National Defence Complex (NDC), ( ur, ) also known as National Development Complex, National Development Centre, is a Pakistani state-owned

defence Defense or defence may refer to: Tactical, martial, and political acts or groups * Defense (military), forces primarily intended for warfare * Civil defense, the organizing of civilians to deal with emergencies or enemy attacks * Defense indust ...

and

aerospace Aerospace is a term used to collectively refer to the atmosphere and outer space. Aerospace activity is very diverse, with a multitude of commercial, industrial and military applications. Aerospace engineering consists of aeronautics and astrona ...

contractor which is a division under the National Engineering and Scientific Commission (NESCOM). It is based in Fateh Jang, Rawalpindi, Pakistan. Founded in 1990 at the MoD, the NDC engaged in research and development in space-based missile systems and expanded its services towards developing the land-based weapons systems for the

army An army (from Old French ''armee'', itself derived from the Latin verb ''armāre'', meaning "to arm", and related to the Latin noun ''arma'', meaning "arms" or "weapons"), ground force or land force is a fighting force that fights primarily on ...

as well as naval systems for the

navy A navy, naval force, or maritime force is the branch of a nation's armed forces principally designated for naval and amphibious warfare; namely, lake-borne, riverine, littoral, or ocean-borne combat operations and related functions. It include ...

History

The National Development Complex (NDC) is an

and defence agency of the Ministry of Defence of Government of

Pakistan Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 24 ...

, located in Fateh Jang,

Punjab Province Punjab Province may refer to: * Punjab Province (British India), a former province of British India from 1849 to 1947 In Pakistan * Punjab, Pakistan, a province in Pakistan from 1970 onward * West Punjab, a province of Pakistan from 1947 to 195 ...

. The NDC was founded in 1990 by the Pakistan Atomic Energy Commission (PAEC) chairman, Munir Ahmad Khan, when PAEC's Director for Special Development Works (SDW) was morphed into the National Development Complex. Samar Mubarakmand was appointed as its first director and later became its director-general. While the project was initiated by Benazir Bhutto, who strongly advocated for the establishment, the NDC was completed in 1993 by Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, and the Shaheen Missile System program was assigned to the NDC in 1995. The development of a missile program, under the codename Integrated Missile Research and Development Programme (IMRDP), was first started at the NDC to develop the solid-fuel rockets and missile systems. The missile components from these various facilities are brought to the NDC for final integration. The NDC operates under

NESCOM The National Engineering & Scientific Commission (NESCOM) ( ur, ) is a Pakistani missile manufacturer and civilian research organization of Pakistan, under the administrative control of the Strategic Plans Division of Pakistan's National Command ...

whose engineers also participate in the projects.

Research, development and production

Missiles

* Air-to-air missile research – It was reported in November 2001 that the Aerospace Division of NDC was doing "preliminary studies" for developing a new medium range air-to-air missile. According to the report no full scale hardware had yet been built but investigations by NDC engineers into various design approaches were ongoing. The report stated that suggested that the missile may use active radar homing. * Babur * Nasr *

Shaheen-I The Shaheen-I ( ur, شاہين-ا; official codename: Hatf–IV Shaheen), is a Pakistani land-based supersonic and short-to- medium range surface-to-surface guided ballistic missile jointly designed and developed by the joint venture of NESCO ...

* Shaheen-II

Depleted uranium ammunition

* 105 mm anti-tank round – a DU

APFSDS Armour-piercing fin-stabilized discarding sabot (APFSDS), long dart penetrator, or simply dart ammunition, is a type of kinetic energy penetrator ammunition used to attack modern vehicle armour. As an armament for main battle tanks, it succeeds ...

anti-tank round developed to be fired by Type 59 tanks (upgraded with 105 mm guns) in service with the Pakistan Army. Reported to have a muzzle velocity of 1,450 m/s and be capable of penetrating 450 mm of rolled homogeneous armour (RHA) at an unspecified range. * Naiza (125 mm anti-tank round) – a DU

anti-tank round developed to be fired by

T-80UD The T-80 is a main battle tank (MBT) that was designed and manufactured in the former Soviet Union and manufactured in Russia. The T-80 is based on the T-64, while incorporating features from the later T-72. The chief designer of the T-80 was So ...

tanks in service with the Pakistan Army. A model of the round was put on display at the IDEX 2001 exhibition in the

United Arab Emirates The United Arab Emirates (UAE; ar, اَلْإِمَارَات الْعَرَبِيَة الْمُتَحِدَة ), or simply the Emirates ( ar, الِْإمَارَات ), is a country in Western Asia ( The Middle East). It is located at ...

and it was stated to have a DU long rod penetrator, performance 25% greater than NDC's 105 mm DU round and a saddle-type sabot with re-arranged forward bore-rider for more accurate alignment with the

autoloader An autoloader or auto-loader is a mechanical aid or replacement for the personnel that load ordnance into crew-served weapons without being an integrated part of the gun itself. The term is generally only applied to larger weapons, such as na ...

. Displayed at IDEAS 2002 alongside DU rounds produced by other Pakistani organisations. Reportedly named "Naiza", made compatible with the

tank and stated to be capable of penetrating 550 mm of RHA.

Other

* Starfish naval mine – a naval mine that targets submarines and ships, details on the mine were first released in 2001. Can be deployed by aircraft, ships and submarines. Makes use of solid state electronics. The mine's attack modes are controlled by a microprocessor which uses magnetic, acoustic and pressure sensors to analyse a potential target's signature. Sensors are mounted flush to both ends of the mine's cylindrical (barrel) shape. It is unknown if the mine has a self-destruct mechanism. Weight: 767 kg, warhead: 500 kg HE (PBX charge), storage life: 20 years.

References