India successfully test-fires new version of BrahMos missile

The missile is produced by BrahMos Aerospace, an India-Russia joint venture. It can be launched from submarines, ships, aircraft or land platforms. BrahMos missile flies at a speed of 2.8 Mach or almost three times the speed of sound.

India on Thursday successfully test-fired a new version of the BrahMos supersonic cruise missile off the coast of Odisha in Balasore, news agency ANI reported. According to the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), the missile was equipped with new technological developments which were successfully proven, according to ANI.

An extended-range sea-to-sea variant of BrahMos supersonic cruise missile, which was successfully test-fired from Indian Navy’s INS Visakhapatnam earlier this month. (ANI File Photo)

More than a week ago, on January 11, the DRDO had successfully test-fired a naval variant of the BrahMos from a stealth guided-missile destroyer of the Indian Navy.

The DRDO had said that the missile hit the designated target "precisely".

Union defence minister Rajnath Singh had congratulated DRDO officials for successful launch and said that it "reconfirmed the robustness of the Indian Navy's mission readiness".

BrahMos is a joint India-Russia venture, between the DRDO and Russia’s NPO Mashinostroyeniya, which, together, formed the Brahmos Aerospace. The missile derives its name from two rivers: the Brahmaputra in India and the Moskva of Russia.

BrahMos Aerospace, the India-Russia joint venture, produces the supersonic cruise missile that can be launched from submarines, ships, aircraft, or land platforms.

BrahMos missile flies at a speed of 2.8 Mach or almost three times the speed of sound.

India has already deployed a sizeable number of the original BrahMos missiles and other key assets in several strategic locations.