Russia offering Su-30s to Ethiopia

Russia is offering 18 ex-Indian Air Force Su-30MKI fighters to Ethiopia, which already operates a number of Su-27 models.

Rosoboronexport deputy general director Alexander Mikheyev said on Friday that Ethiopia was interested in acquiring the Su-30MKIs. "We are in consultation with Ethiopia about a possible sale of these aircraft. We proposed to modernise them in order to improve their tactical and technical characteristics and equip modern air-to-ground missiles," RIA Novosti quoted him as saying.

“If the customer is willing to fund operations, we are ready to make repairs, upgrade and deliver the aircraft within four to six months,” Mikheyev said. At present, four ex-Indian Su-30MKIs are being refurbished.

India has ordered more than 200 Su-30MKIs in a number of batches. The early models delivered were basic aircraft without features like canards and thrust vector controls, and it is these 18 early model aircraft (ten Su-30MK and eight Su-30K fighters) that were returned to Russia in 2003 and replaced with more advanced Su-30s.

Last year, at the time of the September Africa Aerospace and Defence show held outside Pretoria, Mikheyev said that Russia was ready to export Su-30s to Africa, especially to countries like Uganda, Angola and Ethiopia. Angola received six Su-30MK2 multirole fighters last year and may buy another six.

Ethiopia has a relatively well equipped, trained and maintained air force, which is one of the most capable on the continent. Its fixed wing combat fleet includes roughly a dozen MiG-21s, a dozen MiG-23s, eight Su-25s and a dozen Su-27s. The SU-27s were bought in the late 1990s and used in combat against Eritrean MiG-29s.

Low, Fast And Out Of Control

In late August a video began appearing on the Internet showing a Su-24 fighter-bomber flying above a highway in southern Russia, at an altitude of under 100 meters (310 feet). By the end of August military prosecutors said they were on the case. But TV interviews of former Russian pilots said training was often done at low altitudes, as that was how you could avoid being detected by anti-aircraft radar. But this sort of thing is not supposed to be done in populated areas, especially in a Su-24. That's because these aircraft are very old and are crashing more often. One went down last February 13th, and the next day all Russian Su-24s were grounded until the cause of the crash could be determined. This sort of thing is becoming increasingly common. In the last 12 years Russia has lost sixteen Su-24s to accidents. Many more have been retired because of old age. This is one of the reasons Russia is hustling to replace the Su-24s with Su-34s.

It was only four years ago that Russia began building the first (of 20) Su-34 fighter-bombers. These are now replacing the 43 ton Su-24s. The 45 ton Su-34 is yet another variant of the 33 ton Su-27 and is very similar to the 36 ton U.S. F-15E (a two seat fighter-bomber version of the 31 ton F-15C). But Russia still has about 400 Su-24s in service and only twenty Su-34s. It appears that the new Su-34s will not arrive quickly enough to replace most of the elderly Su-24s.

The Su-34 has a full set of defensive and offensive sensors (radars, targeting cameras, laser designators) and electronic warfare gear. It also can carry eight tons of missiles and smart bombs. Russia is currently planning to get 58 Su-34s to replace 300 older Su-24s (most of these are not fit for service). Russia is building the first 24 Su-34s at a cost of $36 million each (less than half the cost of an F-15E).

Meanwhile, some of the more recently built Su-24s were upgraded as the Su-24M2 standard. Most of the Su-24s built are over 25 years old and many have been grounded several times recently because of age related problems. The Su-34 has been in the works for several years and earlier versions of two-seater Su-27 bombers were known as the Su-32.

Talk of the Day -- China forms missile brigade for South China Sea

China has set up a new missile brigade in its southern province of Guangdong as part of a "shock and awe" strategy to deter other countries with claims to the South China Sea from challenging its dominance in the region, a local newspaper reported Monday.

Citing sources familiar with the matter, the United Daily News said the new 827 Ballistic Missile Brigade is based in Guangdong's Shaoguan City.

While the brigade's administrative building was still under construction at the end of March, missile launch vehicles had been posted at the Shaoguan base, the report said.

Missiles installed at the base might include Dongfeng (DF)-21D anti-ship ballistic missiles and Dongfeng-16 -- a new type of ballistic missile that has a longer range than anything in China's current cross-Taiwan Strait arsenal, according to the report.

The exposure of the new Chinese missile brigade came amid increasingly active efforts by Vietnam and the Philippines to ramp up their sovereignty claims to South China Sea island groups, the report said.

The following is an excerpt from the United Daily News report on China's "shock and awe" strategy to underscore its claim to the South China Sea:

Satellite images on the Internet show that the new base covers a large area, with a number of missile launch vehicles parked outside a hangar at the northeastern wing of the base.

Some vehicles stand 16 meters long and are mounted with cylindrical tubes, while others stand some 12 meters long with square-shaped tubes that look like those used for a new type of ballistic missile unveiled by the People's Liberation Army (PLA) earlier this year.

Military experts said the new missile base is equipped with DF-21D anti-ship missiles that have a range of 2,000-3,000 km and are potentially capable of hitting moving targets with pinpoint precision.

Some geopolitical analysts have called DF-21D missile a "game changer" that could threaten the U.S. aircraft carrier fleet's supremacy in the Pacific, particularly if conflict breaks out in the Taiwan Strait or in the South China Sea.

The new DF-16 has a range of about 1,200 km and possesses considerable destructive power, military experts said.

Judging from Shaoguan's geographic location, they said, the 827 Missile Brigade is apparently charged with the mission of intimidating Taiwan and countries bordering the South China Sea.

For instance, Hanoi, Vietnam's capital, is less than 1,000 km away from Shaoguan. If a conflict breaks out between China and Vietnam over their conflicting claims to the South China Sea island groups, the 827 Missile Brigade could include Hanoi as a target.

Besides China, five other countries -- Taiwan, Vietnam, the Philippines, Malaysia and Brunei -- also claim full or partial sovereignty over the South China Sea island groups and surrounding waters, which are believed to be rich in oil and gas reserves and are close to one of the world's busiest sea lanes.

Vietnam and the Philippines have also become increasingly assertive in their South China Sea claims.

After a two-month-long standoff in the Scarborough Shoal between the Philippines and China ended because of adverse weather in late June, the Philippine government has opened a small kindergarten on another islet, Pagasa Island (known as Chungyeh Island in Mandarin Chinese) in the Spratlys.

In the meantime, Vietnam has purchased a large quantity of naval and aerial weaponry from Russia and deployed Su-27 jet fighters to inspect the Spratlys recently.

Moreover, Vietnam passed a maritime law in June that claims sovereignty and jurisdiction over the Paracel and Spratly islandsin the South China Sea. Taiwan has protested such a move