NEW DELHI: India today successfully test-fired its 290-km range BrahMos supersonic cruise missile from the Navy's newest destroyer INS Kolkata.
The launch off the Goa coast was "flawless" and the missile met all its designed parameters. INS Kolkata, which was commissioned by the Indian Navy on August 16, 2014, has the capability of firing the highest number of BrahMos missiles.
While a ship normally has the capacity to fire eight missiles, INS Kolkata can fire 16 BrahMos missile in salvo mode, defence sources said.
This is the first ship of this class, with two more in the pipeline. All the three ships are equipped with vertical launched BrahMos missile system as the prime strike weapon.
The Universal Vertical Launcher (UVLM) being used in these ships has a unique design, developed and patented by BrahMos Aerospace.
The UVLM has the benefits of stealth and permits launching of the missile vertically in any direction, an official statement said. BrahMos chief Sudhir Mishra congratulated his team and Indian Navy on the successful mission.
The two-stage missile, the first one being solid and the second one ramjet liquid propellant, has already been inducted into the Army and Navy, and the Air Force version is in final stage of trial.