Archive photo.
In view of China’s growing space capabilities and space military challenges, India is also taking measures to build a space power. Under such a situation, India must transform from an excellent “air power” to a “space power.” The Air Force is working with ISRO, DRDO and private industry.
Regarding enhancing India’s capabilities in space, Chief of Air Staff Amar Preet Singh said that the Indian Air Force is working hard to strengthen space-based systems including the SPS 3 program. New satellites are needed for this. The Air Force is also in talks with ISRO to do more work on the programme. Training has started at the Air Warrior Center in Hyderabad.
Air Force to launch 52 new satellites into space
According to news from the Ministry of Defense, the Air Force will launch 52 new satellites into space in the next period of time. The Air Force has already launched one such satellite in space. To enhance its combat capabilities, it will soon launch two more satellites into space. These will be used for purposes such as communications, weather forecasting, navigation, tracking, real-time surveillance, military operations, and more.
The Air Force is partnering with the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) and the Defense Research and Development Organization (DRDO) to launch these satellites. India has taken this step to make India an aerospace power.
Space will be the battlefield of the future
As the joint space command of the country’s three services, the Air Force also hopes to establish such a joint space command at the administrative level that benefits all three services. Organizations such as ISRO and DRDO will also be included in the command. In addition, private companies related to aerospace will also be included.
In the future, space will be a battlefield. Therefore, self-protection is important. The battles of the future will be fought on land, sea, and air, as well as online and in space. In this case, in order to protect our important bases, we must strengthen our space defense and offensive capabilities.
Preparations need to move forward faster
A senior Air Force officer said that India should gain an advantage in space as early as possible. One should prepare for the future. Compared with other countries in the world, the United States, Russia and China are far ahead in preparing their respective space forces. Under such circumstances, India also needs to advance its preparations for the Space Force faster.
China is rapidly building anti-satellite weapons. These weapons range from helicopter missiles to co-rail killers, as well as lasers, electromagnetic weapons, jammers and cyber weapons. If China has the Chinese People’s Liberation Army strategic support force in the space field, then the United States has established a mature space force (USSF) in 2019. Many other countries, including the United Kingdom, Japan, France and Russia, also have space commands or wings within their air forces.
There are many military satellites in Indian space, including all three services, some of which stand out:
- GSAT series: This is a series of communication satellites developed by the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO). Among them, some satellites are used for military communications.
- Indian Regional Navigation Satellite System (IRNSS): It is a navigation satellite system used for military and civilian purposes.
- Cartosat series: This is a series of Earth observation satellites. It is used for military mapping and surveillance.
- Resourcesat series: This is a series of Earth observation satellites. It is used to monitor resources for both military and civilian purposes.
- Advanced Wide Area Sensor (AWiFS): It is a sensor installed on Cartosat and Resourcesat satellites to capture high-resolution images.
- NEMESIS: It is a military communications satellite. It is used by the Indian Army for secure communications.
- INSAT series: This is a series of military and civilian communications satellites. It is used in telecommunications and weather forecasting.
Some of these satellites are used for military purposes. While others are used for civilian and military purposes.
