Indian Air Force Seeks Made-In-India Missile Defence System, Does Not Want High-Priced American NASAMS-II

As per the requirement of the Indian Air Force (IAF), the indigenous multi-tiered Ballistic Missile Defence (BMD) program that includes medium and long-range surface-to-air elements is the preferred choice over the US-made NASAMS-II networked air defence system, Livefist has reported.

This missile defence system has been developed by the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) and had successfully completed its first development phase and is expected to be deployed sometime in 2022.

Though the Indian government is into negotiations with the Americans, the process however faces obstacles, mainly due to the high price being quoted by the Americans.

The BMD program has been in development for the last 20 years and the IAF is willing to invest resources in its development.

The BMD has endo-atmospheric Advanced Air Defence (AAD) interceptor and the exo-atmospheric Prithvi Air Defence (PAD) systems.

India has already agreed to buy the Russian long-range S-400 missile defence system. The Indian government has requested its Russian counterparts to speed up delivery.

The Indian side of the border has been witnessing increasing drills and exercises being done by the Indian armed forces over the past few weeks.