As India and Pakistan assess their offensive and defensive capabilities in light of the escalating hostilities, advanced air defense systems have become prized assets that can significantly influence the outcome of an air superiority battle between New Delhi and Islamabad.
While both India and Pakistan have advanced fourth-generation fighters, drones, and ballistic & cruise missiles in their arsenals, New Delhi’s Russian-built S-400 and Islamabad’s Chinese-supplied HQ-9 air defense systems are critical to their respective security.
The S-400 Triumf and HQ-9 are the most advanced air defense systems in the arsenals of these countries. Notably, both India and Pakistan acquired these crucial AD systems following their brief air duel in 2019.
Pakistan inducted the China-supplied HQ-9 AD system in October 2021, whereas India received its first S-400 unit in December 2021. Thus, the presence of these state-of-the-art AD systems will be a new surprise element this time around if India and Pakistan clash.
Therefore, a head-to-head comparison of the capabilities of these systems becomes imperative.
Pakistan’s China-Supplied HQ-9
The HQ-9 is a long-range surface-to-air missile (SAM) system developed and manufactured by China Precision Machinery Import-Export Corporation (CPMIEC), a Beijing-based Chinese defense company.
The system is designed to intercept various aerial threats, including aircraft, cruise missiles, air-to-surface missiles, and tactical ballistic missiles.
The system was developed based on technology derived from Almaz-Antey, the Russian company that makes the S-300, S-400, and S-500 air defense systems.
Notably, while China has flagrantly violated the intellectual property rights of the Russian Sukhoi company to develop its fighter aircraft, in the case of air defense systems, Moscow itself allowed Beijing to acquire air defense technologies, mainly for the production of fourth-generation anti-aircraft missile systems.
The HQ-9 was developed using Almaz-Antey technology, incorporating elements from the Russian S-300 missile system. The system entered service in the early 2000s.
The HQ-9A variant entered service in 2001. Later, more advanced versions, like the HQ-9B, were inducted. In 2021, Pakistan acquired its HQ-9P variant.
The system is equipped with a Track-via-missile (TVM) system that combines inertial guidance, mid-course uplink, and terminal active radar or semi-active radar homing (SARH). It uses HT-233 3D phased-array radar, capable of tracking up to 100 targets.
In the Chinese Armed Forces, an HQ-9 battery comprises a command vehicle, six control vehicles, six targeting radar vehicles, six search radar vehicles, 48 missile-launch vehicles, and 192 missiles, along with a positioning vehicle, a communications vehicle, a power supply vehicle, and a support vehicle.
While the HQ-9B has an engagement range of 250-300 km, the Pakistan Army’s HQ-9P has a claimed engagement range of 125 km only. Engagement ranges against cruise missiles and similar targets are thought to be much shorter, around 25 km.
However, some media reports claim that the Pakistan Air Force has also inducted the HQ-9B variant, which can engage combat aircraft at a range of 250 km and an altitude of 27 km.
India’s Russian-Built S-400 Triumf
The S-400 Triumf, developed by Russia’s Almaz-Antey corporation, is a mobile surface-to-air missile system designed to detect, track, and destroy various aerial targets, including fighter jets, cruise missiles, ballistic missiles, and drones.
India signed a US$5.43 billion deal with Russia for five S-400 Triumf air defense system regiments in October 2018, during a bilateral summit between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President Vladimir Putin.
India received its first S-400 squadron in December 2021 and has since received deliveries of three S-400 squadrons.
In July 2024, India conducted its first military exercise with S-400, now renamed Sudarshan. According to a press release, the system achieved a remarkable success rate, effectively ‘shooting down’ 80% of the simulated enemy fighter aircraft and compelling the remaining aircraft to retreat and abort their missions.
The exercise showcased that the S-400 system is now fully integrated with the Indian armed forces.
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While there is no official confirmation about their deployments, some reports suggest that New Delhi has deployed 1.5 squadrons each at the borders with China and Pakistan.
The system has a detection range of 600 km and an engagement range of 40-400 km, providing layered air defense. It can track nearly 100 targets simultaneously.
Therefore, if deployed near the Line of Control (LoC) or the India-Pakistan international border, the S-400 can provide India with a deep-strike interception capability.
