India tests new version of anti-nuke missile with 'large kill altitude bracket'
New Delhi, November 2
The Defence Research & Development Organisation (DRDO) conducted a successful maiden flight-test of a new and extended version of the Ballistic Missile Defence (BMD) interceptor missile named ‘AD-1’.
The test was conducted from APJ Abdul Kalam Island off the coast of Odisha today.
A BMD is used to bring down enemy nuclear missiles in midair. The Ministry of Defence said the BMD tested today was “with a large kill altitude bracket”.
This means the range of ‘AD-1’ is capable of bringing down enemy missiles distances further away from India and greater altitudes.
“The ‘AD-1’ is a long-range interceptor missile designed for both low exo-atmospheric and endo-atmospheric interception of long-range ballistic missiles as well as aircraft,” the MoD said. The ‘exo-atmospheric’ ranges are 130 km in altitude while ‘endo-atmospheric’ is less than 15-30 km altitude. Long range nuclear missiles travel some 200 km in the air before descending to hit the target.
“The flight-test was carried out with participation of all BMD weapon system elements located at different geographical locations,” the MoD said.
The ‘AD-1’ is propelled by a two-stage solid motor and equipped with indigenously-developed advanced control system, navigation and guidance algorithm to precisely guide the vehicle to the target. During the flight-test, all the sub-systems performed as per expectations and were validated by the data captured.
Defence Minister Rajnath Singh congratulated DRDO and other teams associated with successful flight trial of AD-1. He termed it as a unique type of interceptor with advanced technologies available with a very few nations in the world.
