Indian Naval Air Arm

The Indian Naval Air Arm is a branch of Indian Navy which is tasked to provide an aircraft carrier based strike capability, fleet air defence, maritime reconnaissance, and anti-submarine warfare.

Flag Officer Naval Aviation (FONA) at Goa appears to direct the field operations of the air arm. FONA also serves as the Navy's Flag Officer Goa Area (FOGA).

History
The first naval air station, INS Garuda, was inaugurated in Cochin on 11 May 1953. This went hand-in-hand with the commissioning of the No.550 Squadron, utilising Short Sealand aircraft. and Fairey Firefly aircraft

1960 saw the No.300 White Tigers Squadron, consisting of Sea Hawks aircraft being commissioned.

In the very next year (1961), INS Vikrant (formerly HMS Hercules) was acquired by the Indian Navy. The Vikrant's initial airwing consisted of British Hawker Sea Hawk fighter-bombers and a French Alize anti-submarine aircraft. On 18 May 1961, the first jet landed on board, piloted by Lieutenant (later Admiral) R H Tahiliani. That year, the No.310 Cobras Squadron (consisting of Alize aircraft ) was commissioned. After playing an important role in several major Indian military actions, specifically the liberation of Goa and the India-Pakistan war in 1971, she was decommissioned in January 1997 and turned into a museum ship.

In 1976, the Indian Air Force handed over Super Constellation aircraft to the No.312 Albatross Squadron in Dabolim, Goa. Being fairly old aircraft at that point, these were withdrawn from active service by 1983. To replace them in the maritime patrol role, Soviet aircraft were acquired. The No. 315 Winged Stallions Squadron was commissioned in 1977 with the Ilyushin Il-38 aircraft.

In December 1961, INS Vikrant participated in Operation Vijay, the liberation of Goa from Portugal. Its role was primarily to deter foreign naval intervention during the 40-hour long military action.

INS Vikrant played a major role in the successful Naval blockade of East Pakistan. Stationed off the Andaman & Nicobar Islands escorted by the Leopard class frigate INS Bramhaputra, as well as INS Beas, the Vikrant redeployed towards Chittagongat the outbreak of hostilities. The morning of 4 December 1971, the eight Sea Hawk aircraft on the Vikrant launched an air raid on Cox's Bazaar from 60 nm away. That evening, the air group struck Chittagong harbour. Other strikes targeted Khulna and Mongla. A PTI message is supposed to have read, "Chittagong harbour abalze as ships and aircraft of the (Pakistan) Eastern Naval Fleet bombed and rocketed. Not a single vessel can be put to sea from Chittagong". Air strikes staged from the Vikrant continued till 10 December 1971.

Given naval intelligence that indicated the intent of the Pakistan Navy to break through the Indian Naval blockade using camouflaged merchant ships, the Vikrant's Sea Hawks struck shipping in the Chittagong and Cox's Bazar harbours, sinking or incapacitating most merchant ships there.

The Hughes 269 helicopter was previously in service for training.

The Naval Aviation Museum located in Bogmalo, 6 km from Vasco da Gama, Goa, India showcases the history of the Naval Air Arm.

Mikoyan MiG-29K
The Mikoyan MiG-29K program was revived by Russia in response to the decision of the Indian Navy to acquire the Soviet aircraft carrier Admiral Gorshkov. As reported by MiG Bureau, the Indian Navy's association with the MiG-29K began in Apr 2002 when a team led by Commander Gupta reached Moscow to evaluate the MiG-29K prototype for possible induction into the Indian Navy. The Team evaluated the aircraft on ground as well as in the air (the flight evaluation was conducted by a Navy Test Pilot Commander Ahuja). Some other aircraft were also evaluated but the MiG-29K was chosen. On 20 January 2004, the Indian Navy signed a contract for 12 single-seat MiG-29K and 4 two-seat MiG-29KUB. The first MIG-29K for the Indian Navy took flight on 22 January 2007. The MIG-29 KUB (two seat trainer) is similar to the MIG-29K but with reduced operational range. The aircraft will be fielded on the aircraft carrier INS Vikramaditya.

The first squadron, INAS 303, christened "Black Panthers", was commissioned on 11 May 2013. The delivery of the aircraft to the Indian Navy started in 2009, and by May 2012, 15 had been inducted, with 29 more to be delivered.

