ILYUSHIN IL-38 MAY

Type: Long range maritime patrol aircraft.
Aircraft delivered to date: IN301 (1977)
...................................IN302 (1977) - air accident on 01 October 2002
...................................IN303 (1977) - upgraded to 'SD' standard
...................................IN304 (1983) - air accident on 01 October 2002
...................................IN305 (1983) - upgraded to 'SD' standard
...................................IN30? (to be delivered)
...................................IN30? (to be delivered)

Dimensions (External): Wingspan - 37.42 metres (122.9 feet).
..............................Length (overall) - 36.9 metres (129.1 feet).
..............................Height (overall) - 10.7 metres (33.4 feet).
Engine: The IL-38 has four 3125kW (4190 ehp) Ivchenko Al-20M turboprops, driving four blade propellers.
Accommodation: The IL-38 has a flight crew of three personnel, which includes a Pilot, a Co-Pilot and a Flight Engineer. The operational crew is believed to be nine personnel, which includes a tactical coordinator, sensor operators, a MAD (Magnetic Anomaly Detector) operator and observers.
Operational Speed: 347 knots (645 km/h).
Service Ceiling: 32,800 ft. (10,000 meters).
Range: 3887 nautical miles (7200 km).
Sensors: The IL-38 has a search & attack radar (NATO: Wet Eye), a MAD (magnetic anomaly detector) system, an ESM (electronic support measures) system and numerous active & passive sonobuoys.
Weapons: The IL-38 can carry torpedoes, FAB 250 freefall bombs and depth charges. The aircraft has been retrofitted to carry the Sea Eagle AShM.
Role: Shore-based, long-range ASW recon into the Indian Ocean.
Comments: The IL-38s formally entered service with the Indian Navy on 01 October 1977, with the commissioning of INAS 315 Winged Stallions at INS Hansa in Dabolim, Goa. The squadron was formed with just three aircraft in 1977 and two more examples joined the squadron in 1983. The first three aircraft were from ex-AV-MF (Russia's Naval Air Force) stocks and latter two aircraft could also have been acquired from the same source, but that is yet to be confirmed beyond reliable doubt. The IL-38s regularly fly 10 - 12 hour endurance sorties over the Arabian Sea and have proved to be reliable in the roles of maritime reconnaissance (MR), anti-submarine warfare (ASW) and search & rescue (SAR). A tragic mid-air crash occurred on 01 October 2002, during the squadron's silver jubilee celebrations. A pair of IL-38s (IN-302 and IN-304), which were flying parallel to each other, clashed and suffered a mid-air collision above the airport. All aircrew aboard both aircraft were killed and both aircraft were also destroyed.
The Indian Navy launched an upgrade program to extend the life of the IL-38 maritime patrol aircraft and a contract was signed in September 2002 to refit five aircraft. Leninets Institute of Russia was given the task of fitting the Morskoy Zmei (Sea Dragon) multi-mission avionics & electronic warfare suite and Ilyushin first checks & upgrades the airframes and engines prior to fitting the Sea Dragon system, designed by Leninets. Due to the loss of two aircraft, Russia has donated two additional aircraft free of charge from ex-AV-MF (Russia's Naval Air Force) stocks. The first aircraft (IN-305) flew to Russia for the upgrade in March 2002 and returned to India on 15 January 2006. This modernization will allow the aircraft to remain operational for 15 years. The aircraft are flown from India to Russia where the refits take place. The upgraded aircraft go by the designation IL-38SD and costs US $35 million per aircraft.
The fully digital Sea Dragon suite is designed to detect & intercept surface vessels and submarines, as well as detect mines and carry out surveillance. It can track more than 30 targets at one time from a distance of up to 320 kilometers. The suite can also detect airborne targets and can be linked to the Russian Glonass satellite navigation system. It encompasses a new synthetic-aperture/inverse-synthetic-aperture radar located in a canoe fairing on the belly, a high-resolution FLIR (forward-looking infra-red) sensor, a LLTV (low-light television) camera, a new ESM (electronic-support-measures) system and a new MAD (magnetic anomaly detector) system in the aft section of the aircraft. The IL-38s will also be fitted with radio-frequency and infrared sensors, as well as decoys. Indian elements are a key part of the upgrade with DRDO (Defence Research and Development Organisation) supplying the aircraft's new electronic intelligence system, electronic countermeasures station system, digital firing decoys and radio communication system. The addition of the R-73RDM2 short-range, air-to-air missile is also being contemplated.