In a bid to further strengthen its capability the Pak Army inducted Low to Medium Altitude Air Defence System (LOMADS) LY 80 in its Air Defence arsenal.General Qamar Javed Bajwa, Chief of Army Staff (COAS), was the chief guest at the Induction Ceremony, held at Army Auditorium.LY-80 is a Chinese mobile Air Defence system, capable of tracking and destroying variety of aerial targets at longer ranges flying at low and medium altitude. COAS said that LY-80 LOMADS increases response capability to current and emerging air defence threats.LY-80 launcher missile system is carried by a vehicle that contains a command and control station behind the cab with six firing missile containers, according to defense journal. These containers are tilted back so that the missiles can be fired straight up like Vertical launch System cells. Normal LY-80 can intercept an aerial flying target from an 15 m to 18 km of altitude while its maximum interception range for combat aircraft is 40km and between 3.5 km and 12 km for cruise missiles flying at an altitude of 50 meters at a speed of 300 meters/second. Earlier, in 2014 Pakistan Air Force bought an initial batch of 3X batteries of LY-80 LOMADS with 8X IBIS-150AD mobile Radars. This system was compatible with Pakistan’s national ‘Raabta’ C4ISR. That added an extended Area Defense Layer to SPADA-2000 and Crotale systems of the country. The missile is capable of engaging aerial targets at high altitude; the mid-range LY-80 is also able to intercept very low-flying targets at a distance of up to about 40 kilometers, filling the gap between the HQ-7 short-range SAM and the HQ-9 long-range SAM systems. In May 2016, Pentagon had released a report China was considering to establish additional naval logistics hubs in countries with which it has a long-standing friendly relationship and similar strategic interests, “such as Pakistan” The report pointed out that Pakistan remains China’s “primary customer” for conventional weapons and China engages in both arms sales and defence industrial cooperation with Pakistan.The acquisition and induction of this formidable defence system is manifestation of the reality that those at the helm of affairs are not oblivious to emerging threats and how to respond to them. The latest missile system can hit an aircraft size target up to an altitude of 18000 meters. In the past focus was on a strong network of AWACs and fighters but ground based SAMs have their own advantage. They are the first to engage enemy aircraft if fighters are not air borne, making a pre-emptive strike unlikely. It is era of missile and anti-missile systems and hopefully our policy and decision-makers would continue to upgrade defence capability of the country as per dictates of modern days and changing technological scenario. As India is involved in arms race in the region and constantly increasing its conventional and nuclear arms and it is posing direct threat to the security of Pakistan. Induction of Low to Medium Altitude Air Defence System LY 80 in Air Defence arsenal is a good development and symbol of cooperation between china and Pakistan and it will further strengthen Pak Army’s defence capability.
