“Sky Is NOT The Limit”: Su-57, S-500, R-37M In Spotlight As IAF Thrilled By Super Success Of S-400 & BrahMos (Part2)
Let us look at the two Russia-origin systems.
S-400 Missile System “Sudarshan Chakra”
The S-400 is a Russian mobile SAM system developed in the 1990s by Russia’s NPO Almaz as an upgrade to the S-300 family of missiles.
The S-400 joined the Russian armed forces in 2007. The system is complemented by its successor, the S-500. The S-400 system has four radars and four sets of missiles covering different ranges and vertical bubbles.
The maximum target detection range is 600 kilometres, and targets can be engaged as far as 400 kilometres. The five S-400 batteries contracted by India in 2018 cost $5.43 billion, including reserve missiles.
All the sub-units are data-linked and controlled by a central command and control system with sufficient redundancy. The system is capable of layered defence and integrates with other Indian air defences.
One system can control 72 launchers, with a maximum of 384 missiles. All missiles are equipped with directed explosion warheads, which increases the probability of complete destruction of aerial targets.
The system is designed to destroy aircraft, cruise, and ballistic missiles, and can also be used against ground targets. It can engage targets up to 17,000 km/h or Mach 14. It can intercept low-flying cruise missiles at a range of about 40 km due to the line-of-sight requirement. The anti-ballistic missile (ABM) capabilities of the S-400 system are near the maximum allowed under the (now void) Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty. The number of simultaneously engaged targets by the full system is 36.
The system ground mobility speed is close to 60 km/h on roads and 25 km/h cross-country. It takes 5 minutes to be operational and fire when ordered while driving. Otherwise, the system response time is just 10 seconds. The time between major overhauls is 10,000 hours. The Service life is at least 20 years.
In Russia, the system was made operational around Moscow in 2007. Russia reportedly deployed S-400 in Syria. The system has been widely used in the ongoing conflict in Ukraine, and it is claimed to have shot down many aircraft.
Meanwhile, Ukraine has reportedly used Western weapons, mainly U.S.-made ATACMS missiles, to hit S-400 units on the ground.
Belarus has unspecified numbers of S-400 units. Deliveries to China, of the six batteries ordered, began in January 2018. Four batteries consisting of 36 fire units and 192 or more missiles were delivered to Turkey.
Algeria is another operator. Some other countries, like Iran, Egypt, Iraq, and Serbia, have also shown interest. South Korea is developing the KM-SAM, a medium-range SAM system based on technology from S-400 missiles, with assistance from NPO Almaz.
Three of the five batteries have arrived in India. India took deliveries despite the American threat of CAATSA (Countering America’s Adversaries Through Sanctions Act).
The remaining two are expected in 2025/26. The recent conflict has revealed the rough location of two systems, one each in Punjab and Gujarat. As per open sources, the third is somewhere in the east. The systems have been tested in various Indian military exercises.
BrahMos
The BrahMos is a long-range ramjet supersonic cruise missile that can be launched from land, submarines, ships, and fighter aircraft. It is a joint venture between the Indian Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) and the Russian Federation’s NPO Mashinostroyeniya, which together have formed BrahMos Aerospace.
The missile is based on Russian P-800 Oniks. The name BrahMos is a portmanteau formed from the names of two rivers, the Brahmaputra of India and the Moskva of Russia. India holds 50.5 percent share of the joint venture. 75 percent of the missile is manufactured in India and there are plans to increase this to 85 percent.
Large numbers of land-launched, ship-launched as well as air-launched versions have been inducted and are in service with the Indian armed forces.
The missile guidance has been developed by BrahMos Aerospace. In 2016, after India became a member of the Missile Technology Control Regime (MTCR), India and Russia gradually increased the range of the missile to 800 km. The latest deliveries to the Indian Navy are of this type.
The cruise missile has anti-ship and land-attack roles, and has been in service since June 2007. The other operator is the Philippine Marine Corps. The unit cost is around $ 3.5 million.
The extended range variant costs around $4.85 million. Many futuristic variants are evolving. The BrahMos-A is a modified air-launched variant of the missile with a reduced size and weight (2.55 tons). It has a range of 500 km when launched from Su-30 MKI, and it can carry only one BrahMos missile.
50 IAF SU-30MKI were modified to carry the BrahMos-A missile. Smaller-sized variants like BrahMos-NG could be carried on more types of aircraft, even on LCA. Additionally, the BrahMos-NG will have an AESA radar rather than the current mechanically scanned one.
The Sukhoi Su-30MKI will carry three NG missiles, while other IAF fighters will carry one. The BrahMos-NG will be ready by the end of 2025. BrahMos-II will be a hypersonic cruise missile. A UCAV variant is planned.
