India Successfully test-fired manoeuvrable version of BrahMos Supersonic Missile

India on 9 January 2013 successfully test-fired a highly manoeuvrable version of the 290-km range supersonic cruise missile BrahMos from a naval warship off the coast of Vishakhapatnam in Bay of Bengal.

The missile blasted off in a pre-designated war scenario taking a ‘double— manoeuvre in S-form’ hitting the designated target ship just one meter above water line. The sheer velocity and power of hit made the missile rip through the ship’s hull.
The present test firing is considered to be the 34th launch of BrahMos after the successful October 2012 launch from INS Teg in the Arabian Sea.

About BrahMos Missile

BRAHMOS is a two-stage missile with a solid propellant booster engine as its first stage which brings it to supersonic speed and then gets separated. The liquid ramjet or the second stage then takes the missile closer to 3 Mach speed in cruise phase. Stealth technology and guidance system with advanced embedded software provides the missile with special features.

• The BrahMos missile system was inducted into the Indian Navy in 2005 when it began arming the Rajput-class guided missile destroyers and inducted subsequently in many warships.

• BrahMos is capable of acquiring data not only from the American GPS but also from Russian GLONASS satellite systems also, which ensures double redundancy.

• The missile has identical configuration for land, sea and sub-sea platforms and uses a Transport Launch Canister (TLC) for transportation, storage and launch.