New Delhi (Agencies): India will co-develop the Pantsir S-1 short-range air defense system, which has so far kept Russian leader Vladimir Putin’s residence on Valdai Lake safe from Ukrainian drones.
The two countries have inked an agreement to co-develop the air defense system, which NATO reports as SA-22 Greyhounds.
India has integrated its recently acquired S-400 (NATO reporting name: SA-21 Growler) long-range air defense system and is still awaiting two units. While the deal for the long-range surface-to-air missile created consternation in Western countries, New Delhi managed to avoid sanctions through its diplomatic dexterity.
The Ukraine war has slowed arms trade between the two countries. Now, they are collaborating to develop new iterations of the Pantsir-S1 close-in air defense system. This system is designed to defend ground installations against various aerial threats, such as fixed-wing aircraft and helicopters, ballistic and cruise missiles, precision-guided munitions, and unmanned air vehicles. It can also engage light-armored ground targets.
Bharat Dynamics Limited announced on X the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Rosoboronexport. “Bharat Dynamics Limited and Rosoboronexport (ROE), Russia entered into an MoU for cooperation on Pantsir variants, air defense missile-gun systems. The MoU was signed by Commodore A. Madhavarao (Retd), CMD, BDL, and Mr. Kovalenko German, DDG, Naval Department, ROE on the sidelines of 5th IRIGC Subgroup at Goa,” the post said.
The India-Russia Intergovernmental Commission (IRIGC) has two divisions: the Trade, Economic, Scientific, Technological and Cultural Cooperation (IRIGC-TEC), co-chaired by the EAM from India and First Deputy Prime Minister (DPM) Denis Manturov from Russia, and the Military & Military-Technical Cooperation (IRIGC-M&MTC), headed by the Defence Ministers of the two countries.
Russia uses Pantsir S-1 to shield its military-industrial facilities. The system, priced at $15 million, is known for its ability to intercept complex, low-radar-signature targets and high-precision projectiles from multiple launch rocket systems. Russia has accelerated the production of these systems to meet increasing demand, and Rostec continues to develop new versions of the system.
The Pantsir is a mobile air defense system mounted on a truck chassis, typically a Ural-53234 8×8, Kamaz-6560 8×8, or MAN SX45, which provides it with great mobility across various terrains. The system has twelve 57E6 or 57E6-E surface-to-air missile launchers and two dual 30mm 2A38M automatic cannons. These weapons allow the system to respond effectively to threats at varying distances.
The Pantsir-S missile has a range of 1 to 12 km, while the 30mm automatic cannons can engage targets between 0.2 and 4,000 meters. These characteristics make it a versatile system capable of neutralizing fast-moving aerial targets, such as drones, helicopters, and cruise missiles, at different distances.
Many countries worldwide have deployed the Pantsir-S1, including Algeria, Iran, Iraq, Russia, and the United Arab Emirates. It has sophisticated accessories, such as radio controls with direction-finding or infrared systems and autonomous acquisition and tracking radars. These detection systems allow the Pantsir-S to operate independently, without external support, to detect and engage aerial targets.
The Pantsir-S1 system combat vehicle carries 12 missiles and 1,404 rounds, while the transport-loading vehicle holds 24 missiles and 2,808 rounds. The system can engage targets moving at speeds up to 1,000 m/s, with the missiles traveling at speeds up to 1,300 m/s. Each combat vehicle can simultaneously engage up to four targets. The system’s fire rate is 12-16 targets per minute, and its hit probability is up to 0.9. Its reaction time is 4-6 seconds.