Bhubaneswar: India on Friday successfully test-fired its indigenous Long-Range Hypersonic Anti-Ship Missile (LR-AShM) off the Odisha coast, marking a major milestone in maritime defence.
Developed by the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), the missile accurately struck a designated target at a range of 1,500 km with a speed up to Mach 10 in the recent test, substantially strengthening the country’s defensive reach at sea.
Sources said this was the second flight test of LR-AShM conducted off the Odisha coast. While the defence ministry or the DRDO did not offer any details about such a testing, the social media handle of BJP claimed that India’s “hypersonic edge just got sharper.”
The missile is designed to hit targets at speeds exceeding Mach 5 and capable of reaching speed of Mach 10. The test validated the precision of its advanced terminal guidance systems, completing all mission objectives from launch to final impact, including mid-course manoeuvres and sustained high-velocity flight.
“India’s hypersonic edge just got sharper. DRDO’s LR-AShM Phase-II test off the Odisha coast signals a new era. Reflecting the vision of PM Modi for a self-reliant, future-ready India, it marks a powerful leap in indigenous defence innovation,” BJP’s post on X said.
Developed for the Navy, the LR-AShM is an indigenous Indian, two-stage solid-propelled hypersonic glide weapon. It is a unique weapon that enhances India’s anti-access/area-denial (A2/AD) capabilities in the Indian Ocean Region. It is a hypersonic glide missile that follows a low-altitude, quasi-ballistic trajectory with multiple skips, allowing it to evade radar detection for most of its flight. It can engage both static and moving targets (such as aircraft carriers) using indigenously developed sensors for high precision in the terminal phase.
Experts said the missile is a significant achievement toward self-reliance in advanced defence technologies, developed by DRDO’s Advanced Systems Laboratory (ASL) and various industry partners.