Scientific Advisor to the defence minister, V K Saraswat on Wednesday said the Centre for Air-Borne Systems (CABS), a Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) laboratory, had successfully developed and ‘productionised’ an Identification of Friend or Foe (IFF) system.
Stating that the system would be fitted on the Airborne Early Warning and Control aircraft, to be received from Brazil soon, Saraswat said: “IFF Mk-12(S), the latest version of the warning system, can be fitted on any platform, including aircraft, ships, Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) and also on missiles.
“The IFF Mk-12(S) is a spin-off to the AEW&C programme and contains an integrator, transponder and combined interrogator and transponder to meet the needs of tri-services,” he said.
“An indigenous IFF is not only a requirement for AEW&C, it is also a requirement of the Light Combat Aircraft Tejas. So once the product is available in large numbers it will find a place in all DRDO developed aircraft platforms, including LCA, ALH and so on,” Saraswat added.
All the existing aircraft currently have an older version of IFF––Mk-10––and have now been mandated to upgrade to MK-12. The DRDO is expecting a large order from the Indian Air Force (IAF).
CABS Director S Christopher said that the lab had adapted the design conforming to the international standard- ICAO/STANAG 4193 - for its IFF.
Speaking to reporters on the sidelines, Saraswat said that Agni-5 could double up as a satellite launcher for hurling into space, small sized spacecrafts. He said that Agni-V had major propulsion blocks and suitable aviation technology that made it a suitable launch vehicle to put small satellites in near space.
“We can put in space light weight satellites, meant for lower orbit and their endurance limits ... We have started working on this but I cannot give you a time frame,” he said.