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How india is gearing up for its own hypersonic ballistic missile, defence officials say the brahmos-2 missile will be a hypersonic version and is likely to enter the prototype stage over the next three years.

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A hypersonic missile travels at the speed of at least Mach 5. Unlike a ballistic missile, which follows a defined trajectory, it is highly maneuverable. In India, the BrahMos-2 will be the hypersonic version of the missile and will probably have a range of 1,500 km. Trials have put its speed at almost Mach 8, making it the fastest in the world. “BrahMos-2 is a hypersonic version of the missile. It is likely to enter the prototype stage in the next three years,” said a top defence ministry official, adding that a series of tests of the missile were conducted at the speed of Mach 6.5.

In 2020, the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) had tested the hypersonic air-breathing scramjet system for propulsion, called the Hypersonic Technology Demonstration Vehicle or HSTDV. According to a defence official, the HSTDV attained a speed of Mach 6 for 23 seconds during the testing.

“India has joined a select group of countries, including the United States, Russia, and China, that have indigenously developed technology capable of making the HSTDV take an unpredictable trajectory and elude interceptor detection,” a defence official said, adding that the test-firing might be related to the BrahMos-2 hypersonic missile, which is expected to be modelled on Russia’s Zircon hypersonic missile.

BrahMos is the only cruise missile to be exported by India. The Philippines will be its first foreign buyer while countries like Indonesia have shown keen interest in it. The current versions of the BrahMos have a range of about 500 km, with the export variant having a range of 290 km to keep it under the MTCR (Missile Technology Control Regime) restrictions of 300 km.

The MTCR lays down regulations to limit the proliferation of missiles and missile technology.

“Although not legally binding on members, the informal political set-up has ensured every country enjoys the right to protect itself using ballistic missiles while ensuring only responsible members can develop ballistic technologies that might be used for attack, not defence,” says Indian defence expert Girish Linganna.

Also in the works is the BrahMos NG (next generation), which is smaller in size (6 metres long) than the original BrahMos and weighs 1.6 tonnes. The original BrahMos weights three tonnes and is nine metres long. The BrahMos NG boasts of a range of 290 km and can attain speeds of up to Mach 3.5. Due to its lesser radar cross-section, the BrahMos NG is more difficult for enemy air defence systems to locate and engage. The BrahMos NG will have an active electronically scanned array (AESA) radar instead of the mechanically scanned radar on the BrahMos PJ-10.

Every armed force is envisioned as a user of the BrahMos NG. The earlier BrahMos PJ-10 could be carried only by the Sukhoi Su-30 MKI. The BrahMos NG also suits the Indian Navy’s Project 75 India (P75I) submarines. The BrahMos NG will have a land-based variant for the Indian Army, a variant for the Indian Air Force and a ship and submarine-compatible variant for the Navy.

The Sukhoi Su-30 MKI will be able to carry five BrahMos NGs at a time, instead of only one BrahMos. MiG-29s and the indigenous LCA Tejas will also benefit from the BrahMos NG, as will be the newly inducted Rafales reportedly. “India’s combat power will increase exponentially with the lethality, versatility and portability of the BrahMos NG and BrahMos-2. With the threat from China growing by the day, the BrahMos NG will potentially be a force multiplier for the Indian armed forces,” said another senior defence official.

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India will have its first hypersonic missile in 5-6 years: BrahMos Aerospace CEO

The multi-million-dollar brahmos export deal has paved the way for india's aspiration to emerge as a top-notch military manufacturer and exporter in the world in the next few years..

India-Russia defence Joint Venture BrahMos Aerospace is capable of making hypersonic missiles and will be able to have its first such missile in five to six years, BrahMos Aerospace informed on Monday.

"BrahMos Aerospace is capable of making hypersonic missiles. In five to six years, we will be able to have our first hypersonic missile by BrahMos," said Atul Rane, CEO and MD, BrahMos Aerospace while speaking at an event over the commencement of 'Silver Jubilee Year' celebration (1998-2023) to mark the incredible journey of one of India's most successful, cutting-edge military partnership programmes that has produced the world's best, fastest and most powerful modern precision strike weapon BrahMos.

Coinciding with India's 75 years of Independence, BrahMos Aerospace on Monday commenced the 'Silver Jubilee Year' celebrations (2022-2023) to mark the incredible journey of one of India's most successful, cutting-edge military partnership programmes that has produced the world's best, fastest and most powerful modern precision strike weapon BrahMos.

Starting on June 12 to mark 21 glorious years of the maiden supersonic launch of unbeatable BrahMos, the 'Silver Jubilee Year' celebrations would culminate on February 12, 2023, on the 'BrahMos Raising Day'.

During the 'Silver Jubilee Year' celebrations, the JV entity has planned to organise several key events, meets and national-level competitions, which include industry partners' meet to acknowledge and highlight the invaluable contributions made by the JV's key Industry partners as part of the missile manufacturing industry ecosystem within the country.

Besides, there will be a user interaction meeting to acknowledge the contribution and professionalism of the Indian Armed Forces operating the world's best supersonic cruise missile system.

A National-level Competition on cutting-edge technology and its application in the missiles and aerospace field are to be held with an aim to orient and nurture young talent in the field of missile technology.

The grand celebrations will culminate on February 12, 2023, (BrahMos Raising Day) during which important events would take place.

At first, as part of the Silver Jubilee Year celebrations, the company has announced to spend a fair share of its Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) funds for women empowerment-related programmes and projects across India.

In over the two decades of its spectacular journey, BrahMos Aerospace has achieved numerous historic milestones and realised many "firsts" in the country. Charting out the course for the next phase of this ambitious journey, the JV has started work on its new, state-of-the-art BRAHMOS manufacturing centre to come up in Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh as part of the UP Defence Industrial Corridor (UPDIC) Project.

On June 3, Prime Minister Narendra Modi performed a ground-breaking ceremony to mark the initiation of all major industrial projects under the UPDIC, including the setting up of the dedicated BrahMos facility which would design, develop and produce the highly advanced BRAHMOS Next-Generation (NG) weapon system.

BrahMos Aerospace has received around 80 hectares of land in Uttar Pradesh for the establishment of the new manufacturing centre with an initial investment of ₹ 300 crore. The company plans to complete all manufacturing-related work for the new facility by the mid of 2024. Once fully operational, this dedicated facility will produce 80-100 BrahMos systems every year.

Work on the BRAHMOS-NG missile has also progressed and it would be ready for serial production in the next three to five years. The BRAHMOS-NG manufacturing centre would further bolster the Missile Industry Consortium in India and help galvanise the defence ecosystem for high-end missile technology. It would also position India as one of the top-ranking defence technology centres in the world.

The supersonic cruise missile has been successfully operationalised in all three Services of the Indian Armed Forces (in the Indian Navy in 2005; in the Indian Army in 2007; in Indian Air Force in 2020).

After charting one after other incredible milestones and spectacular successes, the world-class BrahMos brought the first and foremost major breakthrough in India's military exports front by becoming the first full-scale weapon to be exported to a responsible, friendly nation.

