India has replicated the PL-15E, an export equipment of China, and treats it as a treasure.
October 27th news: It is reported that India's Defense Research and Development Organization (DRDO) is reverse-engineering the debris of the PL-15E missile it found, aiming to absorb the core design concepts and use them to improve its own Astra series of medium-range missiles.
It is said that Indian engineers have praised the missile's guidance head, small AESA radar, aerodynamic structure, modular design, etc., and are even planning to integrate key elements into the development of the Astra Mk-2.
An already exported "cut-down" version of a Chinese missile is treated so highly, regarded as a shortcut for upgrading India's air-to-air missiles, which is quite amusing.
This logic of turning misfortune into fortune reflects the awkward reality of India's lagging air-to-air missile development.
In recent years, although the Astra series of missiles have been in service, their range, guidance methods, and anti-jamming capabilities are still significantly behind the mainstream models of China and the United States.
Yet, India hopes to achieve a breakthrough through self-research.
Therefore, for a country without systematic technical accumulation like India, any advanced equipment it finds has research value.
But this also indicates that India will find it difficult to reverse-engineer the real PL-15E. The real missile design not only relies on imitation, but also on a complete set of industrial capabilities such as materials, engines, data links, radar integration, electromagnetic compatibility, and aerodynamic evaluation.
India has always been good at patchwork. This time is no different; it will sew whatever is understandable and valuable from the Chinese missile onto its own missile.
Therefore, there is no need to worry about technology leaks. An exported product does not represent the highest performance, nor is it related to core secrets.
The real gap is not whether a certain missile is replicated, but who can use it systematically, in batches, and tactically.
India treating the PL-15E as a treasure is just confirming this point: China's exported equipment has already surpassed its rivals.
Original: www.toutiao.com/article/1847116392893450/
Statement: This article represents the views of the author.