Akash SAM medium-range surface-to-air missile data pictures video

: 29 September 2018

Akash medium-range surface-to-air defense missile system SAM

Description

Technical Data

Specifications

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Pictures - Video

Description

The Akash is a medium-range surface-to-air defense missile (SAM) system designed and maunfuactured by India's state-owned Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO). The development of Akash missile system was started in 1983 with a first production in 2002. The first trial firings occurred in 1990 with the tenth stated test in September 1998. The missile system was developed based on the the Soviet 2K12 (NATO Code SA-6 Gainful) surface-to-air missile defense system. In May 2012, the Indian Air Force successfully test-fired Akash from the Integrated Test Range (ITR) at Chandipur, Orissa, India. The missile has since been successfully test fired in ripple mode against a floating object launched by a pilotless target aircraft in May 2014. In February 2015, Bharat Electronics Limited (BEL), announced the mass production of Akash Missile System (AMS) for the Indian Army. The Indian Army has already placed an order with BDL for two regiments of Akash Weapon System. BEL will be supplying all the radars, control centres, satellite data-links to BDL for integration on Army variants of Akash Weapon System. In March 2015, the Indian Army has confirmed that the Akash missile system will enter in service with the Indian armed Forces. According the newspaper website Times of India, Indian Air Force has already begun to deploy six Akash missile squadrons in the north-east to counter China's build-up of military infrastructure all along the 4,057-km Line of Actual Control (LAC), which includes eight fully-operational airbases in Tibet.

Variants:

- Akash on tracked armoured: A launch station of Akash missile system mounted on a tracked armoured vehicle.

Akash missile system mounted on a T-72 MBT tracked chassis.

Technical Data

Launch unit

The launch station is mounted at the rear of a trailer towed by a 4x4 military truck. The launch station consists of three ready-to-fire Akash missiles. The launchers can slew in both elevation and azimuth. The tracked self-propelled launcher is 360 degrees slewable and its arc in elevation is from 6 to 60 degrees. The Akash truck launcher station is 360 degree slewable, in elevation it can fire from 8 to 75 degrees in all directions depending on the mode of deployment. It features an all-electro servo drive system for fully automated and remote operation.

Missile

The design of the Akash missile is somewhat similar to that of the Russian SA-6 with four long tube ramjet inlet ducts mounted mid-body between wings. For pitch/yaw control four clipped triangular moving wings are mounted on the mid-body Akash is a surface-to-air missile with an intercept range of 30 km. It has a launch weight of 720 kg, a diameter of 35 cm and a length of 5.78 metres. Akash flies at supersonic speed, reaching around Mach 2.5. It can reach an altitude of 18 km and can be fired from both tracked and wheeled platforms. An on-board guidance system coupled with an actuator system makes the missile maneuverable up to 15g loads and a tail chase capability for end game engagement. A digital proximity fuse is coupled with a 55 kg pre-fragmented warhead, while the safety arming and detonation mechanism enables a controlled detonation sequence. A self-destruct device is also integrated. It is propelled by an Integrated Ramjet Rocket Engine. The use of a ramjet propulsion system enables sustained speeds without deceleration throughout its flight. The Missile has command guidance in its entire flight. It can carry conventional and nuclear warheads weighing up to 60 kg. The integration of nuclear warhead allows the missile to destroy aircraft as well as warheads released from ballistic missiles. It can operate in all weather conditions.

Mobility

The Akash launcher system can be mounted on a detachable trailer which is towed by a 4x4 Ashok Leyland or TATA truck, and which can be positioned autonomously. It can be also mounted also on a T-72 tracked MBT (Main Battle Tank) chassis. A version of Akash missile system was also showed during a military parade in India mounted on a modified tracked chassis vehicle BMP-1.

Akash missile system mounted on a modified BMP-1 tracked chassis

Combat use

An Akash battery comprises four 3D passive electronically scanned array radars and four launchers with three missiles each, all of which are interlinked. Each battery can track up to 64 targets and attack up to 12 of them. The missile has a 60 kg (130 lb) high-explosive, pre-fragmented warhead with a proximity fuse. The 3D CAR automatically starts tracking targets at a distance of around 150 km providing early warning to the system and operators. The target track information is transferred to GCC (Group Control Centre ). GCC automatically classifies the target. BSR starts tracking targets around a range of 100 km. This data is transferred to GCC. The GCC performs multi-radar tracking and carries out track correlation and data fusion. Target position information is sent to the BLR which uses this information to acquire the targets The BCC (Battery Control Centre) which can engage a target(s) from the selected list at the earliest point of time is assigned the target in real time by the GCC. The availability of missiles and the health of the missiles are also taken into consideration during this process. Fresh targets are assigned as and when intercepts with assigned targets are completed. A single shot kill probability of 88% has been achieved by the system taking into consideration various parameters of the sensors, guidance command, missile capabilities and kill zone computations. Each Akash battery can engage up to four targets simultaneously. Each battery has four launchers with three missiles each, with each Rajendra able to guide eight missiles in total, with a maximum of two missiles per target. Up to a maximum of four targets can be engaged simultaneously by a typical battery with a single Rajendra if one (or two) missile is allotted per target.

Specifications