Russia is ready to offer replacement maritime patrol aircraft (MPA) to the Indian navy after a mid-air collision destroyed two Ilyushin Il-38 Mays. The accident raises questions about India's plan to upgrade the Il-38, on which Russia was hoping to base its own Il-38 modernisation.
Last month's accident at an air show in Goa left the navy with only two Il-38s. A third aircraft is in Russia receiving an initial upgrade.
Russian arms sales agency Rosoboron export has already offered two ex-Russian navy Il-38s in a bid to ensure that India proceeds with its upgrade plans.
Ilyushin was contracted last year to provide an Il-38 life extension and install a new mission system, the Leninets Sea Dragon, which integrates radar, forward-looking infrared, electronic support measures and magnetic anomaly detector.
Ilyushin general designer Genrikh Novozhilov says work to extend the airframe life of the Il-18 airliner, from which the Il-38 is derived, to 40 years has been completed, allowing the Russian defence ministry to firm up plans to keep its Il-18s, Il-20s (command posts) and Il-38s for another 10 years.
India's other options include new aircraft, used Tupolev Tu-142s, a Sea Dragon-equipped Il-114 twin-turboprop (which was originally rejected in favour of the Il-38 upgrade), a Tupolev Tu-204P MPA variant, or a version of the Antonov An-74P.
Source: Flight International
