India on June 3, 2018 successfully test-fired indigenously developed nuclear-capable ballistic missile Agni-5 from the Integrated Test Range on Dr APJ Abdul Kalam Island, previously known as Wheeler Island.
The long-range surface-to-surface missile with a strike range of 5,000 km was fired from a mobile launcher off the Odisha coast. All the radars, electro-optical tracking stations and telemetry stations tracked the vehicle all through the course of the trajectory. The launch was reported to have achieved all its mission objectives.
Key Highlights
• This was the sixth trial of the state-of-the-art missile Agni-5, which covered its full distance during the test.
• Unlike other missiles of the series, Agni-5 is the most advanced in terms of navigation and guidance, warhead and engine.
• Several new technologies were successfully tested during the Agni-5 trial.
• The navigation systems- very-high accuracy Ring Laser Gyro-based Inertial Navigation System and the modern and highly-accurate Micro Navigation System ensured that the missile reached within a few metres of the target.
• The missile comprised a high-speed onboard computer and fault tolerant software along with robust and reliable bus, which were able to guide it flawlessly.
• Agni-V is an intercontinental ballistic missile developed by the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) of India. • The missile is a part of the Agni series of missiles, one of the missile systems under the original Integrated Guided Missile Development Program. • The first test launch of the missile was conducted on April 19, 2012. The missile was able to hit the target nearly at pin-point accuracy, within a few metres of the designated target point. • India conducted the second test flight of Agni-V from the Wheeler Island on September 15, 2013. The missile hit the pre-designed target in the Indian Ocean with an accuracy of a few metres. • The third successful test flight of the Agni-V was conducted on January 31, 2015. The test used a canisterised version of the missile, mounted over a Tatra truck. • The fourth test of the missile was successfully conducted on December 26, 2018. This was the second canisterised test of the missile. • The fifth test of the missile was successfully conducted on January 18, 2018. This was the third consecutive canisterised test of the missile on a road-mobile launcher and the first in its final operational configuration. The missile covered a distance of 4,900 km in 19 minutes. • The Agni series includes Agni-1 with a range of 700-900 km, Agni-2 with 2000-3000km range, Agni-3 and Agni-4 with 3000 km to more than 4000 km range. |
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