By Danvir Singh
21 Aug , 2015
India’s security challenges along with the growing economic needs and interests thereon will result in a continuous shift and changing profiles of threat and power equations. Its area of interest will expand way beyond the borders right up to Antarctica in the South, Africa to the East, Central Asian Region (CAR) in the North and South China Sea to the South East. Therefore, the nation’s strategic airlift capability supported by sea controlling Navy and long reach fighter aircraft will be imperative to support India’s futuristic security needs.
The role of India’s armed forces in future will extend thereon beyond the role of defending traditional land borders…
India surges ahead in underscoring its strides into the Asian age with a fast growing economy at an astounding rate of nearly eight per cent. As per the report of February 09, 2015, published in the Indian national daily ‘The Hindu’ India is set to grow 7.4 per cent and cross the $2.1-trillion mark this year against 6.9 per cent in 2013-2014. India grew 7.5 per cent in the October-December quarter, according to the estimates released, overtaking China’s 7.3 per cent growth in the same quarter, to become the fastest growing major economy in the world.
Concurrently, India is also strengthening the fundamentals of its strong armed forces by aiming at self-reliance. Virtually at the threshold of swinging into a modernising overdrive through the ‘Make in India’ mission, India has set the tone for some serious business. Strong economy and enhanced economic progress would entail trained and well-equipped armed forces not only to protect its territorial integrity but also her economic interests worldwide.
Ensuring impregnable land borders along with a credible blue water capable Indian Navy combined with the continental reach of the Indian Air Force will enable India to protect and project sovereignty in the Indian Ocean Region (IOR) and beyond. The role of India’s armed forces in future will extend thereon beyond the role of defending traditional land borders and Sea Lanes of Communications (SLOC), Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) and into domination of the Indian Ocean and its littorals. Joint Force tasking will be the order of the day and that will involve protection of Indian economic interests on lands or at sea that could well be far beyond the Indian subcontinent.
The security challenges that a resurgent India will face in the 21st century are diverse. Alongside a conventional and a nuclear threat from Pakistan to its West and a rising and assertive China to its North and the East, India will continue to grapple with internal security threats and cross-border terrorism. Hence, dealing with homeland security would assume equal importance along with the strengthening of our defences all across at sea, on land and aerospace frontiers.
The security challenges that a resurgent India will face in the 21st century are diverse…
The contemporary definition of ‘national security’ thus has expanded beyond protection of borders. It includes socio-economic factors that influence the well-being of the nation and its diaspora in the extended neighbourhood. In a country as diverse as India, maintaining law and order as part of internal security is a great challenge wherein intermittent spurts of violence may require quick deployment/reallocation of forces within the country at a very short notice. Apart from the primary role, the armed forces will continue to play a crucial role during disaster management. Timely relief efforts in case of natural or man-made disasters to mitigate the adverse effects of the calamity as also towards rehabilitation, the military machinery will have to keep itself always geared up.
Energy security requirements dictate that India’s strategic calculus encompasses the IOR from the Gulf of Aden to the Strait of Malacca or the South China Sea. India needs to work with the international community for protecting and securing the Sea Lanes of Communications and her vital economic and energy interests. Globalisation necessitates India to protect its inter-linked interests with its regional partners. Also, India has emerged as a capable and responsible regional power that may be called upon to play a significant role in responding to existing and emerging challenges for the stability of the IOR and the South Asian region. These may include power projection, as it did in the case of Maldives (Op Cactus). Not only will this require swift response, it may also entail logistics support to sustain forces for significant length of time. With a large number of expatriates spread across the globe, India has to be prepared to evacuate its citizens from global hot spots, if necessary, as it has successfully done in the past and recently successfully carried out the evacuation of 4,000-odd Indian citizens stranded in Yemen.
Geo-Strategic Underpinning
The world order in the twenty-first century is entering a phase of multi-polarity. India and China have already signalled the coming of the Asian Age, emerging as the fastest growing economies of the world. A transformation from developing countries to the developed ones would mean a huge requirement of natural resources, the engines of economic power. These countries will be the world’s largest consumers of oil and natural gas, essential for propelling their economies. The quest for securing natural resources has already driven them beyond their territorial limits into the darkness of the African continent, desolate regions of Central Asia and the contentious South East Asia.