On January 28, BrahMos Aerospace signed a historic contract with the Republic of the Philippines to deliver a shore-based anti-ship BRAHMOS system to the Philippine Navy. As a proud flag-bearer of 'Make-in-India' and 'Design-in-India', BrahMos Aerospace is now going to 'Make-for-the-World' -a first for the JV entity and a proud first for India.

The multi-million-dollar BrahMos export deal has paved the way for India's aspiration to emerge as a top-notch military manufacturer and exporter in the world in the next few years. 

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Explained: India’s missile capability, and where it stands in relation to its neighbours

🔴 defence minister rajnath singh has urged drdo scientists to work towards developing hypersonic missile technology. what missiles has india developed so far, and where does it stand in relation to its neighbours.

At a seminar organised by the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) last Tuesday, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh encouraged scientists to work towards developing hypersonic missile technology. China had demonstrated its hypersonic missile capability with successful tests of a hypersonic glide vehicle (HGV) which, according to reports, circled the globe but missed its target by just a few kilometres.

What is the history of missile technology in India?

Before Independence, several kingdoms in India were using rockets as part of their warfare technologies. Mysore ruler Hyder Ali started inducting iron-cased rockets in his army in the mid-18th century. By the time Hyder’s son Tipu Sultan died, a company of rocketeers was attached to each brigade of his army, which has been estimated at around 5,000 rocket-carrying troops.

At the time of Independence, India did not have any indigenous missile capabilities. The government created the Special Weapon Development Team in 1958. This was later expanded and called the Defence Research and Development Laboratory (DRDL), which moved from Delhi to Hyderabad by 1962.

“In 1972, Project Devil, for the development of a medium range Surface-to-Surface Missile was initiated. A large number of infrastructure and test facilities were established during this period.” DRDO’s official history of the lab states. “The development of components / systems for Project Devil formed the technology base for the future IGMDP Programme,” says DRDO. By 1982, DRDL was working on several missile technologies under the Integrated Guided Missiles Development Programme (IGMDP).

What kind of missiles does India have?

India is considered among the top few nations when it comes to designing and developing missiles indigenously, although it is way behind the US, China and Russia in terms of range.

DRDO chairman G Satheesh Reddy told The Indian Express that DRDO is “working on multiple varieties of missiles”. Among the surface-launched systems:

Today India successfully testfired the nuclear-capable strategic Agni Prime missile off the coast of Odisha from Balasore. pic.twitter.com/fJWa3j5RVt — ANI (@ANI) December 18, 2021

ANTI-TANK GUIDED MISSILE: Nag has already been inducted into the services. Reddy said Nag is the only “fire-and-forget ATGM meeting all weather requirements for its range (around 20 km)”. Recently Heli-Nag was tested, which will be operated from helicopters and will be inducted by 2022, said Reddy. There is also a Stand-off Anti-Tank (SANT) missile, with a range over 10 km. Tested from Indian Air Force (IAF) helicopters on December 11, it has a millimetre wave seeker, which enhances target detection in all weather conditions. Reddy said “man-portable ATGMs” are also available.

SURFACE-TO-AIR MISSILE: The short-range SAM system Akash has already been inducted in the Army and the Air Force. For Akash 1, which has a seeker, the Army has already got the Acceptance of Necessity from the government, Reddy said. For Akash (New Generation), the first tests were conducted in July this year; Reddy said a couple more trials are to be done.

Medium-Range SAM: Production of MRSAM systems for the Navy is complete, and it is placing its order, Reddy said. The Jaisalmer-based 2204 Squadron of the Air Force became the first unit to get the MRSAM systems in September this year. Technology for MRSAM for the Army “is also in a good shape and will be flight-tested soon”.

Short-Range SAM: For the Navy, the first flight tests have been successfully conducted.

Reddy also mentioned several air-launched systems:

AIR-TO-AIR: Astra, India’s Beyond Visual Range Air-to-Air Missile (BVRAAM), has been completely tested and is under induction. It has a range of around 100 km, and DRDO is trying to now induct it with more IAF platforms, including the domestically developed light combat aircraft Tejas. A long-range Astra is also being developed, for which initial tests have been conducted. The missile uses solid fuel ramjet technology, which enhances speed, and will have an indigenously-built seeker.

AIR-TO-GROUND: Rudram, a New Generation Anti-Radiation Missile (NGRAM), has cleared initial tests and “some more tests will be conducted soon.” With a maximum range of around 200 km, the missile mainly targets communication, radar and surveillance systems of the adversary, and was tested from the Sukhoi-30MKI fighter jet last year. Reddy mentioned that BrahMos, which India developed jointly with Russia, is already operational. It has a 300 km to 500 km range, and is a short-range, ramjet-powered, single warhead, supersonic anti-ship or land attack cruise missile.

Reddy said a supersonic missile-assisted torpedo system was successfully launched from Wheeler Island last Monday. It “carried a torpedo and delivered it at a longer range” and will enhance Navy anti-submarine capability with a range of around 400 km, Reddy said.

Which of India’s missile systems are most important?

The two most important are Agni and Prithvi, both being used by the Strategic Forces Command.

Agni (range around 5,000 ) , is India’s only contender for an inter-continental ballistic missile (ICBM), which is available with only a few countries. Prithvi, although a short-range surface-to-surface missile with a 350 km range, has strategic uses. India also tested a anti-satellite system in April 2019. A modified anti-ballistic missile named Prithvi Defence Vehicle Mk 2 was used to hit a low-orbit satellite. It put India only behind the US, Russia and China in this capability.

What about hypersonic technology?

India has been working on this for a few years, and is just behind the US, Russia and China. DRDO successfully tested a Hypersonic Technology Demonstrated Vehicle (HSTDV) in September 2020, and demonstrated its hypersonic air-breathing scramjet technology.

According to sources, India has developed its own cryogenic engine and demonstrated it in a 23-second flight. India will try to make a hypersonic cruise missile, using HSTDV.

Sources said only Russia has proven its hypersonic missile capability so far, while China has demonstrated its HGV capacity. India is expected to be able to have a hypersonic weapons system within four years, with medium- to long-range capabilities.

What makes India good in missile technology?

Lt Gen V K (retired) Chaturvedi, who had headed the Army’s artillery’s modernisation programme, said missile technology is “one field in which India has made very, very positive and substantial progress”.

Under the IGMP then headed by A P J Abdul Kalam, later India’s President, first came Prithvi, then Agni. BrahMos, at 2.5-3 times the speed of sound, was among the fastest in the world when developed, Chaturvedi said. “After the nuclear blast in 1998, cryogenic etc were not given to us. Kalam and others, they made it a point that they developed it within the country.”

Chaturvedi said the US is leading in missile technology, and China is building up”. India is also “at a very advanced stage” among the top three or four nations .

With India’s missiles, Chaturvedi said “today our basic opponent, area of interest is northern border [China]. In the western border [Pakistan] we cover the whole area”.

With Agni V ready, he said, India is working on Agni VI and Agni VII, which should have a much longer range. He mentioned that Prithvi, which DRDO developed in consultation with the armed forces, “was originally with the Army, and went to the Strategic Forces” but is expected to be back to the Army later. Pinaka rocket systems have also been developed in close coordination with the user agencies, he said.

