The Indo-Russian BrahMos supersonic cruise missile,
whose Block-III variant has perfected a surgical strike capability, is
set to further expand its target engagement envelope by attaining a
‘near vertical dive capability’ to shock the enemy hidden behind
mountains.
“We want to demonstrate a ‘near vertical
dive and surround’ capability to take the enemy by surprise. While
radars do not have 360 degree coverage in the mountains, we would like
to show the missile taking a turn in the horizontal axis and decimating
the target around the hill. We hope to do this in a year’s time,” Sudhir
Mishra, chief executive officer and managing director of the company,
told The Hindu.
The capability, he said, would allow the Army to inventively approach their operational plans.
On
the air version of the universal missile now under development, Mr.
Mishra said a dummy BrahMos would be test-dropped from a modified Su-30
MKI fighter early next year. By March, the actual missile would be
test-fired from the aircraft.
The BrahMos-II, the
planned hypersonic version of the missile, was at a very nascent stage
of design, owing to the technological challenges involved in its
development. “A preliminary design is being done in the lab and the
complete missile may take nearly five years to fructify. But we are at
it, nevertheless,” said Mr. Mishra. “It is a complex thing to develop,
given the fact that as we overshoot the sound of speed, a lot of
aerodynamic changes take place. We need new material, as stability and
heat-resistance of the missile at these speeds are extremely important.
How the propellant behaves at these speeds is a critical question. The
avionics has to be properly secured to withstand high temperatures.
Data-linking is another key area.” Mr. Mishra said the Defence Research
and Development Organisation (DRDO) and the BrahMos Aerospace had
together invested some $50 million for the development.
Mr.
Mishra said while a few friendly nations in the ‘distant neighbourhood’
had been shortlisted for sale of the potent missile, it was up to the
Russian and Indian governments to take a call on the export of BrahMos.
“It can happen anytime soon as the new government has made its intent to
export weapons clear.”
Mr. Mishra said Russia, too, would add the missile to its naval inventory when it inducted a new ship.
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