Su-30MKI fighter destroys supersonic target

According to Sputnik, on September 12, the Indian Air Force's Su-30MKI fighter successfully intercepted a supersonic target with the domestically produced Astra air-to-air missile.

The Indian Air Force said this was the 8th and almost final test before this missile line is officially equipped on the Su-30MKI fighter.

According to the test scenario, as soon as it detected and locked onto the target, an unidentified flying object with a flight speed of nearly Mach 5, the Su-30MKI fighter launched an Astra missile and the target was immediately shot down.

The last time the Indian Air Force conducted a test with the Astra missile was in early 2017, when the missile carrying a guidance radar was launched from a Su-30MKI and successfully destroyed the target, a drone.

Su-30MKI fighter launches Astra missile.

The successful tests of the Astra missile marked a major milestone in India's air-to-air missile development programme.

It is known that the Astra missile was designed and developed by India's Defense Research and Development Organization (DRDO) and currently has two versions: Astra Mk-1 and Astra Mk-2.

According to the revealed design, the Astra Mk-1 missile variant has a range of 44km with a hit probability on the first launch, while the Astra Mk-2 variant can attack targets at a distance of over 100km.

The Indian Air Force's continued successful testing of the Astra missile has made the country the fifth country in the world to have the technology to produce long-range air-to-air missiles. Currently, only the US, Russia, China and France have the ability to produce missiles that can destroy aerial targets beyond visual range (90-120 km).

However, experts from the International Center of the Department of Economic Research and International Relations - Russian Academy of Sciences believe that this is not the only reason for India to enter the "power club".

India uses any weapon system to “prove its status”. But the main purpose in developing this missile line is not status but military needs. He believes that India has two potential opponents, China and Pakistan, so it needs a weapon that can prevail over the aircraft and missiles of these two countries.

Thus, once the Astra missile is combined with the Su-30MKI fighter, it will create an extremely powerful attack power for the Indian Air Force. Because the Su-30MKI is extremely maneuverable and flexible in combat, especially this fighter line possesses the super powerful radar system N011M Bars.

N011M Bars is considered the heart of Su-30MKI, this is a multi-mode radar with digital dual band. N011M Bars provides simultaneous air-to-air, air-to-sea, and air-to-ground surveillance modes.

This radar is capable of detecting targets at a range of up to 400km, tracking targets at a range of 200km in the front hemisphere and 60km in the rear hemisphere. N011M is capable of tracking 15 targets and attacking 4 targets at the same time.

Assisting the N011M Bars radar is the OLS-30 optical laser designator, which is a combination of an IRST infrared search and target designator and a laser target designator.

The OLS-30's target detection range is up to 90km, and targets are displayed on the LCD screen in the cockpit similar to radar.

With the capabilities of the Su-30MKI and Astra pair, India will have a huge advantage over its opponents in air-to-air combat.

According to Baodatviet