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Home Strategic Weapons Cruise Missiles Brahmos Supersonic Cruise missile

Brahmos Supersonic Cruise missile

Friday, 12 March 2010 02:43
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PJ-10 BrahmosBrahMos is a supersonic cruise missile that can be launched from submarines, ships, aircraft or land. It is a joint venture between India's Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) and Russia's NPO Mashinostroeyenia who have together formed the BrahMos Aerospace Private Limited.

The acronym BrahMos is perceived as the confluence of the two nations represented by two rivers, the Brahmaputra of India and the Moskva of Russia. It travels at speeds of Mach 2.5 to 2.8 and is the world's fastest cruise missile. It is about three-and-a-half times faster than the U.S.A's subsonic Harpoon cruise missile. A hypersonic version of the missile is also presently under development (Lab Tested with 5.26 Mach Speed). Though India had wanted the BrahMos to be based on a mid range cruise missile, namely P-700 Granit, instead Russia opted for the shorter range sister of the missile, P-800 Oniks, in order to comply with MTCR restrictions, to which Russia is a signatory. Its propulsion is based on the Russian missile, and guidance has been developed by BrahMos Corp.

Development and Manufacture

A BrahMos supersonic cruise missile lifts off the universal vertical launcher onboard the Indian Navy's Kashin II-class destroyer INS Ranvir.The BrahMos has been developed as a joint venture between the Defence Research and Development Organization (DRDO) of India and the Federal State Unitary Enterprise NPO Mashinostroyenia (NPOM) of Russia under BrahMos Aerospace. The missile is named after two rivers, the Brahmaputra and the Moskva.

Since late 2004, the missile has undergone several tests from variety of platforms including a land based test from Pokhran desert, in which the 'S' maneuver at Mach 2.8 was demonstrated for the Indian Army and a launch in which the land attack capability from sea was demonstrated.

BrahMos claims to have the capability of attacking surface targets as low as 10 meters in altitude. It can gain a speed of Mach 2.8, and has a maximum range of 290 km. The ship-launched and land-based missiles can carry a 200 kg warhead, whereas the aircraft-launched variant (BrahMos A) can carry a 300 kg warhead. It has a two-stage propulsion system, with a solid-propellant rocket for initial acceleration and a liquid-fueled ramjet responsible for sustained supersonic cruise. Air-breathing ramjet propulsion is much more fuel-efficient than rocket propulsion, giving the BrahMos a longer range than a pure rocket-powered missile would achieve.This is because thea ramjet propulsion does away with the need to carry the oxidiser thus greatly reducing the weight of the missile.

The high speed of the BrahMos likely gives it better target-penetration characteristics than lighter subsonic cruise-missiles such as the Tomahawk. Being twice as heavy and almost four times faster than the Tomahawk, the BrahMos has almost 32 times the initial kinetic energy of a Tomahawk missile (although it pays for this by having only 3/5 the payload and a fraction of the range despite weighing twice as much, suggesting a different tactical paradigm to achieve the objective).

Although BrahMos is primarily an anti-ship missile, it can also engage land based targets. It can be launched either in a vertical or inclined position and is capable of covering targets over a 360 degree horizon. The BrahMos missile has an identical configuration for land, sea, and sub-sea platforms. The air-launched version has a smaller booster and additional tail fins for added stability during launch. The BrahMos is currently being configured for aerial deployment with the sukhoi-su-30mki as its carrier.

Variants

  • Ship launched, Anti-Ship variant (operational)
  • Ship launched, Land attack variant (operational)
  • Land launched, Land attack variant (operational)
  • Land launched, Anti-Ship variant (operational)
  • Air launched, Anti-Ship variant
  • Air launched, Land attack variant
  • Submarine launched, Anti-Ship variant
  • Submarine launched, Land attack variant

Operators

India and Russia intend to make 2,000 BrahMos supersonic cruise missiles over the next ten years through their joint venture company, and nearly 50 percent of them are expected to be exported to friendly countries.

Indian Navy

The missile is in service with the Indian Navy. Talwar class frigate and Shivalik class frigate are frigates of the Indian Navy that can fire the BrahMos. INS Tabar and INS Trishul are Talwar class vessels armed with supersonic BrahMos while INS Shivalik was the first vessel of the Shivalik class to incorporate the BrahMos. Other vessels of the Shivalik Class and Talwar Class are to be armed with BrahMos missiles by 2009 and 2010 respectively. In 2007, the navy promised to arm the Godavari class frigates and Brahmaputra class frigates with the BrahMos too. Rajput class destroyers are Destroyers of the Indian Navy that can fire the BrahMos. The INS Rajput, INS Ranvir (D54) and INS Ranvijay (D55) which are modified versions of Soviet Kashin class destroyers have been fitted with BrahMos Supersonic Cruise Missile systems.  The new class of destroyers namely Kolkata Class are also to be fitted with the BrahMos and there are plans to arm the rest of the vessels of the Rajput Class with BrahMos too. On the other hand the Delhi class destroyers are to be modified to incorporate the BrahMos. The first of the Kolkata Class should roll out in 2012 while the Delhi Class and Rajput will be armed with the Brahmos by 2009

The submarine launched version of the missile is ready for testing. The missile will be either tested on a Kilo class submarine of the Indian Navy or will be tested in Russia. The land attack version of the missile was fired from Destroyer INS Rajput and the missile hit and destroyed the right target among a group of targets. The vertical launch of Brahmos was conducted on December 18, 2008 from INS Ranvir (D54).

