Validating Ballistic Missile Defence (BMD) capability, India successfully launched an interceptor missile to destroy an incoming target missile in a direct hit at an altitude of 15 km over the Bay of Bengal on Friday.
The target missile mimicked an incoming enemy missile with a range of more than 2,000 km.
A few minutes after the ‘hostile’ missile, a modified surface-to-surface Prithvi, took off at 10.10 a.m. from Launch Complex-3 at Chandipur, the interceptor missile, Advanced Air Defence (AAD), was fired from the Wheeler Island. As the target missile climbed to a height about 100 km and began descending at rapid speed, the interceptor travelling at supersonic speed homed on to the target and smashed it to smithereens around 10.15 a.m. at a 15-km altitude in the endo-atmosphere.
The crucial test was conducted as part of India’s plans to deploy a two-tiered BMD system to engage and kill incoming enemy missiles in the endo-atmosphere and exo-atmopshere.
This was the seventh interceptor mission and the fifth endo-atmospheric interception. Six of the tests to date have been successful, including the first three in a row.
Immediately after the modified Prithvi was launched, the Long Range Tracking Radars near Puri picked up the target missile as also the Multi Functional Radar at Paradip tracked the missile and passed on the information to guidance computer, which gave the command for launching of AAD after computing the target’s flight. Equipped with inertial navigation system, a hi-tech computer and a radio-frequency seeker the AAD locked on to the target missile and blasted it in the terminal phase.
Scientific advisor to Defence Minister V.K. Saraswat, Defence Research and Development Organisation's (DRDO) Chief Controller for missiles and strategic systems, Avinash Chander and other top missile scientists were present.
Scientists laud successful launch
T.S. Subramanian adds:
Mr. Saraswat called it “a good launch.” The success of the interception “confirms” that India’s Ballistic Missile Defence (BMD) programme in the endo-atmosphere (that is, below an altitude of 50 km) “is now ready for deployment and the country is in a position to take it to the next phase of production and induction,” he asserted. The entire operation including the launch of the attacker missile from the Integrated Test Range (ITR) at Chandipur and the interceptor taking off from the Wheeler Island, 70 km away, and the interception were “carried out in the deployment mode,” he said. A user team from the Army, which was present in the Wheeler Island, watched the entire operation.
The two launches - that of the attacker missile and of the interceptor - took place independently and they were controlled by radars at different places in the country and by the Mission Control Centre and the Launch Control Centre. Fifteen computers stationed at Hyderabad, Balasore, Chandipur, Konark, Puri, Wheeler Island and so on worked in unison and made the mission a complete success. “We saw the fragments of the target missile forming a track on the computer screen, confirming that the target was destroyed,” said Dr. Saraswat, who is also Director-General of DRDO.
Mr. Chander, DRDO's Chief Controller for missiles and strategic systems, called it “an excellent interception” and that “the entire interception was automated with radars tracking the incoming target missile.” While the Launch Control Centre was situated in the Wheeler Island, the Mission Control Centre was situated a few “thousands of kilometers away from the launch point” of the attacker missile, he claimed.
D.S. Reddy, Programme Director, BMD programme, said the success of the interception proved that India had graduated “from the experimental mode to the deployment mode” of its interceptors. While the target missile belonged to 600 km range class, the interceptor missile was capable of taking on missiles which had a range of 2,000 km. “We met all the objectives we had as part of the mission and we have demonstrated to the user [the Army] whatever we were claiming,” Mr. Reddy said.
Keywords: Ballistic Missile Defence, interceptor missile, Indian Defence, interceptor missile test, BMD system, DRDO, Advanced Air Defence, surface-to-surface Prithvi
This is very good step. we need to strengthen more to counter chinese cruise missile which is great threat to our security. We have to use our Brahmos to test to intercet with highest accuracy. This will give deterrance along with 100 nuclear war heads to probable chaina pakistan misadventure. India doesn't need war. but china is worst country in world can do. Strong missile defence will guard our people.
It is time Science and Technology, long neglected, be given its due share. India is rich in human resource. All the youngsters who are keen in innovations should be picked-up and they should be trained to reach new heights. Services of retired scientists and visionaries like Sri Abdul Kalam, also should be utilised. There is a need to change the education system in our country to meet international standards and the same should be made available to one and all. The world had witnessed the effects of "Skud" and "Patriot" missiles during Iraq war and it appears our interceptor missile also belongs to that category. We are all indebted to our great scientists for providing us with this missile shield. India's status must grow from a humble purchaser to a proud seller of Technology
Congratulations DRDO team and my message to all critics of Indian DRDO skills, instead of commenting senselessly on why we are wasting billions of $$ on making a senseless system , better be proud of what we have achieved so far. Security is also paramount in current state of affairs and with such so called" Friendly Neighbors" , we cant be complacent. And those who are talking about India spending money to eradicate poverty and provide shelter , its about Culture change within Indian mindset. If we save the public money and utilize it through proper channels instead of Politicians gulping it, no one can go hungry India.So, better encourage and appreciate our scientists who are making these solutions..
Its a great achievement by India and the DRDO.In this presnt world if countries like USA,UK,and the NATO allies are rich only because of selling adavanced weponary.India has to keep in phase with it and proctect itself from inturuders.
Congrats DRDO! This missile when integrated with all ground based radars and AWACS platforms should be able to intercept incoming ballistic missiles. It will take time for these missiles to be produced in numbers so that these platforms can be deployed near our borders.
