BHUBANESWAR: The Indian Navy conducted maiden test-firing of the land attack variant of the long range supersonic cruise missile BrahMos from a warship on Friday, demonstrating the weapon’s operational capability. The missile followed the coordinated flight path perfectly and was on target.
Though the previous land attack version of the missile, with a strike range of 299 km has been operationalised in the Army since 2007, it was the first time that the Navy tested the missile after its range was extended.
Defence sources said, that with an extended range, the nuclear capable missile BrahMos, was fired from a guided missile- frigate Teg, on a target on land. The strike range of the missile was extended from 299 km to 450 km recently after
India became a member of the Missile Technology Control Regime (MTCR).
“The test conducted as part of an experimental trial was successful and met all mission parameters. The most lethal and potent weapon system for precision strike has proved its effectiveness once again,” said a defence official from New
Delhi.
Post the MTCR membership, the long range missile was first test-launched from a mobile autonomous launcher (MAL) deployed in full operational configuration at Chandipur-based launching complex–III of the Integrated Test Range (ITR) on March 11.
However, the successful maiden firing of the BrahMos land attack variant has significantly enhanced the prowess of the Indian Navy and has placed the country in the club of select five nations.
This fire-and-forget missile has the capability to take on surface-based targets by flying a combined high-low trajectory, thus evading enemy air defence systems.
The BrahMos missile was jointly developed by India and Russia. Its anti ship variant has already been inducted in the Navy. A majority of the Navy’s frontline classes of ships like the Kolkata, Ranvir and Teg are capable of firing this missile.
“The land attack variant of BrahMos missile provides naval ships the capability to precisely neutralise selected targets deep inland, far away from the coast and from stand-off ranges at sea,” the official added.
The BrahMos missile, which derives its name from the Brahmaputra and Moskova rivers, was developed by an Indo-Russian joint venture after the two countries signed an agreement in February 1998.
The missile flies at a speed of Mach 2.8 and is capable of being launched from land, sea, submarine and air against targets on land and sea.
It can carry a conventional warhead of 200 to 300 kg, thus delivering with high-precision, devastating power at supersonic speed.