Energy security requirements dictate that India’s strategic calculus encompasses the Indian Ocean Region (IOR)…
The expanding sphere of conflict in the Arab world extending from Morocco to Afghanistan has recently added Yemen to the list. The nature, shape and scope of this conflict may be difficult to predict accurately but the trends suggest it is fast transcending in to a major regional inferno. This is likely to have an adverse bearing on India’s energy security. It may well force a country like ours into seeking military options in protecting her vital interests if the turn of events threatens her economic stability.
India’s security challenges along with the growing economic needs and interests thereon will result in a continuous shift and changing profiles of threat and power equations. Its area of interest will expand way beyond the borders right up to Antarctica in the South, Africa to the East, Central Asian Region (CAR) in the North and South China Sea to the South East. Therefore, India’s strategic airlift capability supported by a sea controlling Navy and long reach fighter aircraft will be imperative to support her security needs in the future.
Strategic Air Lift
War related, peace keeping or humanitarian aid missions will be the starting point for choosing the national or multi-national military capabilities. Therefore, the strategic airlift remains a critical supporting capability that should be achieved, maintained and improved. This will ensure the ability to deploy and sustain military forces across possible distant battlefields. The combat effectiveness, protection, sustainability, and mobility of our military forces are highly important objectives, and that is why the enabling capabilities of long range air transport are so critical.
India has to be prepared to evacuate its citizens from global hot spots, if necessary…
Large range of possible operations in different regions will allow India to make a credible contribution to regional stability. Over the time, our armed forces need to remain inter-operable with those from friendly foreign countries. They will also need to be deployable, sufficiently self-reliant, versatile and adaptable. Our international interests require that we must retain the ability to contribute with combat capabilities when required. The general result should be a projected force structure that retains and enhances its current mix of capabilities, enabling it to operate in distant places.
Generally speaking, the term ‘capability’ is used to describe the personnel, equipment, platforms and/or other material that affect the capacity to undertake military operations. More specifically, ‘capability’ is “The power to achieve a desired operational effect in a nominated environment, within a specified time, and to sustain that effect for a designated period. Capability is generated by some fundamental inputs such as organisation, personnel, collective training, major systems, supplies, facilities, support, command and management.”
Airlift capability represents, “the total capacity expressed in terms of number of passengers and/or weight/ cubic displacement of cargo that can be carried at any one time to a given destination by available airlift.” It consists of two distinct types, strategic and tactical airlifting. Typically, strategic airlifting involves moving materiel, weapons and personnel over long distances (across or off the continent or theatre), whereas a tactical airlift focuses on deploying resources and material into a specific location with high precision.
Military strategic transport aircraft are distinguished by their load capacity (cargo and passengers) that they are able to carry and by the distance (range) they can cover. Strategic airlifters are generally larger and can fly longer distances than tactical ones. Aircraft which perform this role are considered strategic airlifters such as Lockheed C-141 Star-lifter, Lockheed C-5 Galaxy, Boeing C-17 Globemaster III, Ilyushin Il-76 Candid or Antonov An-124 Ruslan in contrast with tactical airlifters such as the C-130 Hercules, Lockheed Martin C-27 Spartan and Transall C-160, which can normally only move supplies within a given theatre of operations.
The C-5 is among the largest military aircraft in the world…
The C 141 Starlifter
The C-141 Starlifter fulfils the vast spectrum of airlift requirements through its ability to airlift combat forces over long distances, inject those forces and their equipment either by air, land or airdrop, re-supply employed forces and extract the sick and wounded from the hostile area to advanced medical facilities.
The C-141B is a stretched C-141A with in-flight refuelling capability. Stretching of the Starlifter consisted of lengthening the plane 23 feet, 4 inches (53.3 centimetres) which increased cargo capacity by about one-third – 2,171 extra cubic feet (65.13 extra cubic metres). Lengthening of the aircraft had the same effect as increasing the number of aircraft by 30 per cent. The C-141 was the first jet aircraft designed to meet military standards as a troop and cargo carrier.
A universal air refuelling receptacle on the C-141B transfers 23,592 gallons (89,649.6 litres) of fuel in about 26 minutes, allowing longer non-stop flights and fewer fuel stops during worldwide airlift missions. The C-141 force, nearing seven million flying hours, has a proven reliability and long-range capability.
