IAF To Get First Akash Squadron Next Month

BENGALURU, India — The Indian Air Force (IAF) soon will form its first squadron of the homegrown tactical Akash Missile System (AMS) at Gwalior Air Base. Bharat Electronics Ltd., the principal integrator for AMS, will hand over the first squadron next month. The IAF is expected to operate the system with the Mirage 2000. P.C. Jain, BEL’s general manager of Defense Radars, says his company has firm orders for two AMS squadrons of 48 missiles worth Rs 1,221 crore ($269.5 million). Jain spoke Dec. 2 at the Forum of Defense and Aerospace Journalists of Bangalore. BEL hopes to win additional AMS contracts from the IAF and the Indian army. “We are sure to get additional orders from IAF for six more squadrons soon, estimated at Rs 3,500 crore,” Jain says. “The army might place orders initially for two regiments, and these will be large in numbers as compared to IAF. The expected cost will be close to Rs 7,000 crore.” Each Akash missile weighs 710 kg. (1,565 lb.) and carries a warhead of 225 kg. It has a range of 30 km. (18.6 mi.) and is capable of engaging four targets in different directions, Jain says. Akash radars are comprised of C4I (Squadron Control Center), 3-D Central Acquisition Radar, Flight Control Center and Flight Level Radar. The surveillance radar can detect 100 targets, and the tracking radar up to 64 targets simultaneously. “The missile can go to an altitude up to 18 kilometers and engage four targets at a time,” Jain says. “It has a range of 25 kilometers, and we can launch eight missiles simultaneously.”