Where do China and Pakistan stand compared to India?

While China is ahead of India, Chaturvedi believes a “lot of things about China are psychological”.

According to a Pentagon report in 2020, China may have either achieved parity, or even exceeded the US in land-based conventional ballistic and cruise missile capabilities.

Chaturvedi said China’s missile development is “definitely a concern for us, but we will definitely evolve”. He said if China strikes a strategic target of India, “we will hit back with equal potential, and hit them at the place where it matters the most.”

Chaturvedi was more dismissive about Pakistan. China has given Pakistan the technology, “but getting a technology and really using it, and thereafter evolving and adopting a policy is totally different”.

He called hypersonic missiles “weapons of deterrence” but will not be used. He believes they “will continue to deter, but unlikely that China will ever use this. But if it does, India will not sit idle.”

On nuclear capability, Chaturvedi said although India does not call BrahMos nuclear, it can be used. India’s only nuclear missiles are Prithvi and Agni, but beyond those, tactical nuclear weapons can be fired from some IAF fighter jets or from Army guns, which have a low range, around 50 km.

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India's Hypersonic Cruise Missile

India became the fourth country after the US, China and Russia to develop and test the hypersonic technology. With this successful test, India will be making its first hypersonic missile in the next five years.

On September 7, 2020, India had successfully test-fired the Hypersonic Technology Demonstrator Vehicle (HSTDV). Defence sources said the hypersonic combustion sustained and the cruise vehicle continued on its desired flight path at a velocity of six times the speed of sound for more than 20 seconds. Apart from being used as a vehicle for hypersonic long-range cruise missiles, the HSTDV is a dual-use technology that will have multiple civilian applications, including the launching of small satellites at low cost.

With the above successful test, India became the fourth country after the US, China and Russia to develop and test the hypersonic technology that will lead to developing missiles that would travel at six times the speed of sound. Defence sources had also said that with this successful test, India will be making its first hypersonic missile in the next five years.

The latest news is that Atul Rane, CEO of BrahMos Aerospace, speaking to Russia's state-owned TASS news agency on August 1, 2022, said that the hypersonic version of India's BrahMos cruise missile (BrahMos-II) is likely to have the same performance characteristics as Russia's Tsirkon (Zircon) missile. The BrahMos-II hypersonic cruise missile is supposed to succeed the Indian Navy's BrahMos supersonic anti-ship cruise missile.

The hypersonic version of India's BrahMos cruise missile (BrahMos-II) is supposed to succeed the Indian Navy's BrahMos supersonic anti-ship cruise missile

According to Rane, it would take up to five or six years before the first flight trial of BrahMos-II could begin. Rane also said that both the Indian and Russian sides are working on the design of the hypersonic BrahMos version. There was speculation in foreign media last year that the BrahMos II hypersonic cruise missile, is expected to develop a speed exceeding Mach 6, possibly reaching Mach 8, and a range of 600 kilometers that could be extended to 1,000 kilometers.

Now Rane says, "The whole world is working on a hypersonic cruise missile. The US and China are developing hypersonic versions of their cruise missiles. But they do not have them yet. I have not seen anyone in the world having hypersonic cruise missiles." But he also noted, "Russia says it tested the Tsirkon hypersonic anti-ship cruise missile developed by NPO Mashinostroeniya."

India has exported the BrahMos cruise missiles to the Philippines and is reportedly in advanced stage of talks with Indonesia who are seeking ship-borne variant of the BrahMos cruise missile for its warships. However, Rane has said that the hypersonic version of the BrahMos missile would be costly and would not be exported – only to be deployed by India and Russia. India is party to the Missile Technology Control Regime (MTCR), which allows development of a missile with a range of over 300 kilometers and weight of more than 500 kgs but not their export. India already has BrahMos missiles of 500 km range but the export version is capped at 290 km range in compliance with the MTCR.

The hypersonic version of the BrahMos missile would be costly and would not be exported – only to be deployed by India and Russia

There is also ambiguity whether the BrahMos II hypersonic cruise missile will carry only conventional warhead or both conventional and nuclear warheads like Russia's Tsirkon. However, given the expanding nuclear weaponry of China, without doubt the BrahMos hypersonic cruise missile will have the capability of carrying both the conventional and nuclear warheads.

BrahMos Aerospace is also developing the next generation BrahMos – 'BrahMos NG'. The BrahMos NG is smaller in size (6 metres long) compared to the original BrahMos and weighs 1.6 tonnes. The original BrahMos weighs three tonnes and is nine metres long. The BrahMos NG has a range of 290 km and can attain speeds of up to Mach 3.5. Due to its lesser radar cross-section, the BrahMos NG is more difficult for enemy air defence systems to locate and engage. The BrahMos NG will have active electronically scanned array (AESA) radar instead of the mechanically scanned radar on the BrahMos PJ-10. The BrahMos NG will have a land-based variant for the Indian Army, a variant for the Indian Air Force and a ship and submarine-compatible variant for the Navy.

The Sukhoi Su-30 MKI will be able to carry five BrahMos NGs at a time, instead of only one BrahMos presently. MiG-29s and the indigenous LCA Tejas will also benefit from the BrahMos NG, as will be the newly inducted Rafales. A senior defence official has said, "India's combat power will increase exponentially with the lethality, versatility and portability of the BrahMos NG and BrahMos-2. With the threat from China growing by the day, the BrahMos NG will potentially be a force multiplier for the Indian Armed Forces."

Given the expanding nuclear weaponry of China, without doubt the BrahMos hypersonic cruise missile will have the capability of carrying both the conventional and nuclear warheads

In October 2021, Russia conducted the first tests of the Tsirkon hypersonic missile from the Northern Fleet's Severodvinsk nuclear-powered submarine. In December 2021, President Putin announced that the Tsirkon hypersonic missile had completed the salvo launch. In May 2022, the final test was carried out with the Tsirkon missile fired from aircraft carrier 'Admiral Gorshkov' to the maximum range of 1,000 km from the Barents Sea on naval target in the White Sea.

On the occasion of Russia's Navy Day on July 31, 2022, President Putin announced that the Tsirkon missiles will be first deployed on the Northern Fleet's Admiral Gorshkov frigate. The Tsirkon missiles are set to enter the Russian military service before September 2022 as serial production had already begun earlier. Presently, only the aviation and sea-based variants of the Tsirkon are known to exist but according to foreign media, Russia is also developing a new coastal missile system to launch the Tsirkon missile which can hit both land-based and sea-based targets.

Because of the tremendously high speed of the Tsirkon, the air pressure in front of the missile is said to create a plasma cloud that traps radio waves, making it near invisible to radar systems. The Tsirkon missile can reportedly evade the most sophisticated American air defence systems. According to experts, it could easily defeat the US' Aegis Combat System and it is believed that the Tsirkon can sink even the most advanced American aircraft carriers.

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Hypersonic weapon systems for india.

