Indian Navy to enhance its firepower by acquiring 38 BrahMos supersonic cruise missiles

Moving ahead in its endeavour to be the mightiest, Indian Navy will soon acquire 38 extended-range BrahMos supersonic cruise missiles, which have a range of around 450 kilometres. The missiles are to be fitted on the under-construction Vishakhapatnam class warships of the Navy, which are going to join active service in the near future. A ₹ 1,800 crore proposal for acquiring 38 extended range BrahMos supersonic cruise missile is with the Defence Ministry and is expected to be approved soon.

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Indian Navy to enhance its firepower

The BrahMos supersonic cruise missiles would be the main strike weapon of the warships and are already installed on several ships of the maritime force. The Navy had also carried out the test firing of the BrahMos missile from its warship INS Chennai to showcase its capability to strike targets at ranges more than 400 km in high seas. The government is also working on finding export markets for the supersonic cruise missile which is thought to be among the most lethal in its class..

After the launch of the joint venture between India and Russia in the late 90s, the BrahMos supersonic cruise missile has become a potent weapon for all three-armed forces. India has been test-firing various versions of BrahMos Missiles in last few months. Early this month the anti-ship version of BrahMos missile was fired near the Andaman and Nicobar Islands territory by the Indian Navy as a part of its scheduled trial. This came after a surface-to-surface supersonic cruise missile test near the same territory in November.

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The Anti-ship versions of DRDO-developed missile were fired from different Indian Navy ships. Last anti-ship missile test was done from Rajput-class destroyer INS Ranvijay. The missile successfully hit its target ship near the Car Nicobar Islands in the Bay of Bengal with pinpoint accuracy. The BrahMos anti-ship missile has a range of 300 kilometres. Additional sources further stated that the strike range of BrahMos has been enhanced to over 400 km. 

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The multiple missile tests come amid the prevailing border crisis with China. India has showcased the massive firepower of the BrahMos supersonic cruise missile. All three defence arms of India have been carrying out the tests. The BrahMos missile is the world's fastest operational system in its class and recently DRDO has extended the range of the missile system from the existing 298 km to around 450 km. 

Earlier in October, the Indian Air Force (IAF) had successfully test-fired an air-launched version of BrahMos supersonic cruise missile developed by DRDO, from a Sukhoi-30 fighter aircraft. Sukhoi-30 fighter aircraft of the IAF was deployed to accomplish the crucial task as it flew from Halwara airbase to hit a ship in the Bay of Bengal.

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