The IN, having accepted the already upgraded IL-38SDs as interim solution, may be looking for a long-term solution to enhance its maritime reconnaissance and attack capabilities. This is where Boeing’s P-8I and EADS’ Airbus A319 step in.

Unprecedented and unabated economic growth witnessed over the last one decade has propelled India to the frontline of regional and global economic powers. With a growth rate almost at par with that of China, India is fast emerging as a Regional Power in Asia and the India Ocean Region (IOR). Together with the regional influence that India is perceived to exert, come the attendant responsibilities. That the country’s regional commitments extend from the Gulf of Hormuz to the Malacca Straits has not only been reiterated by the Prime Minister, Dr Manmohan Singh, on various occasions but has been also echoed by other nations. For example, amid the din of warning bells over mounting terrorist threats to sea lanes around the Straits of Malacca, India was requested to shoulder a major policing role against sea-piracy in the region at a recent high-level meeting in the US. Present in the conference were Australia, Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia and Japan, besides other nations.

Indian Navy: Maritime Roles
In India, the Indian Navy (IN)—with assistance from the Indian Coast Guard and the Indian Air Force—is entrusted with the role of safeguarding the country’s maritime interests. The primary tasks include maritime air patrol and other aerial assignments. For maritime air patrol, the IN relies on its fleet of around 15 Dornier 228-101 aircraft and 12 Israeli Searcher Mark II and Heron unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) to monitor India’s 7,516 km coastline, 1,917 islands and a 2.01 million sq km exclusive economic zone (EEZ). For farther ranges and interdiction within and beyond the EEZ, it presses into service a Russian fleet of eight to 10 ultra-long-range Tu-142 Bear aircraft and its two remaining IL-38 May maritime surveillance aircraft upgraded to IL-38SD standards (having previously lost two in a mid-air collision during a naval air show). The IN could acquire another three to five refurbished and upgraded IL-38SDs by end-2007 or early-2008.