General Atomics MQ-9 Reaper

In the beginning of March this year, Russia launched its biggest aerial attack in its ongoing war with Ukraine. The attack comprised a variegated weapon mix, the most interesting one of which was reported to be six air-launched Kinzhal (literally ‘dagger’) hypersonic missiles with a speed of Mach 10 and a payload of 480kg. Although hypersonic weapons had been used earlier during the war, this was the first time that six were used in a single wave. The Kinzhal is a modified version of the Russian Army’s Iskander Short Range Ballistic Missile (SRBM) which is a truck mounted weapon system. The Kinzhal version is launched at high altitude from modified MiG-31 aircraft to get maximum range out of its onboard fuel. Intriguingly, Putin, during an interview in March 2023 just before his visit to occupied Ukranian city Mariupol, stated that Russia had hypersonic weapons, but had not used them in the Ukraine war.

This innovative improvisation of the Kinzhal highlights the developments underway in the area of hypersonic weapons which are the nub of a global arms race. While US, China and Russia are leading the race neck and neck, other players are Australia, Brazil, France, Germany, India, Iran, Israel, Japan and the two Koreas. Russia is the first nation to induct hypersonic weapons into its military namely the Avangard and Kinzhal in 2018 and Tzircon in 2019 and the first to use hypersonic missiles in anger in Ukraine.

Realising the combat value of hypersonic weapons, India has been making endeavours to develop them on its own and has successfully demonstrated an indigenously developed vehicle. This article addresses the significance of hypersonic weapons, and developments in that field in India.

What Exactly is Hypersonic?

The Mach 5 (five times the speed of sound) barricade between supersonic and hypersonic weapons serves to emphasise the engineering challenges that face designers creating aerial platforms capable of speeds of Mach 5 and above. But what exactly is Mach 5 speed? During their trajectories, most hypersonic weapons go up to high altitudes where the atmosphere is rare. The ‘Mach’ relationship to speed of sound depends on the composition, temperature and density of the medium the vehicle is travelling through. The speed of sound in a gas medium which air is, is proportional to the square root of the gas temperature. As the vehicle moves higher and higher, the atmosphere becomes inconsequential and measurements related to the speed of sound become meaningless.

According to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI), scientists and engineers agree that it makes sense to talk about Mach numbers up to altitudes of 30km. Beyond that altitude, the relevance of this concept reduces. However, there is no internationally agreed altitude up to which the definition of ‘hypersonic’ speed would find universal concurrence. As sound does not travel in vacuum, the Mach number is undefined in vacuum conditions.

There are other grey areas in defining ‘hypersonic weapons’. The term ‘hypersonic’ seems to imply that speed is the primary characteristic that defines a hypersonic vehicle. However, that is not an exclusive definition. The V-2 rocket could reach a speed of Mach 5 briefly, but is never referred to as a hypersonic missile. Similarly, most ballistic missiles reach much higher speeds than Mach 5, some touching Mach 20, especially during descent and re-entry into the earth’s atmosphere, but are not called hypersonic weapons. The generally accepted attribute of the hypersonic vehicle (besides a Mach 5 speed) is the ability to manoeuvre during its entire flight including while flying at hypersonic speeds. By that logic, the rocket powered X-15 Hypersonic Test Vehicle (HTV) flown by US National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) in 1959 was the first vehicle to fly hypersonic (Mach 6.7). Since then, several major developments have taken place in the hypersonic R&D space.

Hypersonic weapons are essentially of two types. Hypersonic Glide Vehicles (HGVs) are generally launched piggy back on ballistic missiles and then released to glide back through the atmosphere towards their designated target. Manoeuvring control is achieved through control surfaces on the weapon airframe. Russian HGV Avangard is an operational example. Hypersonic Cruise Missiles (HCMs) execute self propelled, powered flight all through their mission which is generally flown entirely at hypersonic speeds. Kinzhal and Tzirkon are operational Russian HCMs. There could be hybrid versions as also variations like the air-launched Kinzhal mentioned earlier.

Hypersonic Objects of Military Desire

Technology levels, design features and engineering ingenuity differentiate within hypersonic weapons, but some of their common characteristics make them objects of desire. The foremost advantage they offer is their low visibility to ground-based radars. While ballistic missiles go up considerably high, almost to the edge of earth’s atmosphere, HGVs launched by ballistic rockets are released at much lower altitudes and are thus not easily visible to ground radars. HCMs, of course, fly at considerably lower altitudes typically just around two hundred feet above ground level, the only limitation being the reaction time for manoeuvring over terrain at high speeds. Moreover, hypersonic weapons are manoeuvrable and, thus, can be routed tactically and be flown to avoid anti-missile systems. The current effectiveness of air defence systems against incoming hypersonic vehicles is extremely low and most proof of concept hypersonic test flights bypass modern defence systems with ease. It may be mentioned however, that some nations are working on placing detection sensors in space for aerial vehicle sensing although that is an area of complex challenges and is still ‘work in progress’.

Another advantage is that they can be launched from land, sea or air and thus offer flexibility in terms of operational deployment. Another flexibility feature is that they can be dual use i.e. capable of carrying a conventional or a nuclear warhead. While the combat use of a hypersonic vehicle with a nuclear warhead is not a very likely event, the capability exists. Moreover, because of the very low vulnerability to enemy air defences, the high degree of sophistication in satellite navigational accuracy and very large, continental ranges, hypersonic vehicles are capable of delivering even conventional loads with such precision that the impact is strategic. The Kinzhal has reportedly been used against strategic targets like munitions storage facilities and critical bridges. For strategic effect, they could also be employed for precise strikes on command and control installations or fortified bunkers and potentially time-sensitive moving targets such as combat ships. Russian warship Moskva , the flagship of the Russian Navy ’s Black Sea Fleet, was hit by a cruise missile in April 2022 although the missile was not hypersonic.

Hypersonic weapons add a new dimension to the concept of retaliation. Firstly, their low vulnerability to defences assures almost certain retaliatory capability and secondly, the retaliation can be escalated gradually from conventional to threat of nuclear use. Even when hypersonic weapons are used collateral damage is kept to a minimum due to the high accuracy and controlled payload of the vehicle. Thus, it could be argued that hypersonic weapons assure penetration, permit scalability of assuredly delivered conventional payloads and thus avert nuclear crises.

India’s Hypersonic Quest

R&D on hypersonic weapons in India goes back to 2007. In his address at the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) Directors Conference held on February 21, 2007, Dr APJ Abdul Kalam had stated that he visualised hypersonic cruise missiles as one of the defence systems that would be needed by India in the next 15 years. India’s primary hypersonic pursuit is premised on the remarkably successful BrahMos (portmanteau word combining Brahmaputra and Moskva) medium range, supersonic cruise missile also designated PJ-10 which can be launched from air, land or ships and submarines. It was the fastest supersonic cruise missile at the time of its introduction and was the result of a joint venture called BrahMos Aerospace between India’s DRDO and Russia’s NPO Mashinostroyeniya. The hypersonic missile programme underway at BrahMos Aerospace is expected to produce the BrahMos-II missile fashioned after the Russian Tzirkon which is a scramjet powered anti-ship HCM that can travel at Mach 9, climb to 28km (92,000 feet) altitude and travel to a target up to 1,500km away. It is ship/submarine launched but a land-based version is reported to be under development in Russia.

