Astra BVRAAM

[pmaitra]

What is a captive flight test?

 

[Kunal Biswas]

Afaik, Missiles are loaded on fighter Aircraft pylons, Then Aircraft flies and maneuvers with loaded Missiles ..

What is a captive flight test?

 

[pmaitra]

Afaik, Missiles are loaded on fighter Aircraft pylons, Then Aircraft flies and maneuvers with loaded Missiles ..

Yes, I think it is the same thing as "Captive Carry Flight Test."

 

[ersakthivel]

the primary purpose of captive flight test is whether the missile can take the high G loads when it is fitted on the external pylon of the fighter without any damages to its mechanisms,

As test flights have already demonstrated its flight path and G force capability in flight , the captive flight tests are essentially meant to establish whether the missile can take those loads when attached to the pylon and flown continuously for hours in different altitudes ,

and weather conditions and how the interface electronics and communications link of the fighter and missile behave in captive flight prior to launching.

 

[Srinivas_K]

DRDO to test fire Astra BVR missile in coming weeks

After the successful launch of Agni IV ballistic missile, Indian defence scientists are preparing to test long delayed indigenous beyond visual range air-to-air missile Astra in the coming weeks.

Astra, meant for the IAF's combat jets, will be test fired within a month, officials said. The missile has already been fitted on Sukhoi-30 MKIs at selected IAF bases and trial runs were going on. The Astra will soon be fired from DRDO's test facility Chandipur-on-sea.

The BVR missile can engage targets in the range between 20 and 80 km. The officials said preparations are underway in full swing. The missile has active radar seeker and internal guidance system to lock on the targets.

The IAF currently uses imported R-77s and super 530D BVR missiles. The production of indigenous missile, Astra, will be a crucial milestone for India's defence technology capability. The missile, which had failed during earlier trials, can be fitted on an entire range of combat jets under operation in the IAF and also soon to be inducted Tejas Light Combat Aircraft.

Success of Astra is crucial as it will add another feather in the DRDO cap which has made progress on stalled projects in recent month, they said.


Read more at: DRDO to test fire Astra BVR missile in coming weeks : North, News - India Today

 

[Abhi9]

Final Developmental Trial of Astra This Month - The New Indian Express

Indian scientists are readying for the final round developmental trial of beyond visual range air-to-air missile (BVRAM) Astra before the world class weapon is inducted in the Air Force possibly next year.

The missile is likely to be test fired from a ground launcher at the Integrated Test Range (ITR) off the Odisha coast this month. Preparation is on at the Chandipur based test facility and the launching platform is being readied for the test.

Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), which has designed and developed the missile, has been criticised several times for the delay in full-proofing the Astra project. Over 10 years into its development, the missile is yet to be inducted.

The purpose of the trial is to gauge the performance of the motor, propulsion system and the configurations of the missile vehicle besides its aero-dynamics evaluation. A defence official said DRDO was expecting to complete the ground development trials of the missile by end of this year and induct the missile in 2015.

While the missile had demonstrated three consecutive trials by successfully intercepting the targets in December 2012, its carriage trials with Sukhoi-30 aircraft were completed at Pune defence base in early December last year. The scientists associated with Mission Astra are leaving no stone unturned for the successful trial of the missile as the crucial test would pave the way for an early induction of the missile. After the developmental trials, the DRDO would go for aerial tests of the missile.

The 3.8-metre missile, which has launch weight of about 154 kg, uses solid fuel propellant and a 15-kg high-explosive warhead, activated by a proximity fuse.

The missile has been designed to be capable of engaging targets at varying ranges and altitudes allowing engagement of both short-range targets (upto 20 km) and long-range targets (upto 80 km) using alternative propulsion modes.

Fitted with a terminal active radar-seeker and an updated mid-course internal guidance system, the missile can locate and track targets. It is difficult to track this missile as its on-board electronic counter-measures jam signals from the enemy radars.

Astra is designed for an 80-km range in head-on mode and 20 km-range in tail-chase mode. As an anti-aircraft missile it can be fired after receiving a signal from the far away target through its onboard manoeuvres based on radio frequency.

One of its versions having 90 km to 110 km range can cruise at an altitude of 15 km, another having a range of 40 km can destroy a target at an altitude upto 30,000 ft while the third one with a range of 30 km is capable of hitting the target at sea level.

Once inducted, the missile would arm the Air Force's Mirage 2000H, MiG-29, Sea Harrier, Su-30MKI, MiG-21 Bison and newly developed Tejas light combat aircraft.

 

[LETHALFORCE]

 

[feathers]

Astra air-to-air missile to be launched in March-April

Astra air-to-air missile to be launched in March-April - The Times of India
Jatinder Kaur Tur,TNN | Feb 6, 2014, 12.57 PM IST

HYDERABAD: In what will equip India with missile power comparable to only a few in the world, Hyderabad-based Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) is finalising plans to launch Astra, the Beyond-Visual-Range (BVR) air-to-air missile, in March or at the most April this year. If Astra is successfully fired from a Su-30 aircraft, India would join the elite group of nations including USA, France, Russia and Israel possessing such missiles capable of engaging ultra-modern supersonic fighter jets.

