It is a fact that our country in recent years has demonstrated a particular zeal in the field of military diplomacy and the "building" of alliances with powerful countries such as the US, France, Israel, Egypt, UAE, Saudi Arabia, but also with the rising superpower India.
Indian SAAW and ASTRA missiles are 'carried' by French Rafale fighters
In an earlier article, we reported that the Indian Air Force wants to integrate the Smart Anti Airfield Weapon (SAAW) and the "Astra" (air-to-air) missile into its Rafale aircraft, which it has been using since 2020.
The plan also includes integrating various Indian munitions, including long-range glide bombs, into the aircraft under consideration. Industry experts believe that, this could open up a significant market for Indian weapon systems once they are integrated into the Rafale.
Greece is also benefiting from the France-India rapprochement and the production of Indian missiles for the Rafale fighters, as Greece has the fighters in its arsenal, since it will be able to obtain them in the future from New Delhi as well as from Paris, further strengthening its good relations with New Delhi.
India's new RudraM-II anti-radiation missile is also launched from the Mirage-2000
However, the issue takes on new implications for Greece, as according to an International Media article,India has reportedly successfully tested the RudraM-II anti-radiation missiles that can be fired from both Sukhoi Su-30MKI and Mirage-2000 fighter aircraft, noting:
"The head of the Defence Research and Development Organisation Dr SV Kamat confirmed the successful test of the RudraM-II missile. In October 2020, India launched the first indigenous RudraM anti-radiation missile developed for the Sukhoi Su-30MKI fighter aircraft.
Technical characteristics - Range
The RudraM-II can be launched from both Su-30 and Mirage-2000, significantly enhancing the firepower of the Indian Air Force (IAF), with a range of 300 km.
While the RudraM-I is equipped with only a passive homing head (PHH) for final attack on the enemy's surveillance and guidance radar systems, communication towers, command and control centres and other radiation emitting targets, the RudraM-II is equipped with an infrared imaging (IIR) detector along with PHH for neutralising other targets such as airfields, depots and aircraft hangars.
The RudraM-II can carry a payload of 200 kg. It can achieve a speed of Mach 5.5 and can be launched from altitudes ranging from 3 to 15 km, according to DRDO.
Despite its name, the missile has nothing to do with nuclear power or radiation. They are weapons generally launched from the air to neutralize ground and ship targets.
They detect enemy radar station radio transmissions used to detect enemy aircraft and direct surface-to-air missiles. ARMs were invented in the 20th century to disrupt enemy communication and surveillance capabilities
In 2001, India purchased Kh-31s for its Su-30MKI, including 60 Kh-31As and 90 Kh-31Ps. In July 2019, Sputnik News reported that India purchased additional Kh-31 missiles.
The deployment of these anti-radar missiles in the Russia-Ukraine war has been keenly observed and noted by the Indian defence establishment."
Areas of cooperation between India and Greece
In an earlier article, we had extensively reported on the partnership between India and Greece , which could be a win-win situation for both countries, especially for Greece, which will have a new powerful ally like India to counter the Turkey-Pakistan alliance, in the Aegean and SE Mediterranean, focusing on the areas of military cooperation between the two (2) countries.
Now to these areas of cooperation is added the possibility of Greece purchasing the new Indian anti-radiation missile RudraM-II, which has a range of 300km and a speed of up to Mach 5.5 and can be launched from French Mirage 2000 fighters available in our country.
In addition to the further strengthening of Athens-New Delhi relations that will result from the purchase of the missiles in question by Greece, due to their very good technical characteristics and range, they will also constitute a very important weapon for the destruction of Turkish air defence radars at a great distance and depth from the Asia Minor coast in the event of a Greek-Turkish conflict, significantly expanding the work of our Air Force thereafter.
