Operation Sindoor | Indian Army’s home-grown Akashteer air defence systems block Pakistan’s air adventure

New Delhi: A made-in-Bengaluru mobile air defence command and control system for the Indian Army stood firm to block Pakistan’s air adventure and provide a robust air shield during the Indo-Pak conflict in Operation Sindoor, officials said here noting that Akashteer’s performance was “beyond the user’s expectations.”

Sources said the army used the Akashteer air defence system – designed and manufactured by Bharat Electronics Limited - at six nodes on the western front to spot the enemy drones and successfully engage them with the weapon closest to the target.

“The in-house air defence system, Akashteer, has proved its mettle in the war-field. Ground-based defence systems integrated with Akashteer made it hell for Pakistan's air adventures. The system performed beyond users' expectations providing robust air defence to India during the current conflict,” BEL said in a statement.

The air defence control and reporting system scans the horizon continuously and informs the shooters closest to the target about the enemy systems once they are spotted.

While Akashteer systems are integrated with the Indian Air Force’s Integrated Air Command and Control System, being mobile in nature they can be deployed closer to the forward areas.

“Akashteer ensures a seamless and unified air situation picture accessible to the lowest operational units of Army Air Defence units, enhancing situational awareness across the force. It empowers units on the front lines, enabling dynamic engagement decisions and preventing friendly-fire incidents,” says BEL.

Nearly two years ago, the Defence Ministry signed a Rs 1,982 crore agreement to supply 455 Akashteer systems for the Indian Army. Close to 200 of these systems have been delivered to the army so far and the rest is expected by 2027.

“Akashteer enables monitoring of low level airspace over the battle areas of the Indian Army and effectively controls the ground based air defence weapon systems. The deployment began in April 2024,” said a source.

The Akashteer system included comprehensive sensor fusion; automated operations for faster response; decentralised engagement authority; advanced real-time air picture; built-in redundancy and scalability; and flexible deployment across formations, sources said.

Armed with such air defence units, Indian troops on the ground used legacy systems like Pechora, OSA-AK and LLAD guns (Low-level air defence guns) as well as home grown Akash surface to air missiles and other longer range missiles to neutralise Pakistan attacks.