In a significant operational move, the Israeli Air Force has, for the first time, employed the Indo-Israeli produced Barak air defence system to shoot down an Iranian drone that had entered Israeli airspace. The intercept, which is coming at a time of heightened tensions between Iran and Israel, underlines the increasing strategic value of India-Israel defence cooperation.
The Barak-8 missile system, or Medium Range Surface to Air Missile (MRSAM), was developed by India’s Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) and Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) in collaboration. It is intended to counter a diverse range of aerial threats ranging from unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) and cruise missiles to combat aircraft and ballistic threats. “Earlier today, the ‘Barak’ system in the Air Force’s air defense network intercepted a UAV that entered Israeli airspace, This system was specifically created to defend Israeli airspace from contemporary aerial threats.” stated the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) in a press release.
What Is Barak-8 And Why It Matters?
The Barak-8/LRSAM is a state-of-the-art, all-weather air defense missile system with a range of up to 100 km, which can strike multiple targets with precision simultaneously. The missile has vertical launch capability, active radar seekers, and 360-degree coverage, thus ensuring high effectiveness even in saturation attack conditions. India played a crucial role to the evolution of the missile’s dual-pulse rocket motor, thrust vector control, and other subsystems, with Israel providing its seeker technology and endgame avionics expertise. The missile system is already in service with the Indian Navy, Indian Air Force, and soon the Indian Army, under several contracts valued at billions of dollars signed between New Delhi and Tel Aviv.
The Barak-8 or MRSAM system comes with several advanced features. It has an operational range of 70 to 100 kilometers and can travel at speeds of up to Mach 2. The missile is equipped with a 60-kilogram proximity-fused warhead designed to detonate near the target for maximum effectiveness. It uses vertical launch technology and offers 360-degree coverage, allowing it to respond to threats from any direction. For guidance, it relies on an active radar seeker in combination with the MF-STAR AESA radar system. One of its key strengths is its ability to engage multiple targets simultaneously, making it highly effective even during complex aerial attacks.
Recently, in a display of its capability, India used the Barak-8 system in Operation Sindoor, where it intercepted a Pakistani Fatah-II missile over Sirsa in Haryana, suspected to be heading to Delhi. The system has been tested rigorously in land and sea configurations. Some of the major tests include its induction on INS Kolkata and INS Chennai, and integration on Vikramaditya aircraft carrier and Project 17A frigates.
Make in India Collaboration With Strategic Impact
As part of the ‘Make in India’ program, the manufacturing and integration of the missile include major Indian public and private sector companies like Bharat Dynamics Limited (BDL), Bharat Electronics Limited (BEL), L&T, and TATA Group. The missile system has also been successfully integrated in five Indian Army air defence regiments under the MRSAM program. The first deliverable firing unit of MRSAM was on September 9, 2021, handed over to the Indian Air Force in a ceremony witnessed by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh at Jaisalmer.Use by Israel of the Barak system in operations highlights the strategic strength of India-Israel military collaboration. With order values over 3 billion USD, and successful operational missions by both countries, the Barak-8 system is a standard-setter in international joint defence production. Israel’s recent employment of this weapon against Iranian drones not only confirms its effectiveness on the battlefield but also increases confidence in Indian deployments.