Tejas LCA test-fires ASTRA air-to-air missile | India News
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The test launch was monitored by the Test Director and scientists of the Aeronautical Development Agency (ADA).
Credit: PTI
The Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) on Wednesday (August 23) carried out a successful launch of the ASTRA Beyond Visual Range (BVR) air-to-air missile off the coast of Goa. Tejas, Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) LSP-7 did the successful launch at an elevation of about 20,000 feet.
Along with DRDO, the test launch was monitored by the test director and scientists from the Aeronautical Development Agency (ADA), Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) together with officials of the Center for Airworthiness and Military Certification (CEMILAC) and the General Directorate of Aeronautical Quality Assurance (DG-AQA). Furthermore, the aircraft was also monitored by a Chase Tejas two-seat aircraft.
Defence Ministry on the successful fire
“Tejas, Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) LSP-7 successfully fired the ASTRA indigenous beyond visual range air-to-air missile off the coast of Goa on August 23,” the defence ministry said. Complimenting ADA, DRDO, CEMILAC, DG-AQA and the industry for the successful test firing of the missile from the Tejas-LCA, defence minister Rajnath Singh said the launch would significantly enhance the combat prowess of Tejas and reduce the dependency on imported weapons.
What is ASTRA?
ASTRA, a state-of-the-art BVR air-to-air missile is designed to be mounted on a fighter aircraft, and engages and destroys ‘highly manoeuvring supersonic’ aircraft. Built to function across weather conditions, and during both day and night, the system is being developed to meet ‘specific requirements,’ as per the agency.
ASTRA is designed and developed by the Defense Research and Development Laboratory (DRDL), Imarat Research Center (RCI) and other laboratories in the DRDO. The indigenous Astra BVR firing from home made Tejas fighters is an important step towards ‘Aatmanirbhar Bharat’.