BrahMos Aerospace was formed in 1998 and the BrahMos missile was first test fired in 2001. Several versions including an air-launched one are in service in India – in the Indian Navy in 2005; in the Indian Army in 2007; in Indian Air Force in 2020. BrahMos-II development started under an agreement between Indian and Russia in September 2009 and it was expected to be produced by 2015 initially. As is typical of all DRDO related programmes, BrahMos-II project is running far behind schedule. Reportedly, according to a recent statement by BrahMos Aerospace, once government approval is given, it will take eight years before BrahMos-II is ready for trials. Although media reports keep surfacing about ever new expected dates for trials, the latest one being touted by media being 2024. Reportedly, Konstantin Biryulin, the Deputy General Director of Korporatzia Takteecheskoye Raketnoeye Vooryzhenuye (KTRV), the major holding company for missile manufacture under which the Russian partner of BrahMos (NPO Mashinostroeniya) operates, Russia is ready to pass on hypersonic technologies to friendly nations.

According to him, the BrahMos-II should be ready by 2028. The supersonic and hypersonic versions of BrahMos will be usable only by India and Russia as India is a signatory to the Missile Technology Control Regime (MTCR) which prohibits sale/export of any missiles over 300km in range or capable of carrying over 500kg of payload to a third country besides Russia. India has signed a deal with the Philippines in January 2022 for the sale of BrahMos missiles; but those will have a curtailed range of 290km in deference to MTCR. Delivery is expected to commence this year. Indonesia has also shown interest in the BrahMos. However, while a BrahMos with 290-km range makes moderate sense, having a hypersonic missile with a sub-300-km range would not.

As the US has demonstrated unpredictability in the matter of imposing sanctions on nations in the past, to forestall any sanctions on Russia and/or India related to BrahMos-II, India followed another parallel programme in pursuit of hypersonic weapons capability. Since 2008, the DRDO worked on a Hypersonic Technology Demonstrator Vehicle (HSTDV) with the objective of demonstrating scram jet performance at altitudes up to 20km and speeds up to Mach 6. The scramjet is said to have been developed indigenously although there are doubts about it as Indian R&D in the power plant area has not produced an engine for even the Light Combat Aircraft programme. The HSTDV project was dual use in nature, with multiple civilian applications including launching satellites at low cost and powering long range cruise missiles of the future. The scramjet or supersonic combustion ramjet uses atmospheric air as oxidiser and uses its high speed to compress incoming air before it enters the combustion chamber. It differs from a normal ramjet inasmuch as the ramjet decelerates air to subsonic velocities before combustion while in the scramjet operation, air is at supersonic speeds throughout.

So, the engine can start only after the vehicle reaches a certain velocity for achieving which the vehicle is dependent on some other means of propulsion i.e. a rocket motor. As the scramjet does not carry an oxidiser, unlike a rocket motor, it can operate only in suborbital atmosphere where oxygen is present in adequate amounts to permit fuel combustion in the engine. The HSTDV was first successfully tested in June 2019. This was followed by another successful demonstration in September 2020 up to an altitude of 30km at speeds up to Mach 6.The last test was carried out on January 27, 2023. India is the fourth nation after Russia, US and China to demonstrate hypersonic capability.

An Agni-5 missile test carried out by India in December 2022 was seen by some analysts as peculiar inasmuch as its trajectory was unusually lower than normal for such a test which should have been a high parabolic arch entering space before re-entering the earth’s atmosphere. A section of media conjectured that the launch may have actually tested an HGV. Indian Aerospace Defence News (IADN) posted pictures on Twitter of China’s 2018 DF-ZF HGV launch in Shaanxi province and compared it to the Agni-5 test, pointing out that it showed the “same launch characteristics” and saying that the firing is likely to have tested a Hypersonic Glide Vehicle (HGV) based on its “quasi-ballistic role (and) low velocity rather than a standard ballistic launch.” The DRDO denied any such connection of the Agni-5 test to hypersonic weaponry.

For the sake of completion, a mention must be made of the Shaurya and the Sagarika missiles that India has. The Shaurya is a canister-launched surface to surface tactical missile Medium Range Ballistic Missile (MRBM) developed by DRDO with a maximum range of 1,900km and a maximum payload of 1,000kg which can be conventional or nuclear. It can fly at Mach 7.5 and was inducted into the Strategic Forces Command (SFC) in October 2020. The Sagarika is a Submarine Launched Ballistic Missile (SRBM) with a range of 1,500km and a maximum speed of Mach 7.5. Some analysts believe that the two missiles vary only in their launch location (land versus submarine) but DRDO claims that there is no connection between the two. Sagarika has the designation K-15 and is said to be part of the Strategic Forces Command (SFC) as it has conventional and nuclear warhead carriage capability. Although Shaurya and Sagarika reach hypersonic speeds, their overarching characteristics are more like those of ballistic missiles and less like hypersonic weapons, they neither fit the attributes of HGVs nor of HCMs.

India has a Trisonic Wind Tunnel called thus as it permits testing aerodynamic design of aerial vehicles in three distinct flight regimes: subsonic, sonic, and supersonic by measuring forces, moments and load distributions. It became operational in December 2022. However, the maximum speed that can be tested in is Mach 4 which falls short of hypersonic speeds. This remains a handicap for hypersonic weapons development.

Concluding Remarks

Although Russia is leading the world in hypersonic weaponry, it is China that is the focus of India’s attention on account of China’s impressive strides in the area and the fact that India could be at a possible target for such weapons if a conventional war broke out in the future. China has been working on hypersonic weapons since the turn of the century and its current vision looks at them as apt for both conventional war fighting and strategic deterrence. In 2015, the government gave renewed focus and funding to the technologies relevant to hypersonic weapons: vehicle design, power plant including scramjet, simulation facilities and testing infrastructure. It also set up dedicated clusters of academia and industrial organisations to work on these technologies. China first tested a hypersonic missile in 2018 (Xing Kong-2 HCM) and has tested DF-ZF, an HGV, to be launched from the DF-17 MRBM. It is also said to be testing hypersonic missiles to piggy back DF-21 and DF-26 ballistic missiles which have much larger ranges. A UAV with hypersonic capability has also been reported. Interestingly, the world’s first wind tunnel capable of testing a full-sized hypersonic missile is also operational in China while a similar US project is still work in progress.

These snippets of China’s progress show that India is lagging far behind China in this area. As stated earlier, there are no reliable defences against incoming missiles travelling at hypersonic speeds and interception from the ground or the air is well nigh impossible while space-based defences against hypersonic weapons are still evolving. This fact should provide the impetus for India to accelerate its hypersonic programmes so that viable weapons can deter use of hypersonic weapons by China for fear of retaliation in kind. Hypersonic weaponry technology requires special attention as it is niche and leading edge. The shelving by the US of its five year old Air-launched Rapid Response Weapon (ARRW) hypersonic missile programme in March 2023 after unsuccessful tests, is a portent of the uphill task ahead of Indian R&D.

