India test fires ‘Nirbhay’ missile succesfully

BALASORE

(Odisha): India on Tuesday conducted a flight test of its indigenously designed and developed long range sub-sonic cruise missile ‘Nirbhay’, which can carry warheads of up to 300kg, from a test range at Chandipur along the Odisha coast.

This was the fifth experimental test of the homegrown missile system. Defence scientists are hopeful of a flawless trial this time. Out of four earlier trials since its maiden launch in 2013, only one was successful.

The state-of-the-art sleek cruise missile took off from a specially designed launcher from the launch complex-3 of the Integrated Test Range (ITR) at Chandipur, near here, at about 11.20am, Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) sources said.

All initial critical operations of the trial such as blast of the sophisticated missile are successful as it moved up in its trajectory, a DRDO scientist said soon after the launch of the missile.

The data is being retrieved from tracking systems for a detailed assessment, he said. Powered by a solid rocket motor booster developed by the Advanced Systems Laboratory (ASL), the missile has an operational range of 1,000km.

‘Nirbhay’ missile can travel with a turbofan or turbojet engine and is guided by a highly advanced inertial navigation system indigenously developed by the Research Centre Imarat (RCI), the DRDO sources said.

After the missile achieves designated altitude and velocity, the booster motor is separated and the engine automatically switches on taking further propulsion, said a DRDO scientist associated with the project.

He said “mid-way in its flight, the missile’s wing opens up by the commands generated by the sophisticated on-board computer for stabilising the flight path.”

All along its trajectories from lift off to splash down, the missile is to be tracked with the help of ground based radars and IAF aircraft. The health parameters of the vehicle are being monitored by indigenous telemetry stations by a team of professionals from DRDO’s ITR and LRDE (Electronics and Radar Development Establishment). Full story @ timesofoman.com/world

- PTI CRUISE MISSILE: A view of the ‘Nirbhay’ sub-sonic cruise missile of DRDO, successfully flight tested from the Integrated Test Range (ITR), Chandipur, Odisha on Tuesday.