[ex-innova-guy]

India’s Air Defence Strengthens with 100 Akashteer Systems for the Army

Amid heightened global security concerns, the Indian Army has significantly enhanced its air defence capabilities with the acquisition of 100 Akashteer air defence systems. Developed by Bharat Electronics Limited (BEL), these advanced Air Defence Control and Reporting Systems (ADCRS) will serve as a critical asset in safeguarding the country from aerial threats, including missile and rocket attacks. The successful delivery of these systems underscores India’s commitment to bolstering its military’s self-reliance and modernizing its defence infrastructure.

The Role of Akashteer in Air Defence

Akashteer is more than just an air defence system—it is a sophisticated, integrated control and reporting system designed to neutralize enemy threats swiftly. The system is capable of managing all aspects of air defence for the Army, integrating multiple radar systems, sensors, and communication technologies into a single operational framework.

The Akashteer system provides a real-time battlefield view, allowing military personnel to detect, track, and engage aerial threats such as incoming missiles or enemy aircraft. It brings together various surveillance assets, radar systems, and communication nodes, enabling precise coordination of air defence operations. This enhances the Indian Army’s ability to monitor airspace and deliver timely responses to any imminent threats.

The system’s versatility makes it suitable for a wide range of operational environments. Whether deployed along contested borders or in strategic urban areas, Akashteer strengthens the Army’s capability to protect key assets and infrastructure from aerial attacks.

In March 2024, BEL delivered the first Akashteer system to the Indian Army. By September 30, 2024, all 100 units had been successfully handed over, meeting the Army’s critical operational timelines.

Source

[PreludeSH]

Intercepting missile is costly especially against low cost hacks and drones. Had read about this article from popular mechanics months ago about a laser based cheaper solution. Should work for our western enemy

https://www.popularmechanics.com/mil...-laser-system/

[SSridhar]

The Latest ICBM Test by China and its Ramifications

https://www.c3sindia.org/post/the-la...nyam-sridharan

[V.Narayan]

Navy to test new anti-ship ballistic missile with 1,000 km range soon

https://www.msn.com/en-in/autos/news...f5244416&ei=43

India is to test in the next few days a ship launched anti-ship ballistic missile with a range of 1000 kms. A ballistic missile, of such range, with a conventional warhead would make sense if the target were a Chinese aircraft carrier. There is no public news on details or the target acquisition and homing systems. One could guess a mid-course target aiming correction/guidance system could be at play {P-8I?}

[SmartCat]

Originally Posted by V.Narayan

A ballistic missile, of such range, with a conventional warhead would make sense if the target were a Chinese aircraft carrier.

Yes, this is indeed a carrier killer missile
https://idrw.org/lr-ashm-india-poise...iller-missile/

[SSridhar]

Originally Posted by V.Narayan

Navy to test new anti-ship ballistic missile with 1,000 km range soon

One could guess a mid-course target aiming correction/guidance system could be at play {P-8I?}

Thank you for the heads-up. Certainly LRMPs like P-8I would be involved. Probably also, UAVs like MQ-9s. India should also deploy a few satellite systems like China's Yaogan/Jianbing series of satellites or the US NOSS/Whitecloud satellites. The Yaogan/Jianbing are used to acquire and direct the Chinese DF-21D AShBMs. These are ocean surveillance satellites. Each Yaogan is a set of 3 satellites, a triplet, in LEO and usually polar orbit. They fly at slightly differing orbits a few tens of kilometres away from each other. They detect EM emissions and triangulate to get positional information of the carrier. Of course, the moving CBGs would have moved several NMs by the time the AShBM arrives on the scene, corrected mid-course by Satellites and/or LRMPs or UAVs.

The trouble with Yaogan-type satellites is that they fly away while LRMPs or UAVs can loiter at or near the scene. The orbital time of a polar satellite is about 80 minutes. Their next pass would be over a different part of Earth. So, it would take several triplets of satellites to provide continuous monitoring and/or could entail costly fuel-burning orbital corrections. It may be possible to do reasonably so over a limited area but at a big cost. That's where maritime cooperation among QUAD countries would be most useful against PLAN. PLAN has a huge problem in escaping into open oceans, where detecting them would be like a needle in a haystack, because geographically China is surrounded by narrow straits whether into Western Pacific or the Indian Ocean and all of them belong to enemy or not-so-friendly nations.

Since CBGs are well spread-out and extremely well protected, these non-satellite assets like LRMPs & UAVs can also be taken down by them. Therefore, the radar (X-band & IIR) of the AShBM must then take over in terminal phase. ABM defences like the American SM-6 aided by Aegis System can shoot down MRBMs like these long-range AShBMs. The terminal radar will have to be a LPI radar which can switch between active & passive modes. DRDO has long since developed such a radar. The missile about to be tested would be a variant of Agni-1P probably. This has a MaRV which is required for ASh type of attacks.

The accurate BrahMos also has an anti-ship variant and the range of the BrahMos is also being constantly extended with increased velocity. The ER-BrahMos is expected to reach at least 800 Kms. Then there is the sub-sonic Nirbhay under development with the MANIK home-grown turbofan engine.

AShBM Anti-ship Ballistic Missile
ER Extended Range
IIR Imaging Infrared Radar
LEO Low Earth Orbit
LPI Low Probability of Intercept
LRMP Long Range Maritime Patrol
MaRV Manoeuvrable Re-entry Vehicle
MRBM Medium Range Ballistic Missile

[Shome]

Originally Posted by SSridhar

Thank you for the heads-up. Certainly LRMPs like P-8I would be involved.

