Russian Cost –effective Offer Not Considered in Indian MMRCA Contest: MiG Chief

The MiG-35 fighter which was eliminated from India’s Medium Multi Role Combat Aircraft (MMRCA) competition, is the most cost-effective option for India’s multi role fighter procurement, Sergai Korotkov, Chief of the Russian Aircraft manufacturer, RAC-MiG has claimed. Speaking at the MAKS 2011 show here, Mr. Korotkov said his company’s commercial bid was not considered during the evaluation process, though both the commercial and the technical bids had been submitted simultaneously. He said the MiG-35, his company’s entry into the Indian MMRC competition, had met all the parameters as outlined in the Request for Proposals (RFP). “We demonstrated our Active Electronically Scanned Phased Array Radar (AESA) and scored a direct hit with the first shot during the evaluation trials”, he added. Under the Indian MMRCA procurement program, the commercial bids of only the two shortlisted bidders, considered technically qualified, will be considered. However, the commercial bids had to be submitted together with the technical bids during initial response to the RFP. This system has put RAC-MiG at a disadvantage as its low initial price and life cycle cost had not been considered before the elimination, he claimed. Korotkov clarified that the MiG corporation will not protest the Indian decision to eliminate the MiG-35 and would continue to work closely with their Indian partners in fulfilling another order to supply MiG-29K fighters to the Indian Navy. The program to supply the carrier-based MiG-29K fighters had been progressing well with 16 to be delivered by end of this year while the balance of the total 45 within the next few years.