India’s home-grown, medium, airborne surveillance system, AEW&C India, is getting ready to go operational into the Indian Air force this year. The Indian AEW&C mission system and the Brazilian EMB‐145 platform aircraft have been combined optimally to provide a highly effective and efficient force multiplier system for the Indian Armed force.
The AEW&C India has been equipped with highly versatile active array Radar system, Identification friend or foe system, ELINT, COMINT systems, along with multiple combination of ‘C’-Band& SATCOM ‘Ku’-Band voice and Data Links, UHF/VHF/HF communications, & Self Protection Systems - in order to enhance mission capabilities, add redundancies to foolproof operations, and implant self‐protection against missile attacks from ground as compared with its contemporaries on same Embraer aircraft elsewhere in the world. Not to be let down on flight endurance, AEW&C India uniquely carries an In‐Flight Refuelling (IFR) system, should there be a need for extended operations.
The lightweight jet is capable of operation from almost any air airfield. More importantly, the network‐centric sensor system enables joint battle management from air, land and sea. Towards this ground systems are available to enable the operators to plan the mission, communicate the complete information from the aircraft to the command and control centres via multiple data links. A comprehensive training station is available to train the operators on all the aspects of the mission on the ground. A automated test equipment system also is available which enables trouble shooting at LRU level.
While India has caught up with the rest of the World in adopting the Active Electronically Steering Array (AESA) Antenna for its radar; the two building-block components of the radar, the Transmit-Receive Multi-Module (TRMM) and the teflon-clad ultra light Antenna Panel are notable Indian innovations in the radar sub-system. These are developed by CABS and with a joint patent along with M/s Astra Microwave, Hyderabad for TRMM. The most important outcome of the efforts is the realisation of a system that is both operation-efficient and cost-effective.
Development Flight Trials to prove the various sub-systems of AEW&C India vis-a-vis the Operational Requirements will come to a close very shortly. A brief confirmatory User Trials will precede induction tow of these systems into the Air Force during this year.
Crafting of the AEW&C India into a versatile military machine meant a decade of development sweating for its five work‐centres: LRDE, DARE, DLRL, DEAL and CABS with CABS as a nodal agency, with several private and public sector partners in India along with M/s EMBRAER of Brazil. Currently though the system is customised for the Indian Air force, the AEW&C India can fine tuned to any specific user‐oriented early warning product through appropriate programming/software which can be defined by the user.
Many countries are evincing keen interest in the AEW&C system and discussions are in progress for export of this system.
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