Speaking on March 21, 2023, at Def-Tech India, an event organised by PHD Chamber of Commerce on ‘India’s Aerospace Capabilities and Technology Requirements’ the Chief of the Air Staff, Air Chief Marshal VR Chaudhari listed hypersonic weapons as a key factor in technology that was changing the conduct of war. Prudence dictates that India heeds this advice and prioritises development of hypersonic weapons as a national security imperative.

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The lesser known men : navigating the complexities of iran’s new leadership, challenges of islamic radicalisation in assam and secularisation of education, swarm drones in india: a growing capability, india’s ability to defend against massed drone assaults.

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Complexities of the indian hypersonic missile test, author: jay desai , research associate, centre for air power studies, keywords: hypersonic technology demonstrator vehicle, agni-i, drdo, mod., introduction, o n january 27, 2023, india tested the hypersonic technology demonstrator vehicle (hstdv) for the third time. [1] the hstdv is a missile powered by a scramjet engine. it has a speed of mach 6. the program is in charge of the drdo. as per the ministry of defence (mod) statement in 2020, the hstdv is basically a hypersonic cruise missile. [2] hypersonic cruise missiles are missiles that are very difficult to detect because they have the capability to maintain high speeds (mach 6-10) at low altitudes, while being manoeuvrable., understanding the origin of hypersonic flight, the first time a missile flew faster than mach 5 was on february 24, 1949. this missile was an old v-2 rocket, which had been mounted with a wac corporal second-stage rocket. its launch was conducted from white sands, a proving ground in new mexico. [3] it achieved a high speed of 5150 miles per hour while it entered back into the atmosphere. with the 1950s setting in, intercontinental ballistic missiles were flying at speeds of mach 25. the speed was noted when the nose cones were tested for entry. in the 1950s, special focus was given by the us to hypersonic glide vehicle development, but at that point in time, the technology had not matured enough. by the beginning of the 21 st century, countries like russia and china started working on hypersonic weapons with higher determination than ever before., on april 12, 1961, russian cosmonaut yuri gagarin [4] became the first human being to go around the earth in the form of an orbit. hence, he experienced a hypersonic flight at mach 25 while the entry phase was on. by the end of 1961, the x-15 hypersonic research aircraft had, for the first time, exceeded mach 5 during its flight. [5] x-15 was only for research purposes; it was not intended to have warfighting abilities. so, it basically collected data to support the design of future combat vehicles. [6] during 1969 and the 1970s, the apollo lunar-return vehicles reached a speed of mach 36 while entering the earth’s atmosphere. in india, scientists developed the re-entry vehicles of agni-i, which entered back into earth at hypersonic speeds of mach 12. [7] the agni-i was successfully tested in may 1989. [8], technological attributes of hstdv  , in 2019, the drdo tested the hstdv for the first time. [9] vk saraswat, the former drdo chief, had said in 2008 that demonstrating the performance of scramjet engines at an altitude of 15-20 km was the aim. [10] saraswat had also predicted in 2008 that under this project, we would develop a hypersonic missile powered by a scramjet engine. [11], a scramjet engine is defined as an engine conducting combustion inside a ramjet engine at supersonic speeds. similar to a ramjet engine, a scramjet engine carries the fuel in the missile, it uses air for oxidization, and then compresses the air forcefully, which comes into the intake at supersonic speed (before it enters the combustion chamber). it is important to highlight that the ramjet engine slows down the velocity of air to subsonic velocities (speeds less than 340 m/s) before combustion takes place; on the other hand, the airflow in a scramjet is supersonic from the start till the end. therefore, the engine only starts after the hypersonic missile is released at a certain speed. for example, on june 12, 2019, the agni-i in the form of a booster rocket carried the hstdv. drdo in a statement said [12] that the “missile was launched successfully” and that the data collected would be used to “validate critical technologies”. in another test on september 7, 2020, india tested the scramjet-powered hstdv. [13] after sustained combustion at hypersonic speeds for 20 seconds, the hypersonic cruise vehicle achieved a velocity of 2 km per second. according to the mod statement, “the critical events like fuel injection and auto ignition of scramjet demonstrated technological maturity”. according to the mod, the scramjet engine performed exactly as per textbook knowledge. [14], a missile of this nature will compress the observe, orient, decide, act loop of india’s adversaries, giving them little time to react. it is not possible to intercept this missile, as no credible technology has yet been developed worldwide for intercepting hypersonic missiles. radar can detect these hypersonic missiles, but only when the missile is about to reach its intended target. so current command and control systems across the world are unable to track it in order to scrutinize data for intercepting it. due to the high speeds of a hypersonic missile, a plasma cloud is created due to air pressure in the front section of the missile. this absorbs all radio waves, making it untraceable by radar systems., as of now, india’s hstdv is going through the rigours of testing. it is too early to predict when it comes to what form of deterrence the hstdv would take vis-à-vis the two nuclear-armed adversaries of india. this is because it is unknown whether or not the hstdv will be a conventional-tipped or a nuclear-tipped missile. however, it is clear that this hypersonic cruise missile would be a game-changer for india., click to view pdf.

[1] Ujjwal Shrotryia, “India Tests Hypersonic Technology Demonstrator Vehicle; Here’s Everything We Know About It”, Swarajya , January 27, 2023, https://swarajyamag.com/defence/india-conducts-second-test-of-hypersonic-technology-demonstrator-vehicle Accessed on February 11 , 2023.

[2] “DRDO successfully flight tests Hypersonic Technology Demonstrator Vehicle”, PIB – M inistry of D efence , September 7, 2020, https://www.pib.gov.in/Pressreleaseshare.aspx?PRID=1651956 Accessed on February 11, 2023.

[3] “Stop Saying Hypersonic Missiles Can’t be Killed Because They Are Mach 5 Fast”, 1945 , July 28, 2022, https://www.19fortyfive.com/2022/07/stop-saying-hypersonic-missiles-cant-be-killed-because-they-are-mach-5-fast/ Accessed on February 12, 2023.

[4] “Yuri Gagarin: First Man in Space”, NASA , April 13, 2011, https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/shuttle/sts1/gagarin_anniversary.html Accessed on February 12, 2023.

[5] W.D. Kay, “The X-15 Hypersonic Flight Research Program: Politics and Permutations at NASA”, NASA , https://www.history.nasa.gov/SP-4219/Chapter6.html Accessed on February 12 , 2023.

[6] Nicholas Michael Sambaluk, “The Other Space Race”, Naval Institute Press, 2015, Page 88.

[7] APJ Abdul Kalam with Arun Tiwari, “Wings Of Fire”, Universities Press, 1999, Page 138.

[8] Ibid, Page 151

[9] Snehesh Alex Philip, “DRDO test-fires futuristic missile test, but its success is in doubt”, The Print , June 12, 2019, https://theprint.in/defence/drdo-test-fires-futuristic-missile-tech-but-its-success-is-in-doubt/249386/ Accessed on February 11, 2023.

[10] T.S. Subramanian, “DRDO developing hypersonic missile”, The Hindu , May 9, 2008, https://web.archive.org/web/20080513092221/http://www.hindu.com/2008/05/09/stories/2008050955301300.htm Accessed on February 12, 2023.

[12] Philip, n9.

