India Looks At Laser Weapons For Air And Missile Defense

[praveen007]

India Looks At Laser Weapons
For Air And Missile Defense

India Looks At Laser Weapons For Air And Missile Defense | AVIATION WEEK

India Looks At Laser Weapons
For Air And Missile Defense
Apr 28, 2011
By Jay Menon jaymenon68@
gmail.com


NEW DELHI
Indian scientists are on the path
to develop an airborne missile-
intercept system that employs
high-powered lasers to destroy
missiles during their boost phase.
The Laser Science & Technology
Center (Lastec) at India’s
secretive Defense Research and
Development Organization
(DRDO) has been building up
technologies that can intercept
missiles early in their flight.
The weapons will also be utilized
for crucial exercises by the
country’s armed forces that will
involve space security,
cybersecurity and hypersonic
technology. These futuristic
technologies will be incorporated
in the Ballistic Missile Defense
system being pursued by India.
Last year, DRDO developed an
ultra-compact, hand-held laser
sensor capable of giving warning
in the form of an audio beep as
well as a visual indication to the
user of any impending laser
threat. The device can be used
by infantry soldiers in the
battlefield and also can be
configured as a helmet-mounted
system in a modified package.
Recently, India also tested a laser
ballistic missile defense system.
The laser weapon is capable of
producing 25-kw pulses that can
destroy a ballistic missile at a
range of 7 km (4 mi.). One of
these weapons is the air defense
dazzler, which can engage
enemy aircraft and helicopters at
a range of 10 km.
Last year the U.S. conducted a
series of tests of high-powered
laser weapons on a modified
Boeing 747, the ALTB (Airborne
Laser Test-Bed), which directs
chemical laser energy to destroy
ballistic missiles in the boost
phase.
“While these laser-based
technologies will take time to
develop and be deployed, the
DRDO along with Lastec has
mapped out the future course of
action in these areas,” a DRDO
official says.

 

[Zabaniyah]

Lasers as military weapons are a pretty novel right now.

I still waiting to see laser cannons, laser rifles, all laser....

 

[praveen007]

so now india is testing these laser weapons good news indeed.

Caution India: DRDO'S LASER WEPONS FOR INDIAN DEFENCES

The state-owned Defence
Research and Development
Organisation (DRDO) has
unveiled its futuristic technology
plans which involve high-
powered lasers for combating
incoming missiles as well as other
areas of homeland security.
The DRDO’s Laser Science &
Technology Centre (LASTEC) has
indicated that it has been
developing Directed Energy
Weapons (DEWS) for the Indian
Armed Forces and that it will be
a crucial exercise along with
space security, cyber-security and
hypersonic vehicles.” LASTEC has
the mandate to develop DEWs
for armed forces,”

 

[tushar]

^^^
There are reports of use of those portable laser weapons already developed in J&K in the last quarter of 2010....

 

[praveen007]

^^^ yap even i had heard about that . Its states that small hand held laser designetors were used in kasmir, but didn't got any printed or net news.

 

[praveen007]

China has also equipped its
security forces with laser dazzling
weapons for riot control and in
August it was reported India's
army also plans to acquire laser
dazzlers. An Indian government
defence research centre had
developed two such systems for
use in counter-insurgency
operations.
Those systems have ranges of
between 50 and 500 metres.


Laser Weapons in the Hands of Canadian Soldiers - The Technology eZine

 

[praveen007]

Following in the footsteps of the
US Armed Forces, the Indian
Army soldiers will soon be armed
with laser guns to help take on
militants without even firing a
single shot.The Laser Science and
Technology Centre (LASTEC), a
DRDO laboratory, has developed
'Laser Dazzler' -- a non-lethal
gun -- for the armed forces to
be used during counter-
insurgency and anti-terrorist
operations.................
...................The gun can be used
effectively in counter-insurgency
operations and close combat
battles by the defence and
paramilitary forces," Maini said.
The DRDO-developed gun would
be used for trials by the Army in
counter-insurgency operations in
the next five to six months. It
would be tested in "real combat"
situations in both Jammu and
Kashmir and North Eastern
states.


