India to acquire 4 more Aerostats to track air spies

India to acquire 4 more Aerostats to track air spies

NEW DELHI: India is going to acquire four more Aerostat radars from Israel to bolster its ability to detect and track hostile low-flying aircraft, helicopters, spy drones and missiles. The Aerostat radars will help in plugging holes in the country’s far-from-impregnable airspace, especially with central and peninsular India being quite devoid of medium-level and low-level radar coverage, as reported by TOI earlier. The "gaps" in the radar network, in fact, can even be exploited by terrorist outfits like LTTE, which recently demonstrated its capability to mount air strikes by using low-flying propeller aircraft in Sri Lanka. While the decision to buy more Aerostat radars may be good, the not-so-good news is that India’s $1.1 billion project to acquire three "Phalcon" AWACS (airborne warning and control systems) from Israel has run into some rough weather. As per the March 2004 contract, the first AWACS was to be delivered to India in November 2007 after integration of the Israeli Phalcon early-warning radar and communication system with the Russian IL-76 heavy transport aircraft. The second and the third ones were to follow nine months and 15 months after that. "But there is a delay due to technical reasons... IAF might get the first AWACS in February 2008 now if everything goes as per schedule," a defence ministry source said. Both AWACS and Aerostat radars (phased-array radars mounted on blimp-like balloons tethered to ground) act as "eyes in the skies" since they can detect air intrusions much earlier than ground-based radars. The four more Aerostat radars is a follow-on order to the successful deployment of the two EL/M-2083 Aerostat radars, inducted from Israel in 2004-2005, along the border in Kutch region and Punjab. In all, IAF has projected a requirement of 13 Aerostat radars, with each one capable of providing three-dimensional low-altitude coverage equal to 30-40 ground-based radars. Incidentally, Pakistan too is acquiring six Aerostat L-88 radar systems from the US in an estimated $155-million deal. IAF, on its part, also plans to acquire a wide array of LLTRs (low-level transportable radars), LLLWRs (low-level light weight radars), CARs (central acquisition radars) and SARs (synthetic aperture radars) over the next five years to improve its air defence capabilities. Most of these requirements are being sourced from Israel, which has emerged as India’s second-largest defence supplier with annual sales worth almost $1 billion. Interestingly, the EL/M-2083 Aerostat radars are simpler versions of the EL/M-2080 Green Pine radars, which are an integral part of the Israeli Arrow-2 BMD (ballistic missile defence) systems. India has used the two Green Pine radars, imported from Israel in 2001-2002, to develop its own long-range tracking radar which was used in last year’s test of an indigenous "exo-atmospheric" BMD system.

Defence Minister Stresses On High Vigilance Along Line-of-Control

Defence Minister Stresses On High Vigilance Along Line-of-Control

Armed forces guarding the Line of Control (LoC) in Jammu and Kashmir should not lower their guard though infiltration from across the border has come down "to a large extent", Defence Minister A K Antony today said."India wants peaceful relations with its neighbours... But we should not lower our guard and have to remain vigilant to face any challenge," Antony said while interacting with troops in the 14 Corps headquarters here.Admitting that cross-border terrorism and infiltration have come down to a large extent and peace has currently taken root in the border state, Antony asked the soldiers not to get carried away by the prevailing situation."We have to maintain tight vigil to strengthen the peaceful atmosphere. If the situation reverses, we should be able to face the challenge accordingly," he said.Antony, accompanied by army chief Gen J J Singh, arrived here on a two-day tour and is scheduled to visit forward locations on the Siachen glacier tomorrow. Assuring the soldiers about the Centre's plan to improve their living standards, the minister said the Pay Commission has been set up to improve their lot.He said training for security personnel would change as modernisation of equipment has been set in motion to meet the requirements of soldiers. Antony directed the district administration to help the defence personnel needing government assistance in tackling their problems.Earlier, Antony was given a rousing reception on his arrival in the border town. He was received at the helipad by state Power Minister Nawag Rigzin Jora, veteran Congress leader and member of upper house P Namgiyal and Leh Autonomous Hill Development Council chief R Dorjay.GOC 14 Corps Lt Gen B C Bradwaj and top defence and police officials were also present at the technical airport. Ladakhi people attired in traditional dresses turned up in good numbers along both sides of the road to accord a warm welcome to Antony.Some of them waved Congress flags and cheered as the minister left in a convoy from the airport to Leh town. Antony is scheduled to visit soldiers performing their duties in the cold desert of Siachen glacier tomorrow.