The C-141 has an all-weather landing system, pressurized cabin and crew station.
The Starlifter, operated by the USAF Air Mobility Command, can airlift combat forces, equipment and supplies, and deliver them on the ground or by air drop, using paratrooper doors on each side and a rear loading ramp. It can be used for low-altitude delivery of paratroopers and equipment, and high-altitude delivery of paratroopers. It can also airdrop equipment and supplies using the container delivery system. It is the first aircraft designed to be compatible with the 463L Material Handling System, which permits off-loading 68,000 pounds (30,600 kilogrammes) of cargo, refuelling and reloading a full load all in less than an hour.
The C-141 has an all-weather landing system, pressurized cabin and crew station. Its cargo compartment can easily be modified to perform around 30 different missions. About 200 troops or 155 fully equipped paratroopers can sit in canvas side-facing seats, or 166 troops in rear-facing airline seats. Rollers in the aircraft floor allow quick and easy cargo pallet loading. A palletised lavatory and galley can be installed quickly to accommodate passengers, and when palletised cargo is not being carried, the rollers can be turned over to leave a smooth, flat surface for loading vehicles.
In its aero-medical evacuation role, the Starlifter can carry about 103 patients, 113 ambulatory patients or a combination of the two. It provides rapid transfer of the sick and wounded from remote areas overseas to hospitals in the United States.
The Lockheed C-5 Galaxy
The Lockheed C-5 Galaxy is a large military transport aircraft originally designed and built by Lockheed and now maintained and upgraded by its successor, Lockheed Martin. It provides the United States Air Force (USAF) with a heavy inter-continental range strategic airlift capability, one that can carry outsize and oversize loads, including all air-certifiable cargo. The Galaxy has many similarities to its smaller Lockheed C-141 Starlifter predecessor, and the later Boeing C-17 Globemaster III. The C-5 is among the largest military aircraft in the world.
The Lockheed C-5 Galaxy is a large military transport aircraft originally designed and built by Lockheed…
The C-5 is a large high-wing cargo aircraft with a distinctive high T-tail fin (vertical) stabilizer and with four TF39 turbofan engines mounted on pylons beneath wings that are swept 25 degrees. Similar in layout to its smaller predecessor, the C-141 Starlifter, the C-5 has 12 internal wing tanks and is equipped for aerial refuelling. Above the plane-length cargo deck, it provides an upper deck for flight operations and for seating 75 passengers including the embarked loadmaster crew, all who face to the rear of the aircraft during flight. Full-open(able) bay doors at both nose and tail enable “drive-through” loading and unloading of cargo.
Take-off and landing distance requirements for the plane at maximum-load gross weight are 8,300 ft (2,500 m) and 4,900 ft (1,500 m), respectively. Its high flotation main landing gear provides 28 wheels to distribute gross weight on paved or earth surfaces. The rear main landing gear can be steered to make a smaller turning radius; it is rotated 90 degrees after take-off before being retracted. “Kneeling” landing gear permits lowering the aircraft when parked thereby presenting the cargo deck at truck-bed height to facilitate loading and unloading operations.
The C-5 features a Malfunction Detection Analysis and Recording (MADAR) system to identify errors throughout the aircraft. The cargo compartment is 121 ft (37 m) long, 13.5 ft (4.1 m) high, and 19 ft (5.8 m) wide, or just over 31,000 cu ft (880 m3). It can accommodate up to 36 463L master pallets or a mix of palletised cargo and vehicles. The nose and aft cargo-bay doors open the full width and height of the cargo bay to maximise efficient loading of oversized equipment. Full width ramps enable loading double rows of vehicles from either end of the cargo hold.
The Galaxy C-5 is capable of moving nearly every type of military combat equipment including such bulky items as the Army Armoured Vehicle Launched Bridge (AVLB), at 74 short tonnes (67 t), from the United States to any location on the globe and of accommodating up to six Boeing AH-64 Apache helicopters or five Bradley Fighting Vehicles at one time.
The purchase of ten C 17 Globemaster III by India makes it the largest international customer…
The C-17 Globemaster III
The Boeing C-17 Globemaster III is a large military transport aircraft. It was developed for the United States Air Force (USAF) from the 1980s to the early 1990s by McDonnell Douglas. The C-17 carries forward the name of two previous piston-engine military cargo aircraft, the Douglas C-74 Globemaster and the Douglas C-124 Globemaster II. The C-17 commonly performs strategic airlift missions, transporting troops and cargo throughout the world; additional roles include tactical airlift, medical evacuation and airdrop duties.
