Prasun K. Sengupta said...
To SHERKHAN: I wonder why the PAF has to be in ‘lockdown’ mode as far as info on the CM-400AKG goers, since a lot more information has been officially given by its OEM to CCTV channels. If anyone understands Mandarin, then it will clearly emerge after listening to such interviews that the claimed terminal velocity of this missile is Mach 5.5, while the range envelope—depending on launch altitude-- is between 100km & 240km. As for the advent of such missiles having an impact on the naval doctrines of those navies that operate carrier battle groups, I don’t foresee such a possibility. This is because gone are the days (like in 1971) when a carrier battle group had to cruise only 25nm away from hostile coastlines while launching/retrieving carrier-borne combat aircraft. Today, a distance of 150nm will have to be maintained despite the availability of 24/7 AEW & C capabilities. In an IN versus PN conflict scenario, a chain of TELs housing the PN’s 290km-range C-602 ASCMs backed up by P-3C Orion Update 3 MRMR/ASW aircraft will be deployed to deter the IN’s carrier battle groups from approaching Pakistan’s coastline. But the PN’s main challenge will be to breach the IN’s close-in anti-ASCM air-defences, which will be the Barak-2 MR-SAMs & EL/M-2248 MF-STAR AESA volume search radars on board at least three P-15A DDGs that will accompany each aircraft carrier, plus such weapons & sensors mounted on the aircraft carrier itself. Even if one considers the prospect of air-launched missiles like CM-400AKG being used, one will require at least 24 such missiles to be launched in swarms from 12 JF-17s (backed up by at least one Saab 2000 AEW & CS platform) in order to overwhelm the IN’s close-in air-defence systems. In fact, that’s why the PLAN had acquired four Type 956E DDGs (each with eight Raduga-built Kh-41 Zubr supersonic ASCMs) since, as per Soviet naval doctrine, it would take at least 24 supersonic ASCMs (fired concurrently from warships, SSGNs & Tu-22M3s) to overwhelm the air-defences of a US Navy carrier battle group. Will the PAF therefore be able to simultaneously deploy 12 JF-17s with 24 CM-400AKGs & a Saab 2000 AEW & CS, or will it, along with the PN, launch a combined forces attack with C-602s & CM-400AKGs? In either scenario, the element of surprise will be lost very early since the C-602 is not exactly sea-skimming, while a flight of 12 JF-17s will be easily located by Ka-31 AEW helicopters while the JF-17s are still 250km away from the IN’s carrier battle group.
That is why I can only conclude that the PAF has gone for the CM-400AKG not for the sake of using them against naval targets, but against fixed land-based targets like industrial installations & transportation infrastructure, since it has realised that CALCMs like the Ra’ad & the PA’s Babur will no longer be effective against the IAF’s air-defence systems like the EL/M-2084 AESA-based early warning/engagement radars & SpyDer-SR SHORADS combination, & the Barak-2/ELM-2258 combination. But then again, if the Barak-2 can successfully supersonic inbound ASCMs, then there’s no reason why its land-based variant won’t be able to intercept inbound supersonic CALCMs like the CM-400AKG.