geopolitics, China, Defence Industry, Geopolitics, Great Power imperatives, India's China Policy, India's Pakistan Policy, India's strategic thinking and policy, Indian Air Force, Indian Army, Indian Navy, Military Acquisitions, Missiles, Pakistan, Pakistan military, Relations with Russia, United States | 34 Comments

Sikorsky hepter for the Indian Navy

Posted on July 12, 2012 by Bharat Karnad

The Indian Navy has, apparently, alighted on the US-built Sikorsky MH-60R helicopter for seaborne anti-submarine and anti-surface warfare operations for the Indian fleet to replace the British-produced Sea King, supposedly some 44 units as first tranche with another 14-22 possibly in the pipeline. … Continue reading →

Posted in Defence Industry, Indian Navy, Indian Ocean, Military Acquisitions, Missiles, Strategic Relations with the US & West, Technology transfer | 2 Comments

Panetta trip — problems ahead in Indo-US defense ties

Posted on June 7, 2012 by Bharat Karnad

US Defense Secretary Leon E Panetta was accompanied by a big retinue of DOD officials and US military officers to the IDSA auditorium for his speech yesterday evening, among them the old stand-bys — Peter Lavoy, and the highest ranking American … Continue reading →

Posted in Asian geopolitics, Defence Industry, Geopolitics, India's China Policy, India's Pakistan Policy, India's strategic thinking and policy, Indian Army, Military Acquisitions, Missiles, Nuclear Policy & Strategy, Nuclear Weapons, Strategic Relations with the US & West, Technology transfer | Leave a comment

Countering US pressure

Posted on June 7, 2012 by Bharat Karnad

Assuming the Research and Analysis Wing (RAW) has done its job, the government must be aware of the fact that North Korea is preparing to conduct its third nuclear test, this time of a Chinese-designed boosted fission device. Transferred in … Continue reading →

Posted in Asian geopolitics, Defence Industry, Geopolitics, Great Power imperatives, India's China Policy, India's Pakistan Policy, India's strategic thinking and policy, Indian Army, Indian Politics, Military Acquisitions, Missiles, Nuclear Policy & Strategy, Nuclear Weapons, Strategic Relations with South East Asia & Far East, Strategic Relations with the US & West | 24 Comments