New Delhi: In keeping with the announcement on August 15 by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the move to launch Mission Sudarshan Chakra, a comprehensive, multi-layered, networked system aimed at protecting India and its vital installations from a range of enemy attacks across domains, the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) successfully conducted maiden flight tests of the Integrated Air Defence Weapon System (IADWS).
The shield is expected to offer multiple layers of protection by combining surveillance, cybersecurity, and air defence systems to detect and destroy threats, including long-range missiles, aircraft and unmanned aerial vehicles, along the borders and at critical installations.
This test marks another step towards developing a homegrown nationwide security shield from multidomain enemy attacks under Mission Sudarshan Chakra by 2035.
In a statement, the Ministry of Defence said the IADWS is a multi-layered air defence system comprising all indigenous Quick Reaction Surface to Air Missiles (QRSAM), Advanced Very Short Range Air Defence System (VSHORADS) missiles and a high-power laser-based Directed Energy Weapon (DEW).
Defence research organisations and the private sector are expected to collaborate on the project. It is likely to be integrated with the IAF’s Integrated Air Command and Control System (IACCS) and the Army’s Akashteer subsequently.
On the flight tests of the IADWS, the Ministry of Defence said that the integrated operation of all the weapon system components is controlled by a Centralised Command and Control Centre developed by the Defence Research & Development Laboratory.
According to the government, during the flight tests, three different targets, including two high-speed fixed-wing Unmanned Aerial Vehicle targets and a multi-copter drone, were simultaneously engaged and destroyed completely by the QRSAM, VSHORADS and High Energy Laser weapon system at different ranges and altitudes.
It said all the weapon system components, including the missile systems and drone detection and destruction system, weapon system command and control along with communication and radars, performed flawlessly.
This was confirmed by range instruments deployed by the Integrated Test Range, Chandipur to capture the flight data. The test was witnessed by senior scientists from DRDO and representatives from the Armed Forces.
Complimenting the defence establishment and the industry on the development of the IADWS, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh said the unique flight tests has established the multi-layered air-defence capability of the country and is going to strengthen area defence for important facilities against enemy aerial threats.
The trials demonstrated the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) developed multi-layered system that brought together the Quick Reaction Surface-to-Air Missiles (QRSAM), Advanced Very Short Range Air Defence System (VSHORADS), and a Directed Energy Weapon (DEW) to defend against contemporary aerial threats.
“All components of the weapon system, including the missile systems, drone detection and destruction system, command-and-control, communication, and radars performed flawlessly, which was confirmed by range instruments deployed at the Integrated Test Range, Chandipur, to capture the flight data,” a Defence Ministry statement read.
Penetrating targets that evade this layer are engaged by the VSHORADS. Shoulder-fired and employing an imaging infrared seeker, VSHORADS provides close-in protection against low-flying threats such as rotary-wing platforms, UAVs and slow-moving fixed-wing aircraft.
Its effective engagement envelope extends to roughly 6 km in range and up to 4 km in altitude, making it a flexible point-defence option against pop-up or terrain-masking threats.
The innermost tier is the Directed Energy Weapon (DEW), a high-power laser system developed by DRDO’s Centre for High Energy Systems and Sciences (CHESS). This is optimised for counter-UAV use and emits concentrated energy bursts capable of weakening airframes or disabling onboard electronics.
Sources explained that by integrating multiple layers of missiles and directed-energy systems under the C2C2, the IADWS ensures that both conventional aerial threats such as high-speed aircraft and cruise missiles, and asymmetric threats, including swarming drones and loitering munitions are countered within a single system.
The new system will be part of the Sudarshan Chakra project announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi earlier this month from the Red Fort and will in the future integrate long-range interceptors capable of taking down ballistic missiles as well.
DRDO is also working on a long-range air defence system under Project Kusha, which would be capable of taking on aerial threats at a distance of over 400 km. Being developed in partnership with the private sector, Kusha will also be integrated into the IADWS.
– The writer is a senior journalist and media consultant. The views expressed are of the writer and do not necessarily reflect the views of Raksha Anirveda.
