NEW DELHI: The Indian Navy’s Long Range Anti-Ship Missile (LR-AShM), one of India’s most advanced indigenous weapon systems, is all set to make its public debut at Kartavya Path during the 77th Republic Day parade on Monday.
Developed by the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), the hypersonic glide missile marks a significant milestone for India, placing the country among a select group of nations, including the United States, Russia and China, to have the technology.
The LR-AShM can carry a variety of payloads and reach speeds of up to Mach 10 (around 12,000 km/h), with an operational range of approximately 1,500 km. This enables it to engage high-value naval targets, including aircraft carrier battle groups, at standoff distances far beyond the reach of conventional cruise missiles.
In a statement on Thursday, the defence ministry said the missile is “equipped with indigenously developed sensors to engage moving targets during the terminal phase,” adding that, “as this missile flies at low altitude with high speed and manoeuvrability, enemy ground and ship-based radars cannot detect it for most of its trajectory.”
The missile combines inertial navigation, satellite-aided positioning and active radar seekers, allowing precise targeting of moving surface ships while remaining resilient against electronic countermeasures.
Sources in the defence and security establishment explained that the LR-AShM will initially be deployed from land-based mobile launchers along India’s coastline, with future ship-borne and air-launched adaptations expected as technology matures and integration with naval platforms progresses.
The LR-AShM has undergone a series of critical flight trials, including a key test in November 2024, which validated the missile’s hypersonic performance and complex manoeuvrability, confirming its operational envelope ahead of the public debut.
Alongside the missile, DRDO will also present a separate dedicated tableau at Bharat Parv on the Red Fort, on display from Monday until the end of the month, focusing on the Navy. The theme, ‘Naval Technologies for Combat Submarines’, will highlight indigenously developed systems that act as force multipliers for India’s conventional submarines.
The defence ministry said that the display will feature the Integrated Combat Suite (ICS), Wire-Guided Heavy Weight Torpedo (WGHWT) and Air Independent Propulsion (AIP) system, which together “ensure combat supremacy in the underwater domain.