The Philippines is working on a deal to supply Akash short-range air defense systems amid rising tensions with China.

Reuters reported on this.

Sources share that the Philippine government is interested in the Akash air defense system developed by the Indian company Bharat Dynamics Limited.

The number of systems and missiles that could potentially be ordered by them is currently unknown, but India plans to conclude a deal worth more than $200 million this fiscal year.

Presumably, this regards 4-5 anti-aircraft systems and ammunition for them, given that last year’s contract for 15 systems was supposed to cost Armenia $720 million.

The large-scale rearmament of the Philippines comes as tensions with China are escalating due to a conflict of interest in the South China Sea, where both countries have clashed in recent years.

Militarnyi previously reported that the Philippine government is also working on attempts to obtain decommissioned Type 81 anti-aircraft missile systems manufactured by Kawasaki Heavy Industries from Japan. It also considered the possibility of obtaining American Hawk anti-aircraft missile systems, which were modernized by Japan in the 1990s and are being replaced by modern Type 03 air defense systems.

Akash

Akash is a short-range anti-aircraft missile system developed in the late 1990s by the Indian company Bharat Dynamics Limited as part of the Integrated Guided Missile Development Program.

Each battery of the system consists of four self-propelled launchers, a Rajendra air target detection radar, and a command post.

The Akash anti-aircraft missile is structurally similar to the Soviet 3M9 used in the Kvadrat and Kub systems. It is capable of intercepting supersonic air targets at a distance of up to 27-30 km and at an altitude of about 18 km.

Thanks to the integration of a homing radar head, each battery of the system can simultaneously hit up to four targets.

It is stated that the cost of one anti-aircraft missile varies depending on the order volume but does not exceed $500,000 per unit.