I take exception on labeling nuclear energy as cancer causing by one of the posters. Nuclear energy is used successfully in several developed countries such as France, the US (just approved new nuclear power plants after a 30 year gap even when there is plenty of coal & gas available), Japan etc without any credible proof of higher cancer rate linked to nuclear energy. In fact grave disease causing fallout from the coal fired power plants are well documented. Coal fired plants are directly linked to global warming causes that imperils survival of whole world. It is not sustainable for India to continue on the path of unbridled building of coal-fired plants. Other renewable sources such as wind and solar power at best can play a secondary role for the massive energy needs of India. India has to have nuclear power as part of the energy mix. India doesn't have the luxury of indulging in foreign NGO spearheaded unsubstantiated, anti-nuclear energy paranoia.
I think DRDO has done an excllent job . And the whole country must be thankful to them.but we have to go a very long way to tackle chinese so we have to invest more and hope for the best.jai hind
@Angela, You need to know about how it works before you ridicule DRDO.They are no fools nor are the countries who are developing missile shields. You have 24/7 surveillence to intercept aircrafts/missiles entrering into your airspace. The radar's computer will calculate its speed and trajectory and trigger-off the interceptor missile.There are multiple layers of computer based radars. We know China or Pakistan will not tell us before they attack us. This is one of the tools that we have to defend ourselves.
Interesting comments .. from asking Hindu to become Missile defense experts to the requirement of missile defense system itself. It shows the maturity of the nation at large with respect to our doctrine and its needs. Of course I can't expect everyone to be at higher levels of understanding, but for those who are well equipped enough to read this article, I expect to some level of understanding of missile defense requirements.
Congratulations DRDO, however, we need to make things clear that this is only part of the bigger shield that is required from exo- atmosphere, mid course (safest bet for the mother Earth, and most importantly launch detection system at near source.so, long way to go!
Good Work DRDO. This Interceptor is BMD type, that means it will work
only against Ballistic Missiles and not against cruise missiles (like
our own Brahmos). Although it is still a great achievement but the real
challenge is to design a Interceptor for cruise Missile. As cruise
missiles are the future missiles.
Hope the Government displays same amount of commitment and investment in eradicating poverty, empowering people through education and eliminating caste from the system.
Definitely good News...dis is result of long hrs hard work of our Scientists. But dey should not just stop her. Get deployed dis missile in our arsenal & keep on making is more Agile, user fridly, durable. We should concentrate on making our own system instead of buying from Outside world.
Great job done by our scientists. Keep up the good work.
Can someone from The Hindu staff knowledgeable in this matter would please write an analysis of this event? Going by DRDO claims it appears that India has mastered what even the US is finding hard to do after decades of development anti-missile defense system.
It looks that the whole system is dependent on the functionality of ground-based computers and radars at different locations. Ground-based radars are very vulnerable to enemy action and can be knocked down or rendered useless technically by enemy action without much difficulty. In the countries all these functions are executed flawlessly through the satellites.
Mera Bharat.... Please accept my SALUTE to every member of the the
Indian defence force
Congratulations! Good work. Keep at it. Long ways to go. This is a necessary component to safeguard dharma. Om.
"Billions and billions of dollars have been spent by the United States in pursuit of Ronald
Reagan's vision of ballistic missile defense, and more is to be spent in the years ahead. Yet
we don't really know whether it works. As Dean A. Wilkening points out in the current issue
of Survival, to be effective, a ballistic missile defense system must be able to protect a
given area, and to find and destroy warheads on an incoming missile. Hit-to-kill has been
demonstrated on the test range, once a target has been identified. But an aggressor can
saturate a defense system by overwhelming it with objects that are or look like incoming
warheads. This makes the success of the defense much more difficult.
Wilkening points out that an interceptor rocket needs to hit the target warhead at an
accuracy of within several inches while traveling at three kilometers a second. And there
are other imponderables: the defender's sensors can be jammed, or the missile defense
itself can become a target."
Congratulations to the DRDO and the Republic of India. India has always viewed war as self - defense, rather than as an imperialist tool. The message is clear to our enemies: not only can we annhilate you, but we can thwart your destructive designs as well.
I don't see the purpose of these missile interceptors. First of all NO country at war with India is going to tell us when and where the missile is coming from and at what time. Do you see our infinite skies being patrolled and watched 24X7 especially at night? As if China or Pakistan is going to warn us their missile will attack us at such and such latitude and such and such longtitude over the Bay of Bengal or over he Indian Ocean! Waste of public money this obsession with Cowardly push button weapons. The days of REAL MEN who fought to display their agility and strength is long gone. All we have are old men who beef up on bombs and missiles and forget to take care of our farmers and the real needs of the people such as clean safe air and safe food and water and psychological security one gets from having these. The missile tests are just an attempt to create paranoia and an eye wash to rationalize this sick mentality government's push for all cancer causing nuclear projects.
1) DRDO has a history of 'overselling' it's projects. (Arjun tank, Trishul missile, LCA...) 2) 'Simulated' test conditions have a knack of not reflecting real world scenarios 3) India's not alone in pursuing BMD research. Going by programmes in both the United States and Israel, the gap between test success and deployment has been a long, expensive process; with many early claims of success being nullified in future tests. 4) Thus, it may be more cost effective for Indian pvt companies to partner with Israel on projects such as the 'Arrow 2' & 'Iron Dome'. (subject to America allowing them to do so-they pay for it after all) 5) Lastly, the Armed Forces is constantly forced to swallow operationally questionable equipment supplied by the DRDO- in the battlefield this could be the difference between victory & defeat.
Good going, those actions are vital for peace. I wish more young
graduates to involve in defense research, that will give edge over
innovations.
This is indeed a good news for India. As with any system, reliability and operational ease will make BMD a winner. India should work extensively in making the BMD a product and market it aggressively. India needs to be a product based market and move from the services mindset which is already fuelling our economy.
Instead of just making more and more missiles of different ranges this interceptor missile is badly equired to defend our country against enemy missile attacks.
Congratulations. Hope this paves way to 100% self sufficiency.
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