Pakistan Airforce Make Copy of iPad PACPAD 1 in Kamra for Its Use
Feb 22nd, 2012 by zara
Skeptics claim it’s a vanity project that will never see mass production.
Only a few hundred of each products has been made so far, though a new batch will be completed in the next three months.
“The defense industry is trying to justify its presence by doing more than just produce weapons,” said Ayesha Siddiqa, author of Military Inc., a critical study of military businesses. “Some smart aleck must have thought we can make some money here.”
PAC’s website says the goal is “strengthening the national economy through commercialization” and lauds the collaboration with China — something that likely resonates among nationalists.
China is regarded as a firm ally by Pakistan’s security establishment, whereas the U.S., despite pouring billions of U.S. dollars in aid into the country, is seen as fickle and increasingly as an enemy.
PAC officials suggested the program that produces the PACPAD was modeled in part on the Chinese military’s entry into commercial industry, which lasted two decades until it was ordered to cut back lest it become corrupted and lose sight of its core mission.
The tablet and other devices are made in a low-slung facility, daubed in camouflage paint, near, a factory that produces JF-17 Thunder fighter jets with Chinese help.
“It’s about using spare capacity. There are 24 hours in a day, do we waste them or use them to make something?” said Sohail Kalim, PAC’s sales director. “The profits go to the welfare of the people here. There are lots of auditors. They don’t let us do any hanky-panky here.”
Chinese Participation
PAC builds the PACPAD with a company called Innavtek in a Hong Kong-registered partnership that also builds high-tech parts for the warplanes.
But basic questions go unanswered. Maqsood Arshad, a retired air force officer who is one of the directors, couldn’t say how much money had been invested, how many units the venture hoped to sell and what the profit from each sale was likely to be.
Arshad said a second-generation PACPAD would be launched in the next three months, able to connect to the Internet via cell phone networks and other improved features. He said the Kamra facility could produce up to 1,000 devices a day.
During a brief test, The tablet with its 7-inch screen appeared to run well and the screen responsiveness was sharp.
“It seems good, but operation-wise I have to look into it,” said Mohammad Akmal, who had come to the store in Rawalpindi to check the product out.
“Within a month or so, we will know.”