This solid propellant missile can carry a 200–300 kg warhead that could be nuclear or conventional semi-armour-piercing. Max operational ranges are up to 8-900 kilometres. Export variants are currently restricted to 290 kilometres.
The BrahMos is generally considered the world’s fastest supersonic cruise missile. Currently, the missile speed is Mach 3. Later variants will be hypersonic (M 5+). The missile is very accurate with a CEP of less than one metre.
BrahMos was first test-fired on 12 June 2001 from the Integrated Test Range (ITR), Chandipur, in a vertical launch configuration. The September 2010 test of BrahMos created a world record for being the first cruise missile to be tested at supersonic speeds in a steep-dive mode.
BrahMos was tested with an Indian seeker for the first time in March 2018, and was tested with an India-developed propulsion system, airframe, and power supply in September 2019. On 30 September 2020, India successfully test-fired an extended-range BrahMos, offering a range of around 350 km, at speeds up to Mach 2.8.
The submarine-launched variant of BrahMos was test-fired successfully for the first time from a submerged pontoon on 20 March 2013. Even BrahMos Block III land-attack variants are operational. There are plans to have missiles with a range of 1500 km or more.
BrahMos is operationally deployed in large numbers by the three services. Additional missile orders have been recently placed for extended-range variants.
The Philippines has placed a substantial order for their services, and deliveries began in 2024. Russia, too, has plans to buy many missiles. Brazil has shown interest in the missile system. Vietnam and Indonesia have already signed deals.
Sky Is Not The Limit
Resolute political will, choice of targets, weapon matching and accuracy, actionable intelligence, strong Indian air defences, and great IAF professionals. and hitting strategic targets in depth were the clear clinchers.
Aerospace has become the primary means of prosecuting war. India-Russia relations are time-tested. Nearly 60 percent of IAF aircraft are of Russian origin.
Russian platforms and weapons with the Indian armed forces have performed exceedingly well for many decades, since the MiG-21s of the 1960s. The S-400 and Su-30MKI-BrahMos combination have excelled in Op Sindoor.
Could S-500 (600 km) be the next acquisition? Will India select the Su-57 fifth-generation aircraft and Make in India? Can Russia help accelerate the Indian nuclear submarine program? Should India acquire the “AWACS Killer” Russian R-37M AAM and collaborate on developing futuristic long-range aerial missiles?
Should there be more work together on the Su-30MKI upgrade? Can the two enter into a joint venture for Kamikaze drones required by both sides in large numbers, and India can help scale up production?
The Sky is NO more the limit!
Let us look at the two Russia-origin systems.
S-400 Missile System “Sudarshan Chakra”
The S-400 is a Russian mobile SAM system developed in the 1990s by Russia’s NPO Almaz as an upgrade to the S-300 family of missiles.
The S-400 joined the Russian armed forces in 2007. The system is complemented by its successor, the S-500. The S-400 system has four radars and four sets of missiles covering different ranges and vertical bubbles.
The maximum target detection range is 600 kilometres, and targets can be engaged as far as 400 kilometres. The five S-400 batteries contracted by India in 2018 cost $5.43 billion, including reserve missiles.
All the sub-units are data-linked and controlled by a central command and control system with sufficient redundancy. The system is capable of layered defence and integrates with other Indian air defences.
One system can control 72 launchers, with a maximum of 384 missiles. All missiles are equipped with directed explosion warheads, which increases the probability of complete destruction of aerial targets.
The system is designed to destroy aircraft, cruise, and ballistic missiles, and can also be used against ground targets. It can engage targets up to 17,000 km/h or Mach 14. It can intercept low-flying cruise missiles at a range of about 40 km due to the line-of-sight requirement. The anti-ballistic missile (ABM) capabilities of the S-400 system are near the maximum allowed under the (now void) Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty. The number of simultaneously engaged targets by the full system is 36.
The system ground mobility speed is close to 60 km/h on roads and 25 km/h cross-country. It takes 5 minutes to be operational and fire when ordered while driving. Otherwise, the system response time is just 10 seconds. The time between major overhauls is 10,000 hours. The Service life is at least 20 years.
In Russia, the system was made operational around Moscow in 2007. Russia reportedly deployed S-400 in Syria. The system has been widely used in the ongoing conflict in Ukraine, and it is claimed to have shot down many aircraft.
Meanwhile, Ukraine has reportedly used Western weapons, mainly U.S.-made ATACMS missiles, to hit S-400 units on the ground.
Belarus has unspecified numbers of S-400 units. Deliveries to China, of the six batteries ordered, began in January 2018. Four batteries consisting of 36 fire units and 192 or more missiles were delivered to Turkey.
Algeria is another operator. Some other countries, like Iran, Egypt, Iraq, and Serbia, have also shown interest. South Korea is developing the KM-SAM, a medium-range SAM system based on technology from S-400 missiles, with assistance from NPO Almaz.
