The testing of BrahMos missile in a steep-dive mode on Sunday is “a fantastic mission that was well-planned and executed,” said P. Venugopalan, Director, Defence Research and Development Laboratory (DRDL), Hyderabad.
“A steep dive at a supersonic speed is a new capability we have proved. We went for the full range [of 290 km],” he said.
The DRDL is a missile complex that comes under the DRDO. It designs and develops a variety of missiles.
Defence Minister A.K. Antony congratulated the BrahMos missile team. Director-General of Artillery Lt. Gen. Vinod Nayanar and Additional Director-General of Artillery Maj. Gen. P.K. Chakravarty witnessed the flight.
Lt. Gen. Nayanar, congratulating the BrahMos team, said he was happy that the missile flawlessly performed the manoeuvre.
The two-stage missile is nine metres long, has a diameter of 70cm and weighs 3.9 tonnes with the canister. It can carry conventional warheads weighing 300 kg.
Work is on to realise a hypersonic version of the missile under BrahMos-II programme.
