India gave befitting reply to Chinese Media Global Times on Stealth Capabilities of J20 Fighter Jets
Retired air chief marshal B.S. Dhanoa, who headed the Indian Air Force till last year, countered the Global Times claim, questioning the technical features of the J-20 especially its Stealth characters of the jet which Chinese claim is 5th generation equivalent to Western 5th generation fighter jets like F-22 and F-35 ad now Air Marshal Raghu Nambiar (R) too questioned Stealth characters of the Chinese J-20 while speaking to livefistdefence.com, where he raised some serious questions. Nambiar said that J-20s are powered by the same AL-31F engines which power India’s Su-30MKI fleet of 270 jets and HAL has produced around 900 engines so we know this engine has power but nowhere it can be adapted for stealth aircraft. Nambiar probably was referring to the lack of heat management features in this engine which is usually found in Stealth jets to reduce their rear profile to the Radars. The side profile and rear profile of the J-20 shows it has no stealth in these areas, to begin with, whatever frontal stealth profile it might have is compromised by the addition of canards, small fore-planes on its forward fuselage. Dhanoa also had questioned the use of canards which add to an aircraft’s radar cross-section. They are not found on the US F-22 and F-35 and the Russian Su-57 stealth fighters. The Rafale incidentally uses canards but Rafale never claims to be 5th generation fighter jet. Nambiar also said that one of the features that AL-31F engines lack is the ability to Super-cruise. Super-cruise is the capability of an aircraft to fly over the speed of sound without using afterburner, an engine component into which additional fuel is directly injected to maximize thrust. The moment a jet engages maximum thrust it blips bigger on a Radar monitor and the capability to super-cruise is generally considered to be an important requirement for a Stealth jet to reduce its rear profile against incoming Infra red seeking missiles Dhanoa once even said that “Su-30 radar is good enough and can pick it (J-20) up from many kilometres away,”. Western Analysts too in past have said that unlike the US’s F-22 and F-35 stealth jets, the J-20 doesn’t have all-aspect stealth and from some angles, the J-20 isn’t stealthy.
Seeking to provide highly mobile armoured protection vehicles to its soldiers in high altitude terrains like Eastern Ladakh, the Indian Army is looking to choose from three different vehicles including the indigenous Tata Wheeled Armoured Protection along with American Stryker Infantry Combat Vehicle and Humvee. The Indian Army has a need for armoured infantry combat vehicles for quick movement of troops in the Eastern Ladakh area where the Chinese have deployed their armoured personnel carriers in large numbers. The force is looking at the three options which include the Tata WhAP and the American Stryker and Humvee, defence sources told ANI. The options are being evaluated by the force at the moment and a decision in this regard would be taken soon, they said. Sources said during the evaluation process, the indigenous platform would certainly have preference over the foreign products in meeting the requirements of the Army. While the Tata vehicle is yet to enter service, the Stryker and Humvee have been part of the American defence forces for a long time now. Tata WhAP, which has been co-developed with a DRDO laboratory, has undergone several trials in recent times including high altitude tests. The Strykers and Humvee are reportedly capable of being dropped from transport aircraft including the C-130J and the C-17s which are also operated by the Indian Air Force.During the ongoing standoff with the Chinese in Eastern Ladakh, the Chinese troops had come to the Line of Actual Control at multiple points including Galwan Valley, Hot Springs, Gogra and Patrolling Point 15 using heavy vehicles including Armoured Personnel Carriers. The Indian Army uses a large number of Russian-origin BMP infantry combat vehicles, which are used by the Mechanised Infantry regiments of the Indian Army in deserts, plains, and high altitude locations.
