Form of words:
New Delhi: In a first, the military has ordered more than 100 tactical kamikaze Israeli drones to be used in the Azerbaijan-Armenia conflict to bolster its operational capability along the borders with Pakistan and China.
The ‘Skystriker’ will be manufactured in Bengaluru by a joint venture between Israel’s Elbit Systems and India’s Alpha Design, which is part of the Adani Group.
The Skystriker is already under production in India to meet export orders.
Sources in the defense and security establishment said the contract was signed on August 31 and that the delivery will have to be completed within 12 months.
While the Indian Air Force has been operating the much larger Harop loitering munitions for more than a decade, this is the first time the Army has sought a kamikaze drone, which can carry a warhead of 5-10 kg.
“Haarop and Skystriker are both different. Harop is much bigger in size and more lethal; it can be used to take out entire command and control structures,” a source told ThePrint. “Skystriker is cheap and tactically operational. can be used for. It is a strength booster for the soldiers on the ground.”
skystriker was is widely used To attack moving targets, including armored personnel carriers, by Azerbaijan in its conflict with Armenia.
Sources said that the Skystriker can be used as a standalone system, can be used in multiples or even as a swarm.
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skystriker drone
As the name suggests, kamikaze drones are those that fall on a target and explode. They are formally known as nomadic munitions, meaning they can move around in the air and then fall on their target when commanded.
The Skystriker, which is launched through an automatic pneumatic launch platform, can reach a distance of 20 km in less than 10 minutes.
Sources said the total range of the system is around 100 km. According to Elbit, it can pursue a target for up to 2 hours with a 5 kg warhead or up to 1 hour with a 10 kg warhead.
At maximum speed (100 knots), the Skystriker can reach a distance of 20 km in under 6.5 minutes, reducing the turnaround time to 15 minutes.
Since the Skystriker has an electric propulsion, it makes very little noise, allowing covert operations at low altitudes.
According to Elbit, the Skystriker uses autonomous navigation during its cruising and rotating phases.
When preparing to strike, it navigates by virtue of its electro-optical “lock” on the target. Elaborating further, it said that during the strike phase, Skystriker can dive at extremely high speeds of up to 300 knots and can withstand winds of up to 20 knots.
In 2017, the year Skystriker was launched, the company Said The system also provides significant flexibility such as the ability to select any target, to engage in any direction and at different angles (shallow to steep), while significantly reducing costs.
“In addition, Skystriker enables the operator, in the case of a lack of authorized targets, to effect a strike of up to two seconds, re-engage and order a safe return home,” the report then said.
(Edited by Arun Prashant)
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