NEW DELHI: Calling the BrahMos cruise missile the country's most lethal combat asset, the Indian Air Force Chief on Wednesday said that more combat squadrons have been equipped with it.
Air Chief Marshal VR Chaudhari said, “As the situation unfolded on the northern borders three years ago, we realised that the potent weapon can be used very effectively for land attacks. We therefore equipped more squadrons with these BrahMos modified aircraft. Today, we have BrahMos modified aircraft in almost all squadrons across the IAF.”
He was speaking at the BrahMos User Meet 2023 in New Delhi on Wednesday. BrahMos has been produced jointly by India and Russia since 1998 and has completed 25 years of production.
Speaking on the occasion, General Manoj Pande added that the missile has enabled the armed forces in multiple ways. “Due to our legacy issues of unsettled borders and related security challenges, possession of strategic deterrence instruments in our case is essential. And the three services of the defence forces as users of the BrahMos missile system now stand enabled to not just deter but also respond robustly when required,” said the Army Chief.
“As one of our most lethal air-combat assets, the BrahMos supersonic missile has really galvanized the way we will equip ourselves with precision firepower in the coming years. Seeing the conflicts that are happening across the globe, the importance of precision, long-range firepower can't be underscored,” the air chief added.
Speaking on the significance of the missile, the IAF chief talked about the future needs of the IAF and the modifications carried out in the aircraft to arm them with it.
“The combination of BrahMos on the Sukhoi Su-30 has really given us tremendous capability that has enhanced our firepower. It has made the deterrence value of the IAF go up by leaps and bounds,” he said.
As reported earlier by The New Indian Express, the Indian Air Force is expected to be armed with the BrahMos NG (next generation) versatile supersonic cruise missile system by 2025.
The NG will be lighter in weight and smaller in size thus allowing the aerial platforms to carry more numbers of them. The NG will weigh around 1330 kg and be around six metres long. The current version of BrahMos weighs 2650 kg with a length of around 9 metres.
While bigger fighters like the Sukhoi will be able to carry more NG missiles, since they are lighter, smaller and compact, the next generation missile systems can also be fitted on other platforms. Right now, the plan is to fit it in the Sukhoi-30MKI and LCA.
Along with the upgraded BrahMos and forthcoming Next Generation BrahMos, this will remain the primary deterrent weapon possessed by the IAF, the IAF chief said.
The range of the missile was 290 km, with a speed of 2.8 mach, when India was not part of the Missile Technology Control Regime (MTCR). India became a MTCR member in 2016 and extended its range to 450 km.
The extended range capability of the missile coupled with the high performance of the Su-30MKI aircraft gives the IAF strategic reach. The missile system was successfully married with the Su-30 MKI in May this year.
The BrahMos missile can be launched from submarines, ships, aircraft or land and has been inducted into all three services -- Army, Navy and Air Force.