India’s Tomahawk
NEW DELHI: In another big step in missile development, Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) on Monday conducted a successful flight-test of Long Range Land Attack Cruise Missile (LRLACM) from Dr APJ Abdul Kalam Island off the Odisha coast. All the test objectives were fully met, as per the data captured by various tracking instruments deployed by Integrated Test Range, Chandipur, a defence ministry’s release said.The LRLACM is an indigenously developed missile with all sub-systems developed by various DRDO laboratories and Indian Industry partners. Aeronautical Development Establishment, Bengaluru is the Nodal Laboratory.An advanced, indigenous cruise missile with the range expected to be up to 1,500 km, LRLACM is said to be an upgraded successor to the Nirbhay missile programme and is designed to strike targets at long ranges with pinpoint precision, maneuvering across multiple altitudes and speeds.LRLACM is said to be India’s equivalent of the US’s Tomahawk. Both are subsonic, low-flying and highly precise missiles capable of hitting land targets from hundreds of kilometers away.The launch was witnessed by senior officials from DRDO and user representatives from the Indian Navy and the Indian Air Force. Defence minister Rajnath Singh congratulated the DRDO team and the industry partners on the successful flight-test of LRLACM.Defence secretary & DRDO chairman Rajesh Kumar Singh monitored all activities during the launch. He congratulated all the team members involved in the successful flight-test.
