India successfully testfires BrahMos

India successfully test-fires anti-ship version of BrahMos supersonic cruise missile in Andaman and Nicobar Islands territory. The test is part of the trials being conducted by the Indian Navy,” news agency ANI reported citing sources.

The test comes on the backdrop of a series of missile launches in the recent past. A test was also undertaken on November 25 by the Indian Air Force (IAF). The fastest cruise missile in its class, BrahMos has a speed of 2.8 Mach or almost three times the speed of sound. India has succeeded in testing multiple missiles meant for variable strike platforms and from a different medium. Defence experts see it as a message to China which has moved its forces in standoff posture along the Ladakh borders since the month of May. Among the wide array of missiles, Indian Army successfully launched its BrahMos supersonic cruise missile on 24 November hitting the target in the Bay of Bengal with pinpoint accuracy.

BrahMos missile — a supersonic cruise missile with a speed of 2.8 mach is being jointly produced by India and Russia. It can be launched from submarines, ships, aircraft, or from land based platforms. The BrahMos missile batteries have been deployed along with the other key assets at several strategic locations along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) with China in Ladakh and Arunachal Pradesh. BrahMos missiles are also being integrated on over 40 Sukhoi fighter jets to add to the combat capability of the force. The DRDO successfully test-fired the Brahmos with an extended range of 400 kilometers, as per the sources. Clarifying the quick tests of missiles Brg SK Chatterji, Defence Analyst says, “It is a show of strength to the Chinese, we will hit where it hurt.”