Pakistan gets first AWACS aircraft from Sweden.

Yes US wants to have PAF with capability just to defend itself giving KC would have given them capability to fight wars well beyond their borders.

smpratik wrote:Meanwhile which PAF birds could be refueled in mid air ?? Do their F-16's have such capability??

It's old news http://www.defence.pk/forums/military-photos-multimedia/30999-first-paf-refueling-prototype.html

Have seen other pics of PAF Mirage with refuelling probe, it's safe to assume that the same probe can be retrofitted to F-16s UNLESS uncle is extremely angry with pakistani's tinkering with the loaned toys.
But in war be sure that they will be carrying the probe.

Added later : JF-17 is another candidate for such a fix at later date.

Cheers....

So currently the Il-78 is refueling only the prototypes ?????

Prototype?

And where is pergrine? Did he run away

IL-78 can AR FC-20,Mirages and JF-17s.
and for F-16s PAF is looking at boom equipped A-310 MRTT and surplus KC-135 from US airforce.

Peregrine wrote:and for F-16s PAF is looking at boom equipped A-310 MRTT and surplus KC-135 from US airforce.

Peregrine can you provide a link for it. Just want to know whether there is any official enquiry/anouncement from pakistan/other party or is it just the wishlist of armchairs.

Cheers....

neerajb wrote:

Peregrine wrote:and for F-16s PAF is looking at boom equipped A-310 MRTT and surplus KC-135 from US airforce.

Peregrine can you provide a link for it. Just want to know whether there is any official enquiry/anouncement from pakistan/other party or is it just the wishlist of armchairs.

Cheers....

ISLAMABAD - Pakistan has sought to improve its air mobility capability as international commitments and domestic operations have grown. To date, this has mainly consisted of ex-Australian C-130E Hercules transports. However, beginning next year, programs to renew and expand current abilities should begin to come to fruition.

The most high-profile aspect of Pakistan's air mobility modernization is the Pakistan Air Force Multi-Role Tanker Transport (MRTT) program. Four Il-78 Midas aircraft from the Ukraine, equipped with a three-point drogue refueling system, will introduce this capability.

Though an Air Force spokesman could not verify the exact variant on order, he did confirm it was the tanker/transport and not the pure tanker version of the Midas.

Its 22,000-kilogram cargo capacity will bring considerable airlift capabilities, akin to the highly versatile Il-76 Candid, on which the Midas is based. The first aircraft is due to arrive early next year, he said.

The Air Force also is exploring the acquisition of tanker/transport aircraft from other sources. One reason is that the Il-78 is not equipped with a boom refueling facility, and therefore is unable to refuel the Air Force's most potent combat aircraft, the F-16. To rectify this, the Air Force is exploring the possibility of acquiring surplus U.S. KC-135 Stratotankers.

During an appearance before the U.S. House of Representatives Foreign Affairs subcommittee on South Asia on Sept. 16, Donald Camp, principal deputy assistant secretary for South Asian affairs, stated that the United States is "finalizing a comprehensive training plan" to help Pakistan with its F-16 operations, including aerial refueling.

No clarification from American military sources, however, was forthcoming on whether this would also include surplus Stratotankers.

According to defense analyst Haris Khan of the Web-based think tank Pakistan Military Consortium, Pakistan has also examined alternatives to the KC-135. European defense group EADS "has been talking to [the Air Force] to supply Airbus A330 MRTTs. However, the [Air Force] has been insisting on an MRTT capability built on an A310, which is no longer in production."

The reason for insistence on the A310 is Pakistan International Airline's long experience with the A310-300, he said. There may therefore be a more attractive long-term option to the KC-135.

Improvements in air mobility are not restricted to MRTTs. Pakistan is also establishing an airborne division. The Army has long sought to improve its air mobility, which has traditionally been a weak spot. The Army needs to support operations in the Siachen Glacier and Kashmir theaters of operations, in the ongoing standoff with archrival India; against al-Qaida and the Taliban on the Pakistan-Afghanistan frontier; and right down to the coastal areas.

http://www.defensenews.com/story.php?i=3801474

Thanks.

The reason for insistence on the A310 is Pakistan International Airline's long experience with the A310-300, he said. There may therefore be a more attractive long-term option to the KC-135.

Even the IAF is considering A310 for itself.

@Pratik...based on the comments on page 3
Why argue on irrelevant topics with Iron ( Lady ??- Hell no) aka Peregrine's female avatar.
Good thing you got back on the topic.

Anup wrote:@Pratik...based on the comments on page 3
Why argue on irrelevant topics with Iron ( Lady ??- Hell no) aka Peregrine's female avatar.
Good thing you got back on the topic.

