New Delhi : India’s most capable weapon, the Agni-V nuclear-capable ballistic missile, has been test-fired from the Wheeler Island in Odisha Sunday 15 September. The 5,500-km range missile, capable of striking targets anywhere in China when operational, was tested for the second time after its debut launch in April last year.
Top sources said, “Scientists on the programme have spent most of the last 16 months studying the telemetry and performance data of the first test and fine-tuning all systems, including the navigation system and on board systems.”
The indigenous systems that will be further tested and monitored closely in Sunday’s test include all-composite rocket motor, fifth generation distributed on-board computer architecture, ring laser gyro-based inertial navigation system (RINS), the completely new redundant micro navigation system and the crucial re-entry shield, built to withstand temperatures in excess of 4,000 degrees celsius. A more capable cannisterised version of the Agni-V is likely to be tested in December this year.
In July, DRDO chief Dr Avinash Chander, formerly director on the Agni programme, told to Media, “We’ll induct the Agni IV and V inducted in the next two years. It’s the first time we will be inducting strategic missiles with such long ranges together. Agni III, IV and V are going to be the thrust areas. They give us the reach which we need, and are our highest priority now. Within two years we have to make sure that it happens.”
While the Agni-V’s second test was expected in the September-October period, it comes shortly after a season of provocations along the India-China border, and is likely to be interpreted as a show of strength.
Salient features of AGNI V:
– Agni-V is India’s first long-range missile capable of reaching deep into China and as far as Europe.
— It can carry nuclear warheads and has a range of 5,000 km (3,125 miles).
— The launch of the Indian-made Agni V, if successful, would be the crowning achievement of a missile program developed primarily to counter any threat from China.
— Only the UN Security Council permanent members – China, France, Russia, the United States and Britain – have such long-range weapons.
— The Agni-V weighs 50-tonnes and is 17-metres (56 feet) high. It can be armed with a one-tonne to 1. 5 tonne nuclear warhead.
— Three-stage propulsion system.
— Solid fuel in the final stage propels it into space.
— Greater accuracy due to better guidance and navigation systems.
— Composite Rocket Motors and propulsion systems entirely indigenous.
— Will form key component of India’s strategic arsenal.