The Indian Ministry of Defence (MoD) has contracted Bharat Dynamics Limited (BDL) to deliver Medium-Range Surface-to-Air Missiles (MRSAM) to the Indian Navy.
Over 70 MRSAMs will reportedly be delivered to the navy under the 29.6-billion Indian Rupee ($340 million) contract.
The systems will be deployed on the majority of future Indian warships.
“The contract marks a critical milestone in the ongoing efforts to bolster India’s defence capabilities and indigenous advanced military technology,” the MoD stated.
The contract will see largely indigenous content in the system and generate approximately 350,000 man-days.
Medium-Range Surface-to-Air Missiles
An Indian version of the Indo-Israeli Barak 8 surface-to-air missile, the MRSAM has been developed jointly by Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) and India’s Defence Research and Development Organization.
India’s Bharat Electronics Limited manufactures the system in collaboration with the IAI.
The system has been operational with the Indian Army, the Indian Air Force, and deployed on various Indian Navy platforms such as the aircraft carrier INS Vikrant, the three Kolkata-class destroyers, and the four Visakhapatnam-class destroyers.
In March 2023, the Indian Navy demonstrated the system’s anti-ship capabilities from the INS Visakhapatnam destroyer.
Features
The system has been designed to neutralize various aerial targets such as aircraft, guided bombs, helicopters, and even anti-ship and sea-skimming missiles from a range of 70 kilometers (43 miles).
It includes a multi-function surveillance and threat alert radar, weapon control system, and vertical launcher unit.
The active-phased array radar’s detection range is 350 kilometers (217 miles). It can track more than 1,000 air and 300 surface targets simultaneously.