Powerful laser weapons for the Indian Army

 

[rkjindal91]

''India also tested a laser
ballistic missile defense system.
The laser weapon is capable of
producing 25-kw pulses that can
destroy a ballistic missile at a
range of 7 km (4 mi.). One of these weapons is the air defense
dazzler, which can engage
enemy aircraft and helicopters at
a range of 10 km.''
I doubt it, there was no official statement about it.
No. 2 is that there is a lot of diffrence between dazzling an enemy pilot and destroying a hostile missile. Level and type of technology involved is totaly different.

 

[Obambam]

Nice one India. Laser is the way to go. Once the technology matures it will be the best form of defense. Saves the cost of firing missiles and ammunition rounds. It also beats the speed of sound.

 

[Kinetic]

Recently, India also tested a laser
ballistic missile defense system.
The laser weapon is capable of
producing 25-kw pulses that can
destroy a ballistic missile at a
range of 7 km (4 mi.). One of
these weapons is the air defense
dazzler, which can engage
enemy aircraft and helicopters at
a range of 10 km.

Cool! This was needed. Multi-layered missile defence with various types of intercepting weapons needed for a robust system.

Beam Control Technologies

* Target acquisition & automatic video tracking
* LI class Closed loop Tip Tilt Mirror(TTM) system for beam jitter correction

[/IMG]




DRDO's LASTEC also developed LIDAR based system for long range detection of Chemical Biological Warfare (CBW) agents.

Laser Dazzler: Laser Dazzler is a non-lethal laser suited to counter-insurgency operations.

Dual Role EOCM (Electro-optical Countermeasure) Laser System:It is a portable laser system for anti-sensor and anti-personnel applications. It has been field tested with user service participation. The Laser system is used for both anti-sensor as well as dazzling applications. It employs a frequency doubled Nd:YAG laser source for producing dual wavelength output at 1064 nm and 532 nm. While the IR output is used for anti-sensor applications, output in green ideally suits dazzling operation. The system comprises of a laser head with associated sighting system, electronics Unit and the power pack.

DRDO also developed various high power solid state and chemical lasers as well as IR Guided Missile Tester, Laser Guided Missiles/Munitions and Tester, Laser Spot Detector, LRF etc.

 

[rajusri]

Cool! This was needed. Multi-layered missile defence with various types of intercepting weapons needed for a robust system.

Beam Control Technologies

* Target acquisition & automatic video tracking
* LI class Closed loop Tip Tilt Mirror(TTM) system for beam jitter correction

[/IMG]




DRDO's LASTEC also developed LIDAR based system for long range detection of Chemical Biological Warfare (CBW) agents.

Laser Dazzler: Laser Dazzler is a non-lethal laser suited to counter-insurgency operations.

Dual Role EOCM (Electro-optical Countermeasure) Laser System:It is a portable laser system for anti-sensor and anti-personnel applications. It has been field tested with user service participation. The Laser system is used for both anti-sensor as well as dazzling applications. It employs a frequency doubled Nd:YAG laser source for producing dual wavelength output at 1064 nm and 532 nm. While the IR output is used for anti-sensor applications, output in green ideally suits dazzling operation. The system comprises of a laser head with associated sighting system, electronics Unit and the power pack.

DRDO also developed various high power solid state and chemical lasers as well as IR Guided Missile Tester, Laser Guided Missiles/Munitions and Tester, Laser Spot Detector, LRF etc.

Outstanding developments.


The war machine fights back

The war machine fights back Battle Challenge
Akshai Jain, akshai.j@livemint.com
The war machine fights back
A green needle-thin laser beam slices through the corridor and flickers gently on a 7mm sheet of metal 50m away. The chatter of the scientists gathered on the third floor of the Laser Science and Technology Centre (Lastec) in New Delhi dies down and the countdown begins. The large boxes that house a prototype ordnance disposal system have come to life, unleashing a 500W beam that drills into the thin sheet, filling the corridor with the acrid smell of burning metal.

