New Delhi: BrahMos, the world’s fastest supersonic cruise missile, was successfully test-fired in Odisha’s Balasore district on September 30.

The biggest benefit of the test which met all flight parameters was that the lethal missile had more than around 65% ‘Make in India’ components. The BrahMos missile has been jointly developed by Russia and India and has a strike range of under 300 kilometres.

Some of the major ‘Make in India’ components in the latest BrahMos missile are; airframe, propulsion system, power supply. According to officials, the increasing ‘Make in India’ percentage of the BrahMos missile is a big boost for the defence sector’s indigenisation programme.

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh congratulated the teams of BrahMos and DRDO (Defence Research and Development Organisation). Dr G Satheesh Reddy, DRDO Chairman and DG MSS MSR Prasad also congratulated the teams for today’s successful launch.

BrahMos is said to be one of the most potent anti-ship cruise missiles in the world and it has already been operationalised with all the three services of the Indian Armed Forces. The BrahMos has been integrated on the Sukhoi-30 MKI fighter jet. It is said to be the heaviest missile to have been integrated on the frontline fighter jet in the world. A lighter version of BrahMos, the BrahMos NG, is being developed for integration on the Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) Tejas.

After India became a member of the Missile Technology Control Regime (MTCR), the range of BrahMos missile could be extended beyond 290 kilometres. A 450-km version was tested in March 2017 and an 800-km version is being developed as well. The BrahMos missile has also generated a lot of export interest.