IAF tests Akash missile

An Indian Air Force (IAF) team successfully flight-tested the surface-to-air missile, Akash, from the Integrated Test Range at Chandipur near Balasore in Odisha.

The missile flew at a supersonic speed over a distance of 14 km before destroying a target called “para flare” at a low altitude of 1.2 km, said Mission Director G. Chandramouli. The para-flare was dropped by a MiG-27 aircraft of the IAF.

It was an Air Force version of Akash that was launched and the mission met its objectives, said Mr. Chandramouli, who belongs to the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO). It was the DRDO which developed the Akash and its system. There will be more flight trials of Akash in the coming days.