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9:57 17.05.2025 •
Indian PM Narendra Modi with missile battery from S-400 system.
Photo: narendramodi.in
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on May 13 praised the performance of the country’s Russian-supplied S-400 long range air defence systems, stating that a combination of advanced technology and capable personnel had helped the Indian Armed Forces hold their own against Pakistani forces in recent clashes, ‘The Military Watch Magazine’ reports.
“Platforms like the S-400 have given unprecedented strength to the country,” the prime minister stated in an address to Army personnel while standing in front of an S-400 system, adding: “A strong security shield has become the identity of India.”
The S-400 is one of two high profile weapons systems procured by the Indian Air Force over the past decade, alongside French Rafale fighters. Where India has ordered ten full battalions’ worth of S-400s, however, allowing them to form the backbone of the country’s ground based air defence network, orders for the Rafale were cut to just 36 fighters from a prior planned 126, limiting their importance in the air force.
The prime minister’s singling out of the S-400 for praise follows a major public relations fallout for the Indian Air Force after the loss of at least one Rafale fighter in engagements with the Pakistan Air Force. A reported one to three Rafales were shot down in engagements with Pakistan’s Chinese-supplied J-10C fighters, with the procurement of the French jets having long been controversial due to their performance limitations and immense cost of $240 million per aircraft.
The inability of Indian fighters to match the performance of the J-10C, and Pakistan’s expected procurement of the much more capable J-35 fifth generation fighter from China before 2030, have been cause for serious concern in India, and are expected to lead the S-400 to be perceived with renewed importance. The S-400 was developed in the 2000s with a major focus on the ability to counter enemy stealth aircraft. The use of multiple networked radars operating in complementary bandwidths provides the capability to engage them at longer ranges.
The Indian Air Force will in 2025 receive its last of ten S-400 battalions, completing a $5.43 billion dollar order placed in October 2018 intended to revolutionise the service’s surface-to-air capabilities.
The Indian Defence Ministry is currently considering making procurements of other Russian air defence equipment, including signing a contract valued at over $4 billion for Russian Voronezh-DM long range radar systems.
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