[13] PIB, n2.

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Missiles of India - Features, Significance, Types of Missiles in India

What is a missile, features of india’s missile systems, successful missile programs of india, different types of missiles in india, significance of defence capabilities, challenges in defence indigenisation.

Prelims: Current events of National and international importance.

Mains: Achievements of Indians in science & technology; indigenisation of technology and development of new technology

Missiles of India include both ballistic and cruise missile systems with strategic and tactical importance. These missiles have been developed through various missile programs since independence, with the Integrated Guided Missile Development Program (IGMDP) being the most important and successful. The development of these missile systems signifies India’s aim to maintain the balance of power and strategic stability in the Asia-Pacific region and attain great power status.

Prithvi, Akash, Agni, Brahmos, Sagarika , etc. are the missiles that have been developed to counter the geopolitical challenges and potential threats to India. They aim to strengthen both offensive and defensive capacities during any conflict scenario.

A missile is a guided airborne ranged weapon capable of self-propelled flight usually by a jet engine or rocket motor. Missiles have five system components:

• Guidance system
• Targeting system
• Flight system

Indigenous technology, quick reaction capability, high accuracy, and lethality are the hallmarks of India's missile systems:

• Missiles like Agni-V and BrahMos have consistently hit targets with high bulls-eye precision.
• Agni and Prithvimissiles in special transport-erector-launcher vehicles can fire in under 15 minutes.
• BrahMos , with its supersonic speed, is one of the deadliest cruise missiles globally.

India's missile programs started soon after the establishment of DRDO , and IGMDP was the first significant initiative of India to develop missiles for its defensive and offensive needs.

India's current missile capabilities serve to strengthen conventional military readiness, provide credible nuclear deterrence and secure national interests in line with geopolitical realities.

Types of Missiles Based on Speed

Missiles are classified based on their speed with respect to that of sound, expressed as Mach.

• Examples: U.S. Harpoon anti-ship missile, Indian Prithvi short-range ballistic missile
• Examples: Russian Iskander tactical ballistic missile, Indian BrahMos supersonic cruise missile.
• Examples: China's DF-ZF hypersonic glide vehicle, Russia’s Avangard , and Shaurya/Sagarika missiles of India (Max speed - 7.5 Mach), etc.

Types of Missiles in India Based on Trajectory

• Examples of HGVs: China DF-17 missile mounts hypersonic glide vehicle, Russia Avangard boost-glide system
• India is in the “ Technology demonstration” stage of the HGVs. 
• Examples: U.S. BGM-109 Tomahawk long-range subsonic cruise missile, Indian Nirbhay subsonic cruise missile.
• BrahMos: Joint Indo-Russian BrahMos is the fastest supersonic cruise missile reaching close to Mach 3 speed.
• 3M22 Zircon: Russia's 3M22 Zircon can fly over Mach 8 as a hypersonic cruise missile.
• BrahMos II: Said to be based on Zircon, BrahMos Aerospace is working on the BrahMos-II variant to attain hypersonic cruise speeds above Mach 8.

• Instead of ICBMs which follow a probable trajectory, FOBS can avoid early warning systems by approaching from the south polar region without the revelation of targets.
• Example : Russia developed this technology in the 1960s. Recently, China has tested this system too.

Types of Missiles Based on the Launch Mode

Based on strategic importance.

Strategic missiles encompass missiles that give a strategic edge over an opponent or provide credible deterrence to a country. In India and other powerful countries, these missiles are part of the nuclear triad.

• It is a part of India’s Nuclear Triad .
• Agni-V is India's first Intercontinental Ballistic Missile(ICBM), with a range of around 5000-8000 km. It brings the entire Asia-Pacific region within its reach.
• Mission Divyastra successfully tested the Agni-V missile using MIRV (Multiple Independently Targetable Re-entry Vehicle) technology, capable of striking multiple targets hundreds of kilometres apart with a single missile.
• K-15 Sagarika (750 km) and K-4 (3500 km, in development) are the Submarine-launched ballistic Missiles (SLBMs), thatcomplete India's nuclear triad by enabling second-strike capability from underwater locations. 
• K-15 Sagarika has been deployed in Arihant class SSBN.

Based on Tactical Importance

Tactical missiles are employed in the battlefield and frontline combat situations to strike and neutralise enemy assets and capabilities. India boasts an array of tactical missiles.

• Prithvi-I (150km) and Prithvi-II (350 km) for battlefield roles and hitting strategic targets close to the border.
• Prithvi-III naval variant (350 km) to boost coastal and seaborne deterrence from warships.
• It is a Mach 3 "fire-and-forget" missile, inducted in all three services of the Indian Armed Forces.
• Its variants include land, ship, submarine, and air-launched missiles.
• BrahMos II , the hypersonic cruise missile, is currently in the developing phase. 

Types of Missiles Based on Propulsion

Missiles utilise different types of propulsion and guidance systems based on their range, launch platform and targets. Key missile propulsion systems are:

• Example: Prithvi, Brahmos.
• It has higher efficiency and throttle ability.
• Recently, India has successfully tested the Agni-Prime missile with solid propellant, making it lighter than other Agni series missiles.
• Example: Used in Brahmos hypersonic cruise missile prototype.
• Example: Employed in long-range Agni-V ICBM.
• Example: Under development (India’s HGV and  Brahmos-II).

Based on Guidance Systems

Guidance systems enable missiles to accurately reach targets. Various guidance technologies are:

• Example: Nag anti-tank missile .
• Example: Agni ballistic missiles.
• Example: Prithvi missiles.
• Example: Helina anti-tank missile, Anti-Tank Guided Missile for MBT Arjun, etc.
• Example: Brahmos cruise missile.

India’s indigenous missiles significantly augment its military might and play a key role in defence preparedness:

• Strategic deterrence : Long-range ballistic missiles like Agni provide minimum credible deterrence and give India retaliatory second-strike capability against nuclear attacks.
• Tactical battle capability : Short-range Prithvi and BrahMos missiles allow deep tactical strikes against enemy airbases, logistics, and other targets to gain a battlefield edge.
• Coastal defence: Anti-ship versions of BrahMos and surface-to-air missiles guard India’s vast coastline against hostile warships and aircraft.
• Enhanced air power : Air-to-air missiles like Astra enhance the capability of IAF jets for air combat and strikes. Air-launched cruise missiles turn fighters into potent missile carriers.

While India has made significant progress in developing advanced missile technologies, a few key challenges need to be addressed:

• Developing comprehensive domestic production capabilities across electronics, and guidance systems remains vital.
• Prioritisation frameworks balancing strategic needs, technical capacity and review mechanisms must guide planning.
• Self-sufficiency as well as global lobbying efforts are important.
• Attracting private capital through appropriate PPP and other models is imperative.

PYQs on Missiles of India

Question 1: Consider the following statements: (UPSC Prelims 2023)

• Ballistic missiles are jet-propelled at subsonic speeds throughout their flights, while cruise missiles are rocket-powred only in the initial phase of flight.
• Agni-V is a medium-range supersonic cruise missile, while BrahmMos is a solid-fuelled intercontinental ballistic missile.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

• Both 1 and 2
• Neither 1 nor 2

Answer: (d)

Question 2: With reference to Agni-IV Missile, which of the following statements is/are correct? (UPSC Prelims 2014)

• It is a surface-to-surface missile.
• It is fuelled by liquid propellant only.
• It can deliver one-tonne nuclear warheads about 7500 km away.

