New version of BrahMos to be tested again in a month: Dr Sivathanu Pillai

New Delhi: The new version of the BrahMos Land Attack Cruise Missile (LACM), tested by the Indian Army on Tuesday, will be put through its paces once again within a month as last stage glitches sent the missile awry in Tuesday's test. The Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) said the fresh test on the missile would prove that the systems were effective.

According to BrahMos Aerospace chief executive Dr A Sivathanu Pillai there were minor glitches in the last stage of the BrahMos missile. "The missile performance was absolutely normal till the last phase, but the missile missed the target, though it maintained the direction," Dr Pillai said.

He told agencies that the main objective of the test was to evaluate a new guidance system which would bring the missile onto a selected target in a multi-target environment. Dr Pillai said this complicated mission called for the use of advanced algorithms and intelligence which would be embedded into the missile.

"The cause of the malfunction has been analysed by a group of scientists. The new software used for this mission will be revalidated through extensive simulations and a flight trial will be carried out in a month's time to prove the augmented capabilities of the missile," Dr Pillai said.

The missile was also fired from a Mobile Autonomous Launcher. The supersonic LACM  is capable of acquiring speeds of up to Mach 2.8 and carries a 300kg warhead over a range of 290-km.

As a weapon system the BrahMos has already been validated through innumerable tests both in land and sea-based configurations and is currently inducted for service with the Indian Army and Indian Navy. An air-to-surface version is being developed for the Indian Air Force.