Important Facts For Prelims
Astra Missile
- 18 Sep 2019
- 1 min read
Recently, ASTRA the first indigenously developed air-to-air missile was successfully flight-tested off the coast of Odisha.
- The missile was launched from Sukhoi-30 MKI.
- The Astra missile is developed by Defence Research and Development Organization (DRDO).
- It works on the Beyond Visual Range Air-to-Air Missile (BVRAAM) technology that enables the fighter-pilots to shoot precisely at the enemy targets which are beyond their visual range.
- The specifications of the missile are:
- Speed: over 5,555 km per hour or 4.5 mach
- Range: over 70 km,
- Payload/warhead capacity: 15 kg.
- Features:
- Electronic Counter-Countermeasures or ECCM feature enables Astra missile to overcome defensive measures put forth for the target by the enemy.
- Another deadly feature of this missile is the option to choose between “Lock-on Before Launch – LOBL” and “Lock-on After Launch – LOAL”
- Lock-on After Launch option allows the fighter aircraft to safely shoot and scoot after launching the missile towards the target.
- Astra is extremely effective in a multi-target scenario and therefore, has been described as the most potent weapon system for IAF’s combat aircraft.
