General Qamar Javed Bajwa, Chief of Army Staff (COAS), visited the Army Air Defence Centre Karachi on Thursday.
The COAS laid wreaths at the martyrs monument on his arrival in the Sindh capital. Later, he witnessed commissioning of a state of the art Chinese origin HQ-9/P HIMADS (High to Medium Air Defence System) into the Pakistan Army Air Defence.
Commander of the Army Air Defence Command Lt-Gen Hamood uz Zaman Khan briefed the COAS about the strategic weapon system.
“Induction of HIMADS will significantly enhance the Comprehensive Layered Integrated Air Defence (CLIAD) shield of aerial frontiers of Pakistan as the system is fully integrated through a well-knit Digitised System on its inventory.
“Capable of intercepting multiple air targets including aircrafts, cruise missiles and Beyond Visual Range Weapons at ranges over 100 kilometres with Single Shot Kill Probability, HQ-9/P is considered as a strategic long-range Surface to Air Missile (SAM) with remarkable flexibility and precision,” says a press release issued by the Inter-Services Public Relations, media wing of the Pakistan Army.
Speaking on the occasion, the COAS said that induction of high-tech systems will make Pakistan’s air defence impenetrable in the emerging threat scenario.
Highlighting the criticality of air defence in the overall defence of the motherland, the COAS said that exemplary synergy between Pakistan Air Force and Pakistan Army Air Defence makes country’s air defence impregnable.
The Pakistan–China strategic partnership and defence collaboration is a factor of stability in the region, the COAS remarked.
Senior officials from China were also present on the occasion.
