As India celebrates Republic Day on January 26, it is likely that soon, two countries will have the combination of Rafale, Sukhoi-30, and BrahMos supersonic cruise missiles in their inventories.
While the Philippines has purchased a shore-based BrahMos supersonic cruise missile, another Southeast Asian country is likely to opt for the air-launched version.
Very soon, two IAFs – the Indian Air Force and the Indonesian Air Force are likely to have French Rafale, Sukhoi Su-30 ‘Flanker’ and BrahMos supersonic cruise missile, which is a modification of Soviet-era anti-ship missiles developed by the Reutov Design Bureau in the late 1980s.
Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto will be the Chief Guest for India’s Republic Day parade, and a deal for the BrahMos missile is likely to be announced during the visit. This will be the second export order for the BrahMos missile.
The Indonesian Air Force flies ‘Flankers’ and has shown interest in the air-launched BrahMos. The Indian Air Force has already operationalized the BrahMos-equipped Su-30MKIs. These aircraft armed with BrahMos were deployed in India’s northern sector from their home base in Thanjavur during the peak of the conflict with China.
India’s move to deploy BrahMos along the Indo-China border evoked a sharp response from Beijing. The PLA Daily, the official publication of the People’s Liberation Army, said: “India deploying supersonic missiles on the border has exceeded its own needs for self-defense and poses a serious threat to China’s Tibet and Yunnan provinces.”
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The IAF has modified 40 of its Sukhois to deliver air-version of BrahMos. BrahMos missile is the heaviest weapon to be deployed on Su-30MKI.
The integration has increased IAF’s capability to strike from large stand-off ranges on any target in sea or land. The integration of Brahmos Air Launched Cruise Missile (ALCM) greatly enhances IAF’s ability to strike heavily defended targets deep into enemy territory, up to a range of 2,100 km (or 3,900 km with a refueller).
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Even if Brahmos is fired from a Su-30 MKI that remains within Indian borders, a wide strike range of 290 km is now available. The original range of the BrahMos supersonic cruise missile, developed under an Indo-Russian Joint Venture, was 290 kilometers. In 2023, the IAF successfully tested an extended-range BrahMos cruise missile with a range of 450 kilometers fitted on a Sukhoi-30 MKI fighter jet.
It is this capability boost that Indonesia is looking for to counter an aggressive China in the South China Sea.
In January 2024, the Indonesian government officially finalized the third and final phase of its planned acquisition of 42 Rafale fighter jets. The Rafale acquisition has been crucial to the country’s broader air force modernization strategy. The procurement of Rafales has positioned Indonesia as Southeast Asia’s largest purchaser of French arms.
The Indonesian Air Force was keen to purchase Mirage 2000-5 fighter jets to plug the capability gap. However, financial constraints forced it to opt for an alternative strategy. Instead of acquiring the Mirage jets, the focus has shifted to retrofitting existing Sukhoi and F-16 aircraft to maintain operational capabilities until the arrival of the Rafale jet fighters in two years.
If India can help Indonesia modernize its Sukhoi fighter jets and integrate BrahMos ALCMs into the aircraft, it will boost its firepower. And that too at a much cheaper price.
India is likely to offer Indonesia a loan from the State Bank of India or any other Indian national bank. Initially, the EXIM (Export-Import) Bank was scheduled to process the loan, but this did not materialize.
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The BrahMos, dubbed the Indian ‘Brahmastra’ or celestial weapon, is part of India’s Nuclear triad, which allows the country to strike back after being hit by a nuclear weapon. It is one of the world’s fastest supersonic cruise missiles, and it can be launched from submarines, ships, aircraft, or land platforms.
After the 2019 Balakot strikes, the Indian government decided to fast-track the integration of BrahMos missiles with Sukhoi.
The Indian government was of the view that the Rafale aircraft with its Meteor beyond-visual-range air-to-air missile, S-400 long-range surface-to-air missiles, and integration of BrahMos on Sukhoi would provide India an edge over its adversaries.
The integration of the missile on Sukhoi has been a complex process that required mechanical, electrical, and software modifications on the fighter jet. Interestingly, Russia is said to have asked for Rs 1,300 crore for the missile integration, but Indian companies did it for Rs 80 crore.
On November 22, 2017, a Su-30 MKI took off from Kalaikunda in West Bengal, carrying a 2.5-tonne Brahmos missile for test firing at a target in the Bay of Bengal. In copybook style, the missile struck a target on the sea, located 260 km away, with a high degree of precision and perfection.
RK Tyagi, former HAL Chairperson, wrote: “Modification of the Su-30 MKI for BrahMos integration involved safe stores separation analysis consisting of wind tunnel and CFD (computational fluid dynamics) analysis. Watertight NMG (numerical master geometry) of the aircraft had to be generated from 2D drawings. Structural modifications had to be within the aircraft’s center of gravity (CG) envelope and in such a way that they did not alter vibration characteristics.”
This integration will eventually pave the way to develop an upgraded Su-30 (Super Su-30) with stronger structures, better avionics and radars, and more effective combat capabilities.
