India Missiles and Guided Munitions

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Continuing the steady modernization of India’s missile arsenal, both conventional and nuclear-tipped, the Defence R&D Organisation (DRDO) conducted on Wednesday the maiden launch of an indigenous, new-generation, surface-to-surface missile called “Pralay.”

DRDO officials are categorically stating that the Pralay will not be part of India’s nuclear deterrent. Instead, like the earlier Shourya and Prahar missiles, the Pralay is powered by conventional solid fuel, and its payload is designed to carry only a conventional warhead. “It (Pralay) is powered by a solid propellant rocket motor and many new technologies. The missile has a range of 150-500 kilometres and can be launched from a mobile launcher,” said a ministry of defence (MoD) statement after the test.

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Pralay PR-02 (second test article) ejects from canister, fins yet to deploy - can be seen in folded-down form

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Pralay PR-02 boosts up, control fins fully deployed. The Thrust-Vector Control (TVC) vanes on the Nozzle can also be seen. Combination of TVC + Fins likely imparts a high degree of maneuverability to the system straight from boost phase, inside the atmosphere.

“The mission has met all its objectives. The missile followed the desired quasi-ballistic trajectory and reached the designated target with a high degree of accuracy, validating control, guidance and mission algorithms. All the sensors deployed, including down range ships, tracked the missile trajectory and captured all the events,” stated the MoD.

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The Pralay SRBM is likely the first all-new missile system for which the recently-commissioned missile telemetry-tracking ship INS Dhruv (VC-11184) has played a part in gathering accurate terminal-stage test data right from the start - further refining the testing process

Top DRDO officials, such as the organization's former Director-General VK Saraswat, said the development of the new missiles had multiple objectives. These included: “Bridging the [range] gap between the Pinaka multi-barrel rocket launcher (MBRL) system and the Prithvi missiles.” The indigenous Pinaka MBRL strikes targets up to 60-70 km from the launchers; while variants of the Prithvi missile can flatten objectives 250-350 km away. The territory between them, where key targets will be located in wartime, will be engaged by the Shourya, Prahar and Pralay missile systems.

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Pinaka 214mm MBRL on a previous test. This version of the round has a Precision Guidance Kit (PGK) on the nose, enhancing accuracy

Two US academics who specialize in South Asia, Christopher Clary and Vipin Narang, have enumerated the targets these surface-to-surface, short-range missile systems would be used to strike within Pakistan. The Prahar can strike all three of the Pakistan Army’s service headquarters and four of its nine corps headquarters, which are all located within 150 kilometers of the border. So are two of the Pakistan Air Force’s eleven “deploying bases,” as well as its joint staff and the Strategic Plans Division that controls Pakistan’s nuclear arsenal.

The Shourya missile, a land-based version of the Indian Navy’s underwater Sagarika missile, with a range of 750 km, can reach every one of Pakistan’s 20 largest cities, all of the Pakistan Air Force’s flying bases, every corps command location, and the Pakistan Navy’s two most important ports, Karachi and Ormara.

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K-15/B-05 Submarine-launched Missile (SLBM) - The Shourya (also written Shaurya) is the land-based version of this system. Shaurya was reportedly deployed during the recent tensions with China.

Even so, speculation continues about a possible nuclear role for the three missiles. These are fueled partially by reports that Prahar missiles are being manufactured and inducted into service to replace all of India’s 150-kilometer Prithvi ballistic missiles -- which were themselves deemed to be dual-use weapons.

Prithvi-II_missile_launch_on_11_March_2011_(cropped).jpg

Prithvi-II liquid-fueled SRBM - the Prithvi-series was originally designed & developed in the 1980s, the first to have been done so under India's Integrated Guided Missile Development Program (IGMDP). The original Prithvi-I has already been retired. The induction of Pralay will probably retire the newer versions as well.

The MoD has announced that the “Pralay missile is powered with a solid propellant rocket motor and many new technologies. The missile… can be launched from a mobile launcher. The missile guidance system includes state-of-the-art navigation system and integrated avionics."


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Following the initial test on Dec 22nd, a second test of the missile system took place the following day on Dec 23rd. The MoD report stated that a different payload fraction & range envelope were validated in the second test.​
 
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Zapper

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India’s Nuclear Arsenal Takes A Big Step Forward

By Matt Korda and Hans Kristensen • December 23, 2021

On 18 December 2021, India tested its new Agni-P medium-range ballistic missile from its Integrated Test Range on Abdul Kalam Island. This was the second test of the missile, the first test having been conducted in June 2021.
Our friends at Planet Labs PBC managed to capture an image of the Agni-P launcher sitting on the launch pad the day before the test took place.



