The Indian Air Force has allocated two Su-30MKI fighters for flight tests of supersonic air-based BrahMos cruise missiles, Interfax AVN reports, citing Pravin Patak, head of marketing for the Russian-Indian BrahMos joint venture.
“It is expected that a contract with the Sukhoi design bureau for the modification of Su-30MKI aircraft as an air platform for BrahMos missiles will be signed in the near future. The Irkut Corporation will carry out the modernization of the first two aircraft. The Indian Air Force has allocated two fighters for these purposes,”said Pravin Patak at the Indo Defense 2010 international arms exhibition in Jakarta.
Land-based and ship-based BrahMos missiles are already being supplied to the Indian Armed Forces. A submarine version of the missile is being developed. According to him, the version of the air-launched missile has already been created, the missile has passed a cycle of ground tests. After the appropriate refinement of the aircraft, it will be possible to begin flight tests of the missiles.
Test launches of BrahMos missiles from fighters
Su-30MKI will be carried out at the Indian Air Force training grounds with the participation of representatives of Russian firms and the Indian HAL corporation, which will subsequently modernize the Indian Air Force aircraft fleet for a new powerful type of weaponry.
It is planned to begin equipping the first Su-30MKI with BrahMos missiles in early 2011, and to complete flight tests of the air-launched missile in 2012.
The new Russian-Indian cruise missile BrahMos is designed to destroy a wide range of different targets. It is characterized by a high flight range (up to 290 km), a high supersonic speed (up to 2, 8 M), a powerful combat load (up to 250 kg), as well as low visibility for radars. The flight of the rocket, the weight of which in the basic version is 3,000 kg, is carried out in the altitude range of 10-14 thousand meters along a variable trajectory. The new rocket implements the “fire and forget” principle in practice - it finds the target itself.
The air-launched missile will be 500 kg lighter than the base one. According to experts, there are no analogues of such a rocket, which would have a supersonic speed and a similar flight range, in the world yet. In relation to foreign counterparts, which are currently in operation, "BrahMos" has advantages in speed by 3 times, in range of action - 2, 5 times, in response time - 3-4 times.
