NEW DELHI – In a direct threat to Pakistan, Indian Air Force armed withdeadly Air Weapon with over 400 km Range
Indiam Sukhoi Su-30MKI fighter aircraft have been armed with BrahMosair-launched supersonic cruise missiles with range in excess of 400kilometers.
Weapons were inducted into Indian Air Force’s 222 Tigersharks Squadron atthe Thanjavur Air Force Station in Tamil Nadu on Monday (January 202,2020). A water salute was given to the Sukhoi Su-30MKI fighter at theinduction ceremony at Thanjavur.
Speaking on the occasion IAF Chief Air Chief Marshal RKS Bhadauria pointedout that the decision to deploy the Su-30MKI at Thanjavur airbase was takendue to its strategic location.
The airbase is located in Tamil Nadu and the Su-30MKIs with their 1,500kilometres combat radius and the air-launched BrahMos which have a range of400 km will ensure the IAF is able to patrol the Bay of Bengal, the ArabianSea and vast areas of the Indian Ocean.
The Su-30MKIs and their deadly arsenal will help the IAF keep a hawkeye onthe Indian Ocean Region (IOR) and thwart any intrusion by enemy ships closeto the country’s coast.
“The Su-30MKI inducted here is equipped with special weapon (BrahMossupersonic cruise missile).
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The integration of the air-launched version of the BrahMos missile with theSu-30MKI fighter has been done fully indigenously by BrahMos Aerospace, HAL(Hindustan Aeronautics Limited) and the India Air Force,” said ACM Bhadauria
At present, the Tigersharks has six Su-30MKI fighters but it will have 18combat aircraft by the end of 2020, making it a full-fledged IAF fightersquadron.
With the BrahMos air-launched supersonic cruise missiles with a range ofover 400 kms under their belly, the Su-30MKIs are one of the most potentweapons in the IAF armoury.
The air-launched version of BrahMos is about 500 kilogrammes lighter thanits land and ship-launched cousins. Weighing almost 2,500 kgs, the BrahMosarming Su-30MKIs can destroy targets on sea flying at a speed of almostMach 3 ( over 3704 kilometres per hour).
With China flexing its muscle in the IOR in the last few years, IAF’s moveto station the Tigersharks Squadron with Su-30 MKIs in Thanjavur willensure that all its (China) moves are under close scrutiny.