Thanks bro, i just went out of line and i very rarely engage in stupid Indo-Paki thing.Looks like Academic pressure is gettin better of me. Thanks.

Pakistan has now an eye in the sky (Saab-2000 ERIEYE AWE&C )

With the delivery of Sweden’s SAAB AWE&C aircraft Pakistan has gained the capability of having an eye in the sky and advance monitoring system. A formal ceremony on Tuesday will be held to be attended by PAF Chief Air Marshal Rao Qamar Suleman.

Early this month PAF received first of its four Saab 2000 Airborne Early Warning & Control aircraft from Sweden. According to an official media release the aircraft landed at one of the PAF’s Main Operating Bases, marking achievement of a major milestone in the overall modernization plan of PAF.

With the induction of Swedish AEW&C system, PAF has become one of the few air forces in the world to have Airborne Early Warning capability. Saab 2000 Airborne Early Warning & Control aircraft PAF has boosted its operational capability manifold by achieving requisite early warning for efficient & meaningful Air Defence of its airspace.

According to defence experts Saab 2000 AEW&C is an affordable Airborne Early Warning and Control aircraft and key element is the Erieye active phased array side looking surveillance radar which features a detection range of up to 300 km for fighter-sized airborne targets and maritime surveillance mode.

The government of Pakistan and Saab first announced the successful completion of negotiations on June 22, 2006, with the resulting contract, worth approximately SEK 6.9 billion, entering into effect in the second quarter of 2006.

Defence experts say that the ERIEYE AEW&C is the world’s only operational airborne Active Electronically Scanned Array (AESA) radar in service today. The Saab 2000 ERIEYE AEW&C utilises the latest generation ERIEYE radar, now capable of detecting small air targets, hovering helicopters, cruise missiles and small sea targets such as inflatable rubber boats, for a more complete surveillance picture.

ERIEYE is the first high-performance, long-range Airborne Early Warning & Control (AEW&C) system based on active phased-array pulse-Doppler radar.

This new-generation system can be installed in a variety of commercial and military aircraft, including regional jet or turboprop airliners. It meets full AEW&C requirements for detecting and tracking targets at ranges of up to 450 km over land or water. ERIEYE is part of a complete AEW&C system, including radar with integrated Secondary Surveillance Radar / Identification Friend or Foe (SSR/IFF), electronic support measures, communications and data links, comprehensive command-and-control facilities and self-protection system.

The ERIEYE radar, with its fixed electronically scanned antenna and use of adaptive radar control techniques, has superior resolution accuracy. When compared to traditional rotodome-based solutions, it provides enhanced detection and tracking performance, including the active simultaneous tracking of multiple targets. In addition, the radar offers significantly improved resistance to Electronic Counter Measures (ECM).

The state-of-the-art command-and-control system gives the on-board mission-system crew full capability for AEW&C roles as well as maximum flexibility for other peacetime and war missions. ERIEYE is fully interoperable with and easily integrated into NATO Air Defence Command Systems.

The Saab 2000 AEW&C airborne early warning and control aircraft is a variant of the Saab 2000 regional transport turboprop aircraft equipped with the spine-mounted Saab Systems Erieye PS-890 side-looking reconnaissance radar.

The first customer for the Saab 2000 AEW&C, the Pakistan Fiza’ya (the Pakistan Air Force), placed the order on Saab, based in Stockholm, in June 2006. The first of five aircraft was rolled out in April 2008 and is scheduled to enter service in 2009. Thailand announced the selection of the Saab 2000 AEW&C in June 2007.

The aircraft, fully equipped for airborne early warning and control, can also be used for national security missions, border control, airborne command and control, disaster management coordination and for emergency air traffic control.“The Saab 2000 airborne early warning and control aircraft is a variant of the Saab 2000 regional transport turboprop aircraft.”

The Erieye radar has an instrumental range of 450 km and detection range of 350 km against a fighter aircraft sized target in dense hostile electronic warfare environments and at low target altitudes. The system is capable of tracking multiple air and sea target over the horizon and provides above 20 km altitude coverage, 360° coverage and has sea surveillance capability.

The radar incorporates an identification friend or foe interrogator. The system comprises an active phased array pulse Doppler radar with a secondary surveillance radar.The fixed dual sided electronically scanned antenna array is installed in a rectangular housing, dorsally mounted above the fuselage.

The aircraft’s electronic warfare suite is based on the Saab Avitronics HES-21 electronic support measures (ESM) and self-protection suite. The HES-21 also provides a ground-based support system (EGSS), which provides mission data for the aircraft electronic warfare system and for analysis of recorded data.