A few floors below, Anil Kumar Maini, the director of the lab, swivels his computer screen to reveal what looks like a 3D video game. Figures in combat fatigues surround a house. A vehicle that looks like a cross between a tank and a Humvee drives up, stops about 300m away, and lets loose a laser beam that sets the house on fire. Militants hiding in the house run out, arms in the air.
Yes We Can

* Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO)

* Started operations (in India): 1958

*Made in India: Kalam-Raju stent made using a new variety of stainless steel; a fast H1N1 detection kit; anti-cancer drugs; titanium dental and bone implants; 'Leh Berry' seabuckthorn juice; an insecticide to lure and kill mosquitoes with military precision; techniques for treating effluents and contaminated water; phase change materials that can absorb and retain heat for long; etc. Overall, 416 patents.


"We've been working on an ordnance disposal system for a while," says Maini, "but it was only recently, at a conference, that the idea of using the system in low intensity conflicts like Kashmir came up."

The system, which was intended to destroy mines and munitions from a safe distance, can be adapted to set targets on fire. A 1KW laser, according to Maini, would do the job. "We've got the technology," he says excitedly, "We just got to make it a little more rugged and fit it on to a Tata Light Specialist Vehicle (LSV)."

He hopes to have a deployable system in two years.

Optimism has never been in short supply at Lastec, or for that matter at any one of the other 50 labs run by India's Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO).

Neither have money, scientists or ideas.

The gargantuan network of labs spread across the country employs 7,000 scientists and 23,000 technical and support staff. Its budget for 2009-10 was Rs 8,317.27 crore, dwarfing that of any other research establishment in the country.

DRDO's mandate is to create products and technologies for the Armed Forces. It has interpreted that rather loosely, involving itself in every possible area - from animal husbandry to battle tanks.

But what has been in short supply, according to critics (including at various points of time, chiefs of the Armed Forces), are deployable products and technologies. They point to a litany of missed deadlines, cost overruns and shoddy output.

As recently as 30 April, two of DRDO's Nishant unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) crashed during trials at the Pokhran airfield.

"All of DRDO's big budget projects have been complete failures," says Rahul Bedi, India correspondent of Defense Weekly. The most glaring of these has been the Arjun battle tank, which took over 35 years to develop and costs nearly 70 per cent more than the T90, the tried and tested mainstay of the Army. The Tejas light combat aircraft (LCA) comes a close second.

"After all this, the engines, the main component of both these systems," says Bedi scathingly, "are imported."

In a tacit admission of these failures, DRDO has in recent years shifted some of its attention to what it says are spin-offs or adaptations of some of its military technologies for civilian use. It's some of these that have made an impact.

"Nearly 95 per cent of the technologies that we work on can be used in other areas," says Ravi Gupta, director of public interface, DRDO. One of its earliest adaptations was the Kalam-Raju stent, a low-cost medical insert made using a new variety of stainless steel created by scientists at a DRDO lab in Hyderabad.

All DRDO labs are now, at the time of submitting proposals, required to list possible applications of their research.

Technology created by the Defence Food Research Laboratory (DFRL) to package food for soldiers in high-altitude areas has found its way to MTR Foods Ltd's range of processed foods. DRDO's laboratory in Leh has figured a way of preserving seabuckthorn juice, creating the successful 'Leh Berry' brand.

DRDO has also made advances in insect control. Its latest product, Attracticide, promises to "lure and kill" the Aedes aegypti mosquito, the carrier of Dengue, with military precision. The insecticide uses the tendency of mosquitoes to lay eggs on water that already contains larvae of the same species. Pheromones lure them, and the insect growth regulators that Attracticide contains prevent the larvae from developing into adults. The technology, DRDO says, has been tried successfully by the New Delhi Municipal Corporation.

Another one of DRDO's technology transfers has been to Jyothy Laboratories Ltd, giving the company exclusive global rights to market a range of insect repellent creams, lotions and sprays developed by DRDO. Jyothy Laboratories estimates these to be 4-5 times more effective than other similar products, and expects revenue of Rs30-40 crore from these this financial year.