The C-17 is 174 ft (53 m) long and has a wingspan of about 170 ft (52 m). It can airlift cargo fairly close to a battle area. The size and weight of US mechanised firepower and equipment have grown in recent decades from increased air mobility requirements, particularly for large or heavy non-palletised outsize cargo.
The C-17 is powered by four Pratt & Whitney F117-PW 100 turbofan engines, which are based on the commercial Pratt and Whitney PW2040 used on the Boeing 757. Each engine is rated at 40,400 lbf (180 kN) of thrust. The engine’s thrust reversers direct engine exhaust air upwards and forward, reducing the chances of foreign object damage by ingestion of runway debris, and providing enough reverse thrust to back the aircraft up on the ground while taxiing. The thrust reversers can also be used in flight at idle-reverse for added drag in maximum-rate descents. In vortex surfing tests performed by C-17s, up to ten per cent fuel savings were reported.
The aircraft requires a crew of three (pilot, co-pilot, and loadmaster) for cargo operations. Cargo is loaded through a large aft ramp that accommodates rolling stock, such as a 69-tonne (63-metric tonne) M1 Abrams Main Battle Tank, other armoured vehicles, trucks, and trailers, along with palletised cargo. The cargo compartment is 88 feet (26.82 m) long by 18 feet (5.49 m) wide by 12 feet 4 inches (3.76 m) high. The cargo floor has rollers for palletised cargo that can be flipped to provide a flat floor suitable for vehicles and other rolling stock.
Recently, the Indian Air Force deployed two C-17s to airlift its stranded citizens from Yemen under Operation Rahat…
The maximum payload of the C-17 is 170,900 lb (77,500 kg), and its maximum take-off weight is 585,000 lb (265,350 kg). With a payload of 160,000 lb (72,600 kg) and an initial cruise altitude of 28,000 ft (8,500 m), the C-17 has an unrefuelled range of about 2,400 nautical miles (4,400 km) on the first 71 aircraft, and 2,800 nautical miles (5,200 km) on all subsequent Extended Range models that include a sealed centre wing bay as a fuel tank. Boeing informally calls these aircraft the C-17 ER. The C-17’s cruise speed is about 450 knots (833 km/h) (Mach 0.74). It is designed to air drop 102 paratroopers and their equipment.
The C-17 is designed to operate from runways as short as 3,500 ft (1,064 m) and as narrow as 90 ft (27 m). In addition, the C-17 can operate from unpaved, unimproved runways although with greater chance of damage to the aircraft. The thrust reversers can be used to back the aircraft and reverse direction on narrow taxiways using a three- (or more) point turn. The plane is designed for 20 man-hours of maintenance per flight hour, and a 74 per cent mission availability rate.
The C-17 is 174 feet (53 m) long and has a wingspan of about 170 feet (52 m). It can airlift cargo fairly close to a battle area. The size and weight of US mechanised firepower and equipment have grown in recent decades from increased air mobility requirements, particularly for large or heavy non-palletised outsize cargo.
The purchase of ten C-17 Globemaster III by India makes it the largest international customer. India received ten aircraft by the end of 2014. Speaking at the delivery ceremony of the second C-17 aircraft in July 2013 in Long Beach, former Air Chief Marshal NAK Browne, Chief of the Indian Air Force, said, “Our first C-17 Globemaster III not only signifies a tremendous boost in our strategic airlift capability, but also is poised to form a major component in the IAF’s modernisation drive. Because it was delivered mission-ready, it soon undertook its first strategic mission to our Andaman Nicobar Command at Port Blair. I wish to place on record my appreciation to the US government, the US Air Force and the Boeing team for the timely delivery of the aircraft that makes the IAF the world’s second-largest operator of the C-17 after the US.” Recently, the Indian Air Force deployed two C-17s to airlift its stranded citizens from Yemen under Operation Rahat thus successfully underscoring its strategic reach quite boldly.
