India devising protocols to tackle spy balloon threat post incident in Andaman

According to sources, the Army has already started upgrading radars at key military bases

The Indian Army is drafting a set of protocols to appropriately take action if the country faces another spy balloon threat just like the incident that happened in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, according to a report published by the Indian Express.

The protocols that have been set in place include identification of the object, verification of the threat, and if it is required, destruction of the same using appropriate weapon systems, top Army officials told the publication.

“As per the standard operating procedure, positive identification of the aerial object and subsequent verification to rule out the possibility of it being a civil asset will be the first steps when such a flying object is spotted,” a senior officer said was quoted as saying.

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They further added, “Once identified and verified, a decision will be taken to destroy the target. The weapon systems, such as missiles or a ground-based air defence system, and the aircraft deployed will be selected based on the altitude of the target”.

The officials also pointed out the fact that such devices are difficult to track since they have very mild radar signatures when compared to missiles or fighter jets.

According to these sources, the Army has already started upgrading radars at key military bases.

Concerns regarding such balloons increased after the United States shot down a balloon using the AIM-9X Sidewinder missile, which was fired from an F22 jet. Following this, the US has also gunned down one flying object in Canada’s airspace and another one in its own airspace.

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Army Chief General Manoj Pande had last month said that India should “be ahead of the learning curve” when it comes to such threats.

The object being spotted near Andaman has made the situation more concerning for the Indian Army. The proximity of the islands to some of the major sea lines of communication (SLOC) in the Bay of Bengal makes the area strategically important for India.

Some of these SLOCs include the Ombai-Wetar straits, the Lombok Strait, the Sunda Strait, and the Malacca Strait.