NewsWithViews
CONFUSION GALORE
In the aftermath of the official termination of India’s quarter-of-a-century-old Integrated Guided Missile Development Programme (IGMDP) in December 2007, the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) is reportedly focusing on the development of Astra air-to-air missile systems. Also on the anvil are four other missile systems: the 700 km range K-15 submarine launched ballistic missile, the 290 km BrahMos supersonic and hypersonic cruise missiles, the 3,500-km range Agni III ballistic missile and the long-range surface-to-air missile system being jointly developed with Israel.
VIEWS
SHARAD SAXENA
I
ndia, it may be recalled, had launched an ambitious indigenous programme for the development of a comprehensive range of missiles, including the intermediate-range Agni and short-range Prithvi surface-to-surface ballistic missiles, Akash medium-range and Trishul short-range surface-to-air missiles, and Nag anti-tank missile systems. The project was launched in the early 1980s and headed by the DRDO with the former President of India, Dr A.P.J. Abdul Kalam, as one of the chief architects. On January 8, 2008 the DRDO announced it would be closing the missile programme since most of the proposed missiles had been developed and inducted in the Indian armed forces. It further stated that the new missile and weapon systems would be developed in much shorter timeframes with foreign collaboration and participation by private industries. The fact that not all the old programmes were fully developed created confusion, which deepened due to criss-cross reporting by the media on the ongoing and follow up programmes. That said, it would perhaps be prudent to look at the status of the previous programmes. Of the early projects, it is only the Prithvi which can claim to be fully successful. Agni, on the other hand has yet to find its full potential. While Agni Mk I has been operationalised, the MK II version has yet to be deployed operationally and the Mk III is still under development. As far as surface-to-air missiles are concerned Trishul has been a total failure as the programme has been foreclosed at the technology demonstration stage. Akash has found conditional success in that it has conditional acceptance from the Air Force while the army has rejected it outright citing cross-country incompatibilities as the main reason for non-acceptance. The last, Nag missile system, is yet to undergo field trials before its acceptance by the army. Foremost among the dilemmas facing the DRDO concerns the naval version of the Prithvi missile which has been variously named as Prithvi III, Sagarika and Dhanush. In addition, another missile has appeared on the scene with the media covering the marginally successful test firing of K-15 from a submerged pontoon off Visakhapatnam on February 26, 2008.
The naval Prithvi III was supposed to have a range of 350 km with a 1,000 kg warhead, 600 km with a 500 kg warhead and 750 km with a 250 kg warhead. It could be that Dhanush which was successfully tested from a ship on March 30, 2007 is the surface-launched version of the Prithvi III with 1,000/500 kg warhead capability. On the other hand, K-15 appears to be submarine-launched version of Prithvi III or Sagarika with 250 kg warhead/750 km range (reported as 700 km by the media). Other confusing reports emanating from the media pertain to India-Israel collaborative programmes on acquisition/ development of missile systems. The earlier derailed Spyder (Python plus Derby) surface-to-air missile system due to suspicions of middlemen involvement appears to have been revived, most probably, due to the failure of the indigenous Trishul programme. On the naval front, notwithstanding the political and corruption riddled controversies in the Barak quick-reaction surface-to-air missile system acquisition programme, India and Israel appear to be all set to jointly develop an improved version called the Barak NG (Next Generation) which would have much longer range (50 to 70 km) compared to 10 km range of the present system. The navy has decided to configure all its future warships with longer range surface-to-air missile systems in its transition to a more of a ‘blue water’ navy that can reach into highthreat areas, and a logical complement to the Navy’s establishment of a comprehensive carrier task force beginning with INS Vikramaditya (formerly, Admiral Gorshkov). Amid confusing reports by the media, it appears to be the project which is being described as MR/LRSAM (medium/long range surface-to-air missile) system to be co-developed by India’s DRDO and the Israeli IAI for the Indian armed forces. The army and the air force are known to have projected requirements for long-range SAMs for a credible nationwide air defence system. But will this development also put the indigenous Akash SAM system into jeopardy, notwithstanding the fact that the IAF have reportedly placed an order for two squadrons’ worth of these systems? SP — Air Marshal (Retd) V.K. Bhatia Issue 2 • 2008
SP’S AVIATION
5