India-based public sector undertaking Bharat Electronics Limited (BEL) has shipped the first Akash weapon system battery to Armenia, making it the second missile system to be exported.

This follows the export of the BrahMos supersonic cruise missile to the Philippines in 2022, marking India’s first defence export order.

During the same year, Armenia signed a deal with India to procure 15 Akash missile systems for approximately Rs600bn ($7.11bn).

Comprising a surface-to-air missile (SAM), the Akash weapon system is capable of engaging various aerial targets within a range of 25km.

Developed by the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), the Akash system is designed to intercept and destroy threats such as fighter jets, cruise missiles, air-to-surface missiles, drones, and other aerial assets.

The manufacturing of the system is a collaborative effort between BEL and Bharat Dynamics (BDL).

BEL has supplied essential ground support equipment, which includes surveillance radars; missile guidance radars; and command, control, communications, computers, and intelligence (C4I) systems.

BEL said in a LinkedIn post: “This event reflects India’s growing capabilities in defence technology and manufacturing.”

Each Akash weapon system battery features a single Rajendra 3D passive electronically scanned array radar and four launchers, each capable of carrying three missiles.

The Akash missile was developed under the Integrated Guided Missile Development Programme (IGMDP) and features more than 96% indigenous components, as stated by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh.

The export variant of the Akash missile system is different compared to the version currently in use by the Indian Armed Forces. 

The missile was inducted into the Indian Air Force (IAF) in 2014 and subsequently into the Indian Army in 2015.

The Union Cabinet first approved the export of the Akash Missile System in December 2020 while the DRDO conducted the second flight test of the New Generation Akash Missile (Akash-NG) in 2021.