Indigenous Ingenuity
Mihir Paul
India’s first air-to-air missile, the Astra, is spearheading the country’s missile-making capabilities. Developed by the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), this beyond-visual-range (BVR) air-to-air missile is capable of engaging aerial targets at distances up to 80km.
Astra Beyond-Visual-Range missile test fired from IAF’s Su-30MKI
While Astra’s preliminary work started in 1990, it has since undergone multiple modifications and rounds of successful test-firings. It is already integrated successfully into the IAF’s Su-30MKIs, Mirage 2000s, and will be integrated into the MiG-29s in the future. The missile retains a high Single Shot Kill Probability (SSKP) making it highly reliable. It comes fitted with a high-explosive pre-fragmented warhead and can reach speeds of up to Mach 4.5.
It
Subscribe To Force
Fuel Fearless Journalism with Your Yearly Subscription
SUBSCRIBE NOW
We don’t tell you how to do your job…
But we put the environment in which you do your job in perspective, so that when you step out you do so with the complete picture.
There is truth; and there is perspective.
FORCE brings you both, so that you get the
complete picture. With incisive reports on the indigenous and
global defence industry in India,
FORCE provides an interface between the user
and the supplier
Please bear with us for a few days. We are making ourselves better
Too much news is noise.
Come to FORCE to read what makes a difference.
FORCE is putting news into perspective.