India will take another step towards developing a ballistic missile defence (BMD) system in the next few days when it tests an "interceptor" missile against an "incoming enemy" missile over the Bay of Bengal.
The fledgling two-tier BMD system being developed by DRDO, capable of tracking and destroying hostile missiles both inside (endo) and outside (exo) the earth's atmosphere, has already been tested two times.
The impending third test from the Wheeler Island off Orissa's coast will be that of an "exo-atmospheric" hypersonic interceptor missile, which will take on "a longer range enemy" missile, in the 2,000-km class, at an altitude of around 80-km this time.
The first test of the BMD system was in November 2006 when an "exo-atmospheric" hypersonic interceptor missile successfully destroyed an incoming Prithvi missile at an altitude of around 40-50 km, demonstrating a capability akin to the Israeli Arrow-2 BMD system. The second time, in December 2007, an 'endo-atmospheric' interceptor successfully took on the 'enemy' missile at a 15-km altitude, on the lines of the American Patriot Advanced Capability-3 (PAC-3) system.
After the third test, DRDO plans to test both the "exo" and "endo" interceptor missiles together in an integrated mode by September-October. In Phase-I, a BMD system capable of taking on "2,000-km class targets" is being developed. Phase-II, in turn, will be geared towards tackling threats from missiles up to 5,000-km, said sources.
DRDO chief controller for missiles, V K Saraswat, had earlier told TOI that the BMD system of Phase-I should be ready for deployment by 2011 or so, after several tests against a variety of missiles to ensure "a kill probability of 99.8%".
When and if, this happens India will gate-crash into a very exclusive club of only countries like US, Russia and Israel. BMD capabilities, however, are incredibly complex and expensive, with an incoming missile's high trajectory, speed and range leaving little room for error.
"It's like stopping a bullet by hitting it with another bullet. Even the US is still to master it completely," said a scientist.
Consequently, there have been some Israeli and French imprints in the ongoing development of India's BMD system. The crucial long-range tracking radars (LRTRs) used to detect and track the 'enemy' missile as well as guide the interceptor to it, for instance, can be traced to the two Israeli Green Pine early-warning and fire control radars imported by India in 2001-2002.
Similarly, some guidance and other technologies like IIR (imaging infra-red) seekers will require international collaboration in Phase-II. "Other technologies to be developed include divert and attitude control systems, hypersonic aerodynamics, kill vehicle and the like," said a source.
With both China and Pakistan fielding a wide variety of nuclear-capable ballistic missiles, BMD capabilities for India are a crucial necessity. At the same time, it must be remembered that a BMD system can be overwhelmed by a flurry of ballistic missiles. Moreover, it's quite vulnerable to cruise missiles since they evade enemy radars by flying at low altitudes, virtually hugging the terrain.
Source : Times of India
The fledgling two-tier BMD system being developed by DRDO, capable of tracking and destroying hostile missiles both inside (endo) and outside (exo) the earth's atmosphere, has already been tested two times.
The impending third test from the Wheeler Island off Orissa's coast will be that of an "exo-atmospheric" hypersonic interceptor missile, which will take on "a longer range enemy" missile, in the 2,000-km class, at an altitude of around 80-km this time.
The first test of the BMD system was in November 2006 when an "exo-atmospheric" hypersonic interceptor missile successfully destroyed an incoming Prithvi missile at an altitude of around 40-50 km, demonstrating a capability akin to the Israeli Arrow-2 BMD system. The second time, in December 2007, an 'endo-atmospheric' interceptor successfully took on the 'enemy' missile at a 15-km altitude, on the lines of the American Patriot Advanced Capability-3 (PAC-3) system.
After the third test, DRDO plans to test both the "exo" and "endo" interceptor missiles together in an integrated mode by September-October. In Phase-I, a BMD system capable of taking on "2,000-km class targets" is being developed. Phase-II, in turn, will be geared towards tackling threats from missiles up to 5,000-km, said sources.
DRDO chief controller for missiles, V K Saraswat, had earlier told TOI that the BMD system of Phase-I should be ready for deployment by 2011 or so, after several tests against a variety of missiles to ensure "a kill probability of 99.8%".
When and if, this happens India will gate-crash into a very exclusive club of only countries like US, Russia and Israel. BMD capabilities, however, are incredibly complex and expensive, with an incoming missile's high trajectory, speed and range leaving little room for error.
"It's like stopping a bullet by hitting it with another bullet. Even the US is still to master it completely," said a scientist.
Consequently, there have been some Israeli and French imprints in the ongoing development of India's BMD system. The crucial long-range tracking radars (LRTRs) used to detect and track the 'enemy' missile as well as guide the interceptor to it, for instance, can be traced to the two Israeli Green Pine early-warning and fire control radars imported by India in 2001-2002.
Similarly, some guidance and other technologies like IIR (imaging infra-red) seekers will require international collaboration in Phase-II. "Other technologies to be developed include divert and attitude control systems, hypersonic aerodynamics, kill vehicle and the like," said a source.
With both China and Pakistan fielding a wide variety of nuclear-capable ballistic missiles, BMD capabilities for India are a crucial necessity. At the same time, it must be remembered that a BMD system can be overwhelmed by a flurry of ballistic missiles. Moreover, it's quite vulnerable to cruise missiles since they evade enemy radars by flying at low altitudes, virtually hugging the terrain.
Source : Times of India