BrahMos fired from Navy’s INS Delhi & IAF’s Sukhoi-30 MKI

• Different variants of BrahMos supersonic cruise missile were test-fired successfully Tuesday from Indian Navy’s frontline guided-missile destroyer INS Delhi and IAF’s frontline fighter jet Sukhoi-30 MKI. This firing is yet another shot in the arm for Atma Nirbhar Bharat.
• The missile achieved a direct hit on the target, a decommissioned Indian Navy ship. The mission was undertaken in close coordination with the Indian Navy.

Previous developments

• The Indian Navy on March 5 successfully test-fired an advanced version of the BrahMos supersonic cruise missile from the stealth destroyer INS Chennai in the Indian Ocean.
• In January this year, BrahMos was successfully test-fired by India from the Indian Navy’s newly-commissioned guided-missile destroyer INS Visakhapatnam on the Western seaboard, precisely hitting the target ship at the maximum range.

Increased capabilities

• The Indian Navy began deploying BrahMos on its frontline warships in 2005.
• The missile has the capability to hit sea-based targets beyond the radar horizon.
• The naval version has been successful time and again in sea-to-sea and sea-to-land modes.
• The BrahMos from a ship can be launched as a single unit or in a salvo of up to eight in numbers separated by 2.5 seconds intervals.
• These salvos can hit and destroy a group of targets having modern missile defence systems.
• BrahMos as a ‘prime strike weapon’ for the ships significantly increases their capability of engaging naval surface targets at long ranges.

About BrahMos

• A joint venture between the Defence Research and Development Organisation of India (DRDO) and the NPOM of Russia.
• BrahMos is named on the rivers Brahmaputra and Moskva.
• A two-stage (solid propellant engine in the first stage and liquid ramjet in second) missile.
• A multiplatform missile i.e it can be launched from land, air, and sea and multi capability missile with pinpoint accuracy that works in both day and night irrespective of the weather conditions.
• Operates on the "Fire and Forget" principle i.e it does not require further guidance after launch.
• One of the fastest cruise missile currently operationally deployed with speed of Mach 2.8, which is nearly 3 times more than the speed of sound.
• The first test of BrahMos air-launched cruise missile was conducted in 2017.

INS Delhi

• Lead ship of her class (Delhi Class Ships (Destroyers)) of guided-missile destroyers of the Indian Navy.
• It was built at the Mazagon Dock Limited in Mumbai and commissioned on 15 November 1997.
• This class is among the largest warships to be designed and built in India.
• The Ship was undergoing midlife upgrades from 2018.
• As of April 2022, it was back in service with Sensor upgrades and new 'Modular Launcher' for Brahmos Missile as a replacement for KH 35E.
• A Brahmos test was recently carried out from the ship.
• Delhi is the second vessel of the Indian Navy to bear the name.

Sukhoi Su-30MKI

• It is a twinjet multirole air superiority fighter developed by Russia's Sukhoi and built under licence by India's Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) for the Indian Air Force (IAF).
• A variant of the Sukhoi Su-30, it is a heavy, all-weather, long-range fighter.
• Development of the variant started after India signed a deal with Russia in 2000 to manufacture 140 Su-30 fighter jets.
• The first Russian-made Su-30MKI variant was accepted into the Indian Air Force in 2002 while the first Su-30MKI assembled in India entered service with the IAF in 2004.
• The IAF has nearly 260 Su-30MKIs in inventory as of January 2020.
• The Su-30MKI is expected to form the backbone of the Indian Air Force's fighter fleet to 2020 and beyond.
• The aircraft is tailor-made for Indian specifications and integrates Indian systems and avionics as well as French and Israeli sub-systems.
• It has abilities similar to the Sukhoi Su-35 with which it shares many features and components

Conclusion

• Self-reliance in defence manufacturing is a crucial component of effective defence capability and to maintain national sovereignty and achieve military superiority. The attainment of this will ensure strategic independence, cost-effective defence equipment and may lead to saving on defence import bill, which can subsequently finance the physical and social infrastructure.

Exam Track

Prelims Takeaway

• BrahMos
• Sukhoi-30MKI
• Delhi Class Ships (Destroyers)
• MTCR

Mains Track

Q. India has always been a major importer of defence equipments, its chief partners being Russia and Israel. However, Atma Nirbhar Bharat is proving to be a gamechanger in this field. Discuss the present status of defence exports and also highlight some measures being taken by the Government to promote defence exports.