Select the correct answer using the code given below.

• 2 and 3 only
• 1 and 3 only

Answer: (a)

FAQs on Missiles of India

What are the major types of missiles developed by india.

India has developed a wide range of missiles, including ballistic missiles (Agni, Prithvi), cruise missiles (BrahMos, Nirbhay), anti-tank missiles (Nag, HELINA), surface-to-air missiles (Akash, Astra), and anti-ballistic missiles (Prithvi Air Defence).

Which is India's longest-range ballistic missile?

Agni-V is India’s longest-range nuclear-capable ballistic missile, with a range of over 5000 km. It was developed by DRDO and inducted in 2020.

How does India’s missile technology strengthen its defence?

India’s missiles augment its conventional military capabilities and provide credible minimum nuclear deterrence. They bolster coastal security, air defence and tactical battle readiness across various threat scenarios.

What navigation systems are used in Indian missiles?

Indian missiles use a mix of inertial guidance, satellite navigation systems like GPS/IRNSS, radar seekers and optical terminal guidance for highly accurate strikes.

Which country collaborates with India on the BrahMos missile?

BrahMos supersonic cruise missile has been jointly developed and produced by India's DRDO and Russia's NPO Mashinostroyenia. India has inducted BrahMos in all three armed forces.

© 2024 Vajiram & Ravi. All rights reserved

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Questions surround Russia’s use of hypersonic missiles in its latest attack.

Moscow on Thursday fired the largest number of the air-launched weapons used in a single wave since the war began a year ago.

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By John Ismay ,  Matthew Mpoke Bigg and Andrew E. Kramer

• March 9, 2023

Russia’s biggest aerial attack in weeks hit targets across Ukraine on Thursday, using a complex barrage of weapons. Ukraine’s Air Force said that among them were six of Russia’s air-launched hypersonic missiles, known as Kinzhals, or Daggers — the most used in a single wave since the war began a year ago.

Here are the major questions raised by the use of the new missiles.

First, what are hypersonic missiles?

Hypersonic missiles are long-range, highly maneuverable munitions capable of reaching speeds of at least Mach 5 — five times the speed of sound, or more than a mile a second. That speed renders traditional air defense systems essentially useless, because by the time they are detected by ground-based radars, they are already nearly at their target.

China and the United States are in a race to develop and deploy hypersonic missiles. Other countries are also working on the technology, including Australia, Brazil, France, Germany, India, Iran, Israel, Japan, North Korea and South Korea.

How does the Kinzhal work?

The typical hypersonic vehicle carries its warhead to the lower boundary of space atop a traditional long-range missile. After separation, it uses gravity to gain tremendous speed on the descent back to earth. The vehicle may be an unpowered gliding craft, or it may be a cruise missile that uses gravitational acceleration to ignite a special “scramjet” engine that carries it hundreds of miles farther.

The Kinzhal is a little different. It is a modified version of the Russian Army’s Iskander short-range ballistic missile, which is designed to be fired from truck-mounted launchers on the ground. Launching the missile from a warplane at high altitude, instead of from the ground, leaves it with more fuel to use to reach higher speeds.

Aside from its ability to reach hypersonic speeds after its air launch, the Kinzhal is believed to behave like a ground-launched Iskander, meaning it is able to maneuver to make interception difficult. Some Iskanders also can release decoys before impact that are designed to further confuse air-defense radars .

Conventionally armed Iskanders are believed to carry about 1,500 pounds of explosives.

What else is known about the Kinzhal?

Russia originally developed the Kinzhal to breach American anti-missile defense systems and claims it reaches speeds of Mach 10 and greater. The Pentagon has said it is launched by MiG-31 warplanes.

Moscow first said it had deployed the Kinzhal in Ukraine nearly a year ago in an attack on an underground weapons dump , and has periodically claimed its use since.

There is another hypersonic missile Russia claims to have in its arsenal: the Zircon, a cruise missile that can be launched from ships. But Russia did not report test-firing the Zircon during exercises announced by President Vladimir V. Putin in January , and it is not known to have ever been used in combat.

Why are Kinzhals so worrisome for Ukraine?

Ukraine has no weapons capable of shooting down the Kinzhals, according to Yuriy Ihnat, a spokesman for Ukraine’s Air Force.

And their use on Thursday significantly increased the proportion of Russia’s missiles reaching targets. Of the 81 missiles Russia fired overnight and through the morning, Ukraine said that 47 hit their targets, a higher ratio than usual. Ukraine noted that Russia had also fired more ballistic missiles and fewer cruise missiles than usual, a possible factor in the increase in successful strikes.

What are the limitations of the Kinzhal?

Targeting coordinates are loaded into the missile’s operating system before launch, and because of the tremendous speed it achieves in flight, any small deflection — for instance, a control surface on a wing moving slightly too much or too little — can result in a major deviation from the target. That may explain why one Kinzhal appears to have struck a car in Kyiv on Thursday, rather than a target with more military significance.

And like any hypersonic missile, the Kinzhal’s flight path reaches into the uppermost regions of Earth’s atmosphere before arcing back toward the earth for finer maneuvers. It can be detected by space-based sensors, though U.S. defense officials say those systems are insufficient against hypersonics.

Why would Russia use so much of its hypersonic arsenal in one wave?

Ukraine’s military intelligence agency has estimated Russia had, before the volley fired Thursday, no more than 50 Kinzhals, Mr. Ihnat said. Why Russia decided to fire six of them — potentially more than a tenth of its total arsenal — is unclear.

“For one reason or another, they needed a result” this time, Mr. Ihnat said.

But Russia may be able to replenish the Kinzhals relatively easily. Since the Kinzhal is simply a modified version of an existing missile, it could be easier to produce than, say, creating more Zircons, which have to be built from scratch.

Will the use of Kinzhals change the war?

Not necessarily, even if Russia can produce more Kinzhals relatively rapidly. Even though more of Russia’s missiles than usual got through on Thursday, an air war alone will not be decisive.

By comparison, Russia causes far more destruction through the thousands of artillery shells it fires in Ukraine.

And the ground war essentially remains in a grinding stalemate. Many analysts say that Russia’s long-anticipated spring offensive is already underway, but that it is having little impact because its troops and arsenals are so depleted.

John Ismay is a Pentagon correspondent in the Washington bureau and a former Navy explosive ordnance disposal officer. More about John Ismay

Matthew Mpoke Bigg is a correspondent covering international news. He previously worked as a reporter, editor and bureau chief for Reuters and did postings in Nairobi, Abidjan, Atlanta, Jakarta and Accra. More about Matthew Mpoke Bigg

Andrew E. Kramer is the Times bureau chief in Kyiv. He was part of a team that won the 2017 Pulitzer Prize in International Reporting for a series on Russia’s covert projection of power. More about Andrew E. Kramer

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