India develops the Astra Beyond Visual Range Air to Air Missile (BVR AAM), capable of taking stand-off distances for controlling airspace with a modern missile system. This Air to Air missile can fire anywhere and get a hit with close to hypersonic speeds and is equipped with other new capabilities.
India Develops Lethal Offensive Weapon
Equipping the Astra is an advanced Electronic Counter Measures (ECCM) that tracks a target better via lessening electronic jamming of its sensors to damper electronic noise to hit targets, reported EurAsian Times.
It is equipped with an indigenous RF seeker-based active radar terminal guidance system for any targeting situation in combat for better efficacy.
Choose between Lock-on Before Launch (LOBL) or Lock-on After Launch (LOAL), allowing the pilot to shoot and disengage to a safer distance to avoid getting fired at, cited Financial Express.
Doing evasive actions in a modern combat plane will be 9gs of positive and vertical force, but Astra can be shot in 30gs + in extreme maneuvers versus the 4th ++ to 5th gen combat aircraft going supersonic.
An India-made BVR missile is capable of all-weather attack, day or night, and high kill shot in most conditions. This weapon system's length is 3.8m, its diameter is 178mm, and the overall launch weight is 160kg, with a low total weight that allows for a long launch range.
The Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) that developed the Mach 4+ missile dubbed the Astra MK-I (Astra BVR AAM) will feature the related systems for launch, ground handling, and finally, testing with the Indian Air Force (IAF).
Testing was done by the IAF and mounted on a Su 30 MK-I fighter that will be in use with other IAF fighters in service, including the LCA Tejas. Another plan is for the Indian Navy to use it on its MiG-29s, noted Airforce Technology.
The Astra was developed under the auspices of DRDO, which did all the steps to design and everything related to making the weapon system functional and operational.
The new air-to-air missile MK-I variant was first tested in May 2003 from the Interim Test Range (ITR) located in Chandipur, Odisha led to a series of developmental ground tests, captive flight trials, and tested in varying weather conditions.
Following that, numerous trials involving Su-30 MKI combat aircraft were utilized in different locations. In 2019, the final flight tests with the Su-30 MKI fighter aircraft were conducted at the same Chandipur facility.
India's Innovative Technology on Air to Air Missiles
The trials covered all potential threat scenarios, proving the warhead's end game abilities in combat layout. At a maximum distance, the missile also directly hit the target. A range of 80 to 110 km during a head-on chase with a maxed-out speed of Mach 4.5 near hypersonic is lethal.
Radar is a local Ku-band active radar seeker with a 15 kg warhead, a second variant is the Mk-II with an increased range of 160 km, using a dual-pulse solid-fuel rocket motor.
A future variant of the Astra Mk-III with Russia equipped with an advanced ramjet can hit as far as 350 km away. The technology for the Astra Mk-I has been transferred, and production is in progress.
Astra BVR AAM is a major achievement for India, and the subsequent variants will be a plus for sure kill situations at stand-off distances.
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