Crucial interceptor missile test this week

**Tajmahal** · 4th March 2009 06:58

The new PAD interceptor missile,

*Interception Altitude: 45 to 85 km
*Interceptor warhead: 30 kg Directional warhead
*Target: Ship launched BM Dhanush
*Target range: Simulating as a 1500 km range BM (Can engage 300 to 1500 km range BM)
*PAD is a part of the network-centric warfare based layered missile defence system

Crucial interceptor missile test this week

http://www.thehindu.com/2009/03/04/s...0460291100.htm

Y. Mallikarjun & T.S. Subramanian

It will establish India’s capability to intercept Pakistan’s Hatf and Ghauri missiles

CHENNAI: A missile which will waylay and destroy an incoming ballistic “enemy” at an altitude of about 80 km will be launched off the coast of Orissa later this week.

This “crucial test” will seek to prove the efficacy of a host of new technologies, said officials in the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), which is conducting it. They described it as “a major test to establish a ballistic missile defence [BMD] shield as part of the network-centric warfare.” This is the third time an interceptor missile test is being conducted under the BMD shield that India seeks to establish.

The launch will feature two missiles. The “enemy” missile will be a modified version of Dhanush, a surface-to-surface missile. It will take off from a naval ship in the Bay of Bengal and simulate the terminal phase of the flight of a ballistic missile with a range of 1,500 km, similar to Pakistan’s Ghauri. As it zeroes in on the Wheeler Island, off Damra village on the Orissa coast, a Prithvi Air Defence (PAD) missile will lift off from the Wheeler Island, intercept the incoming “enemy” missile at an altitude of 70-80 km in the last one second and a half of its flight and pulverise it.

The interceptor PAD missile will use, for the first time, the gimballed directional warhead. It has so far been used only in the U.S. and Russia. When the directional warhead fragments in 360 degrees all round, the target missile coming in from only one direction is sure to be blown up. “Ground tests have been done on the directional warhead. In flight, it will be done for the first time. This is a new thing,” the DRDO officials said.

A directional warhead weighs less than 30 kg but its lethality is equivalent to a 150-kg warhead. The PAD would also feature “trajectory optimisation” to enable interception at not only a higher altitude of 80 or 85 km but also at 45 km. It could engage missiles with a range of 300 to 1,500 km.

“The distinct advantage” of intercepting a missile at a higher altitude of 80 km is that the debris will take longer to fall through the atmosphere before it hits the ground and hence will become cinders because of the re-entry of heat, the DRDO officials said. In a typical war scenario, this would reduce the effect of any fallout of nuclear debris and the risk associated with radiation.

The first interceptor missile test, which took place on November 27, 2006, waylaid an incoming ballistic missile in the exo-atmosphere at 48-km altitude. The second test took place on December 6, 2007 against a target missile at 15-km altitude in endo-atmosphere. The third test would be part of India’s plan to deploy a two-layered BMD system in the coming years.

In terms of strategic importance, the test would establish India’s capability to intercept Pakistan’s Hatf and Ghauri missiles.

**Neo_Arch** · 4th March 2009 11:34

PAD would be working in conjunction with Advanced Air Defence AAD, May be like a twin layered defence.

Hope that this gets operational soon and protect India.

can anyone provide any details about the Operational timeframe for this system??

**Neo_Arch** · 4th March 2009 11:34

PAD would be working in conjunction with Advanced Air Defence AAD, May be like a twin layered defence.

Hope that this gets operational soon and protect India.

can anyone provide any details about the Operational timeframe for this system??

**Tajmahal** · 5th March 2009 15:11

http://www.hindu.com/thehindu/holnus...0903051815.htm

Missile defence shield: India to test interceptor on Friday

New Delhi (IANS): India will on Friday test launch its indigenous interceptor missile that will destroy an incoming ballistic "enemy" missile at an altitude of 80 km and will provide defence against Pakistani and Chinese missiles, an official said.

"All the preparations have been made and all the scientists are working to make the test successful," a Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) official said.