Thanks for a very informative post! Looking forward to your valuable inputs specifically on these defense related threads (from a fellow BR)

[dragracer567]

Originally Posted by V.Narayan

[b]Navy to test new anti-ship ballistic missile with 1,000 km range soon

This is apparently a hypersonic missile - India's first with a range of 1500 km bringing India into a select club of nations.

[ads11]

Just came across this tweet last night
https://x.com/livefist/status/1858005842169102816

Says it's a hypersonic missile test. Anyone got any more details on this one?

[SSridhar]

Originally Posted by ads11

Just came across this tweet last night
https://x.com/livefist/status/1858005842169102816

Says it's a hypersonic missile test. Anyone got any more details on this one?

This is a hypersonic glide vehicle (HGV) which means that the payload, which is the hypersonic glide vehicle which carries the munition, would sit atop a rocket which would fly to the edge of the atmosphere or thereabouts and after attaining hypersonic velocity ( >5 times speed of sound), eject the payload, that is the HGV. The ejected HGV glides over the atmosphere, bouncing off it and re-entering it several times, a process which extends its range. Aerodynamic control surfaces on the body of the HGV help achieve this and also precisely control hitting the target. The HGV is unpowered. The HGV's maneuvers can defeat the enemy air defence systems.

The HGV is different therefore from a ballistic missile where it is usually a free fall after the boost phase burns out. The HGV is also different from a hypersonic cruise missile (HCM) which is a powered payload with a scramjet engine. Here, the booster rocket ejects the payload after achieving hypersonic conditions like in the case of the HGV. However, the payload has a scramjet (Supersonic Ramjet) engine which kicks off and powers all the way through. Because it is a scramjet engine, it needs to fly well within the atmosphere to use oxygen. A few years back, DRDO successfully tested the scramjet engine for 20 seconds in a Hypersonic Tech Demo Vehicle (HSTDV). We should expect HCM test also, hopefully soon.

Hope it helps.

[FlankerFury]

India and Russia likely to finalize $4 billion deal for advanced early warning radar system

The radar system under consideration is believed to be a part of Almaz-Antey's Voronezh series of state-of-the-art early warning radar system designed to detect various aerial threats such as ballistic missiles, aircrafts and UAVs. Depending on the model and frequency band, it's range is said to be between 6000kms to 8000kms.

It is unclear if the system's procurement is of an existing one or a custom upgraded variant.

At least 60% of the system is expected to be manufactured domestically by Indian partners.

Source:- https://idrw.org/india-and-russia-li...-radar-system/
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How is this deal going to work though? I don't think sanctions on Russia will be lifted or eased any time soon. Is the payment going to be in Dirhams or will it be a barter trade?

__

Also, I'm seeing a rise in articles about potential acquisition of Su-57 since a couple days now, probably because Pakistan is reported to acquire J-35's.
https://militarywatchmagazine.com/ar...en-before-2027

The article's maybe just speculative but the Su-57 is the only one closest to a fifth gen aircraft that can be acquired by India. AMCA is still a decade away and F-35's were never even on the table.

https://www.india.com/news/india-as-...n-7450620/amp/

[SmartCat]

Originally Posted by FlankerFury

Also, I'm seeing a rise in articles about potential acquisition of Su-57 since a couple days now, probably because Pakistan is reported to acquire J-35's. The article's maybe just speculative

These are usually placed in various defense related publications by Russia, via military equipment brokers in India. This done to influence public opinion, especially among bureaucrats/ politicians/ military personnel who follow defense matters.

[dragracer567]

Originally Posted by FlankerFury

it's range is said to be between 6000kms to 8000kms.

Is it just me or is there an extra zero there?

[FlankerFury]

Originally Posted by dragracer567

Is it just me or is there an extra zero there?

These are early warning radars and form a critical part of Ballistic Missile Defence systems. They typically operate in UHF or VHF range, that's how they're able to look at such long ranges.*
Moreover, these are HUGE in size so they're fixed in one place. Here's an image of one such Voronezh installation I pulled off of Twitter

77Ya6 Voronezh is a family of Russian long-range stationary over-the-horizon radars. They are designed to detect space objects, as well as ballistic and, to a limited extent, cruise missiles

However, these radars are primarily designed to detect intercontinental ballistic missiles flying in near space.

The family consists of stations in the meter, decimeter, and centimeter wave bands. Long-wave stations provide a longer range of object detection, while short-wave stations allow for more accurate target location.

One station provides a detection range of up to 6,000 km horizontally and 7,000 vertically, while simultaneously tracking up to 500 targets.

If the reports are true and the deal does go through, it'd complement India's own Swordfish** long range radars.
Upgraded versions of Swordfish is reported to detect missiles at ranges of upto 1500kms.

The location for the radar in the idrw article was said to be someplace around Karnataka.

There's some more info in the link below,
https://mil.in.ua/en/news/india-near...-radar-system/
__

*The only source for that 8000km range figure I could find from a quick Google search was a Russian publication.

**The Swordfish is India's version of an Israeli radar (whose name I can't remember because it sounds like a coupon code). The TRMs and mission computers were said to be domestically produced and the entire system tailor made for Indian BMD requirements.

[V.Narayan]

Originally Posted by FlankerFury

Depending on the model and frequency band, it's range is said to be between 6000kms to 8000kms.

Brother, radar waves do not follow the curvature of the earth. They go in a straight line. At roughly 500 kms out the radar is seeing aircraft flying at ~40,000 feet!! Physics prevents us from building radars that can track low flying aircraft much beyond the horizon.