New Delhi: On Sunday, Air Marshal Awadhesh Kumar Bharti, India’s Director General Air Operations (DGAO), mentioned how the Indian Air Force (IAF) put its ‘legacy’ Pechora surface-to-air missile (SAM) systems to good effect against incoming Pakistani missiles.
What is the Pechora?
The S-125 Pechora is a Soviet-era missile system procured by India between 1974 and 1991. Each system consists of four launchers and can simultaneously strike two targets at a speed of 900 m/s. It has a maximum firing range of 35.4 km and maximum cross range of 25 km. It can detect targets within a range of 100 km and engage them at altitudes ranging from 0.02 km to 25 km. Its kill probability is 92%.
Why were the Pechoras inducted?
The Pechoras were inducted into the IAF to safeguard airfields and vital installations across the country. At one point of time, 30 Pechora units were deployed across the country. There are 16 squadrons still in operation. The Pechoras will be replaced by the Akash-NGs and MRSAMs. The IAF plans to replace all Pechora units by 2030.
Upgradation of technology:
The IAF got the Pechora warheads refurbished with indigenous explosive composition through the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO). Explosive material in the warheads was scooped out and replaced with RDX/TNT-based composition as the main filling and RDX/Wax composition as the booster charge.
The IAF may not have been aware that it would require Pechoras to intercept modern-day missiles launched against Indian air bases by Pakistan. According to the DGAO, these missile systems performed extremely well. This is probably the first time these SAM systems were used in real combat, though they may have gone on alert on several occasions. The only War fought by India after their induction was at Kargil. Pakistan did not fire missiles into India or send in its fighter jets during that War.