The fighter plane is different from the MiG-29 flown by Indian Air Force. The aircraft has been modified for aircraft carrier operation by hardening the undercarriage. It also has much better 'over-the-nose' vision to make it easy to land aboard a carrier at a high angle of attack. Modifications made for Indian Navy requirement featured Zhuk-ME radar, RD-33MK engine, combat payload up to 5,500 kg, 13 hardpoints (inclusive of the multi-lock bomb carriers), additional fuel tanks situated in dorsal spine fairing and wing LERXs, increased total fuel capacity by 50% comparing to first variant of MiG-29 and an updated 4-channel digital fly-by-wire flight control system. With special coatings, the MiG-29K radar reflecting surface is 4–5 times smaller than of basic MiG-29. Cockpit displays consist of wide HUDs, 3 colour LCD MFDs (7 on the MiG-29KUB), a French Sigma-95 satellite GPS module and Topsight E helmet-mounted targeting system compatible with the full range of weapons carried by the MiG-29M and MiG-29SMT.

BAE Sea Harrier
The BAE Sea Harrier operates from the INS Viraat. The BAE Sea Harrier FRS Mk.51 / T Mk.60 fly with the INAS 300 and INAS 552 squadrons of the Indian Navy. They were first acquired by the Indian Navy in the mid-1980s. After years of undergoing maintenance in the UK, the Indian Navy launched Project Ashok to set up a maintenance facility in Kochi in 1994. India expressed interest in buying some surplus FRS.2 Sea Harrier when the Royal Navy decommissioned them, but British Government did not accept to sell them with the Blue Vixen radar.

A mid-life upgrade in 1999 for this aircraft was cancelled when the decision was made to purchase MiG-29K air defence fighters, to be deployed aboard the INS Vikramaditya (formerly Admiral Gorshkov). The Sea Harriers are armed with the Matra Magic-II AAM and the Sea Eagle Anti-ship missiles. The aircraft were upgraded with the Elta EL/M-2032 radar and the Rafael Derby BVRAAM missiles. Though the Sea Harriers were expected to remain in service with the Indian Navy till 2012–15, limited upgrades are being performed on these Sea Harriers by Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL), to extend the life of the aircraft by 15 years.

Boeing P-8I Neptune
New Delhi and Boeing have signed a $2.1 billion contract to deliver 12 P-8I Neptune for anti-submarine operations. The new aircraft will replace a fleet of Russian-manufactured Tupolev-142M planes. P-8I varies from the P-8A, with the Magnetic anomaly detector (MAD) has been kept intact while an aft-mounted radar provides 360-degree aerial radar surveillance capability. Many of the communication and other devices on-board are developed by Bharat Electronics Limited. The first plane was commissioned in to the force to be followed by rest of them.

Tupolev Tu-142
The Indian Navy operates eight Tu-142 aircraft, which entered service in 1988. Upgrading of the aircraft are taking place, which helps to extend the service life of the aircraft by sixteen years. One of the upgraded aircraft has been handed over to the Indian Navy. The aircraft operate from INS Rajali and INS Hansa. Two Tu-142 aircraft are being fitted with the air-launched version of the BrahMos. The aircraft will be the test platform for the BrahMos cruise missiles. The integration and tests of the missile is expected to be completed by 2010. Eight aircraft will be fitted with the BrahMos cruise missiles.

Ilyushin Il-38
Indian Navy operates 5 Il-38 planes. Currently they are being upgraded to use Sea Dragon suite.

Helicopters
HAL Dhruv Developed by Hindustan Aeronautics Limited, the Navy received its first Dhruvs on 28 March 2002. It is expected to receive a total of 120 units to replace the Chetak helicopters in service. The naval variant is fitted with the Super Vision-2000 maritime radar, capable of detecting targets with low radar cross section at a range of 200 km. The anti-submarine version of the helicopter is fitted with dunking sonar, torpedoes, depth charges. The helicopter may also be fitted with the missiles for anti-ship roles. However in 2008, Indian Navy pronounced Dhruv unsuitable for its role as an ASW platform. Indian Navy will continue to procure Dhruv as a multi-role utility platform.

Kamov Ka-25 Hormone, Kamov Ka-28 Helix-A, and the Kamov Ka-31 Helix-B: The KA-25 was acquired by the Indian Navy in 1980 for anti-submarine warfare, but had severe technological limitations. The KA-28 were acquired in the mid-80s, and were said to be a quantum leap over their predecessors from an ASW standpoint. The KA-31 takes the Kamov capabilities even further by enabling real-time network-centric warfare for the Indian Navy.

Westland Sea King and the Sikorsky SH-3 Sea King: Used principally for anti-submarine warfare (ASW) and search & rescue roles, the helicopter fleet operate from INS Garuda (Kochi) as well as INS Kunjali-II (Mumbai) air stations. US sanctions on India in response to India's nuclear tests resulted in a large part of the Sea King fleet being grounded for want of spare parts. Seventeen of the Sea King helicopters will be upgraded. The upgrade will feature day and night capability, capability to work in adverse weather conditions, integration of two anti-ship missiles with a range of fifty kilometres and a new radar.

Aérospatiale SA 316 Alouette III: Also known as the Chetak, these choppers have seen active service in the Navy as well as the Coast Guard. They are carried on several combatant as well as non-combatant ships. They are also operated from and maintained at the INS Kunjali-II and INS Utkrosh Naval Air Stations in Mumbai and Port Blair respectively.