Three of the five batteries have arrived in India. India took deliveries despite the American threat of CAATSA (Countering America’s Adversaries Through Sanctions Act).
The remaining two are expected in 2025/26. The recent conflict has revealed the rough location of two systems, one each in Punjab and Gujarat. As per open sources, the third is somewhere in the east. The systems have been tested in various Indian military exercises.
BrahMos
The BrahMos is a long-range ramjet supersonic cruise missile that can be launched from land, submarines, ships, and fighter aircraft. It is a joint venture between the Indian Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) and the Russian Federation’s NPO Mashinostroyeniya, which together have formed BrahMos Aerospace.
The missile is based on Russian P-800 Oniks. The name BrahMos is a portmanteau formed from the names of two rivers, the Brahmaputra of India and the Moskva of Russia. India holds 50.5 percent share of the joint venture. 75 percent of the missile is manufactured in India and there are plans to increase this to 85 percent.
Large numbers of land-launched, ship-launched as well as air-launched versions have been inducted and are in service with the Indian armed forces.
The missile guidance has been developed by BrahMos Aerospace. In 2016, after India became a member of the Missile Technology Control Regime (MTCR), India and Russia gradually increased the range of the missile to 800 km. The latest deliveries to the Indian Navy are of this type.
The cruise missile has anti-ship and land-attack roles, and has been in service since June 2007. The other operator is the Philippine Marine Corps. The unit cost is around $ 3.5 million.
The extended range variant costs around $4.85 million. Many futuristic variants are evolving. The BrahMos-A is a modified air-launched variant of the missile with a reduced size and weight (2.55 tons). It has a range of 500 km when launched from Su-30 MKI, and it can carry only one BrahMos missile.
50 IAF SU-30MKI were modified to carry the BrahMos-A missile. Smaller-sized variants like BrahMos-NG could be carried on more types of aircraft, even on LCA. Additionally, the BrahMos-NG will have an AESA radar rather than the current mechanically scanned one.
The Sukhoi Su-30MKI will carry three NG missiles, while other IAF fighters will carry one. The BrahMos-NG will be ready by the end of 2025. BrahMos-II will be a hypersonic cruise missile. A UCAV variant is planned.
This solid propellant missile can carry a 200–300 kg warhead that could be nuclear or conventional semi-armour-piercing. Max operational ranges are up to 8-900 kilometres. Export variants are currently restricted to 290 kilometres.
The BrahMos is generally considered the world’s fastest supersonic cruise missile. Currently, the missile speed is Mach 3. Later variants will be hypersonic (M 5+). The missile is very accurate with a CEP of less than one metre.
BrahMos was first test-fired on 12 June 2001 from the Integrated Test Range (ITR), Chandipur, in a vertical launch configuration. The September 2010 test of BrahMos created a world record for being the first cruise missile to be tested at supersonic speeds in a steep-dive mode.
BrahMos was tested with an Indian seeker for the first time in March 2018, and was tested with an India-developed propulsion system, airframe, and power supply in September 2019. On 30 September 2020, India successfully test-fired an extended-range BrahMos, offering a range of around 350 km, at speeds up to Mach 2.8.
The submarine-launched variant of BrahMos was test-fired successfully for the first time from a submerged pontoon on 20 March 2013. Even BrahMos Block III land-attack variants are operational. There are plans to have missiles with a range of 1500 km or more.
BrahMos is operationally deployed in large numbers by the three services. Additional missile orders have been recently placed for extended-range variants.
The Philippines has placed a substantial order for their services, and deliveries began in 2024. Russia, too, has plans to buy many missiles. Brazil has shown interest in the missile system. Vietnam and Indonesia have already signed deals.
Sky Is Not The Limit
Resolute political will, choice of targets, weapon matching and accuracy, actionable intelligence, strong Indian air defences, and great IAF professionals. and hitting strategic targets in depth were the clear clinchers.
Aerospace has become the primary means of prosecuting war. India-Russia relations are time-tested. Nearly 60 percent of IAF aircraft are of Russian origin.
Russian platforms and weapons with the Indian armed forces have performed exceedingly well for many decades, since the MiG-21s of the 1960s. The S-400 and Su-30MKI-BrahMos combination have excelled in Op Sindoor.
Could S-500 (600 km) be the next acquisition? Will India select the Su-57 fifth-generation aircraft and Make in India? Can Russia help accelerate the Indian nuclear submarine program? Should India acquire the “AWACS Killer” Russian R-37M AAM and collaborate on developing futuristic long-range aerial missiles?
Should there be more work together on the Su-30MKI upgrade? Can the two enter into a joint venture for Kamikaze drones required by both sides in large numbers, and India can help scale up production?
The Sky is NO more the limit!
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