Welcome to the Bharat Rakshak.com’s Missile Site.
The Indian Missiles site is dedicated to President (Dr.) Avul Pakir Jainulabdeen Abdul Kalam, father of India’s Integrated Guided Missile Development Program. It was the brilliant Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam who breathed life into ballistic missiles like the Agni and Prithvi, which put China and Pakistan well under India’s missile range. Here is a poem written by him;
“Dreams float on an impatient wind,
A wind that wants to create a new order,
An order of strength and thundering of fire.”
A wind that wants to create a new order,
An order of strength and thundering of fire.”
The strategic Agni ballistic missile,
The tactical Prithvi ballistic missile,
The Akash and Trishul surface-to-air missiles and the Nag anti-tank guided missile.
- Air-launched ballistic missile::An air-launched ballistic missile or ALBM is a ballistic missile launched from an aircraft. This class of missile never saw active use.
- Air-launched cruise missile: An air-launched cruise missile (ALCM) is a cruise missile that is launched from anaircraft.
- Air-to-air missile:: An air-to-air missile (AAM) is a missile fired from an aircraft for the purpose of destroying another aircraft.
- Air-to-surface missile:: An air-to-surface missile (ASM) or air-to-ground missile (AGM or ATGM) is a missile designed to be launched from military aircraft (bombers, attack aircraft, fighter aircraft or other kinds) and strike ground targets on land, at sea, or both.
- Anti-ship ballistic missile::An anti-ship ballistic missile (ASBM) is a military quasiballistic missile system designed to hit a warship at sea.
B
A ballistic missile is a missile that follows a ballistic flightpath with the objective of delivering one or more warheads to a predetermined target. Shorter range ballistic missiles stay within theEarth's atmosphere, while longer range ones are designed to spend some of their flight time above the atmosphere and are thus considered sub-orbital.
Details On Missiles:
This led to the birth of the Integrated Guided Missile Development Programme and Dr. Abdul Kalam, who had previously been the project director for the SLV-3 programme at ISRO, was inducted as the DRDL Director in 1983 to conceive and lead it. He decided that DRDL would pursue multiple projects in this area simultaneously. Thus, four projects were born under the IGMDP:
- Short range surface-to-surface missile (code-named Prithvi)
- Short range low-level surface-to-air missile (code-named Trishul)
- Medium range surface-to-air missile (code-named Akash) and
- Third-generation anti-tank missile (code-named Nag).
The Agni missile was initially conceived in the IGMDP as a technology demonstrator project in the form of a re-entry vehicle, and was later upgraded to a ballistic missile with different ranges. As part of this program, the Interim Test Range at Balasore in Orissa was also developed for missile testing.
Diplomatic and Technological Hurdles
After India test-fired the first Prithvi missile in 1988, and the Agni missile in 1989, the Missile Technology Control Regime (then an informal grouping established in 1987 by Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom and the United States) decided to restrict access to any technology that would help India in its missile development program. Some of the major technology which was denied, included:
- phase shifters for the phased array radars for Akash (denied by the USA).
- magnesium alloy used in Prithvi's wings (denied by Germany).
- servo-valves needed for the electro-hydraulic control systems of Agni and Prithvi.
- gyroscopes and accelerators (denied by France).
- processors – Intel said it would not give India chips for the computers used in Prithvi and Agni.
To counter the MTCR, the IGMDP team formed a consortium of DRDO laboratories, industries and academic institutions to build these sub-systems, components and materials. Though this slowed down the progress of the program, India successfully developed indigenously all the restricted components denied to it by the MTCR.[2]
In 2011, the DRDO Chief V K Saraswat had stated that "indigenous content" in India's strategic missiles had gone up to such a level, with ring-laser gyros, composite rocket motors, micro-navigation systems etc., that "no technology control regime" could derail them any longer.
Indian Missile Projects
Project Devil
Project Devil was one of two early liquid-fuelled missile projects developed by India, along with Project Valiant, in the 1970s. The goal of Project Devil was to produce a short-range surface-to-air missile. Although discontinued in 1980 without achieving intended success, Project Devil, led to the later development of the Prithvi missile in the 1980s.
