IAF to buy six more Super Hercules

India is going to soon ink yet another $1.2-billion deal with the US for six more C-130J “Super Hercules” military transport aircraft, even as the IAF gears up for intensive training on the first six of these aircraft for “special operations”. The Obama administration on Thursday notified the US Congress about the impending sale of the additional six C-130Js to India, along with spare engines, missile warning systems, advanced radar warning receivers, counter-measures dispensing systems and special operations suites. “This proposed sale will provide India with a credible special operations airlift capability that will help deter aggression in the region and provide enhanced humanitarian assistance and disaster relief,” said the US Defence Security Cooperation Agency. The US has reasons to smile, cornering as it has well over $11 billion worth of sales to India in the military aviation sector alone, despite being ejected out of the $10.4-billion project for 126 MMRCA (medium multi-role combat aircraft). The formal notification for the new contract for six more C-130Js comes at a time, when the IAF is all set to induct the sixth of the first lot of these aircraft — ordered for $1.2 billion in 2008 — at Hindon airbase on the outskirts of national Capital next month. The next six C-130Js will be based at Charbatia in Orissa to cater to the eastern sector. Along with the much-bigger 10 C-17 Globemaster-III strategic airlift aircraft ordered for $4.1 billion — to be inducted between 2013 and 2015 — the dozen C-130Js will boost India’s capabilities to swiftly move troops and equipment to forward areas since the rugged aircraft can even land at makeshift airstrips. This will be crucial in countering China’s massive build-up of military infrastructure all along the 4,057-km Line of Actual Control (LAC), which includes five fully-operational airbases in the Tibet Autonomous Region. Faced with a two-pronged challenge from China and Pakistan, apart from progressively basing Sukhoi-30MKI fighters and missile squadrons in the two theatres, the IAF is upgrading the Nyoma and Kargil airstrips to handle C-130Js and C-17s.