JF17 Thunder Aselpod

The Pakistan Air Force has chosen the Turkish-made Aselpod for its JF17 Thunder. We will talk about all the capabilities of this pod.

Pakistan’s Aselpod Acquisition

Pakistan initially ordered Turkish company Aselsan’s Aselpod in 2016 at a cost of $25 million. Initially, 16 Aselpod were obtained from Turkey. While this pod was also ordered twice more. Aselpod was delivered to Pakistan Air Force in November 2016, September 2017 and again in February 2018. Pakistan was the first international customer to purchase this Turkish-made advanced targeting pod. Integration and firing tests with JF-17 Thunder of Aselpod were completed in June 2017. According to some sources, Pakistan may be developing Aselpod locally in PAC Kamra under ToT. However, this claim has yet to be confirmed by official sources.

Selection of Aselpod 

According to an article published in Defense Turkish Magazine, Pakistan Air Force has chosen Aselpod to replace the US company Lockheed Martin’s Sniper XR and Thales Group’s Targeting Pod, which it found better than both of them in terms of capabilities and features. The pod was originally developed by Aselsan for Turkish Air Force F-16 and F-4 aircraft.

Although Pakistan is using Lockheed Martin’s sniper pod on its F-16. But this pod was chosen for the JF-17 Thunder. We’ve already heard reports of dedicated chin hard points about this pod for JF-17 Thunder’s Block 3, which certainly reflects confidence in the capabilities of this advanced targeting pod. Importantly, it is possible that Pakistan will be able to use this pod on its F-16 aircraft as and when required.

Capabilities of Aselpod

Aselpod is actually a third-generation multi-sensor targeting pod that can be used as a target Designator for electro-optical reconnaissance, surveillance and targeting.

The key feature of this pod is the ability to track air-to-air targets, which we will discuss later. The Aselpod has a diameter of 16.9 inches and a length of 92 inches. It weighs 240 kg. The sniper targeting pod has a diameter of 11.9 inches, a length of 98.2 inches and a weight of 202 kg. We’ve already shared a detailed article on the sniper targeting pod with you.

Also Read this: PAF Sniper Advanced Targeting Pod | Sniper ATP

Aselpod Features

Aselpod is capable of tracking up to eight targets at a time. This pod can be used to guide laser-guided and satellite-guided bombs for precision strikes. The maximum range of Aselpod is stated to be 55 km. Its ground targets have a range of 25 km of laser guidance. It can detect targets the size of the main battle tank from a distance of 15km. What makes it special is its air-to-air capability. This pod can detect F-16 size aircraft at a range of 45km. In this regard, it can also be used as IRST (Infrared Search and Track) for fighter jets. Now, this is a different matter regarding how effective this role is and only Pakistan Air Force knows better about it.

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Know About JF17 Thunder Aselpod in Urdu

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