The Il-76 can cope with the worst weather conditions experienced in Siberia and Arctic regions…
The IL 76
The Ilyushin II-76 is a landmark Soviet-era design. Russia’s first four-jet heavy transport, it was conceived and used to fly strategic military cargos into frontline air bases in the most extreme operational conditions. The II-76 prototype made its first flight in 1971. It was intended as a replacement for the An-12. Production commenced in 1974. The basic II-76 (NATO reporting name Candid-A) transport was built purely for military service. It saw extensive service during the Soviet war in Afghanistan. Over 800 of these cargo aircraft were built, as well as a number of specialised versions. The Il-76 is currently in service with Russia, Algeria, Belarus, China, Cuba, India, Iran, Libya, North Korea, Syria and Ukraine.
This aircraft was designed to deliver heavy vehicles and machinery to remote, poorly-serviced airfields. It can operate from short and unpaved runways. The Il-76 can cope with the worst weather conditions experienced in Siberia and Arctic regions.
The tough, dependable airframe spawned many variants – some designed to do the basic transport job even better, and others which serve as indispensable combat support roles. A bewildering array of other specialised variants have been developed for roles including mobile hospital, cosmonaut training and airborne command post, airborne laser platform and fire fighter.
Onboard equipment is intended to execute airlifts and air drop missions by day and at night, in Visual Flight Rules (VFR) and Instrument Flight Rules (IFR) weather conditions, as well as under hostile air defence conditions. The integrated flight control and aiming-navigation system includes a compass system, ground surveillance radar, a central digital computer, automatic monitoring system, automatic flight control system, short-range radio navigation and landing system, IFF transponder, optical/infra-red aiming sight and a ground collision warning system.
The IL-76M aircraft is powered by four D-30KP turbofan engines, mounted on underwing pylons and housed in individual pods secured on the engines. Fuel is held in 12 integral tanks, which are isolated from each other. All fuel tanks are divided into four groups by the number of the engines. An inert gas system is used for protection against explosion.
The Indian Air Force operates a total of seventeen Il 76 MD. Out of these seventeen, three are flown for the Aviation Research Centre (Cabinet Secretariat). The Il 76 MD has, for several years been the mainstay of country’s strategic air lift capabilities. They were used in the Maldives in 1987 and in Sri Lanka during 1987-1990 to great effect. The aircraft also flew pioneering missions to airlift the Bofors Howitzers to Thoise and T-72 tanks to Jaffna and Ladakh. In addition to these other variants flown by IAF are seven Il-78MKI Aerial Refuellers and three A-50E Phalcon AEW.
The Indian Air Force operates a total of seventeen Il 76 MD – the Il 76 MD has, for several years, been the mainstay of country’s strategic air lift capabilities….
The An-124
The design of the AN-124 began in 1971. The aircraft fuselage has a double-deck layout. The cockpit, the relief crew compartment and the troop cabin with 88 seats are on the upper deck. The lower deck is the cargo hold. The flight deck has crew stations arranged in pairs for six crew – the pilot and co-pilot, two flight engineers, the navigator and the communications officer. The loadmaster’s station is located in the lobby deck.
The An-124 aircraft is fitted with a relatively thick (12 per cent) swept-back super-critical wing to give high aerodynamic efficiency and, consequently, a long flight range. The construction includes extruded skin panels on the wing, extruded plates for the centre-section wing panels and monolithic wafer plates for the fuselage panels. The aircraft structural members are made of composites that make up 1,500m² of the surface area.
Multi-leg landing gear and loading equipment ensure self-sufficient operation of the aircraft on prepared concrete runways and on unpaved strips. The landing gear is self-orienting and incorporates a kneeling mechanism, which allows an adjustable fuselage clearance to assist the loading and unloading of self-propelled equipment.
Cargo systems onboard of cargo handling equipment make it possible to load and unload the aircraft without the help of ground facilities. The para-dropping and cargo handling equipment comprises two travelling cranes, two winches, roll gang and tie down equipment. The aircraft is often compared to the US Lockheed Martin C-5 Galaxy. The An-124 has a transportation capability 25 per cent higher than that of the C-5A and ten per cent higher than the C-5B. The two cargo hatches are a distinctive structural feature. The fuselage nose can be hinged upward to open the front cargo hatch and there is a cargo hatch in the rear fuselage.
