The Indo-Russian missile manufacturer, BrahMos Aerospace, confirmed recently that it had completed the preliminary design of a new generation of Brahmos-NG missiles.
According to Pravin Pathak, who serves as the missile producer's export director, the shape of the Brahmos-NG missiles under development has been determined, and it won't be long before the new version of the weapon goes into production.
Pathak's remarks about the Brahmos missile's newest version came during the International Maritime Defense Show in St. Petersburg last week.
BrahMos-NG (Next Generation) will be a mini version of the missile. While it will have the same range and speed as the one currently operated by the Indian Army, the missile's weight will be considerably lighter than its predecessor. That said, its length will also come down to 6 meters from the current 9 meters.
INS Mormugao, the latest guided-missile Destroyer, successfully hit 'Bulls Eye' during her maiden Brahmos Supersonic cruise missile firing
© Photo
The 1.5-tonne, 6-meter-long BrahMos-NG is expected to be ready for induction next year.
As far as New Delhi is concerned, the arrival of the new Brahmos is seen as good news for the country's security forces, as it is expected to give a major boost to its burgeoning missile arsenal.
With the newest version of Brahmos months away from being commissioned in India's military, Sputnik looks back at the incredible journey of the "world's fastest supersonic missile".
Who Invented BrahMos?
The Brahmos missile is a product of Brahmos Aerospace, a joint venture between India's Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) and Russia's NPO Mashinostroyeniya which was formed in 1998 by the two countries.
The name of the highly acclaimed missile originated from the names of India's Brahmaputra and Russia's Moskva rivers.
Brahmos Aerospace markets this latest weapon as the world's fastest supersonic cruise missile that can be launched from land, air, sea, and submarines.
The missile has a range of 290 kilometers and a speed of 2.8 Mach or three times the speed of sound.
Brahmos Versions
The Brahmos missile comes in three different models, namely a surface-to-surface, air, and a submarine version.
The surface-to-surface Brahmos model underwent its maiden test at the Integrated Test Range (ITR) in Chandipur located in the Balasore district of Odisha state in eastern India.
The missile, subsequently, was tested on multiple occasions before being inducted into the Indian Army in 2007.
The Indian Army's Brahmos Missiles, a supersonic cruise missile, are displayed during the Republic Day Parade in New Delhi, India.
© Gurinder Osan, File
In 2009, a new navigation system was incorporated into the Brahmos and the missile was test fired again the same year.
The following year, Brahmos scripted history, becoming the first cruise missile to breach the supersonic speed barrier while flying in a steep-dive mode.
In September 2020, India tested an extended version of the surface-to-surface Brahmos missile, that stretched out its reach from 290 km to 350 km.
Brahmos' Submarine Missile Model
Brahmos' submarine-launched model was successfully test-fired in the Bay of Bengal in 2013, making it the maiden vertical launch of an Indian-manufactured supersonic cruise missile from a submerged area. It can be launched from as deep as 40 to 50 meters underwater.
On the other hand, the ship-launched version of the missile had been inducted into India's blue water force much earlier, back in 2005.
Right now, it serves as the mainstay of the Indian Navy's conventional missile arsenal.
Air-Launched Version of Brahmos Missile
According to Brahmos Aerospace, "the highly advanced BRAHMOS air-launched cruise missile (ALCM) with precision attack capability against sea and land targets has been designed and developed for the Indian Air Force's (IAF) frontline air combat platform Sukhoi-30MKI."
The Su-30MKIs form the bulwark of the India's fighter jet fleet at present.
In 2017, the air-launched variant of the missile was flight-tested for the first time from a Sukhoi-30MKI aircraft as it successfully hit its target in the Bay of Bengal's ocean waters.
In December 2022, the Indian Air Force carried out successful trials of an extended version of the missile, which has a range of 450 km.
Future of Brahmos Missile
A long-range version of the missile called Brahmos-II is currently being developed by its manufacturer.
This new version is expected to more than double the range of the missile from the existing 290 km to 600 km.
Also, the speed is estimated to touch the Mach 8 mark, which would make it the fastest hypersonic missile in the world, thus providing India's triad of services with a potent weapon that would be able to strike deep into enemy territory and take out targets with remarkable accuracy.