China’s posturing in Indian Ocean to disturb stability amid Ladakh standoff
Defence and strategic experts on Monday said that China’s posturing in the Indian Ocean will disturb stability and peace in the region. Commandant of National Defence College, Vice-Admiral Pradeep Kaushiva, said that the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) of China has been establishing naval bases in the Indian Ocean for a long time. The PLA Navy may need such bases in large numbers to minimise the geographical distance from China, he said while speaking at a webinar organised by Tillotama Foundation.”In such a scenario, the Indian Ocean is poised for turbulence and I believe it is in the offing,” Vice-Admiral Kaushiva said. He said, “It is time to forge ahead with the Quad security dialogue – comprising the US, Japan, Australia and India – to check the rise of expansionist China and protect the security of the region”. In November 2017, the four countries gave shape to the “Quad” or Quadrilateral coalition to develop a new strategy to keep the critical sea routes in the Indo-Pacific free of any influence. David Brewster of Australian National University (ANU) said that China’s approach to the Indian Ocean is political and strategic. Brewster is a Senior Research Fellow with the National Security College at the ANU, where he specialises in South Asian and Indian Ocean strategic affairs. He said, “There has been a significant deterioration in the relationship between Australia and China in the last six months as our country hailed the need for an independent inquiry into the COVID crisis”. Subsequently, Beijing had imposed sanctions against Australia, he said. However, China needs Australian resources like iron ore for which the balance of trade was not in China’s favour, Brewster said. He said that there are growing concerns about China’s influence in the Indian Ocean and it is time to make Quad a credible grouping. According to him, the COVID crisis will substantially change the economics of Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). The BRI is a multi-billion-dollar initiative launched by Chinese President Xi Jinping when he came to power in 2013. It aims to link Southeast Asia, Central Asia, the Gulf region, Africa and Europe with a network of land and sea routes. Jayanath Colombage, additional secretary to the President and former commander of Sri Lankan Navy, said that his country is not happy about what is taking place in the Indian Ocean. He said that the Hambantota port, in which China has 85 per cent stake, is a Sri Lankan Port and not a Chinese one. “We will not allow anyone to use a single inch of our land for military purposes which might pose a security threat to India,” he added.
India strengthens troop presence in northern Ladakh, heavy tank deployment to tackle Chinese threat
In response to China’s deployment of more than 17,000 troops and armoured vehicles opposite Daulat Beg Oldi (DBO) and Depsang plains in Ladakh, India has made heavy deployment of troops and tank regiments in the area to counter any misadventure by the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) there. “We have done a very heavy deployment of troops and tanks in the DBO and Depsang plains area including the T-90 regiments which are part of an armoured division,” government sources told ANI. The deployments have been made from the Patrolling Point 1 near the Karakoram Pass (PP-3) to the Depsang plains where the Chinese have amassed more than 17,000 troops since April-May time frame and have been blocking Indian patrols from PP-10 to PP-13, sources said. The armoured deployment is such that the Chinese would find it difficult to operate there, in case, they try out any misadventure, they said. Before the Chinese started build-up opposite the DBO and Depsang, the entire area was looked after by a mountain brigade and an armoured brigade but today more than 15,000 troops and several tank regiments have been moved there both by road and by air to tackle the threat from China, sources said.One of the major intentions of the Chinese in this area has been to build a road from its TWD battalion headquarters opposite the DBO sector to the Karakoram pass area and connect the battalion there. The connectivity plan, which has been foiled in the past, will allow the two Chinese units to reach other in a matter of a couple of hours against the 15-hour drive through the Highway G219 in their territory, sources said. A small bridge was put up by the Chinese inside Indian territory on a nala (drain) near PP-7 and PP-8 but it was broken by Indian soldiers a few years ago, sources said. At present, India and China are engaged in a dialogue focusing on disengagement from Finger area and other friction points but Chinese build up along the LAC in Depsang plains and DBO area has not yet been taken up in the military talks. At present, we are in a position of strength in the Depsang Plains and DBO area now and we are not in a hurry to discuss that with the Chinese. Let the disengagement first take place and then we can talk about de-escalation there also, sources said. On Sunday, India and China held Corps Commander-level talks at Moldo on the Chinese side of LAC to discuss disengagement. The Chinese had earlier agreed for complete disengagement at Galwan valley, PP-15, Hot Springs and Gogra along with Finger area near Pangong Tso lake. However, China stopped honouring their commitment after initial disengagement in Finger area and is now wanting to build an observation post at Finger 5. This has been rejected by India which has clearly stated that it will have to disengage completely and restore the status quoted existing in April/May 2020.
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