With the increasing emphasis on spin-offs, the process of commercialising technologies at DRDO has been formalised. In January, the research agency, along with the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (Ficci), launched an accelerated technology assessment and commercialisation (Atac) programme. Ficci assessed more than 200 products from 26 DRDO labs and chose 45 for commercialisation.

These include bio-larvicides; techniques for treating effluents and contaminated water; a heat-setting technology for fabrics like nylon, developed originally for parachute rigging lines, that gives them longer and better elasticity.

Also on offer are lightweight ceramics that can find applications in underwater structures, and phase-change materials that can absorb and retain heat for long stretches, making them useful for cooling telecom equipment, boiler rooms, high temperature areas in the construction industry, etc.

Eittee Gupta, assistant director, Ficci, says the market response to these technologies has been "excellent". "The best thing about them," she adds, "is their cost-effectiveness."

Gupta, however, refused to give the costs at which these technologies were transferred.

DRDO's most significant contributions however have been in medicine. Apart from the stent, the Defence Research and Development Establishment (DRDE) lab in Gwalior has created an H1N1 detection kit as part of its nuclear, biological, chemical (NBC) programme. The kit costs just Rs 3,000 and can, according to Ravi Gupta, analyse a sample in 2-4 hours as opposed to the two days that most other kits need. DRDO will begin marketing the kit after clearance from the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR).

Close to Lastec is another lab where much of DRDO's medical research is taking place. The buildings in the sprawling campus of the Institute of Nuclear Medicine and Allied Sciences (Inmas) bristle with equipment. The lab was the first in India to acquire an MRI (Magnetic Resonance Imaging) machine, and is one of the few to possess a cyclotron, used to synthesise short-lived radioactive isotopes.

Inmas runs a drug development and evaluation programme that started as a means of studying the effects of various stresses on soldiers. The lab has been able to 'radio-label' drugs to study how they are absorbed by the body and to determine which anatomical parts they act on. Co-relating the two is a challenging task but doing so successfully can cut drug development costs significantly. The lab has so far radio-labeled and evaluated 25 drugs, some for pharmaceutical companies.

It's been a busy day for Rajendra Prashad Tripathi, director of the lab.

The institute has been roped into the investigation of the Cobalt 60 radiation leak in Delhi, and a team of scientists is on its way to the Army Research and Referral Hospital to collect blood and urine samples from one of the victims. "Gauging the level of radiation exposure is a very difficult task," he says. It's also a rare research opportunity that will "be useful for our NBC program."

According to Tripathi, Inmas has created 40 new drugs. It has also pioneered the use of the molecule 2-deoxyglucose in the treatment of cancer. The technology has been transferred to Dr Reddy's Laboratory Ltd, and is in advanced clinical trials.

Inmas has in collaboration with hospitals and research institutes around the country, come up with a range of medical devices, from titanium dental and bone implants to inhalers that can dispense drugs for mountain sickness, high-altitude oedema and asthma more effectively.

Vikram R. Lele, chief of nuclear medicine at Mumbai's Jaslok Hospital and Research Centre, is a skeptic however.

"They've got the best equipment but their work has not been very impressive," he says. According to him, the institute has created some important radio-chemicals but has failed to follow up on a number of others.

On 12 May, Defence Minister A.K. Antony approved a radical overhaul of DRDO based on the recommendations of the P. Rama Rao committee, which conducted the first external review of DRDO. The recommendations include the disbanding of the food and life sciences lab to allow for a greater focus on critical weapons and military technologies. It will be the end of most of DRDO's spin-offs, but that does not perturb Maini.

His lab is unlikely to come up with the ordnance disposal system or adapt it for use in low-intensity conflicts anytime soon. But "we're also working on a vehicle-mounted, low-powered but broad laser that can temporarily dazzle and disorient groups of people," says Maini. "It can be used to control mobs and unruly crowds."

If DRDO can manage to put a working model out on the street, Maini will have something to show for all that time and money.

