Watch: DRDO successfully tests India's first indigenous air-to-air missile 'Astra'
The test-fire of the air-to-air missile was conducted by DRDO using the Indian Air Force's Sukhoi Su-30MKI aircraft.
India on Monday successfully flight tested the indigenously-designed air-to-air missile, Astra, from the Sukhoi Su-30MKI combat aircraft off the Bay of Bengal coast in Odisha. The fighter, which had taken off from an airbase in West Bengal, fired the indigenously-designed missile that has a range of more than 70 kilometers.
The test-fire of the air-to-air missile was conducted by the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) using the Indian Air Force's Sukhoi Su-30MKI aircraft, a heavy, all-weather, long-range fighter jet developed by Russia's Sukhoi and built by Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL).
The exercise was a part of user trials. The live aerial target was engaged with accurately, demonstrating the capability of India's first indigenous air-to-air missile.
The mission profile was executed in a textbook manner. Various radars, Electro-Optical Tracking System (EOTS) and sensors tracking the missile confirmed its engagement with the target.
Defence Minister Rajnath Singh congratulated the DRDO and IAF teams for the successful test.
Earlier on September 11, DRDO had successfully conducted the test-firing of the indigenously developed low weight, fire and forget Man-Portable Anti-Tank Guided Missile (MPATGM) in the ranges of Kurnool, Andhra Pradesh.