Summing up the developments so far, Dr V G Sekaran, distinguished scientist & director general, missiles and strategic systems while speaking exclusively to TOI said that so far, the captive trials have been completed and that they were a phenomenal success. Now, DRDO is planning for live trial or the maiden launch of Astra from Su-30.

Astra has been indigenously developed by Defence Research and Development Laboratory (DRDL), the lab of DRDO, under the Integrated Guided Missile Development Programme of India. Its avionics have been provided by the Research Centre Imarat, yet another DRDO lab here. Dr Sekaran said DRDO and the users are very happy with the outcome of extensive captive trials of Astra with Sukhoi-30 aircraft in Pune. These captive trials have been wrapped up just recently after months of wide ranging trials which started on November 29, 2013. "Now, we would see its overall performance with respect to various parameters from the point of initial launch till the terminal end", said Dr Sekaran.

Avinash Chander, scientific advisor to defence minister and DG DRDO, also confirmed the maiden flight launch of Astra from Su-30 in March or so. Development trials of Astra in December 2012 from Integrated Test Range at Chandipur, Odisha, were successful in targeting, Lakshya, the Pilotless Target Aircraft (PTA). But so far, Astra has also been fired from a fixed launcher on ground.

Prestigious plans are in place to arm various IAF aircraft including indigenously developed Light Combat Aircraft (Tejas), Mirage 2000, Su-30 MKI and even the Sea Harrier with Astra. It is to be mentioned that IAF shall get Astra after much wait and delay involving almost 10 years of development trials by DRDO since 2003. After its initial poor performance a decade ago, Astra was sent back to the drawing board and has now an altogether new design.

Factfile:

The 3.8-metre long, single stage, solid fuelled missile is finally expected to have two different versions for different altitudes and ranges including Astra Mark-I, which shall have a range of 44 km, and Astra Mark-II, with a range of over 100km.

Astra can cruise at various altitudes with varying ranges while evading radar and intercepting and engaging the 'supersonic targets' by manoeuvring its speed accordingly.

Armed with superior electronic warfare capabilities, its Electronic Counter-Counter Measures lends it immunity from being followed and targeted.

Astra can carry a 15 kg high explosive warhead at a Mach 4 speed.

DRDO is aiming at clearing Astra for induction into IAF by 2015.

In the absence of a low-cost indigenous BVRAAM, IAF has been importing missiles from Israel, Russia and France to equip its fighter fleet.

 

[makmohan]

Re: Astra air-to-air missile to be launched in March-April

 

[SajeevJino]

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A small List But suits most of the Projects

From Tarmak007

 

[laughingbuddha]

How's the desi seeker coming along?

 

[cobra commando]

Livefist: India's ASTRA BVRAAM Testfired From IAF Flanker

 

[Soumya1989]

Awesome shot of India's BVRAAM ASTRA test-fired from an IAF Su-30 MKI off the Goa coast.

Photo Credit: Shiv Aroor/livefist

 

[makmohan]

Livefist: India's ASTRA BVRAAM Testfired From IAF Flanker

The project has thus reached the final stage of testing and evaluation, and the Mk-II variant with higher range capability is also planned to be tested by the end of 2014.

 

[ersakthivel]

Awesome shot of India's BVRAAM ASTRA test-fired from an IAF Su-30 MKI off the Goa coast.

Photo Credit: Shiv Aroor/livefist

huge savings on forex outgo as it is going to be adopted across the IAF fleet, and its capacity to withstand jamming will remain a secret unknown to others.

So BVR for tejas ready and flying!!!

 

[Twinblade]

This has been a slow news year and this is the only positive piece of news to come out. IIRC the missile will be fired several times this year and there will be final user acceptance trials next year following which it will be inducted.

 

[Kunal Biswas]

Wonderful news, No need to be depended on Russian & Ukrainian duds ..

 

[bose]

How do one test missiles like ASTRA against an agile targets that takes all possible evasive counter measures ??? Is there any benchmarks for such tests ??

 

[ersakthivel]

How do one test missiles like ASTRA against an agile targets that takes all possible evasive counter measures ??? Is there any benchmarks for such tests ??

Its flight profile was already tested several times, what is now being tested is integration with platform , i.e safe weapon release from pylon.

 

[Twinblade]

How do one test missiles like ASTRA against an agile targets that takes all possible evasive counter measures ??? Is there any benchmarks for such tests ??

Lakshya and Abhyas are designed to simulate supersonic maneuverable targets. Target drones can also carry chaff and flare dispensers. Live fire exercises and wargames often also involve heavy usage of ECM.