Missiles: India
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Surface-to-air missiles (SAMs)
MR-SAM with multifunction surveillance and threat alert radars
The Times of India, Jul 01, 2016
Rajat Pandit
India took a major step towards plugging some gaping holes in its air defence coverage with the maiden test of a new surface-to-air missile (SAM) system designed to detect, track and destroy hostile aircraft, missiles, helicopters and drones at a range of 70km. The medium-range SAM system, jointly developed by DRDO and Israeli Aerospace Industries, was tested twice against a Britishorigin target drone `Banshee' at the integrated test range at Chandipur-on-sea off the coast of Odisha. The MR-SAM systems with their MF-STARs (multifunction surveillance and threat alert radars) as well as weapon control systems with data links are designed to neutralise multiple targets simultaneously .
IAF will begin inducting an initial nine squadrons of this land-based MR-SAM -at a cost of Rs 10,076 crore -from 2017-18 onwards.
“During the two tests on Thursday, first at 8.15am and then at 3.45pm, the interceptor missiles directly hit the manoeuvring target drones (mimicking enemy aircraft), destroying them. All mission objectives were met successfully,“ Dr G Satheesh Reddy , scientific advisor to the defence minister, told TOI.
While two “profiles“ at different altitudes in the flight envelope were tested on Thursday , the MR-SAM will require a few more tests before its production can kick off next year. While Israel calls the system Barak-8, India is yet to officially name it.
The Navy , incidentally , has already equipped three of its latest Kolkata-class destroyers with the warshipbased version of the MRSAM. The all-weather air defence system, which is being produced by defence PSU Bharat Dynamics (BDL), has also been earmarked for another 12 under-construction warships, including the 40,000-tonne aircraft carrier INS Vikrant.
