DRDO successfully tests long-range hypersonic missile

New Delhi, Nov 17 (IANS) Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) has successfully conducted a flight trial of a long-range hypersonic missile off the Odisha coast.

Union Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, in a post on X on Sunday, announced the significant achievement and said that this has put the country in the group of select nations having capabilities of such critical and advanced military technologies.

The flight trial of the long-range hypersonic missile was conducted from the Dr APJ Abdul Kalam Island off the coast of Odisha. The trial was carried out in the presence of senior scientists of DRDO and the Armed Forces.

The Ministry of Defence said that the missile was tracked by various range systems, deployed in multiple domains. The flight data obtained from down-range ship stations confirmed the successful terminal manoeuvres and impact with a high degree of accuracy.

The flight trial was carried out in the presence of senior scientists of DRDO and officers of the Armed Forces.

The Defence Minister congratulated the Armed forces and the Industry for the successful launch.

“India has achieved a major milestone by successfully conducting a flight trial of long-range hypersonic missile from Dr APJ Abdul Kalam Island, off-the-coast of Odisha. This is a historic moment and this significant achievement has put our country in the group of select nations having capabilities of such critical and advanced military technologies. I congratulate Team @DRDO_India, our Armed Forces and the Industry for stupendous achievement,” Rajnath Singh said in his post.

This hypersonic missile is designed to carry various payloads for ranges greater than 1,500 km for all the Indian Armed Forces wings.

The missile has been indigenously developed by the laboratories of Dr APJ Abdul Kalam Missile Complex, Hyderabad along with various other DRDO laboratories and Industry Partners.

Hypersonic missiles are characterised by their ability to travel at speeds exceeding Mach 5, making them highly challenging for enemies to detect and intercept.

The successful trial highlights the country’s capabilities in strengthening its strategic deterrence and national security.

Secretary, Department of Defence Research and Development and Chairman, DRDO, Dr Samir V. Kamat congratulated the team which actively contributed to this successful mission.

This is the third successful test by DRDO in the last few days. On November 14, DRDO successfully completed the flight tests of the Guided Pinaka Weapon System as part of Provisional Staff Qualitative Requirements (PSQR) validation trials. The flight tests were conducted in three phases at different field firing ranges.

On 12 November India conducted a maiden flight test of Long Range Land Attack Cruise Missile (LRLACM). The flight test was conducted from the Integrated Test Range (ITR), Chandipur off the coast of Odisha. That test was conducted from a mobile articulated launcher. The missile was equipped with advanced avionics and software to ensure better and more reliable performance.

–IANS

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