Project Valiant
Project Valiant was one of two early liquid-fuelled missile projects developed by India, along with Project Devil in the 1970s. The goal of Project Valiant was to produce an ICBM. Although discontinued in 1974 without achieving full success, Project Valiant, like Project Devil, helped in the development of the Prithvi missile in the 1980s.
IGMDP Integrated Guided Missile Development Program
The Integrated Guided Missile Development Program (IGMDP) was a Ministry of Defence (India) program for the research and development of a comprehensive range of missiles. The program was managed by the Defense Research and Development Organization (DRDO) and Ordnance Factories Board in partnership with other Indian government research organisations.[7] The project started in early 1980s and ended in 2008 after these strategic missiles were successfully developed. The last major missile developed under the program was the Agni 3 intermediate-range ballistic missile which was successfully tested on 9 July 2007.[8]
On 8 January 2008, the DRDO formally announced the successful completion of the IGMDP.[7] It added that the strategic integrated guided missile program was completed with its design objectives achieved since most of the missiles in the program had been developed and inducted by the Indian armed forces.[9]
Dr. Abdul Kalam, who conceived and worked on this program, later also became the President of India.[10]
Akash[edit]
Main article: Akash (missile)
Akash (Sanskrit: आकाश Ākāś "Sky") is a medium-range mobile surface-to-air missile defence system developed by the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), Ordnance Factories Board and Bharat Electronics Limited (BEL) in India.[11][12] The missile system can target aircraft up to 30 km away, at altitudes up to 18,000 m.[13]
Trishul
Main article: Trishul (missile)
Nag
Nag (Sanskrit: नाग, Nāg "Cobra") is a third generation "Fire-and-forget" anti-tank missile developed in India. It is one of five missile systems developed by the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) under the Integrated Guided Missile Development Program (IGMDP). Nag has been developed at a cost of 
3 billion (US$45.9 million).[14]
3 billion (US$45.9 million).[14]Prithvi Missile Series
| Name | Stage(s) | Range | Payload | User |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Prithvi-I (SS-150) | One | 150 km | 1000 kg | Army |
| Prithvi-II (SS-250) | Two | 250 km – 350 km | 500 kg – 1000 kg | Air Force, Army |
| Prithvi-III (SS-350) | Two | 350 km – 600 km | 250 kg – 500 kg | Army, Air Force, Navy |
Dhanush is a system consisting of a stabilisation platform (Bow) and the Missile (Arrow). It is intended for the Indian Navy, to be fired from ships against other ships or land targets. Dhanush can fire modified versions of Prithvi-II or Prithvi-III.
Agni Missile Series
The Agni missile series started as a "Re-Entry Vehicle" project (later rechristened as Agni Technology Demonstrator) in the IGMDP.The missiles in this series include:
| Name | Type | Stage(s) | Range |
|---|---|---|---|
| Agni-I | MRBM | One | 700 – 1,200 km[15][16] |
| Agni-II | IRBM | Two | 2,000 – 2,500 km |
| Agni-III | IRBM | Two | 3,000 – 5,000 km[17] |
| Agni-IV | IRBM | Two | 2,500 – 3,700 km[18][19] |
| Agni-V | ICBM | Three | 5,000 – 8,000 km[20][21][22] |
| Agni-VI | ICBM | Three | 8,000 – 10,000 km[23] |
The Agni-I, Agni-II and Agni-III missiles were developed under the IGMDP. (The DRDO formally announced the successful completion of the IGMDP after the third test of Agni-III on 7 May 2008.[7])
Agni-IV was tested on 15 November 2011 and has a range of 3,000 km, and can carry a warhead of 1 tonnes. It is a two-stage missile powered by solid propellant. It is 20 meters tall and has a launch weight of 17 tonnes.[24][25][26] A new missile Agni-V with 5,000 km range and MIRV is being developed and was tested on 19 April 2012. Agni-V shares the similar design as Agni-III with an extra stage added to further increase the range by 1500 km.[27] Agni-V will be road mobile and it has been stated that all Indian missiles developed after this will be road mobile as well.