Indian Army

Indian armyś launcher for brahmos LACM The missile was successfully tested with new capabilities for the Indian Army in the deserts of Rajasthan, test range near Pokharan (December 2004 & March 2007). It was inducted into the army on June 21, 2007.

On January 20, 2009, a test of a new BrahMos block II cruise Missile at Pokhran in Rajasthan was conducted with new software. The missile failed to hit the right target among a group of targets. The objective was to hit a small building hidden amongst a group of buildings. According to Brahmos corporation, another test of the new missile will be conducted within one month, which was eventually conducted on 4 March 2009 and was successful.

The latest test conducted on 29 March 2009, was successful. The missile took two and a half minutes to hit the target with precision.. According to official sources, "The new seeker is unique and would help us to hit our targets, which are insignificant in terms of size, in a cluster of large buildings. India is now the only nation in the world with this advanced technology" After the third test, Lt Gen Noble Thamburaj, said that the Indian Army wanted the BrahMos to achieve high standards of accuracy and congratulated the scientists on behalf of the Indian Army. The Indian Army confirmed that the test was extremely successful and the army is absolutely satisfied with the missile. The development phase of the Block II version of the missile has been over and it is ready for induction.

The army has raised one regiment (numbered 861) of the BrahMos Mark I. Now two separate missile regiments of the BrahMos Mark II, which has a seeker that can discriminate and zero in on a small target in an urban clutter, will be raised and are likely to be numbered 862 and 863. Each of the two new BrahMos cruise missile regiments would have between four and six batteries of three to four Mobile Autonomous Launchers that can be connected to a general mobile command post.

Indian Air Force

The air launched version for the Indian Air Force is ready for testing. An expert committee from the DRDO and the Indian Air Force (IAF) has ruled out any structural modification to the advanced sukhoi-su-30mki if it is to be fitted with the supersonic BrahMos. January 10, 2009 it was reported that two Indian Air Force (IAF) Sukhoi-30MKI fighter jets have been sent to Russia for a retrofit program that would enable them to launch the aerial version of the BrahMos supersonic cruise missile.

On October 22 2008 A. Sivathanu Pillai, chief executive officer and managing director, Brahmos Airspace announced that the Indian Air Force would get its own version of Brahmos by 2012. Trials and tests will be carried out by 2011 and it is expected to be inducted into the IAF by 2012 In addition, India's 5 Il-38 and 8 Tupolev Tu-142 maritime patrol bombers are also to be armed with the missile. There are reports of efforts towards adding the capability to fire the Indo-Russian Brahmos cruise missile from these aircrafts. Mockups have been displayed with air-launched Brahmos attached to underwing pylons on the Indian Navy aircrafts.

On August 8, 2009 Alexander Leonov, Director of the Russian Machine Building Research and Production Center, said "we are ready for test launches." He also said the final development and testing of the air-launched version of the BrahMos supersonic cruise missile willo take place soon. A new takeoff engine for launching of the missile in air and at extreme high altitudes had been developed. He said the initial test firing of the missile would be undertaken from the Sukhoi-30 MKI, but did not specify the dates. After testing, the IAF would be the launch customers for the air launched BrahMos cruise missile, which will make the Indian Air Force, the only air force in Asia to have such a capability.

Russian Navy

According to sources the BrahMos could be fitted to the updated Gorshkov class of frigates which will be entering the Russian navy soon. The defense ministry reported that due to the size and hull specifications of the BrahMos, few if any of its new ships will be able to accommodate it.

BrahMos II

BrahMos II is a hypersonic cruise missile that has been lab tested with a speed of 5.26 Mach making it the fastest cruise missile in the world. BrahMos II is expected to be ready by 2013-14 and will arm the Project 15B destroyers of the Indian Navy.

Specifications

  • Country : India
  • Class : S/Su/L/ALCM
  • Target : Land, Ship
  • Length : 8.4 m
  • Diameter : 0.67 m
  • Launch Weight : 3900 kg (2500 kg for Air launched Variant)
  • Payload : 200 kg HE / Conventional semi-armour-piercing warhead
  • Propulsion : Ramjet w/ solid booster
  • Range : 300 km
  • Guidance : INS, GPS, active and passive radar Specs chart from RIA Novosti

References

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