Proud achievement: India becomes fourth country to test hypersonic vehicle
In what marks a huge achievement for India, the country on Monday successfully tested the indigenously-developed Hypersonic Technology Demonstrator Vehicle (HSTDV) off the coast in Odisha. India has now become the fourth country after the United States, Russia, and China, to possess this technology. Union Defense Minister Rajnath Singh congratulated the developers, DRDO, for this feat, adding that India was proud of their work.
HSTDV will play important role in futuristic missile systems
The HSTDV, which can reach up to 32.5 kilometer within 20 seconds, will provide the base for developing next-generation hypersonic cruise missiles. Designed to cruise at Mach 6, or six times the speed of sound, HSTDV can be used for multiple civilian and military projects. The energy-efficient vehicle can be used for launching missiles at low-cost.
The testing lasted for nearly five minutes
HSTDV's testing started at 11:03 am at the Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam Launch Complex at Wheeler Island, and it lasted for some five minutes. As part of the test flight, it was mounted on the Agni missile booster which took it to a height of 30 kilometer. Thereafter, HSTDV split from the launch vehicle and completed its desired flight as planned.
Vehicle performed well on all parameters: Official
"The vehicle performed successfully on all the pre-determined parameters including the ability to handle combustion temperatures of over 2500 degrees Celsius as well as airspeed," a senior DRDO official told HT.
Here are the visuals from the spot
DRDO can develop hypersonic missiles in five years
Buoyed by this success, DRDO will be able to develop a hypersonic missile with a scramjet engine within the next five years or so. Since hypersonic weapons aren't easily weathered down by modern ballistic missile defense systems, their presence will strengthen India's military. Among other features, the HSTDV can also detect missiles in the inner and outer atmospheres.
Testing paves way for more critical technologies: DRDO Chief
DRDO Chief Dr. Satheesh Reddy, who led the test, was ecstatic after the favorable results. "This testing paves the way for many more critical technologies, materials, and hypersonic vehicles' development," he said, adding that India is now a member of the elite group. Separately, Defense Minister Rajnath Singh also congratulated DRDO and the team of scientists who worked on this historic project.
