India to buy more Su-30s, copters from Russia
11 Oct 2012
Despite the long delay in the delivery of the Admiral Gorshkov aircraft carrier, India is set to procure 42 Su-30 MKI combat aircraft and 71 medium-lift helicopters from Russia.
The issue was discussed during meeting between defence minister A K Antony and his Russian counterpart Anatoly Serdyukov in New Delhi on Tuesday and an agreement in this regard is expected to be signed during the visit of President Vladimir Putin on 1 November, according to a PTI report citing sources.
The 42 Su-30MKIs will add to the firepower of the Indian Air Force and with this acquisition, the number of these aircraft will be around 272, the report said. During the meeting, the two sides were also understood to have discussed the upgrade programme of the existing inventory of these aircraft in the IAF.
The Sukhoi Su-30MKI is an air superiority fighter jointly developed by Russia's Sukhoi and India's Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd (HAL) for the IAF. A variant of the Sukhoi Su-30, it is a heavy, all-weather, long-range fighter.
The procurement of 71 Mi-17 V5 helicopters for the IAF and the ministry of home affairs was also discussed during the meeting on Tuesday.
Under the agreement, India will buy 59 copters for the IAF whereas the remaining will be used by the MHA and the Central Armed Police Forces (CAPF), most probably for anti-Naxalite operations.
Central Armed Police Forces include eight police forces of the central government - Central Reserve Police Force including the Rapid Action Force, and the anti-Naxalite force Commando Battalion for Resolute Action (COBRA); Border Security Force; Indo-Tibetan Border Police; Sashastra Seema Bal;Central Industrial Security Force; Railway Protection Force; National Security Guards and; Special Protection Group.