Following both launches of the Agni-P, the Indian Government referred to the missile as a “new generation” nuclear-capable ballistic missile. Back in 2016, when the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) first announced the development of the Agni-P (which was called the Agni-1P at the time), a senior DRDO official explained why this missile was so special:

“As our ballistic missiles grew in range, our technology grew in sophistication. Now the early, short-range missiles, which incorporate older technologies, will be replaced by missiles with more advanced technologies. Call it backward integration of technology.”

The Agni-P is India’s first shorter-range missile to incorporate technologies now found in the newer Agni-IV and -V ballistic missiles, including more advanced rocket motors, propellants, avionics, and navigation systems.
Most notably, the Agni-P also incorporates a new feature seen on India’s new Agni-V intermediate-range ballistic missiles that has the potential to impact strategic stability: canisterization. And the launcher used in the Agni-P launch appears to have increased mobility. There are also unconfirmed rumors that the Agni-P and Agni-V might have the capability to launch multiple warheads.

Canisterization
“Canisterizing” refers to storing missiles inside a sealed, climate-controlled tube to protect them from the outside elements during transportation. In this configuration, the warhead can be permanently mated with the missile instead of having to be installed prior to launch, which would significantly reduce the amount of time needed to launch nuclear weapons in a crisis. This is a new feature of India’s Strategic Forces Command’s increased emphasis on readiness. In recent years, former senior civilian and military officials have reportedly suggested in interviews that “some portion of India’s nuclear force, particularly those weapons and capabilities designed for use against Pakistan, are now kept at a high state of readiness, capable of being operationalized and released within seconds or minutes in a crisis—not hours, as had been assumed.”

If Indian warheads are increasingly mated to their delivery systems, then it would be harder for an adversary to detect when a crisis is about to rise to the nuclear threshold. With separated warheads and delivery systems, the signals involved with mating the two would be more visible in a crisis, and the process itself would take longer. But widespread canisterization with fully armed missiles would shorten warning time. This would likely cause Pakistan to increase the readiness of its missiles as well and shorten its launch procedures––steps that could increase crisis instability and potentially raise the likelihood of nuclear use in a regional crisis. As Vipin Narang and Christopher Clary noted in a 2019 article for International Security, this development “enables India to possibly release a full counterforce strike with few indications to Pakistan that it was coming (a necessary precondition for success). If Pakistan believed that India had a ‘comprehensive first strike’ strategy and with no indication of when a strike was coming, crisis instability would be amplified significantly.”

For years, it was evident that India’s new Agni-V intermediate-range missile (the Indian Ministry of Defense says Agni-V has a range of up to 5,000 kilometers; the US military says the range is over 5,000 kilometers but not ICBM range) would be canisterized; however, the introduction of the shorter-range, canisterized Agni-P suggests that India ultimately intends to incorporate canisterization technology across its suite of land-based nuclear delivery systems, encompassing both shorter- and longer-range missiles. While Agni-V is a new addition to India’s arsenal, Arni-P might be intended––once it becomes operational––to replace India’s older Agni-I and Agni-II systems.

MIRV technology
It appears that India is also developing technology to potentially deploy multiple warheads on each missile. There is still uncertainty about how advanced this technology is and whether it would enable independent targeting of each warhead (using multiple independently-targetable reentry vehicles, or MIRVs) or simply multiple payloads against the same target.

The Agni-P test in June 2021 was rumored to have used two maneuverable decoys to simulate a MIRVed payload, with unnamed Indian defense sources suggesting that a functional MIRV capability will take another two years to develop and flight-test. The Indian MOD press release did not mention payloads. It is unclear whether the December 2021 test utilized decoys in a similar manner.

In 2013, the director-general of DRDO noted in an interview that “Our design activity on the development and production of MIRV is at an advanced stage today. We are designing the MIRVs, we are integrating [them] with Agni IV and Agni V missiles.” In October 2021, the Indian Strategic Forces Command conducted its first user trial of the Agni-V in full operational configuration, which was rumored to have tested MIRV technology. The MOD press release did not mention MIRVs.

