BHUBANESWAR: Adding teeth to its arsenal, Indian Army on Tuesday successfully test-fired surface-to-surface nuclear capable Intermediate Range Ballistic Missile (IRBM) Agni-II in full operational configuration from a defence base off Odisha coast.Defence sources said the weapon system with a dummy payload blasted off from a mobile launcher at launching complex-IV of Abdul Kalam Island at about 8.40 am leaving behind a chain of thick smoke.
This was the third successful trial of an Agni series missile in the last one month. While 5,000-km range Agni-V was test-fired on January 18, a user trial of 700-km range Agni-I was conducted on February 6.
The 2,000 km range Agni-II missile, already inducted and part of the country’s arsenal for strategic deterrence, was launched as a training exercise by the Strategic Forces Command (SFC) of the Army to reconfirm its operational readiness.
The missile equipped with advanced high accuracy navigation system, guided by a novel scheme of the state-of-the-art command and control system was propelled by solid rocket propellant system.
A defence official said the missile travelled along the intended flight path before reaching the point of impact with a few metre accuracy, meeting all mission parameters as coordinated.“The successful launch has once again proved the reliability of the medium range missile. Radar, telemetry systems, electro-optical tracking stations tracked and monitored the mission parameters throughout the trajectory. The mission was highly successful and flawless,” he added.
All the sub systems, propulsion, control, actuators, on-board computers and missile interface units besides navigation and guidance systems functioned fully to perfection and ensured that the vehicle reached the target within double digit accuracy.Developed by Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), the two-stage, 21-metre long missile with 1.3 metre diameter weighs around 16 tonne. It can carry a payload of around 1,000 kg and its range can be increased to 3,000 km by reducing the weight of the payload.The first prototype of an operational variant of Agni-II was tested on April 11, 1999. The missile can be fitted with nuclear warheads, in addition to chemical, high explosive and sub-munitions versions.