Avionics systems are quadruple redundant. The onboard equipment provides the capability to execute airlift and para-drop missions by day and at night, in Visual Flight Rules (VFR) and Instrument Flight Rules (IFR) weather conditions. There are 34 computers functioning aboard the aircraft, combined into four main systems – navigation, automatic piloting, remote control and monitoring.
The integrated flight control and aiming-navigation system comprises an autonomous navigation system, altitude and air-speed indicating system, combat formation flight control equipment, short-range radio navigation and landing system, global positioning system, automatic radio compass, ground surveillance radar, forward-looking weather radar, optical and TV sight and IFF equipment.
The new versions are An-124-210 and An-124-100M. An-124-210 will be equipped with a Rolls-Royce RB211-52H-T engine; An-124-100M with series 3 D-18 engines, produced by Progress Design Bureau in Zaporozhe. These engines allow an increase in service range of ten per cent and reduced take-off distance.
Roll-On Roll-Off Capability Of The C-130: The Future
The induction of the C-130J into the Indian Air Force has made Indian defence stronger in terms of its reaching capabilities. The aircraft can bring to troops what they need wherever they are located. The four-engine turboprop plane can be used for troop deployment, special operations, air-to-air refuelling, disaster relief and humanitarian aid operations. Its technology and configuration enable the aircraft to perform precision low-level flying, airdrops and land in blackout conditions. The aircraft, used in peacekeeping missions in Africa and for tsunami relief efforts in Indonesia, has a maximum cruise speed of 355 knots or 660 kmph. The maximum take-off weight is 75,390 kg and it can carry a payload of up to 21,770 kg.
The induction of the C-130J into the Indian Air Force has made Indian defence stronger in terms of its reaching capabilities…
The Indian Air Force in August 2013 sent a message to Beijing about India’s ownership of a strategic salient near the Karakoram Pass at India’s northern tip. The IAF landed a Super Hercules on the mud-surfaced, 16,600 feet-high Daulat Beg Oldie airstrip. Earlier, in May 2012, to display its strategic reach, the IAF flew a Super Hercules a six-hour, non-stop mission from Delhi to the Andaman & Nicobar Islands.
The C-130J is the standard by which all other airlift is measured in terms of availability, flexibility and reliability. Apart from their combat operations, C-130Js are often the first to support humanitarian missions, such as search and rescue, aerial firefighting and delivering relief supplies after earthquakes, hurricanes, typhoons and tsunamis. Parts for the global C-130J fleet are made in Australia by Sydney (NSW)-based Quickstep Holdings.
In 2012 at the Singapore Air Show, Lockheed Martin introduced a new version of the C-130J – the ‘Sea Herc’ – designed to address the needs of customers looking for both high mission functionality and flexibility in utilisation of the aircraft. In its initial configuration, the Sea Herc takes a palletised version of the anti-submarine warfare capability sourced from the long serving P-3 Orion. Other capabilities being offered for incorporation into the C-130J included anti-surface warfare and intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance.
The roll-on/roll-off mission capability packages can be installed onto, and removed from, the C-130J within 30 minutes. When specialised mission capabilities are not required, the mission systems pallet can be removed, and the C-130J re-tasked as a medium range cargo aircraft for either military or humanitarian operations.
The C-130J is the standard by which all other airlift is measured in terms of availability, flexibility and reliability…
A country like India needs to look at this technology more keenly not only for its C-130 but also the C-17 Globemaster III it operates.
Conclusion
Future battles will be short term, fluid, intense and swift. The forces involved may be of a very large size or they may just be those in a special operation involving a few highly skilled soldiers. Advanced technologies will be exploited and the entire range of terrains and weather will be incorporated into the plans. The typical linear battlefield will be replaced by combat situations with a 360 degree threat. These future battles will be network-centric with potential for new high tech weapons, NBC arsenal and use of all instruments of national power including the non-state actors. The future hybrid nature of warfare in full spectrum of conflict will be effect based rather than massing of effects.
In a multi-polar world, military strategies will be dictated by the economic interests of a nation. The world will witness more of the conflicts in mid and lower portion of the spectrum. Thus, the role of specialised composite formations and units may be lesser at the higher end of the spectrum as compared to the lower end in safeguarding the nation’s interests in future. Hence the strategic and tactical airlift apart from other means holds the key to a rapid response in shaping the outcome at continental ranges.
© Copyright 2015 Indian Defence Review
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