The test, to be conducted at Wheeler's Island off the coast of Orissa, will establish the credible missile defence against Paksitan's Hatf and Ghauri missiles. The first test of the interceptor missile was conducted in 2006.

"During the test an 'enemy' missile which will be a modified version of the Dhanush surface-to-surface missile will will be fired from a naval ship in the Bay of Bengal and simulate the terminal phase of the flight of a ballistic missile with a range of 1,500 km, similar to Pakistan's Ghauri missile," he official said.

"As the incoming missile nears Wheeler Island, a Prithvi air defence missile will be launched to intercept it at an altitude of about 80 km and kill it," the official added.

DRDO needs to carry out at least three to four trials with both versions before the missile shield is certified for operational use.

"The test will mark the completion of the first phase of the programme and it will secure operational clearance by 2012-13," he added.

On December 6, 2007, DRDO had for the second time successfully tested an endo-atmospheric - below 30 km altitude - version of the ballistic missile defence shield. The missile aims to protect populated areas and vital installations like nuclear power stations and oil wells.

The missile shield will have highly sensitive radars to track incoming missiles. The guidance system would ensure that the interceptor collides with the incoming missile within a matter of seconds, thereby saving vital targets from destruction.

Baptised as the Prithvi Air Defence system, the agile interceptor has now been renamed Pradyumna.

DRDO says its missile system is comparable to the Israeli Arrow system and the American Patriot system, both of whose manufacturers are courting the Indian defence establishment for possible orders.

It expects ballistic missile shield to take care of threats from existing Chinese and Pakistani missiles. While Pakistan possesses missiles with ranges between 400 and 2,000 km, the Chinese arsenal varies from a range of 300 km to 2,800 km.

**Deltacamelately** · 6th March 2009 10:31

[QUOTE=Tajmahal;619903 While Pakistan possesses missiles with ranges between 400 and 2,000 km, the Chinese arsenal varies from a range of 300 km to 2,800 km.[/QUOTE]
China doesn't has missiles with greater range?

**Kommunist** · 6th March 2009 12:28

I also thought China has ICBMs......

Anyways

India successfully tests interceptor missile

6 Mar 2009, 1658 hrs IST, IANS

NEW DELHI: India has successfully tested an indigenous interceptor missile that destroyed an incoming "enemy" ballistic missile at an altitude of 80
km, an official said.

During the test, an 'enemy' missile which was a modified version of the Dhanush surface-to-surface missile was fired from a naval ship in the Bay of Bengal to simulate the terminal phase of the flight of a ballistic missile with a range of 1,500 km.

As the incoming missile neared the Wheeler Island off the Orissa coast, a Prithvi air defence missile was launched to intercept it at an altitude of about 80 km and kill it, the official added.

The test was part of the Defence Research and Development Organisation's effort to put in place a ballistic missile shield.

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/I...TOI_latestnews

**payeng** · 6th March 2009 12:37

Why does DRDO use a liquid propelled interceptor since Prithvi missiles are known to be (liquid) fueled prior to its launch only how effective a PAD interceptor would be regarding operational readiness.

**sanjeevisatish** · 6th March 2009 13:58

Originally Posted by payeng

Why does DRDO use a liquid propelled interceptor since Prithvi missiles are known to be (liquid) fueled prior to its launch only how effective a PAD interceptor would be regarding operational readiness.

Prithvi has two versions one is solid fuel and the other is liquid fueled.

**Tajmahal** · 6th March 2009 14:05

Originally Posted by Deltacamelately

China doesn't has missiles with greater range?

Yes, Chaina has. But they are talking about India-China front most probably. A 3000 km range missile is enough for China to attack any part of India from a good distance.

India Successfully Tests Missile Interceptor

http://www.bernama.com/bernama/v5/ne....php?id=394579

By P. Vijian

NEW DELHI, March 6 (Bernama) -- India achieved another milestone in the defence industry after it successfully developed and tested its own indigenous ballistic missile interceptor that can destroy enemy missiles.

