Understanding Electronic Warfare
- Electronic warfare is a type of warfare that involves the use of the Electromagnetic Spectrum (EM Spectrum) or Directed Energy to control the spectrum, attack the enemy, or defend against enemy attacks.
- Directed or focused energy is used to disrupt or disable the enemy's electronics. This typically involves the use of Radio Waves or Laser Light beams.
- The applications of EW are extensive and can be deployed from various platforms, including Land, Sea, Air, and even Space, by either manned or unmanned systems.
- EW allows the user to target not only communication radar but also other military and civilian assets.
- One example of its application is collecting information from the enemy’s radio signal or detecting an incoming missile from radar.
- There are three major subdivisions within electronic warfare: electronic attack, electronic protection, and electronic warfare support.
Devices that assist and are used for electronic warfare are described as EW Devices.
- These devices can be categorised into three based on their functions:
- Electronic Warfare Attack
- Electronic Warfare Protection
- Electronic Warfare Support
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Application of Electronic Warfare (EW) devices
Military operations increasingly rely on EW devices in an information-rich environment that is complicated by the electromagnetic spectrum. The portion of the information environment that consists of the electromagnetic spectrum is referred to as the electromagnetic environment (EME). The recognized need for military forces to have unimpeded access to and use of the electromagnetic environment creates vulnerabilities and opportunities for electronic warfare in support of military operations.
NATO has a different and likely more comprehensive approach to EW. A military committee conceptual document from 2007 recognized the EME as an operational maneuver space and warfighting environment/domain. In NATO, EW is considered to be warfare in the EME. NATO has adopted simplified language which parallels those used in the other warfighting environments like maritime, land, and air/space.
Primary EW activities have been developed over time to exploit the opportunities and vulnerabilities that are inherent in the physics of EM energy. Activities used in EW include:
- Electro-optical countermeasures,
- Infrared and radio frequency countermeasures;
- EM compatibility and deception;
- Radio jamming,
- Radar jamming and deception,
- Electronic counter-countermeasures (or anti-jamming)
Electronic Warfare (EW) Devices in India
The Defence Research and Development Organisation ( DRDO ) has developed the Defence Avionics Research Establishment ( DARE ), an EW Suite consisting of Radar Warning and Jammer.
The main features of this EW suite include an additional capability of nullifying the effect of detected radar threat by appropriate mode of jamming.
The Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) has successfully tested advanced electronic warfare (EW) suite on the Tejas-PV1, a Light combat aircraft of the Indian Airforce.
Other EW Devices by DRDO include:
- Electronic Warfare System for Navy ‘Sangraha’
- It is a joint electronic warfare system between DRDO and the Indian Navy.
- Under it, five different types of indigenous EW systems have been envisaged:
- KITE
- EAGLE
- HOMI ESM
- PORPOISE ESM
- EW suite ELLORA
- Electronic Warfare System for Army ‘Samyukta’
- It is a joint electronic warfare programme between DRDO and the Indian Army.
- The system is configured on 145 vehicles for deployment in an area of 100 km by 70 km for Surveillance, Interception, Direction Finding & Jamming of various Communication & Radar Signals.
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