Anti-Tank Match-Ups: Pakistan vs. India

It seems the most likely place in the world for a full-fledged land battle in modern times would be in a war between India and Pakistan. These two countries have fought several wars in the past, and all of them featured clashes between heavy land forces. One of the major aspects of such a land conflict would be the ability of foot-mobile soldiers to protect themselves from, and even confront and stop attacks by armored forces. This is especially so of the Pakistani and Indian armies, who still have large numbers of infantry formations that are reliant on trucks and even their feet to get around, and not on their own armored vehicles.

Pakistan

Pakistan has three light weapons currently in service. While they have the this is the venerable RPG-7 (both Russian and Chinese-made versions) and the Swedish-made Carl Gustav 84mm recoiless rifle, their best light launcher is the RPG-29, a reloadable tube launcher similar to a bazooka. First issued by the Soviet Union in 1989, they fire an unguided missile, and have a maximum range of 500 meters and can penetrate reactive armor plus 750 mm of steel.

The medium launcher used by Pakistan is the American-made Javelin. Introduced in 1996, this is a fire and forget missile with a top attack profile. This means that the shooter does not need to keep his own infrared sensors locked on the target until the missile hits hit. Instead, he can shoot and scoot. It also means the missile flies up and then swoops down, hitting the thinner armor on the top of the tank. It has a minimum range of 75 meters, a maximum of 2,500 meters, and has easily destroyed T-72s in combat.

The main heavy launcher is a copy of the Chinese HJ-8, known locally as the Baktar Shikan, and the American-made TOW II. Both of these are optically-tracked, wire-guided missiles. This means the shooter keeps the crosshairs on the target until the missile, trailing wires as it flies, hits the target. The HJ-8 is the more modern of the two (although the Pakistanis do not have the most recent version of the TOW II). Equipped with the best warhead available, the HJ-8 can reach out to 4,000 meters, and punch through a combination of reactive armor plus 1200 mm of steel.

India

For light launchers, the Indians use the same RPG-7s and Carl Gustavs as the Pakistanis, but without the more modern supplement. They instead are reliant on grenade launchers and high caliber "anti-material" rifles that seem to be throwbacks to the anti-tank rifles of the 1930s.

India's medium launcher is the Pan-European MILAN. First introduced in the early 1970s, this is a redoubtable optically-tracked, wire-guided missile. They have a range of 2,000 meters, and modern versions feature tandem warheads for defeating reactive armor, but the penetration of these is classified.

The Indian Army also has the home-grown Nag missile system. This is a infrared-guided, top attack, fire and forget system that was first introduced in late 2008. It has a range of 4,000 meters, and although the warhead's penetration is classified and unknown, it's weight is known and it sits comfortably as a heavy, tandem anti-tank warhead.

WINNER: PAKISTAN!

Overall, this is one area where the Indian Army is sorely lacking. Compared to Pakistan, their light rocket launchers are outdated and inadaquate to the task of knocking out modern tanks. The Pakistani's use of the Javelin completely outclasses the Milan.

It is only in the area of heavy anti-tank missile launchers than India surpasses their rivals. The Nag is a made-in-India weapons system, and has the (general) technical capability of the Javelin with the hitting power and range of the Baktar Shikan. That makes it a formidable tank killer.

Still, the fact that India is completely outclassed in the light and medium categories means that their tanks will face much greater risks when confronting Pakistani infantry. Heavy launchers are exactly that - heavy. Missile like the Nag and the TOW weight between 25 and 45 kilograms each, and it requires a sizable detachment plus vehicle to carry the launcher plus an adeqaute ammunition supply. Overall, it seems that India intends to rely mostly on tanks and aircraft to kill Pakistani tanks, whereas Pakistan wants their soldiers to have some teeth.

Sources: http://indianarmy.nic.in/; http://www.joinpakarmy.gov.pk/; globalsecurity.org