India, Russia Sign $960 Million Mig-29 Contract

India signed a $960 million contract with Russia to upgrade the Mig-29 fighter jets inducted into the Indian Air Force in the mid-1980s, the Times of India reported, citing an unidentified defense ministry official.

The plan will help the Indian Air Force extend the life of its 69 Mig-29 aircraft to 40 years from the present 25 years, the newspaper said.

The upgrade, to be completed within three years, will involve addition of the multi-functional ZhukME radar and a new weapons control system, the report said.

The first six Mig-29s will be upgraded in Russia while the rest be done at the Indian Air Force base in the western Indian city of Nasik, the newspaper said.

Russia to Supply 80 Mi-17 Hip-H Helicopters to Indian Air Force

The Indian Air Force said on Thursday that India will soon sign a contract with Russia to receive 80 Mi-17 Hip-H multirole helicopters. Air Chief Marshal Fali Homi Major said preparations for signing the contract are now in their final stages. The deal is estimated at $1 billion.

Indian media earlier reported that the contract was under threat over Russia's attempt to significantly raise the delivery price, and that negotiations were stalling. A preliminary agreement to sell Mi-17 helicopters to India was reached in March 2007 at a meeting of the Russian-Indian intergovernmental commission on military cooperation.

The Mi-17 is a version of the Mi-8 airframe. The helicopter has a takeoff weight of 13 metric tons and can carry up to 36 people or a payload of 4 metric tons within the cargo compartment, or 4.5 tons externally. The helicopters have been supplied to 80 countries.