If India succeeds in developing an operational MIRV capability for its ballistic missiles, it would be able to strike more targets with fewer missiles, thus potentially exacerbating crisis instability with Pakistan. If either country believed that India could potentially conduct a decapitating or significant first strike against Pakistan, a serious crisis could potentially go nuclear with little advance warning. Indian missiles with MIRVs would become more important targets for an adversary to destroy before they could be launched to reduce the damage India could inflict. Additionally, India’s MIRVs might prompt Indian decision-makers to try and preemptively disarm Pakistan in a crisis.
India’s other nuclear adversary, China, has already developed MIRV capability for some of its long-range missiles and is significantly increasing its nuclear arsenal, which might be a factor in India’s pursuit of MIRV technology. A MIRV race between the two countries would have significant implications for nuclear force levels and regional stability. For India, MIRV capability would allow it to more rapidly increase its nuclear stockpile in the future, if it so decided––especially if its plutonium production capability can make use of the unsafeguarded breeder reactors that are currently under construction.

Implications for India’s nuclear policy
India has long adhered to a nuclear no-first-use (NFU) policy and in 2020 India officially stated that there has been no change in its NFU policy. Moreover, the Agni-V test launch in October 2021 was accompanied by a reaffirmation of a “’credible minimum deterrence’ that underpins the commitment to ‘No First Use’.”
At the same time, however, the pledge to NFU has been caveated, watered-down, and called into question by government statements and recent scholarship. The increased readiness and pursuit of MIRV capability for India’s strategic forces could further complicate India’s adherence to its NFU policy and could potentially cause India’s nuclear adversaries to doubt its NFU policy altogether.
Given that Indian security forces have repeatedly clashed with both Pakistani and Chinese troops during recent border disputes, potentially destabilizing developments in India’s nuclear arsenal should concern all those who want to keep regional tensions below boiling point.

https://fas.org/blogs/security/2021/12/indias-nuclear-arsenal-takes-a-big-step-forward/
 

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The Brahmos-NG is smaller, lighter and has smarter dimensions and is being designed for deployment on a wider number of modern military platforms.

The Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) is establishing a BrahMos manufacturing centre in Lucknow, the capital of Uttar Pradesh. The facility, on 200 acres, will manufacture the new Brahmos-NG (Next Generation) variant of the medium-range ramjet supersonic cruise missile that can be launched from submarine, ship, aircraft or land. It will be ready over the next two to three years and is expected to commence production at a rate of 80-100 Brahmos-NG missiles a year.

The manufacturing centre, announced by BrahMos Aerospace, will be a modern, state-of-art facility in the Lucknow node of the Uttar Pradesh Defence Industrial Corridor. The foundation stone for the centre, along with that for the Defence Technology and Test Centre (DTTC), was laid by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on December 26.

The Brahmos-NG is smaller, lighter and has smarter dimensions and is being designed for deployment on a wider number of modern military platforms. It will hugely bolster the Indian military’s modern combat capability and flexibility during the next few years.

Commenting on the DTTC, a spokesperson for the Defence Ministry stated: "The first-of-its-kind Defence Technologies and Test Centre, spread over approximately 22 acres is being set up to accelerate the growth of the defence and aerospace manufacturing clusters in Uttar Pradesh Defence Industrial Corridor. It will consist of six sub-centres — Deep-Tech Innovation and Start up Incubation Centre, Design and Simulation Centre, Testing and Evaluation Centre, Centre for Industry 4.0/Digital Manufacturing, Skill Development Centre and a Business Development Centre."

The DTTC will follow the design-build-test-learn cycle for technology consultancy and hand-holding of deep-tech start-ups and industries. Explained the spokesperson: "The DTTC will facilitate industries through establishing a centralised state-of-the-art technology infrastructure which will accelerate the product development and reduce the induction time & the turnaround time for the futuristic systems development through its six sub-centres."

At the foundation laying ceremony, the Defence Minister said: "At the time of the DTTC’s inauguration, we had estimated an investment of ₹3,732 crore (500 mn USD) . Investment of more than ₹1,400 crore (200 mn USD) has already been received and the process is progressing rapidly."
 

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The Brahmos-NG is smaller, lighter and has smarter dimensions and is being designed for deployment on a wider number of modern military platforms.

The Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) is establishing a BrahMos manufacturing centre in Lucknow, the capital of Uttar Pradesh. The facility, on 200 acres, will manufacture the new Brahmos-NG (Next Generation) variant of the medium-range ramjet supersonic cruise missile that can be launched from submarine, ship, aircraft or land. It will be ready over the next two to three years and is expected to commence production at a rate of 80-100 Brahmos-NG missiles a year.

The manufacturing centre, announced by BrahMos Aerospace, will be a modern, state-of-art facility in the Lucknow node of the Uttar Pradesh Defence Industrial Corridor. The foundation stone for the centre, along with that for the Defence Technology and Test Centre (DTTC), was laid by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on December 26.

