India test fires Brahmos missile

Times of India, NEW DELHI: India on Wednesday morning successfully test fired BrahMos-the supersonic anti-ship cruise missile-from the Interim-Test-Range, Balasore in Orissa.

“The test was conducted from the static launcher in inclined mode successfully at 1120 hrs achieving maximum range. The flight has achieved all the mission objectives set for it,” defence ministry said here.

The missile, jointly developed with Russia, has a range of 300 kilometres and can carry a 200-kilogramme conventional warhead.

According to defence officials the cruise missile with its supersonic speed will be able to check movements by the Chinese warships, especially in the Indian Ocean.

Analysts note that the cruise missile is more than a match to similar anti-ship missiles named Moskit, which China has mounted on its recently acquired Soverameny-class warships.

Pakistan is not known to have such a missile.

Besides, its extraordinary accuracy and speed increases the range of its targets.

The missile was first test-fired on June 12, 2001. The second test was conducted on April 28, 2002 and third on February12, 2003.

The Chief Controller (Research and Development), Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) A Sivathanu Pillai had said recently that the supersonic cruise missile would be ready for commercial production and for induction into the defence armoury in the next two years.

The missile should enter full-scale serial production phase towards the end of this year after some more developmental flights a defence official said.

Indian and Russian scientists have been fine-tuning two basic BrahMos missile weapon complexes – a universal version configured for submarine, warship and shore-based systems; and a BrahMos-a airborne system for different aircraft. Though the specifications of the two complexes are more or less similar, the former is armed with a payload or warhead mass of 200 kg, while the latter