BrahMos’ new unit at Lucknow to deliver first batch of cruise missiles on Saturday

BrahMos cruise missiles produced at the new BrahMos Aerospace Unit in Lucknow are set to enter service with the Armed forces, with the first batch to be flagged-off jointly by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Saturday.

The missile, capable of travelling at Mach-3 and carrying out precision strikes at ranges up to 300 km, was widely believed to have been used to strike multiple targets inside Pakistan during ‘Operation Sindoor’ in May 2025 as part of India’s retribution to the terrorist attack in Pahalgam that had killed 26 persons in April 2025.

Designed to be launched by combat aircraft, warships, submarines and road-mobile launchers, it was also operationally deployed as a deterrent during the protracted stand-off with China along the Line of Actual Control that began in the spring of 2020.

Developed jointly by India and Russia, the missile entered Indian service in 2007. Its first production unit was set up in Bengaluru.

BrahMos Aerospace, the missile’s producer, had set up a new Integration and test facility in Lucknow in May 2025. This state-of-the-art facility is equipped with modern systems for missile assembly, integration, testing and final quality checks.

During his visit, the Defence Minister and Chief Minister will also inaugurate the Booster Building and witness a live demonstration of the booster docking process, a defence spokesperson said on Friday. They will also review presentations at the airframe and avionics, pre-dispatch inspection (PDI) and warhead buildings along with the BrahMos simulator equipment.

Director-General, BrahMos, Dr Jaytirth R. Joshi will hand over the GST bill and cheque to the Chief Minister, symbolising revenue generation for the state. The continuous production of BrahMos missiles, being projected as a major milestone for the Uttar Pradesh Defence Industrial Corridor (UPDIC), will provide sustained GST revenue and generate employment opportunities for highly skilled youth in Uttar Pradesh.

The BrahMos facility in Lucknow’s Sarojini Nagar stands as one of the most significant projects under the Uttar Pradesh Defence Corridor. It carries out the complete process of assembly, integration and testing to the highest technical standards. The Lucknow unit is the first in the corridor to manage the entire manufacturing and testing process indigenously, reinforcing both strategic autonomy and industrial growth.

BrahMos Aerospace has rapidly scaled up its production capabilities to meet the increasing demands of the Indian Armed Forces. Besides ensuring timely fulfilment of domestic defence requirements, the advanced technologies being developed here will pave the way for next-generation variants of the BrahMos missile system.