Long range air-to-air missiles to get a boost as India successfully tests SFDR technology

BHUBANESWAR: The Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) achieved yet another feat by successfully testing the solid fuel ducted ramjet (SFDR) booster from a defence facility off the Odisha coast on Friday. The new technology will help develop long-range air-to-air missiles.

Defence sources said a prototype of an air-to-air missile based on the ramjet technology was flight-tested from the Integrated Test Range (ITR) at about 10.30 am to check the performance of the system.

The test has successfully demonstrated the reliable functioning of all critical components involved in the complex missile system and met all the mission objectives.

“After the ground booster phase the missile was guided to high altitude to simulate aircraft release conditions. Subsequently, the nozzle-less booster was ignited and it accelerated the system to the required Mach number for ramjet operation,” said sources.

The performance of the system has been confirmed from the data captured by a number of range instruments like telemetry, radar and electro optical tracking systems (EOTS) deployed by ITR.

Developed by Hyderabad-based Defence Research and Development Laboratory (DRDL) in collaboration with other DRDO laboratories, the SFDR based propulsion enables the missile to intercept aerial threats at supersonic speeds at very long range.

All the subsystems including the booster and nozzle-less motor performed as expected. So far, the technology was available only with a handful of countries in the world. The successful validation of the technology will enable DRDO to develop
long range air-to-air missiles.

Complimenting the teams involved in design, development and testing, Secretary of Department of Defence R&D and DRDO Chairman Dr G Satheesh Reddy said with the successful trial of SFDR, the range of air-to-air missiles can be enhanced.

The air breathing ramjet technology will propel long range air-to-air missiles to engage with targets at supersonic speed and high accuracy. The missiles will provide a multi-layered aerial protection to important establishments from hostile
attacks.

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh congratulated DRDO for the successful test of SFDR and termed it an important milestone towards the development of critical missile technologies in the country.