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The Indian Air Force is actively pursuing the acquisition of about 200 Israeli‑made ROCKS air‑launched quasi‑ballistic missiles, while also working to secure a Transfer of Technology that would permit the missile’s domestic manufacture in India, reported TOI.
If finalised, such a deal would make ROCKS only the second Israeli air‑launched strike missile to be produced under licence in the country, underscoring a deepening pattern of technology‑based collaboration rather than plain import‑only procurement.
This drive gathered substantial momentum after the IAF successfully test‑fired the missile, designated Crystal Maze-2 in Indian service, from a Sukhoi Su‑30MKI over the Andaman and Nicobar Islands in April 2024.
The test demonstrated a standoff strike capability extending beyond 250 kilometres, allowing the launch aircraft to remain safely outside the engagement envelope of hostile air defences while still engaging high‑value targets at long range.
The Crystal Maze-2, or ROCKS, employs a hybrid guidance suite combining electro‑optical and inertial navigation, which enables high‑precision strikes even in GPS‑denied or contested environments. This is particularly relevant to India’s western and northern operational theatres, where adversarial electronic‑warfare and jamming capabilities are significant, and reliance on GPS‑centric systems would be risky.
Fresh urgency has been injected by the missile family’s combat‑proven performance in Israel’s Operation Epic Fury in February 2026, during which Israeli air‑launched ballistic assets were rigorously employed against heavily defended targets.
India traditionally places high weight on real‑world operational validation before committing to large‑scale acquisitions, and the documented success of similar systems in active conflicts has accelerated decision‑making on the ROCKS package.
The proposed order sits within a broader, rapidly expanding Israeli missile‑acquisition architecture being assembled by New Delhi. In December 2025, the Defence Acquisition Council approved several Israeli‑origin systems, including SPICE‑1000 precision‑guided kits, Rampage stand‑off missiles, Air LORA, and the Ice Breaker stand‑off cruise missile, all designed to diversify the IAF’s long‑range strike options.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s state visit to Israel on 25–26 February 2026 further expanded the technological horizon, with Israeli authorities indicating willingness to transfer know‑how on systems such as Iron Dome, Iron Beam, Arrow, David’s Sling, and the Golden Horizon long‑range air‑launched ballistic missile.
These overtures, coming alongside the ROCKS‑ToT discussions, suggest Israel is positioning itself as a core technology partner for India’s next‑generation air‑defence and deep‑strike architecture.
If the ROCKS procurement and co‑production project are finalised, the Indian Air Force’s standoff strike architecture would rest on a layered mix of different speed and guidance regimes.
BrahMos‑A supersonic cruise missiles and SCALP‑EG stand‑off cruise systems would continue to deliver high‑precision, terrain‑following attacks, while the ROCKS and related ballistic options would provide faster, lofted trajectories suited to penetrating dense air‑defence belts.
Acquiring roughly 200 missiles is seen as the minimum order size that would justify establishing a local assembly and, eventually, full‑scale manufacturing line, aligning with the “Make in India” push in defence.
Preliminary talks have reportedly already begun with an Indian private‑sector defence firm identified to partner the Israeli manufacturer, with the eventual goal of progressively indigenising subsystems, final assembly, and later integration on multiple Indian platforms.
Domestic production of ROCKS would also reduce long‑term logistical and political dependencies, while giving India the flexibility to tailor warhead options—including penetration and blast‑fragmentation variants—against hardened targets such as command bunkers, air‑defence nodes, and reinforced infrastructure.
At the doctrinal level, the missile fits into an evolving “outside‑in” strike concept, where the IAF can launch salvos from beyond the first‑tier air‑defence cordon, thereby degrading the adversary’s ability to respond before own‑force assets ingress.
TOI