It uses four different missiles: the 40N6, which has a 400 km range for high-altitude targets like aircraft, the 48N6E3, which has a 250 km range for targets like aircraft and cruise missiles, the 9M96E2, which has a 120 km engagement range for high maneuverability targets, and the 9M96E, which has a 40 km engagement range.
In July of last year, reports emerged of hacked emails from high-ranking Russian officials, which revealed that India had purchased all four types of missiles included in the S-400 system.
The S-400 traces its roots back to the S-75 missile system, which gained fame for shooting down an American U-2 spy plane over Soviet territory in 1960. Russian experts claim that the S-400 is capable of countering stealth fighters, even posing a threat to advanced American aircraft, such as the F-35.
S-400 Vs HQ-9
A head-to-head comparison between the two will reveal that the S-400 offers significantly superior air defense capabilities compared to the HQ-9.
S-400 can detect targets as far as 600 km and engage targets up to 400 km, whereas HQ-9B can engage targets only up to 250 km.
The HQ-9P variant can engage targets within a 125 km range only. This means that S-400 can detect and engage targets much further away than the HQ-9.
While both can track up to 100 targets simultaneously, S-400 can engage 36 targets simultaneously, whereas HQ-9 can only engage 8-10 targets at once. Therefore, S-400 is much better suited for countering dense or multi-axis attacks.
Additionally, while the S-400 has proven its effectiveness in the Russia-Ukraine war, with numerous kills to its credit, the HQ-9 has yet to be tested in real-world combat scenarios.
India’s S-400 Holds Edge, But Can China/Turkey Play Spoilsport?
It is clear that the S-400 AD system outclasses the HQ-9. However, China and Turkey, two of India’s adversaries and Pakistan’s close allies, also operate the S-400 system.
As such, these countries are aware of the S-400 system’s operational limits and weaknesses, including its loopholes in detecting, tracking, or engaging targets, and can share this sensitive information with Pakistan.
While S-400 is one of the most advanced AD systems in the world, it is far from perfect, and its operational limits were also highlighted in the ongoing Ukraine war, where, despite the presence of these systems, many Ukrainian missiles and drones were able to penetrate well-defended Russian areas.
Ukraine has also claimed that it has successfully eliminated as many as five units of Russian S-400 systems.
However, despite these vulnerabilities, the S-400 system offers significantly improved air defense capabilities compared to the Chinese-built HQ-9.
India’s S-400 and Pakistan’s HQ-9 are the most advanced air defense systems in the arsenals of these two countries. However, they are by no means the only AD systems available to New Delhi and Islamabad, as they both operate a host of other short- and medium-range AD systems.
Apart from the S-400, India also operates the Akash (30-70 km range), Barak-8 (70-100 km range), SPYDER (15-35 km range), and QRSAM (25-30 km range) air defense systems.
Similarly, apart from HQ-9P, Pakistan has in its arsenal the LY-80 (40-70 km range), FM-90 (15 km range), and Spada-2000 (20 km range).
Revenge For MiG-21 Bison
In the aftermath of the Balakot airstrikes in 2019, India lost an MiG-21 Bison in the following air combat with the Pakistan Air Force. The lack of long-range air-to-air missiles was the main reason India was not able to counter the Pakistani Air Force’s adventurism effectively.
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However, India has drawn lessons from the 2019 fiasco. Since then, India has inducted 4.5-generation Rafale fighter jets, which are more lethal than anything Pakistan has seen before.
Indian Rafales are also equipped with Meteor missiles, having a range of 100-200 km. India also ordered a significant quantity of R-77 BVR (Beyond Visual Range) missiles integrated with Su-30 MKI fighter jets.
Overall, it appears Russian-origin technology is pitted against each other, i.e., S-400 against an analog of S-300 aka HQ-9.
- Sumit Ahlawat has over a decade of experience in news media. He has worked with Press Trust of India, Times Now, Zee News, Economic Times, and Microsoft News. He holds a Master’s Degree in International Media and Modern History from the University of Sheffield, UK.
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- He can be reached at ahlawat.sumit85 (at) gmail.com
