ISLAMABAD – Pakistan Air Force (PAF) had acquired advanced targeting pods –ASELPODS – for integration with the JF-17 Thunder in 2016. This wasrevealed in the Annual Yearbook of the Turkish defence electronics vendorASELSAN recently.
The deliveries for the pods took place in November 2016, as well as inFebruary and September 2017, which were received by PAF at the Chaklala AirBase Rawalpindi.
The eight pods are valued at around $25 million. They were integrated intothe multi-role fighter jets after undergoing successful testing in 2017.
These advanced targeting pods has equipped Pakistan’s JF-17s with theability to deploy laser-guided air-to-ground missiles (AGMs)and laser-guided bombs (LGBs) along with ground attack capabilities withprecision strike.
There are reports that suggest that Pakistan has ordered more ASELPODS fromASELSAN for $24.9 million. However, the news is yet to be confirmed by thevendor or the PAF.
The ASELPOD system marks the target with laser while monitoring it with acamera; images are sent to the pilot’s screen allowing precision-shots withsensitive ammunition.
The vendor has been providing software-defined radio (SDR) kits to Pakistanduring the past 8-10 years or so. With Pakistan signing a number of defencedeals with Turkeylink,ASELSAN is also expected to enjoy a better-than-ever relationship withPakistan.