Amid surging tension with Pakistan, Indian Army seeks deadly MANPADS

At short ranges, for any target more than one square metre, there are few weapons as effective as the ‘fire and forget’ Very Short Range Air Defence System (New Generation) (also called VSHORADS - NG) or commonly referred to as MANPADS (Man-Portable Air Defence Systems).

With war clouds gathering on the horizon amid raging tensions between India and Pakistan after the April 22 terror killing of tourists in Kashmir’s Pahalgam, the defence ministry, on Saturday, issued a Request for Proposal (RFI) for equipping the Indian Army with 48 launchers equipped with night vision sights, and 85 missiles besides one missile test station.

“To be based on infra-red homing technology which allows them to track the heat signatures of aircraft engines, once fired, these single-shot missiles have a 95 per cent kill probability. Known not to fail, they are most effective against low-flying aircraft, including helicopters, fixed-wing aircraft and UAVs,” a serving official told THE WEEK.

“MANPADS also have the advantage of being extremely mobile as they can be fired from anywhere, be it from a hilltop, from vehicles, just about anywhere”.

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A salvo of two missiles has a very high minimum kill rate of 85 per cent against a fighter aircraft which flies at very high speeds.

In the hands of the Taliban, MANPADS created havoc among low-flying aircraft operated by the US-led coalition. In the initial years of the 80s, the US had supplied the Mujahideen in Afghanistan with the ‘Stingers’ to down Soviet helicopters and low-flying aircraft.

The MANPADS consists of three components—the explosive projectile, the launch tube along with the grip and a battery unit to produce the needed electricity.

The launcher is usually carried by a single soldier, who also loads two missiles on his back. Each missile is not to be more than 1.85 metres long.
The maximum range for MANPADS is 6 km and the minimum range half a km.

The RFI states that the delivery has to be completed within a year of signing of the contract.

The militaries of about 105 countries across the world operate MANPADS although only 12 countries, including India, produce it. The most famous MANPADS are the US-made ‘Stinger’ and the Soviet 9K32 Strela-2 or simply ‘SA-7 with the China-made ‘FN-16’ being the latest entrant. 

Defence