Arihant N-sub gets ready to fire ballistic missiles | idrw.org
Moving closer towards completing the nuclear triad, the indigenously developed nuclear-powered submarine, INS Arihant, will soon be testing its capability to launch long range ballistic missiles from within the depths of the ocean.
"We will be conducting a test launch of the K-4 missile from the Arihant submarine,which is already undergoing sea trials, within the next few months," Scientific Adviser to the Raksha Mantri and DRDO Director General, Dr Avinash Chander told The Tribune during his visit to Chandigarh.
The 3,000-km range K-4 Submarine Launched Ballistic Missile (SLBM) was successfully test launched by the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) from an underwater pontoon, simulating a submerged submarine, on March 24.
The development of the K-4 comes in the wake of the K-15 a submarine launched ballistic missile that has a range of 750 kms and is already in production. Aland-based version of the K-15 is also on the anvil.
INS Arihant, which will have at least three more sister submarines which are already under construction, will carry four K-4 missiles or 12 K-15 missiles along with six torpedoes. Four submarines with unlimited range, each carrying four 3000-kms range missiles gives an enormous degree of flexibility,reliability, survivability and stand-off attack capability to the nuclear triad.
Also coming up shortly is the test launch of the containerised version of the Agni-4 Intermediate Range Ballistic Missile. The 4000-kms range missile would be road-mobile and launched from a contained, from which it would be shot in the air and its engines would ignite in mid air. The conventional version of the missile was test fired by the Strategic Forces Command in its road-mobile configuration in January this year, paving its way for serial production and service induction.
Dr Chander said that following the successful launch of the Astra beyond visual range air to air missile from a Su-30 fighter earlier this month, a launch to test its performance against a live aerial target will be conducted next month.A test of Hellina, the helicopter launched version of the Nag anti-tank missile, is also scheduled shortly.
Lethal fire power
INS Arihant, which will carry four K-4 missiles or 12 K-15 missiles along with six torpedoes K-4 missiles with a range of 3,000 km, was successfully test launched by the Defence Research and Development Organisation from an underwater pontoon on March 24.