New Delhi: The Indian Army is looking to procure a minimum of 90 Carrier Air Defence Tracked (CADET) systems, with a minimum of 50 percent indigenous content, to deploy them with mechanised columns.
The Army will deploy the CADET in all terrains such as plains, deserts, semi-deserts, and high-altitude and mountainous areas of up to 5,000 m.
The CADET chassis will, afterwards, be a common link for other air defence projects that the Army has been looking at.
The Army will also buy more CADET systems with upgrades put in place.
Earlier this year, Russia completed the trials of the track-based Pantsir-SM-SV air defence system, which will be put into service shortly with the Russian ground and airborne forces.
The basic CADET platform, conceptualised as a box-shaped, tracked chassis with a raised structure, will provide space inside its body to accommodate a crew of four and equipment. Outside its body will be attachment points for mounting various equipment and structures associated with current and future air defence systems.
The basic CADET platform, per se, will be equipped with a high-power engine to meet both movement and power generation requirements. A compact auxiliary power unit to meet the high-power requirement of onboard equipment, an intelligent power management system, an effective temperature management system, and navigation and communication systems will also be a part of it.
Dedicated sensors, weapons, and equipment for fitment inside or on the basic CADET platform have either been contracted for or are under various stages of development. These will fall within the Buyer Nominated Equipment (BNE) or Buyer Furnished Equipment (BFE) specification at the time of procurement, said the Request for Information (RFI) sent out by the Army.
The CADET will usually get fitted with the Akashteer equipment to make self-propelled air defence units. Akashteer is an automated air defence control and reporting system that allows the Army’s air defence units to operate in an integrated manner. The Army inducted it earlier this year.
By integrating radar and communication systems at all levels into a unified network, Akashteer aims to deliver unprecedented levels of situational awareness and control. The same will enable swift engagement of hostile targets and reduce the risk of fratricide in contested airspace.
According to the Army, in the future, CADET will also be utilised as a carrier platform for many other varieties of the Counter Unmanned Aerial System (C-UAS) weapon systems for self-propelled air defence units. These include the Integrated Drone Detection & Interdiction System, the Drone Kill System, and the Vehicle Mounted Counter Swarm Drone System.
(Edited by Madhurita Goswami)