UAVs
The Indian Navy operates at least two squadrons of Heron and Searcher Mk-II UAVs, based in Kochi (INAS 342) and Porbandar (INAS 343). There are plans to have at least two more squadrons of UAVs. UAVs are controlled from ships to increases the range of surveillance. There are plans to introduce rotary UAVs into the Indian Navy. These UAVs will have higher endurance and load carrying capability resulting in better reconnaissance capabilities.

Future of the Naval Air Arm



 * HAL Tejas:The naval variant of the Tejas will have strengthened landing gear and other necessary modifications for service on an aircraft carrier. Two Naval prototypes will be built, the NP-1 (Naval Prototype-1) which will be a two seat variant and NP-2 (Naval Prototype-2), a single seat variant for carrier operations. The Tejas was expected to be delivered before 2012. The first flight of NP-1 was expected to take place by the end of 2008 but the carrier trials was delayed due to the delay in the delivery schedule of INS Vikramaditya. Hence the trials were to be carried out at the SBTF (Shore-based Test Facility) under construction at the naval airbase INS Hansa in Goa. Indian Navy plans to operate two squadrons (40 aircraft) of carrier borne Tejas aircraft from the two aircraft carries, INS Vikramaditya and INS Vikrant.Navy chief expecting if F-35 AIR craft deal will be made with USA,It will be better. Indian navy has placed an order for six Naval LCAs. At an approximate cost of inr 1500000000 per aircraft, the Naval LCA programme will be provided inr 9000000000. The Navy has a requirement of 50–60 Tejas aircraft.•	A joint working group to explore modalities for taking forward Japan’s offer of the US-2 amphibious aircraft.

The first Naval prototype NP-1, was rolled out in July 2010. NP-1, which is currently undergoing taxi trials, was expected to make its first flight by July 2011.


 * Medium Range Maritime Reconnaissance Aircraft: The Indian Navy issued an RFP for six medium-range maritime reconnaissance (MRMR) aircraft. The possible contenders are ATR-72MP/ ATR-42MP, EADS C-295MPA/C-235MPA, Dassault's Falcon 900MPA and Embraer P-99A platforms. The procurement number has been enhanced to 9 as per news reports in February 2012.


 * 17 Hawk Trainer


 * HAL HJT-36 two aircraft to be commissioned in 2013 and the rest in later year.


 * 20 ASW Helicopters (to replace Sea King), extended to 60 helicopters


 * 15 NAL Saras aircraft have been ordered, mostly to replace the Dornier Do-228. The Navy has a requirement for 25 Saras aircraft and design changes are being conducted on the aircraft for using it in maritime environment. The Naval Saras will start delivery by 2014.


 * 40 Unmanned helicopters. This helicopter is under development and will be based on the HAL-built Cheetah helicopters.


 * 56 naval utility helicopters are planned to be inducted from 2016. These will be used for surveillance, anti-submarine warfare, electronic intelligence gathering and search and rescue operations. In August 2012, an RFP was issued to AgustaWestland, Bell Helicopter, Boeing, Eurocopter, Kamov and Sikorsky for the helicopters, 3 simulators, 28 spare engines and associated equipment. The value of the contract is expected to be US$1 billion. These helicopters will have two engines, have a maximum weight of 4,500 kg and will be capable of operating from warship decks. The helicopters will be equipped with 70mm rocket launchers, 12.7mm guns, lightweight torpedoes and depth charges.


 * 50 light helicopters

Structure
Flag Officer Naval Avition (FONA) controls training, maintenance and other functions of naval aviation. Aircraft yards at Kochi, Kerala and Dabolim, Goa are responsible for maintaining the fleet's air arm. An exclusive base, INS Shikra for helicopters was commissioned in Mumbai.

To protect and preserve India's growing trade with Southeast Asia and offer a defence against increasing Chinese naval presence in the Bay of Bengal, a new naval base is being built near Visakhapatnam. It is expected to be capable of harbouring two aircraft carriers, including the planned new Vikrant-class aircraft carrier. There are two more naval air stations, INS Rajali and INS Parundu in Tamil Nadu.

Southern Command has at least one airfield, INS Garuda, in Kochi, Kerala. The Hindu reported on 2 February 2009 that a new airbase will be set up in Muscat, Oman to tackle piracy in the Gulf of Aden. Three years later in 2012 it is not clear whether any action has been taken on this proposal. The southernmost naval air station, INS Bazz was formally opened on 31 July 2012 by the Chief of the Indian Navy at Cambell Bay in Andaman and Nicobar Islands. With the commissioning of this station, the country acquired increased capability to keep vigil on the vital maritime channel of the Straits of Malacca.