DRDO's Maiden trial of anti-radiation missile in coastal Odisha a success

BHUBANESWAR: The Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) on Thursday claimed to have conducted the maiden test of new generation anti-radiation missile (NGARM) from a fighter aircraft off Odisha coast.

The indigenously developed air-to-surface missile was successfully launched from Indian Air Force’s front-line aircraft Sukhoi-30 MKI. The missile is capable of destroying enemy radars, tracking systems and communication facilities. 

NGARM, having a strike range of over 100 km, is the first air-to-surface missile completely designed and developed by DRDO.

“The missile test fired on January 18 performed as expected. Its seeker, structural integrity, navigation and control system were validated along with the aerodynamic capabilities,” said a scientist associated with the mission.

The state-of-the-art high speed missile is first-of-its-kind in the country’s arsenal. It can be launched over a wide range of altitudes. Picking up signals or radiation emitted from the radars or tracking networks from a certain distance, the missile can destroy communication systems. 

Radars, tracking apparatuses and other communication facilities of enemies are the first targets during wars. A sensor on the tip of NGARM will pick up radio frequencies and destroy these facilities. The system will give a boost to the armed forces, the scientist said.   

The single-stage liquid-propelled system can use dual propulsion depending on the requirement. After completion of developmental trials, it will be integrated with front-line fighter aircraft Sukhoi and multi-role light combat aircraft Tejas. 

The weapon boasts of a dual-seeker system comprising passive homing head (PHH) and milli metric wave seeker. The PHH is a wide bend receiver system for identification of radiation emitting sources.