India Tests BrahMos Supersonic Cruise Missile With Extended Range: Reports

India has test-fired BrahMos supersonic cruise missile with an extended range of 450 kilometres, from Chandipur, located in the eastern Indian state of Odisha.

The test is part of ongoing user trials for the missile's extended range of around 450km, with the version of the missile used in the launch having an upgraded guidance system as well, reports Sputnik.

"The anti-ship version of the missile was launched around noon from the launch complex-3 of the ITR," sources from the state-owned Defence Research and Development (DRDO) were quoted as saying by the Indian media on Tuesday.

The first test of the extended range variant of the BrahMos was conducted in March 2017 using the mobile autonomous launcher deployed in full configuration.

It is expected that the country will test the missile with a range of 800 kilometres by the end of this year.

"We will come to hypersound via an increase in range. We have already confirmed 400 kilometres, in order to increase the range to 500, it is needed to increase the speed. Now the missile flies at speeds of 2.8 mach. We will achieve the speed of hypersound through modernization, it is more than 4.5 mach," Alexander Maksichev, the managing co-director of the BrahMos Aerospace company, told Sputnik in April this year.

The Indian Air Force test-fired an air-launched 2.8 Mach surface attack missile against a sea-based target in November 2017. The air-launched 2.5-ton version has a range close to 300km. This version of the missile has additional rear fins for aerodynamic stability during separation from the aircraft during launch.

In May 2019, the IAF tested the BrahMos against a land-based target.