China moving disabled satellite to another orbit a new threat, says IAF Chief

China’s recent demonstration of physically relocating a malfunctioning satellite to a different orbit poses a new threat in the race to weaponize space, Indian Air Force Chief V R Chaudhari said. Furthermore, he stated that no one service, such as the air force, army, or navy, can win wars on its own, and that this remains true in the future.

Last month, China’s Shijian-21 spacecraft changed the geostationary orbit of a damaged Chinese satellite. Only the United States had previously proven the capacity of physically modifying a satellite’s orbit.

‘China’s latest demonstration of physically moving one of its disabled satellites into the graveyard orbit is bringing in newer threats in the race to weaponise the space domain, a domain hitherto considered relatively safe’, Air Chief Marshal Chaudhari said.

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‘The spectrum that we are looking at stretches from kinetic to non-kinetic, lethal to non-lethal and from small drones to hypersonic ballistic missiles. This vast and ever-changing continuum will pose significant challenges for the armed forces of the future’, he added.

He believes the training philosophy of IAF should be contemporary, versatile, and adaptable, with a strong emphasis on ‘jointness’. According to the IAF head, a well-trained air fighter who is technologically sound while also being able to respond to interruptions would be a force multiplier. ‘The next step would be to use our doctrines and well-trained manpower to evolve employment philosophies and CONOPS (Concept of Operations)’, he noted.

Air Chief Marshal Chaudhari stressed that this would necessitate joint planning and execution of plans. ‘No single service can win wars on its own and this holds good even for the future. This brings me to the next challenge of command and control’, he said.

As per the IAF head, the priority of who will accomplish what cannot be established by a pro-rata system based on who possesses a higher mass of forces or equipment. ‘The thought process must change and it would be important to appreciate the capabilities of each service to make two plus two equal to five’, he said.

He also emphasised the importance of developing combined command and control systems for the integration and synergy of combat power.