*BY: Qaiser Bashir Makhdoom *
*A claimed long-range jamming system emerges as both sides recount May2025’s air war; analysts say EW will shape the next Indo-Pak showdown*
Pakistan has unveiled an indigenously developed long-rangeelectronic-attack platform dubbed *Trident EA-1*, attributed to the *EMSODivision of the National Aerospace Science & Technology Park (NASTP)*.System is a high-power, all-terrain platform designed to intercept and jamenemy voice/data links—including frequency-hopping signals—and to targetcommand, telemetry and relay nodes,“combat-proven” in the May 2025 fighting.
Public debate over the May 7–10, 2025 clashes— “Operation Sindoor” inIndia—remains intense. India’s Air Chief Marshal Amar Preet Singh recentlyasserted the IAF downed *five Pakistani fighter jets and onespecial-mission aircraft*, a narrative carried by major Indian outlets andechoed in speeches; Pakistan’s government has disputed those claims.Reuters reported the IAF chief’s statement on August 9, while also notingPakistan’s denial.
Open-source attribute several capabilities to Trident EA-1: long-rangestand-off jamming against communications/data links, effects against bothfixed-frequency and frequency-hopping systems, and networked control withina broader *EMSO* (electromagnetic spectrum operations) grid. Further claimeffectiveness against airborne early-warning assets and battlefield datachains.
*NASTP* itself is a real, PAF-led aerospace/tech ecosystem launched in 2023to incubate defence R&D and industry partnerships; officials billed it as astrategic national project to grow indigenous capability. That makes NASTPa plausible home for an EMSO program, even if Trident’s specific specsremain opaque.Why an EW platform like Trident matters in a PAF–IAF matchup
Independent analysis during and after the 2025 fighting consistentlyhighlighted *electronic warfare* as a decisive realm. Forbes, for example,underscored how both India and Pakistan leaned on EW to degrade the otherside’s kill chains and situational awareness. Pakistani and regionalcommentary likewise framed the clash as a turning point in“system-of-systems” warfare—where data links, sensors, and C2 nodes are ascritical as jets and missiles. (Forbeslink,The Friday Timeslink,Dawn link)
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If Trident EA-1 (or a system like it) is fielded at scale, the *operationalimplications* against India could include:
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*Disruption of IAF C2 and datalinks* (voice/data, tactical networks), complicating coordinated strikes and air-defence cueing—especially in border-adjacent sectors dense with radios, relays, and UAV control links. This aligns with widely observed global trends in spectrum warfare. ( Forbes link ) –
*Pressure on high-value enablers* such as AWACS and ground relay nodes by degrading their ability to pass a common operating picture to shooters; even partial denial can slow OODA loops and open windows for standoff shooters. (Analytic inference based on EW doctrine and 2025 after-action reporting.) (Forbes link, The Diplomat link ) –
*Counter-countermeasure spiral*: India would likely respond by hardening its networks (frequency agility, LPI/LPD, encryption, adaptive routing), leveraging S-400/Barak-8/Akash–supported air defence and its own EW assets to keep kill chains intact—something already emphasized in Indian narratives around the conflict. (link link )