brahmo missile - cross post

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More on PJ-10 BrahMos

India expects to significantly enhance its long-range strike abilities with the

BrahMos cruise missile, jointly developed by New Delhi and Moscow. The

supersonic missile -- which derives its name from the Brahmaputra and Moscow

rivers in both countries - has a range of almost 300 km and is designed for use

with land, sea and aerial platforms. The Indian Air Force (IAF) is reportedly

considering the possibility of fitting the BrahMos on its Su-30 combat jets.

The production will commence by end of 2003 for induction in the year 2004.

The BrahMos, a derivative of the Yakhont, was developed by a joint venture

between India's Defence Research and Development Organisation and Russia's NPO

Mashinostroyenia. The BrahMos missile is a product of an Indo-Russian joint

venture known by the same name. Registered in December 1995, the company was

set up as a result of an inter-governmental agreement between Russia and India,

eventually signed in February 1998, to design, develop, produce and market a

supersonic cruise missile jointly.

India and Russia plan to begin the induction of the jointly-developed BrahMos

supersonic cruise missile into their armed forces by the end of 2003. However,

according to some reports military officials believe it is several years away

from induction into the navy or the air force.

The BrahMos missile is a two-stage vehicle that has a solid propellant booster

and a liquid (propellant) ram jet system.

The jointly developed Indo-Russian anti-ship cruise missile, which was

successfully test-fired from Chandipur interim test range in Orissa, is a

crucial step forward in India's defence efforts. This technological achievement

places India among a small group of countries to acquire the capacity of

producing cruise missiles. What, however, makes the jointly produced cruise

missile distinguishable from others is that it travels at a supersonic speed

i.e. more than twice the speed of sound. Almost all other contemporary

anti-ship missiles fly at subsonic speed. Its other distinguishing feature is

that the Indo-Russian cruise missile is a state-of-the-art product.

Its unmatchable speed is its high point, making it invincible. The supersonic

speed imparts it a greater strike-power as well. Possessing stealth

characteristics, the 6.9-meter cruise missile weighing three tons has a range

of 280 km. Its another outstanding feature is that it is highly accurate and

can be guided to its target mainly with the help of an onboard computer. This

has been established by the test-flight. The computer and the guidance system

have been designed by India whereas Russia has provided the propulsion system.

Test flights of the PJ-10 occurred on 12 June 2001, 28 April 2002, with a third

test expected in June 2002. The test-firing of the cruise missile which took

place in the middle of June 2001 was described as an unqualified success. The

Brahmos recorded its performance as having met technical parameters, both in

terms of the flight range and hitting accuracy. Defence Minister Jaswant Singh

who was present at Chandipur along with Indian and Russian scientists and

technologists described the launch as a "landmark in technology partnership".

The Chandipur launch was the first in a series of test-flights of the cruise

missile planned to demonstrate the capabilities of the system. A series of

other test-flights will take place before the missile is simultaneously

inducted into the Indian and Russian arsenals. It will also be sold to third

countries in due course of time.

One of its special features is that this essentially anti-ship missile can be

launched from ground, ship, submarine or air. Defence analysts underline that

the eventual addition of this strategic missile is a logical follow-up of the

goal set as per the country 's nuclear philosophy. Stated in plain terms, it is

essential for the fulfilment of India's minimum nuclear deterrent profile as

outlined in the draft nuclear doctrine prepared by the Vajpayee Government. The

acquisition of the cruise missile which can be tipped with a nuclear warhead has

obvious implications for our nuclear weapons' delivery system.

In order to avoid controversy, both India and Russia have taken care to ensure

that the production of the cruise missile did not violate obligations under the

Missile Technology Control Regime (MTCR) or any of the international agreements

related to proliferation. That is why the missile range is well within the 300

km limit stipulated under the MTCR.

Both India and Russia welcomed the joint development of the supersonic cruise

missile with great exuberance. Elated at the successful test flight from

Chandipur, the state-owned Russian collaborating company, Mashinostroyenie, put

the cruise missile on display at the Moscow annual air show. Mashinostroyenie

designed the missile and its propulsion system, leaving the all-important

software and the guidance system to its Indian counterpart— the Defence

Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) of the Defence Ministry.

New Delhi described the missile as an "outstanding example of Indo-Russian joint

endeavour". The President, Mr KR Narayanan and Prime Minister Mr Vajpayee termed

it as a symbol of defence cooperation between the two countries.The development

of the cruise missile takes their decades-old defence cooperation and the

revived post-Cold War strategic partnership to a new high. It may be recalled

that during the Russian President, Mr Vladimir Putin's visit to India in

October 2000, a Joint Declaration of Strategic Partnership was issued. During

the Defence Minister, Mr Jaswant Singh's visit to Moscow a few days before the

Chandipur launch, this strategic relationship was further reinforced. On these

two occasions, the two countries signed a series of agreements on the

acquisition of sophisticated weapon system and for a joint production of some

of them including missiles.

The newly developed cruise missile is more than a match to similar anti-ship

missiles available with China. The latter has mounted Moskit anti-ship missiles

on its recently acquired Soverameny-class warships. Beijing is also planning to

mount its aerial version of the Moskit on its SU-27 planes. The Indian cruise

missile with its supersonic speed will be able to check movements by the

Chinese warships, especially in the Indian Ocean area. Besides, its

extraordinary accuracy and speed increases the range of its targets.

 

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