Army Technology:
The Indian Army Air Defence Corps has formally inducted the indigenously built Akash supersonic missile during a ceremony at the Manekshaw Centre in Delhi, India.
The induction comes more than three decades after the project was initiated in the mid-1980s, and is expected to boost the all round capability enhancement and operational effectiveness of the army to meet all the contemporary and emerging challenges of negating the enemy’s air threat.
Developed by the Defence Research and Development Organisation and Bharat Electronic Limited as part of the integrated guided missile development programme, the Akash missile is an all-weather surface-to-air missile system capable of engaging aerial threats up to a distance of 25km.
Equipped with a launcher, control centre, multi-function fire control radar and supporting ground equipment, the 5.78m-long missile can destroy manoeuvring targets, such as unmanned aerial vehicles, fighter aircraft, cruise missiles, and other ballistic missiles launched from helicopters.
Indian Army chief general Dalbir Singh said: “The capability that we have with this system will ensure that it takes care of the vulnerability of our assets…
