BRAHMOS MISSILE - DEFENCE AND SECURITY
News: IAF
test-fires extended range BrahMos cruise missile from SU-30MKI
What's in the news?
● The
Indian Air Force (IAF) successfully fired the Extended Range (ER) version of
BrahMos air-launched supersonic cruise
missile against a ship target from a SU-30MKI fighter aircraft.
Key takeaways:
● The
missile achieved the desired mission objectives in the Bay of Bengal region.
● With
this, IAF has achieved a significant capability boost to carry out precision
strikes from SU-30MKI aircraft against
land/sea targets over very long ranges.
● The
extended range capability of the missile coupled with the high performance of
the SU-30MKI aircraft gives the IAF a strategic reach and allows it to dominate
the future battlefields.
Brahmos:
● BrahMos
is a joint venture between the
Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) and Russia’s NPO Mashinostroyeniya and the missile derives
its name from Brahmaputra and Moskva rivers.
Launch:
● The
missile is capable of being launched
from land, sea, sub-sea and air against surface and sea-based targets and
has been long inducted by the Indian armed forces.
Range:
● The
range of the missile was originally capped at 290 kms as per obligations of the
Missile Technology Control Regime (MTCR).
● Following
India’s entry into the club in June 2016, DRDO officials had stated that the
range would be extended to 450 km and to
600 km at a later stage.
● The
ER version has been tested several times both by the Navy and IAF.