Agni-II may be launched tomorrow

Preparations are under way for the launch of India’s Agni-II ballistic missile from Wheeler Island, off the Orissa coast, on Friday.

“We are aiming for a launch on November 6 [Friday]. It will be a repeat firing to establish the reliability of Agni-II’s systems,” a Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) official said.

The Agni-II is an intermediate range ballistic missile built by the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO). It has two stages, both powered by solid propellants.

It can reach targets 2,500 km away and carry nuclear warheads. The missile is 20 metre long and weighs 17 tonnes. It can carry payloads weighing one tonne.

The missile’s re-entry vehicle is made of carbon composites. The Agni-II has been designed and developed by the Hyderabad-based Advanced Systems Laboratory, a DRDO missile facility.

In the next few months, the DRDO will be launching a series of missiles, including an interceptor missile, K-15 underwater missile and Shourya missile, the land version of the K-15.

The K-15 missile will be fired from a submerged pontoon off the Visakhapatnam coast of Andhra Pradesh.