Agni-VI is an Intercontinental ballistic missile reported to be in rudimentary stages of development by India, and until May 2012 was not officially confirmed by either the Government of India or the DRDO.[23] Reportedly, it will be capable of being launched from submarines or from land and to strike a target of over 10,000 km[23] with MIRVed warheads.[28] Top DRDO scientists have previously asserted that India has almost all the equipment and technology needed to develop ICBMs, "but where the warhead should go or what the range should be will have to be a political call".[29]
K Missile Series
| TYPE | RANGE | Weight | Warhead | length | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| K-15[30] | 750 km | 10 tonnes | 1 tonne | 10 m | K-15/B-05 in series production. Land-based missile awaiting clearance. |
| K-4[30][31] | 3,500–5,000 km[30] | 17 tonnes[31] | 1 tonne[30] – 2.5 tonnes[31] | 10 m | As of January 2011, at least six more tests to be performed before induction in 2017. |
| K-5 | 6,000 km | Unspecified | 1 tonne | Unspecified | Under Development by DRDO[28] |
Shaurya
The Shaurya missile is a short-range surface-to-surface ballistic missile developed for use by the Indian Army. Capable of hypersonic speeds, it has a range of 600 km and is capable of carrying a payload of one-tonne conventional or nuclear warhead.[32]
Brahmos
Main article: BrahMos
Prahaar
Main article: Prahaar (missile)
Prahaar (Sanskrit:प्रहार, Strike) is a solid-fuelled Surface-to-surface guided short-range tactical ballistic missile that would be equipped with omni-directional warheads and could be used for hitting both tactical and strategic targets.[33]
Astra[edit]
Main article: Astra (missile)
Astra is a 'Beyond Visual Range Air-to-Air Missile' (BVRAAM) being developed for the Indian Air Force.[34]
Helina
Main article: Helina (missile)
A variant of NAG Missile to be launched from Helicopter is being developed under the Project named HELINA (HELIcopter launchedNAg).[35] It will be structurally different from the Nag.
Hypersonic Technology Demonstrator Vehicle (HSDTV)[edit]
Main article: Hypersonic Technology Demonstrator Vehicle (HSTDV)
Project HSTDV is a technology demonstrator aimed to demonstrate autonomous flight of a Scramjet Integrated Vehicle using kerosene.[35]
Indian Ballistic Missile Defense Program[edit]
Main article: Indian Ballistic Missile Defense Program
Prithvi Air Defence (PAD)[edit]
Main article: Prithvi Air Defence
The Prithvi Air Defense missile has been named as Pradyumna Ballistic Missile Interceptor. It has a maximum interception altitude of 80 km and is capable of engaging the 300 to 2,000 km class of ballistic missiles at a speed of Mach 5.[36][37] DRDO is currently working on a missile for intercepting targets of 5,000+ km range and engaging them at altitudes of up to 150 km.The tests are expected to commence from 2010–11.[38]
Advanced Air Defence (AAD)[edit]
- Main articles: Advanced Air Defence
Also known as Ashwin Ballistic Missile Interceptor.
Anti-Radiation Missile
Main article: Anti-radiation missile
India is developing an Anti-Radiation Missile (ARM) that will help to destroy enemy advance warning systems. Production of the ARM is being done on a priority basis by the Defence Research and Development Laboratory (DRDL), which specialises in missile development. Such missiles can be mounted on the Sukhoi Su-30 MKI fighter planes.[39]
Anti-Satellite Missile
India is developing anti satellite weapons. Following the successful Agni-V ICBM test, this looks all the more achievable.[40]
In an interview with India Today Dr. V. K. Saraswat said,
In an interview with India Today Dr. V. K. Saraswat said,
"Today, India has all the building blocks for an anti-satellite system in place.We don't want to weaponise space but the building blocks should be in place. Because you may come to a time when you may need it. Today, I can say that all the building blocks (for an ASAT weapon) are in place. A little fine tuning may be required but we will do that electronically. We will not do a physical test (actual destruction of a satellite) because of the risk of space debris affecting other satellites."[41]
According to Rajeswari Rajagopalan, senior fellow at Observer Research Foundation, New Delhi, "it is important to discuss various issues concerning space security, and ASAT is one of them." Increasing awareness of space debris and continued efforts to develop and implement international measures to tackle the problem is a major concern for India as well as other countries.[42]
According to some researchers, "as it stands today, in space, the probability of debris hitting a satellite is more than an adversary taking your satellite down."
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