India has an active ABM development effort using indigenously developed and integrated radars and locally designed missiles. In November 2006, India successfully conducted the PADE (Prithvi Air Defence Exercise) in which an Anti-ballistic missile intercepted a Prithvi-II ballistic missile. The PAD missile has the secondary stage of the Prithvi missile and can reach altitude of 80 km. India has become the fourth nation in the world to acquire such a capability and the third nation to develop it through indigenous effort.
On 6th December 2007 the Advanced Air Defence (AAD) missile system was tested successfully. Induction of the system into services is expected to be in 2010. Two new antiballistic missiles that can intercept IRBM/ICBMs are being developed. These high speed missiles (AD-1 andAD-2) are being developed to intercept ballistic missiles with the range of 5000 km. The test trials of these systems are expected to take place in 2009-2010. Also, the long delayed IAF plans to plug gaps in its air defence capabilities are finally making some headway now, with the government giving the go-ahead for the procurement of SpyDer low-level quick reaction missile systems from Israel.
India has also developed a ballistic missile defence (BMD) which will intercept incoming enemy missile. The fledgling two-tire BMD system being developed by DRDO, capable of tracking and destroying hostile missile both inside (endo) and outside (exo) the earth’s atmosphere, has already been tested two times. The BMD system of Phase-I should be ready for deployment by 2011 or so, after several tests against a variety of missiles. When, and if, this happens India will gate-crash into a very exclusive club of only countries like US, Russia and Israel, BMD capabilities, however, are incredibly complex and expensive, with an incoming missile’s high trajectory, speed and range leaving little room for error.
The crucial long-range tracking radars (LRTRs) used to detect and track the enemy missile as well as guide the interceptor to it, for instance, can be traced to the two Israeli Green Pine early warning and fire control radars imported by India in 2001-2002. Similarly, some guidance and other technologies like IIR (imaging infra-red) seekers will require international collaboration in include divert and attitude control systems, supersonic aerodynamics, kill vehicle and the like.
The IAF had pushed for the SpyDer systems, which have Python-5 and Derby missiles to take on hostile aircraft, helicopters, drones and PGMs (precision-guided munitions), due to persistent delays in the indigenous Akash and Trishul SAM systems India has to depend on import of SpyDer systems, Python-5 and Derby missiles. Interestingly, DRDO earlier this year declared that the Akash air defence system. With most of the design work now over, the LR-SAM project should be completed by 2011. These projects, once again, underline the emergence of Israel as India’s second largest defence partner since the 1999 Kargil conflict. With both China and Pak-istan fielding a wide variety of nuclear-capable ballistic missiles, BMD capabilities for India are a crucial necessity. At the same time, it must be remembered that a BMD system can be overwhelmed by a flurry of ballistic missiles.