India has developed Vayu Link, an Indigenous Tactical Data-Link to prevent a Balakot Mi-17 shoot-down-like incident, reports The Indian Express.

An Indian Air Force (IAF) Helicopter Pilot, Wing Commander Vishal Mishra developed the Data Link system ‘Vayu Link’ to distinguish between enemy and own forces.

The Data Link will enhance battlefield situational awareness of IAF and prevent instances of friendly fire, by integrating inputs from various sources and relaying them in near real-time.

IAF has bombed a Pakistani terrorist training camp in Balakot, in retaliation to which PAF launched their own Air-Strike, the failed “Swift Retort”.

Amid the intense Air Battle, the IAF’s Air Defence Battery shot down an Indian Air Force Mi-17 V5 helicopter, killing six IAF personnel.

The shootdown happened because the Identify Friend or Foe (IFF) system of the Mi-17 V5 helicopter was switched off.

The Vayu Link system will help the IAF to combat exactly this issue by giving every operator, in the air or on the ground the exact locations of friendly forces.

This will help the IAF pilots quickly identify the enemy and take action rather than wasting time in identifying friendly forces by asking for inputs from the ground controllers and Airborne Early Warning and Communication Systems (AWACS), amidst the heat of battle.

The Vayu Link system, according to the IE report, has already completed testing and its procurement is underway.

“The procurement required for deployment is under process. Once the procurement is completed, mass deployment of the system will start in all forward areas,” the report quoted an IAF official saying.

Wing Commander Mishra, the designer of the Vayulink said, “It is effectively a data link system which connects all entities, combat, and non-combat, through a single link.”

“The system can help you get the position of all friendly forces on a battlefield or even those in support roles. When in use in a complex combat situation, the system can help all aircraft see each other’s position and location of ground troops,” Wing Commander Mishra added.

The Indian Army also uses a version of the Data Link known as “Trishul Link”.

Mi-17 V5 Shootdown Incident

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