The scandalous story about the supply of low-quality deck-based MiG-29K fighters to India was continued. The Indian Navy, desperate to correct the problems of these machines, refused to use them. This is reported authoritative edition of Defense News. According to the source of the author of the article, the MiG-29K and MiG-29KUB were literally “permeated with problems”. The Indian military is particularly depressed that, having made such a decision, they were left almost without deck-mounted attack aircraft. They are especially indignant at the fact that the Russian manufacturer refuses to repair low-quality goods free of charge - in this they see a violation of business ethics.
Earlier, in the summer of 2016, Newsader wrote about serious problems with Russian aircraft in the Indian Air Force. However, he referred to the official report of the Indian regulatory authorities. It was reported that almost all deck-based aircraft purchased from Russia were unsuitable not only for combat but also for normal operation.
Recall that we are talking about combat vehicles MiG-29K and MiG-29KUB, supplied by the Indian Navy from 2004 to 2010.
What is wrong with the MiGs?
Defense News journalists have reported that the Indian Navy is faced with the serious problem of maintaining and repairing 45 MiG-29K carrier-based fighters, which are the main force of the Vikramaditya aircraft carrier. This was stated by one of the senior Indian military.
"It is required that the MiG-29K be reliable during operations. Now its landing on the deck of an aircraft carrier looks almost like a hard landing. The fighter needs frequent repairs. Because of such landings, structural defects are constantly manifested," the source said. Landing on deck is the root of all aircraft problems. Every time after such a landing, the Indians have to remove the power plant from a fighter.
There are other serious flaws in the aircraft. Complaints caused by the quality of manufacturing gliders, as well as the work of the EDSU There are also complaints about the simulator training program where Indian pilots learn to fly. According to experts, it is absolutely unsuitable for use. But the most problematic is the power plant of the car: since February 2010, when the MiG-29 was put into operation, 40 engines (62%) were withdrawn from service due to factory defects.
According to the official representatives of the Ministry of Defense of India, without technical assistance from the manufacturer, they will not be able to correct the situation with the MiG-29.
However, as noted by Defense News, in the amount of the contract, which is 2.2 billion dollars, maintenance is not included. But, apart from official commitments, there are ethical aspects as well, at least, the Indian military believes. Arun Prakash, the ex-admiral of the Indian Navy, expressed them quite directly: "The truth is that the Indian Navy actually financed the development of this aircraft. If the Russians had at least some conscience, they guaranteed that every shortcoming would be eliminated without surcharges ", - quotes his edition.
All of the above led to the fact that last year, India began to search for a new multi-role fighter, which will be equipped with aircraft carriers. This opportunity was immediately interested in the world's largest manufacturers: Boeing with its Superhorn, the French with Rafale M and the Swedish Saab with its Gripen Maritime. And this is not surprising: in recent years, India is one of the largest buyers of weapons on the world market. Despite the epic failure, Russia again offered the Indian sailors MiG-29K.
