DRDO’s CHAFF Technology

Introduction

The need to strengthen countries’ defense systems is quite evident in the case of Russia-Ukraine. Having suitable defense measures does not prove someone violent, but it puts doubt in someone thinking of violence against us. Hence, DRDO has developed its new technology to strengthen our defense systems.

Defense Research & Development Organisation (DRDO) has developed an Advanced Chaff Technology. It protects Indian Air Force (IAF) fighter aircraft against hostile radar threats. Defense Laboratory Jodhpur, a DRDO laboratory, formed the advanced Chaff material and chaff cartridge-118/I in collaboration with High Energy Materials Research Laboratory (HEMRL), a Pune-based laboratory of DRDO, meeting the qualitative requirements of IAF. After getting successful trials, the Indian Air Force has given large orders to various industries.

What is CHAFF?

Chaff is primarily an electronic countermeasure technology used by governments worldwide to protect high-value targets such as fighter jets or naval ships from radars and radio frequency (RF) guiding mechanisms of the enemy missiles. The chaff deployed in the air reflects multiple targets for the missile guidance systems, thus misleading the enemy radars or deflecting adversary missiles.

CHAFF also releases a decoy with it so that enemy missiles could be distracted and it remains safe. It also has a feature of reflecting missiles shot on it by creating a meatal particle cloud around it. It can be installed in our Air force and Navy; thus, it is pretty handy.

CHAFF is made of metalized glass or plastic rods or plastic or wire to look like chopped hay or straw. This is the reason for its naming as well. It consists of tiny fibers that reflect radar signals and when dispensed in large quantities from aircraft, form a cloud that temporarily hides the aircraft from radar detection. The two major types of military chaff in use are aluminum foil and aluminum-coated glass fibers.

Working

CHAFF is a part of a Counter Measure Dispensing System [CMDS], which employs passive jamming against infra-red and radar threats. While flares protect against incoming heat-seeking missiles by creating a diversion with a higher heat signature that lures away the rocket, CHAFF is designed to thwart radar-enabled weapons.

Chaff appears on enemy radar screens either as a blot masking the actual target or as hundreds of false targets around the real one.

CHAFF belong to ECMs (expandable countermeasure) but are termed ‘passive’ as they seek to deceive hostile systems by “employing confusion reflectors” via either chemical or mechanical means. There are also ‘active’ ECMs, which “ transmit electromagnetic energy” like noise jamming or deceptive jamming.

Who said what?

CHAFF is an electronic equivalent to ‘smoke,’ which uses electromagnetic energy to confuse or deceive an enemy system, as quoted from DRDO.

According to the Federation of American Scientists, non-profit policy research and advocacy organization, “when injected into the aircraft slipstream, the chaff packages burst open… to form a radar-reflective cloud called a chaff corridor”. As a result of the dropping of chaff, the enemy’s radar gets so confused that they cannot locate the real targets within the chaff cloud”.

Conclusion

India is just the second country after the USA to have CHAFF technology. Thus, CHAFF is truly another feather quite prolific defense system of India. Our scientists deserve praise from the bottom of our hearts. This is quite significant, considering that China has been increasing its budget on missile systems recently. After installing CHAFF in our military, we will become a power to be afraid of messing with us.

Shashank Trivedi is the writer of this article. Views expressed, and information provided belong solely to the author.