Brahmos Supersonic Cruise Missile Test-fired Successfully

In Science and Technology
May 10, 2015

India successfully test-fired the advanced version of the BrahMos Supersonic Cruise Missile from the Car Nicobar Islands. The official statement states that the land-to-land configuration of BrahMos Block-III version was test launched from a Mobile Autonomous Launcher (MAL) for its full-range of 290-km successfully. This is the 47th test-fire of the missile. The missile’s steep dive capabilities are tested by which it can take out targets hidden behind mountain ranges.

The accuracy of Brahmos is so good and it is fully ready to be inducted in Indian Army. Developed jointly by India and Russia, the missile flies at Mach 2.8 or almost three times the speed of sound. The air version of the BrahMos is being readied for flight trials soon on Indian Air Force’s Su-30 MKI strike fighter.

Tidbits

The name BrahMos is formed from the names of two rivers, the Brahmaputra of India and the Moskva of Russia.
A hypersonic version of the missile namely BrahMos-II is presently under development.
The submarine-launched variant of Brahmos was test fired successfully in 2013.
A new, smaller variant of the air-launched BrahMos is also under development. It is named as Brahmos-M.