Write in to us at akshai.j@livemint.com

 

[praveen007]

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COMPANY DETAILS
Laser Science & Technology
Centre (LASTEC)
Laser Science and Technology
Centre (LASTEC) is a nucleus
laboratory focusing on
conducting research in areas of
physics, chemistry and
mathematics. It develops high
power lasers for defense
applications.
LASTEC's primary focus is the
research and development of
various laser materials,
components and laser systems,
including high power lasers for
defense-applications. Its main
charter of the lab revolves
around progressing in areas of
Photonics, electro-optic counter
measures, and low and high
power lasers.
LASTEC also develops and
delivers directed energy weapon
systems for the Indian Armed
Forces, based on High-power
laser technology.
Products focused by the
organization are:
Energy weapon systems
G fuel-liquid propellant
Microphone grid
Polyurethane foam
Drishti-eye care laser
Solid state lasers
Combustion driven high power
gas dynamic laser (GDL)
Targetacquisition and
automatic video tracking
system
Closed loop tip tilt mirror
(TTM) system
Chemicaloxy-iodine laser
(COIL)
Electro optic counter measures
(EOCM)
CO2sealed type DC discharge
and wave guide lasers
Secondharmonic 532nm SS
Nd:YAG laser
Microchip laser
LASTEC has developed activities
like:
Critical technologies for an
engineered version of a ring
laser gyro for use in aircraft
and missiles.
Thinfilm coating technology
for hard-coated mirrors, low-
scattering mirrors, IR coatings,
metallic coatings required for
carbon-dioxide gas dynamic
laser, ring laser gyros, and
other applications.
Miniaturecooling system for
the DRDO's integrated guided
missile development program.
Its conducts research and
development activities towards
more specific and application
oriented areas, such as liquid
fuel+ technology, spectroscopy,
crystallography, system
engineering, biotechnology etc.
Company interacts with academic
andother institutions

http://epicos.com/Portal/Main/Home/...d8cXHkRIqOYJzfgpvCac2SvWdQE/+50Ui6Nu2puPavDwK

 

[praveen007]

