India's latest trial of the Integrated Air Defence Weapon System (IADWS), which has a high-power laser-based Directed Energy Weapon (DEW), has received admiration from a Chinese military analyst, who called it a "great leap.
IADWS is a multi-level indigenous defence system that combines the rapid reaction surface-to-air missile (QRSAM), very short-range air defence system (VSHORADS) missile, and the advanced laser-guided DEW. The system was successfully flight tested off the Odisha coast on Saturday.
The trial, especially the demonstration of the DEW—technology enjoyed by only a limited number of countries, among which are the US, Russia, China, the UK, Germany, and Israel—is of interest to Chinese defence experts.
Chief editor Wang Ya'nan of the Beijing-based Aerospace Knowledge magazine says that India's IADWS is meant to defend against low- and mid-altitude threats such as drones, cruise missiles, helicopters, and low-flying aircraft, although its strike range is still limited.
He emphasized that the efficiency of such an integrated system relies primarily on its capacity to share target information among its components. "The most important thing for such an integrated air defence system is to have a highly efficient information system able to relay target data to corresponding weapon components, or the system would only consist of independent air defence weapons," he explained to China's state-controlled Global Times.
Wang recognized the merit of India's success, saying: "Of the three layers of the IADWS, the vehicle-mounted air defence missile QRSAM and man-portable air defence system VSHORADS are not technology-fresh, but the laser system is actually a noteworthy leap.
Highlighting that there are few nations with such capability, he said, "There are not many nations in the globe with combat-ready laser systems," referring to China's LW-30 vehicle-mounted laser defense weapon, which is being called a "UAV killer." He characterized its benefits as "light speed engagement, silent strike, all-weather operation, flexible and precise, and a high cost-effectiveness ratio."
These comments by Chinese analysts are regarded as significant, considering the People's Liberation Army's consistent investments in advanced weapons research and development, as well as its status as a principal arms supplier to Pakistan.
More than 81 percent of Pakistan's military equipment, the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) data indicate, has been provided by China. Equipment the Pakistan army apparently employed against India in the recent Operation Sindoor conflict.
The IADWS trials were conducted about three months following Operation Sindoor.
Read also| Sudarshan Chakra Poised to Become India’s Iron Dome: CDS Gen Anil Chauhan
