India Test Fires Short-Range Quick-Reaction Missile Following Kashmir Airstrike

This has boosted morale at India’s Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), which developed the missile; during the last test, conducted in April 2018, the missile took off from its launcher successfully but rolled uncontrollably during flight and then plunged into the Bay of Bengal.

New Delhi (Sputnik): India successfully tested its short-range Quick Reaction Surface to Air Missile (QRSAM) on Tuesday from a test facility off the coast of Odisha, located in the eastern part of the country. The highly mobile air defence system was fired from a canister mounted on a rotatable truck-based launch unit.

The test was conducted a few hours after the Indian Air Force destroyed three terrorist camps in the early hours of Tuesday. It is believed that the camps were used to train terrorists by Pakistan-based Jaish-e-Mohammed and Lashkar-e-Taiba, both jihadi organisations.

Defence sources in Delhi told Sputnik that all the technology and subsystems incorporated in the missile have performed well, meeting all the mission requirements.

In an earlier test, conducted in April 2018, the missile took off from its launcher successfully but rolled uncontrollably during flight before plunging into the Bay of Bengal. A total of five tests have been conducted on QRSAM so far; three of them were successful while two ended in failure.

QRSAM uses a solid-fuel propellant and has a stated strike range of 25-30 kilometres. The system is capable of surveillance, target acquisition, and tracking while on the move. The missile features an active seeker that uses X-Band Quad Transmit Receive Modules (QTRMs). A Two Way Data Link (TWDL) facilitates guidance of the missile.
“The two missiles were tested for different altitude and conditions. The test flights successfully demonstrated the robust control, aerodynamics, propulsion, structural performance and high manoeuvring capabilities, thus proving the design configuration,” a statement issued by the Indian defence ministry reads.

Radars, electro-optical systems, telemetry and other stations have tracked the missiles and monitored through entire flights. All the mission’s objectives have been met, it adds.

Indian Pefence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman congratulated DRDO on the successful test flights and said the locally-developed state-of-the-art QRSAM will significantly boost the defence capabilities of our armed forces.