India has successfully test-fired the BrahMos supersonic cruise missile in Balasore, Odisha, as part of the weapon system’s service life extension programme. The missile was test-fired from a Static Inclined Launcher stationed at launch pad three of the Integrated Test Range (ITR) at Chandipur. Carried out by the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) and BrahMos Aerospace, the trial was conducted to demonstrate the efficacy and the missile system’s longevity.

An ITR official said that the life extension test was carried out to validate the missile’s life-extension technologies that are indigenously developed for the first time by DRDO and BrahMos team, according to Press Trust of India reports. During the trial, the BrahMos precision strike missile flew in its designated trajectory, demonstrating that all the major components of the weapon functioned properly.

In November last year, the supersonic cruise missile was launched from a Sukhoi-30 MKI fighter jet for the first time. With a flight range of up to 290km, BrahMos is a two-stage missile that can be launched from land, sea and sub-sea platforms. BrahMos is a joint venture (JV) company formed by the DRDO and Russian aerospace enterprise NPO Mashinostroyeniya (NPOM).