The Brahmos-NG is smaller, lighter and has smarter dimensions and is being designed for deployment on a wider number of modern military platforms. It will hugely bolster the Indian military’s modern combat capability and flexibility during the next few years.

Commenting on the DTTC, a spokesperson for the Defence Ministry stated: "The first-of-its-kind Defence Technologies and Test Centre, spread over approximately 22 acres is being set up to accelerate the growth of the defence and aerospace manufacturing clusters in Uttar Pradesh Defence Industrial Corridor. It will consist of six sub-centres — Deep-Tech Innovation and Start up Incubation Centre, Design and Simulation Centre, Testing and Evaluation Centre, Centre for Industry 4.0/Digital Manufacturing, Skill Development Centre and a Business Development Centre."

The DTTC will follow the design-build-test-learn cycle for technology consultancy and hand-holding of deep-tech start-ups and industries. Explained the spokesperson: "The DTTC will facilitate industries through establishing a centralised state-of-the-art technology infrastructure which will accelerate the product development and reduce the induction time & the turnaround time for the futuristic systems development through its six sub-centres."

At the foundation laying ceremony, the Defence Minister said: "At the time of the DTTC’s inauguration, we had estimated an investment of ₹3,732 crore (500 mn USD) . Investment of more than ₹1,400 crore (200 mn USD) has already been received and the process is progressing rapidly."
Why not just give the production contract to L&T or the likes. Akash AAM and Pinaka are both being produced by private players and since Brahmos-NG will be fielded on all our fighter jets with good potential for exports, private firm is always the better choice with both higher rate of production and quality standards
 

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80-100 missile/yr is similar to the US usual order of 90 Tomahawk per lot.
 

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It will be ready over the next two to three years and is expected to commence production at a rate of 80-100 Brahmos-NG missiles a year
An annual production rate of 80-100 Brahmos is too low if we're vying for exports as well...not to mention this will also arm pretty much every fighter jet in IAF's inventory and potentially arm the attack helos as well
 

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80-100 missile/yr is similar to the US usual order of 90 Tomahawk per lot.

brahmos (regular or NG) is supersonic CM...brahmos 2 will be hypersonic

Subsonic Nirbhay is more the tomahawk equivalent.

Its numbers produced this decade (esp when MANIK engine matures and establishes) remains to be seen, but I would imagine it would be lot higher rate than brahmos family eventually.
 

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Its numbers produced this decade (esp when MANIK engine matures and establishes) remains to be seen, but I would imagine it would be lot higher rate than brahmos family eventually
I believe Nirbhay is a tech demonstrator, not a production variant even though few missiles with the Russian Turbojet engine have been inducted into the forces. Even in the recent interview with ARDE's director, he mentioned that few more tests and evaluations will be needed with GTRE's MANIK engine after which they'll develop a production variant
 

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I believe Nirbhay is a tech demonstrator, not a production variant even though few missiles with the Russian Turbojet engine have been inducted into the forces. Even in the recent interview with ARDE's director, he mentioned that few more tests and evaluations will be needed with GTRE's MANIK engine after which they'll develop a production variant

I just use nirbhay as placeholder name for whatever they end up calling the subsonic manik CM....the production variant as you call it.

They might as well just keep nirbhay for it.
 

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Finally going thru final clearance @Paro @Nilgiri @crixus @Lonewolf



In a milestone for India's defence export drive, the Philippines has accepted a proposal by the consortium making the BrahMos missile to supply the weapon at a price of $375 million.

This development brings closer to reality the first export deal for the BrahMos missile, which was jointly developed by India and Russia.

Philippines will buy the BrahMos missile in a shore-based coastal defence role. The BrahMos is a supersonic missile with a range of nearly 300km. ANI reported “The Notice of Award has been communicated to BrahMos officials by the Philippines Department of National Defense”.

India had been promoting the BrahMos missile to Philippines for several years, though negotiations had been hit by the pandemic.


In late December, the Philippines Department of Budget Management allocated resources to “cover the initial funding requirements for the shore-based anti-ship missile system acquisition project of the Philippine Navy”.

It is learnt that initially, the Philippines will procure the missiles for its navy though the country is also looking at the weapons for its land forces as well.

The BrahMos is also being promoted for export across Southeast Asia, Middle East and Latin America.

(With PTI inputs)

 
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Zapper

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375 million USD , quite a big order . Maybe the intended 3 batteries will be delivered .
Quite a decent sized order given each missile costs around $2.5mn...

@Gessler any idea how much does the launcher cost since Philippines are acquiring shore launched systems
 
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