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Why is India buying that junk??? I though they were buying F-16’s and FA-18’s from the US and Israel.

Why is India buying that junk??? I though they were buying F-16’s and FA-18’s from the US and Israel.

A. No sane pilot is going to try to land an F-16 on a carrier deck.

B. With regard to the F-18E, the Mig-29K is

half the price
20% lighter
has a higher thrust to weight ratio (which is essential for and unassiated carrier takeoff)
smaller in overall dimensions
way smaller in folded dimensions (<46½ x <20 vs >60 x >30)
comes with fewer technical and political strings attached

As for the Indian Air Force MMRCA order, if it's not more MiG-29s, I'd be betting on the SAAB J-39NG.

16 posted on 09/23/2008 7:16:25 PM PDT by Oztrich Boy (Does anyone remember the olden days when the US presidential election was boring?)

That junk is pretty much the only thing on the market for the Indian navy. The F-16 is not carrier capable, the Super Hornet is too heavy and the Rafale is too expensive. Moreover, the Russians would have jacked up the price of the carrier, if not cancelled the deal altogether if the IN didn’t buy Russian jets.