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India will recieve the first of three Israeli airborne early warning command and control (AWAC) systems on Sunday. With the induction of the Israel Aircraft Industries's Phalcon radar system, the Indian air force will become the first in South Asia to posses advanced AWAC aircraft, the israelnationnews.com website reported.
The Phalcon will provide India with tactical surveillance of airborne and surface targets, helping the gathering of signal intelligence. It is capable of tracking planes, missiles up to 400 kilometers away, in any weather. The system can identify all types of aircraft and is programmed to differentiate between friend and foe.
The delivery of the Phalcon system is part of a $ 1.1 billion deal between India, Russia and Israel. As part of the delivery,the Phalcon systems will be mounted on IL-76 aircraft supplied by Russia.
Israel had obtained the necessary clearances from the United States for the transfer of American technology, this caution was borne after a previous deal with China was nixed by the US.
Over the past years, Israel has sold more than $ 1 billion worth of defense systems to India annually. India is Israel's leading customer of military supplies.
Israel's military industry firm will setup five factories in India for the production of artillery shells.
India and Israel have collaborated in military and aerospace research, in January 2008, the Israel Space Agency and India's Indian Space Research Organisation launched an Israeli-made spy satellite from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre at Sriharikota.