The Indian navy’s air arm will make a presentation, a copy of which is with DNA, at the ongoing biannual four-day naval commanders’ conference in New Delhi, to draw the attention of the top brass to its neglect.
It will seek midlife upgrades, computerisation, additional air stations and acquisitions for sustenance. The naval commanders will talk new acquisitions, better and upgraded infrastructure for aircraft maintenance, repair, new naval air stations and enclaves.
The navy has also proposed an auto air traffic management system, much like Indian Air Force (IAF). It has a manual system for control of air traffic, but wants a computerised one to enable auto exchange of flight data, efficient communication interface and instant sharing of flight messages.
Upgrade of naval aircraft yards (NAYs) and material organisations (MO) on the lines of IAF’s BRDs (base repair depots), repairs, maintenance and spares have been proposed, and, ministry of defence (MoD) is considering.
There are two NAYs, in Goa for eastern-origin aircraft, and in Kochi for western-origin aircraft.
MiG-29Ks, which were inducted into the navy in February and undergoing trials, will have one squadron each in Goa and Visakhapatnam.
Limited upgrade of Sea Harriers, according to the presentation report, has been completed, and a product support agreement concluded with BAE Systems till 2015. A proposal for spares support for five years is expected by next month. Repairs to a damaged Kamov-31 helicopter are on the anvil and six Kamov-28 choppers are due for overhauling and midlife upgrade, which includes fitting multi-function displays in cockpits and a complete change of avionics and sensors.
The navy has also proposed setting up five additional air stations in Belgaum (Karnataka), Ratnagiri (Maharashtra), Porbandar (Gujarat), Campbell Bay (Great Nicobar) and Shibpur (Bengal) for maritime reconnaissance by choppers.
The navy has seven air stations in Goa, Visakhapatnam, Rajali, Port Blair, Shikra in Mumbai, Kochi and Ramnad in Tamil Nadu. There is a case for setting up four air enclaves.