The interceptor would be part of the ballistic missile defence (BMD) shield developed by the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), which could destroy incoming ballistic missiles at an altitude of between 50km and 80km.

Indian military experts conducted the test on Wheeler's Island, off the coast of Orissa, Friday.

"India today inched closer towards its endeavour to put in place its own home-grown ballistic missile defence system as it successfully carried out the third interceptor test from the Integrated Test Range (ITR).

"Today's test achieved all the mission objectives. The two-stage Interceptor Missile fitted with advanced systems hit the target enemy missile at 75km altitude," said a DRDO statement released after the test.

DRDO had developed a two-tier BMD programme -- the Prithvi Air Defence (PAD) missile for high altitude interception and the Advanced Air Defence (AAD) for lower level interception.

This is the third interception trial done by DRDO, the first being in 2006 and the second in 2007, all demonstrating the robustness of the Indian-made BMD capabilities, added the statement.

India successfully tests missile interceptor
The Associated Press

Published: March 6, 2009

NEW DELHI: India successfully tested its homegrown missile interception system Friday for the third time, the Defense Ministry said, boosting the chances of turning it into a viable defense system.

The incoming missile was fired from a ship in the Bay of Bengal and intercepted at an altitude of 46 miles (75 kilometers), the Defense Ministry said in a statement.

"The mission control room burst into raptures as the radar display indicated the interception and destruction of the decoy enemy missile by the interceptor," the statement said.

The test comes at a time of heightened tension between India and its archrival Pakistan over the deadly Mumbai attacks, which India blames on Pakistani militants. Both nations are nuclear armed.

The test was believed to be routine and part of an ongoing series of trials.

India first tested the system, using a modified version of the medium-range and nuclear-capable Prithvi II surface-to-surface missile, in 2006.

If the interceptor missile can be transformed into a viable defense system, it would see India join an elite club of nations with working missile shields. However, this is expected to take several more years and tests.

http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2009/...le-Defense.php

**payeng** · 6th March 2009 17:39

Originally Posted by sanjeevisatish

Prithvi has two versions one is solid fuel and the other is liquid fueled.

Reports indicates that one among the two rocket motors of PAD aka Pradyumna is liquid propellant.

**Tajmahal** · 6th March 2009 18:42

Originally Posted by payeng

Reports indicates that one among the two rocket motors of PAD aka Pradyumna is liquid propellant.

Yes, PAD aka Pradyumna has a liquid fueled propellant (Prithvi) as its primary stage with a exo-atm kill vehicle as second stage. A solid propellant would be better but the Privi missile was readily available and quoted as the work-horse of the DRDL, so they have chosen Prithvi. A new solid propellant based BMD is also under development which will be ready for test by 2010.

**n21** · 6th March 2009 20:48

Actually the first stage of the interceptor is now solid fueled,while the second stage is liquid.

The details are given within this report

http://www.hindu.com/2009/03/07/stor...0755831200.htm

**Tajmahal** · 6th March 2009 21:26

Originally Posted by n21

Actually the first stage of the interceptor is now solid fueled,while the second stage is liquid.

The details are given within this report

http://www.hindu.com/2009/03/07/stor...0755831200.htm

Thanks n21, excellent details of Friday's test!

But the first stage as I said is a liquid propellant and the second stage is solid.

**payeng** · 8th March 2009 16:36

The PAD aka Pradyumna looks too bulky and at the same arrangement atleast 4 patriot missiles could have been employed. However I should rather congratulate DRDO rather than criticize more over how many nations have that capabilities. I hope with time size will reduce and range will increase.

**Deltacamelately** · 9th March 2009 11:34

This is a milestone achievement. The program will just keep maturing from this point. However, MoD will have to start talking the numbers. Because inspite of the accuracy of the BMD interceptors, numbers still play a critical role as because it is quite possible to overwhelm a good BMD Shield will non stop missile salvos and unfortunately we have already lost the SAM race to the Chinese long back.

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