Article Posted on : - Nov 14, 2011

Raytheon-made Paveway weapon system has been integrated with Eurofighter Typhoon which is still vying for the MMRCA deal.

TUCSON, US (PTI): With the US companies out of race for supplying 126 multi-role combat fighters to IAF, defence equipment giant Raytheon has integrated two of its missile systems with Eurofighter Typhoon, which is still vying for the multi-billion dollar contract along with Dassault Rafale.

The all-weather Paveway missile and Advanced Multirole Air-to-Air Missile (AMRAAM) can be integrated with other platforms, a senior official of Raytheon told visiting Indian journalists at one of the company facilities here.

He said the AMRAAM has already been integrated with Eurofighter Typhoon.

The official said the joint stand off weapon (JSOW), developed by Raytheon, can be integrated with both the Eurofighter and Dassault Rafale - the two bidders in competition for the USD 8.50 billion Medium Multi-Role Combat Aircraft (MMRCA) contract.

The JSOW, with a range of 100 kilometres, is a 1000-pound class weapon.

The American company is keen to promote AMRAAM to the IAF as it has "more protection in electronic warfare environment, higher meantime between failure and (relatively) low life cycle costs," the official said.

"AMRAAM can go on the pylons or wing-tips, depending on the type of aircraft. AMRAAM has had nine kills in combat, which is proof of the capability," the official said.

Meanwhile, the IAF has also expressed its interest in High Speed Expendable Aerial Targeting offering the MALD (Miniature Air Launched Decoy).

"We have responded to another IAF Request for Information for MALD. We will now wait for the Request for Project (RFP) from them," the official said.

Asked about the quantity IAF was looking at, he said the IAF had sought price break down of one missile and in the multiples of 100.

The company is pitching it as a missile that can be fitted onto the C130J special forces transport aircraft that the Indian Air Force acquired recently.

A senior official at Raytheon said the company was looking at widening its engagement with India into a full-fledged business relationship.

"We are seeking industrial partners to work with Indian industry. We are looking at the capability of the Indian industry without imposing risk of reliability and performance," Ed Miyashiro, Vice President of Raytheon's Missiles Systems, said.

Under the MMRCA competition, IAF will procure 126 multi-role combat aircraft.

The Defence Ministry has allocated Rs 42,000 crore for the purchase of these aircraft, making it India's single largest defence deal.

The MMRCA tender was floated with the idea of filling the gap between IAF's future Light Combat Aircraft and in-service Su-30MKIs air superiority fighter.