‘Hard Kill’ system, AD sensors: How India minimised damage during conflict with Pakistan

During the four-day intense military conflict between India and Pakistan, the latter launched a wave of drones and other UAVs across the border.

While addressing a press briefing on Monday afternoon, Director General of Air Operations (DGAO) Air Marshal AK Bharti talked about how, during the military conflict with Pakistan, India’s air defence systems managed to minimise damage from the missiles and unmanned combat air vehicles deployed by Pakistan.

Air Marshal Bharti said that the indigenous air defence weapon system - the Akash system - showed a stellar performance.(PTI)

He addressed the press briefing along with DGMO Lt Gen Rajiv Ghai, DGNO Vice Admiral AN Pramod and Major General SS Sharma.

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During the four-day intense military conflict between India and Pakistan, the latter launched a wave of drones and other unmanned air vehicles across the border, posing threats to civilian and military infrastructure around the areas near the north-western border. During the conflict, several air bases were also targeted by Pakistan, however, all such attempts were promptly thwarted by the Indian armed forces.

How India’s air defence systems helped minimise damage

While talking about how the Indian forces managed to minimise the damage to both military and civilian infra in the country “in spite of the unrelenting efforts by the Pakistani forces”, Air Marshal Bharti highlighted the multi-layered air defence systems in place in India.

“This robust air defence (AD) system comprises of a large variety of multi-layered AD sensors and weapon systems, from point defence weapons like the low-level air defence guns, shoulder-fired MANPADS (Man-Portable Air-Defence Systems) and short-range surface to air missiles (SAMs) to area defence weapons like the air defence fighters and longer-range surface to air missiles within our inventory,” he said.

He added that the numerous waves of drones and unmanned combat aerial vehicles (UCAV) employed by Pakistan were also thwarted by the indigenously developed soft and hard kill counter UAS systems and the well-trained Indian air defence personnel.

Air Marshal Bharti also said that all this was brought together in an “efficient and effective” air defence environment by the Indian Air Forces’ “Integrated Air Command and Control System (IACCS). The system, he added, accords India “the net-centric operational capability which is vital to modern days war fighting.”

Not just the new air defence systems, the older ones also came into action and protected India from Pakistan’s threats during the latest conflict. Older battle-proven AD systems like the Pechora, the Osa-AK and the LLAD guns also encountered the Pakistani threat vectors in the current operations, said the Air Marshal.

“They were all modern generations but these battle-proven systems stood the test of time and took them head-on,” he added.

Pointing out another highlight of the ongoing conflict, Air Marshal Bharti said that the indigenous air defence weapon system - the Akash system - also showed a stellar performance.

‘Our fight was against terrorism’

Air Marshal AK Bharti also touched upon the escalation after India launched ‘Operation Sindoor’ and struck nine terror targets across Pakistan and Pakistan occupied Kashmir in precision air strikes and said that Pakistan was itself responsible for the damage it endured during the conflict.

“Our fight was against terrorism and terrorists. On May 7, we only targeted terror sites but it is unfortunate that Pakistan decided to side with the terrorists and made this fight their own. After that, they are themselves to be blamed for whatever losses they endured”