some of the acivement of drdo's LASTEC
DRDO

Transfer of Technology
Technology four products has
been transferred to BEL Pune.
Laser Dazzler
IR Guided Missile Tester
Laser Guided Munitions Tester
Laser Spot Detector
Laser Dazzler: Laser Dazzler is a
non-lethal laser suited to
counter-insurgency operations.
IR Guided Missile Tester: IR
Guided Missile Tester is a
portable calibrated source of CW
IRradiation to simulates the jet
exhaust signatures thus allowing
serviceability check of IR guided
missiles even after they have
been strapped onto the launch
platform.
Laser Guided Munitions
Tester: Laser Guided Munitions
Tester simulates the signatures of
Laser Target Designators used
for LGB delivery applications in
terms of amplitude, wavelength
and PRF code to perform the
functionality check of the Laser
Guided Munitions.
Laser Spot Detector: Laser Spot
Detector is used to decipher the
unknown PRF codes of Laser
Target Designators used in Laser
Guided Munitions delivery
applications.
Optoelectronics Activities
Laser Seeker Characterisation
System: The system is effectively
used for carrying out
comprehensive evaluation of LGB
Seekers. It is used to characterize
the seeker performance based
on true code test, false code
test, mixed code test, sensitivity,
linearity and the field-of-view.
Successfully tested with Lizard
Seeker units from Elbit Systems,
Israel and indigenous seekers.
PRF Code Recognition Device
(BHANJAK): BHANJAK decodes
the pulse repetition frequency
(PRF) codes of Laser target
designators. It is a completely
non-intrusive device that allows
the user to decode the PRF
codes programmed in battlefield
laser target designators intended
for laser guided munitions
delivery. Knowledge of the PRF
codes and their periodic
validation is highly significant for
successful delivery of the guided
munitions on to the target and it
is essential that the selected PRF
code on the Laser designator
matches with the code set in the
seeker head.
LGM Delivery Kit Evaluation
System: The LGM Delivery Kit
Evaluation System is designed for
comprehensive testing of LGM
Delivery Kit including the Laser
Seekers of the Laser Guided
Munitions and the Laser Target
Designators. The system
comprises of a transmitter to
generate signatures as seen by
the seeker head of Laser Guided
Munitions and a receiver to
decipher the PRF codes of Laser
Target Designators.
IR Target Simulator: It is a
calibrated IR source with pre-
defined amplitude and
wavelength signature in the 3-5
and 8-12 micron bands to
simulate target signatures and
static background
EOCM Activities
Dual Role EOCM Laser System:
It is a portable laser system for
anti-sensor and anti-personnel
applications. It has been field
tested with user service
participation. The Laser system is
used for both anti-sensor as well
as dazzling applications. It
employs a frequency doubled
Nd:YAG laser source for
producing dual wavelength
output at 1064 nm and 532 nm.
While the IR output is used for
anti-sensor applications, output
in green ideally suits dazzling
operation. The system comprises
of a laser head with associated
sighting system, electronics Unit
and the power pack.
Ultra Compact Hand-held
Laser Warning Sensor: It is an
ultra-compact device capable of
giving warning in the form of an
audio beep as well as a visual
indication to the user of any
impending visible or IR battlefield
laser threat. It can be used by an
infantry soldier in the battlefield.
It can also be configured as a
helmet-mounted system in a
modified package.
Solid State Laser
Ultra Compact Hand-held
Laser Warning Sensor: It is an
ultra-compact device capable of
giving warning in the form of an
audio beep as well as a visual
indication to the user of any
impending visible or IR battlefield
laser threat. It can be used by an
infantry soldier in the battlefield.
It can also be configured as a
helmet-mounted system in a
modified package.
FTIR Q-Switched High Rep Rate
DiodePumped Er:Yb:Glass
Laser :
Technologies Developed
Thermoelectrically Cooled Diode
Pumped Er:Yb: Glass Laser Head
Q-Switching Techniques
(Frustrated Total Internal
Refection/Cobalt Spinel Crystal)
for Er:Glass Laser
Fiber Coupled Nd: YAG Laser
System for Initiation of Pyro /
Propellant :
A Tripod mounted Flash lamp
pumped pulsed Nd: YAG Laser
system has been developed i for
the initiation of energetic
materials like Pyro/ Propellants.
For initiation of the energetic
materials, the laser energy could
be launched by directly focusing
the laser beam or through a
Silica fiber. The system has been
successfully tested at TBRL –
Chandigarh for initiation of Pyro-
mixtures & propellants.
Programmable Laser Target
Desigantor: Programmable PRF
Laser Source developed by
LASTEC is a state-of-the-art
system that transmits the laser
radiation at selected PRF code
with the desired accuracy in
order to check the functionality
of LGB seeker.
Laser Ordnance Disposal
System
The System is specifically
developed for neutralisation of
explosive devices from safe
stand-off distances by focusing
laser energy on the munitions
casing thereby heating it until the
explosivefiller ignites and starts
to burn.
Compact Uncooled Diode
Pumped
Nd-YAG Laser : The system
consists of crossed poro prism,
diode pumped passively Q-
Switched Nd: YAG laser with high
mechanical stability and high
peak power for operations upto
20 Hz.
NBC
LIDAR (Light detection and
ranging) is an experimental
technique which detects and
quantifies the vertical/line of
sight distribution of atmospheric
aerosols, clouds, air pollutants,
CBW agents, explosive materials,
atmospheric temperature and
their properties with good range
resolution and accuracies. The
development of tripod mounted
Mie backscatter LIDAR system
based on a pulsed Nd;YAG laser
source is completed.
S&T Programme
Neodymium doped Gadolinium
Gallium Garnet (Nd:GGG)
37-element Bimorph
Deformable Mirror
The BDM will be used for the
real time correction of laser
wave front errors of CO2 GDL
beam.
Solid Flexure Fast Steering
Mirror
A solid flexure, Fast Steering
Mirror (FSM) is used for initial
alignment of laser beam and for
the correction of low frequency
laser beam drift.

 

[praveen007]

 

[praveen007]