Hat-trick for missile technologists, armed forces

The Hindu ^ | 3/29/2010 | Y. Mallikarjun

[ErnstStavroBlofeld]

a hat-trick for missile technologists and the armed forces in the last two days, Agni-I, which can carry nuclear weapons and has range of 700 km, was flight-tested successfully from the Wheeler's Island, off the Orissa coast, on Sunday.

The ship-based Dhanush and Prithvi-II were test-fired in a salvo mode on Saturday.

The medium range surface-to-surface Agni-I, fired at 1.07 hours from a mobile launcher, homed in on the target within a few metres of accuracy as it splashed down in the Bay of Bengal.

The launch was carried out by Army personnel as part of a training exercise.

Best-ever launch

Describing it as one of the best-ever launches, Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) officials said the specialised navigation and guidance system enabled the missile to reach the target with a high degree of accuracy after a 500-second flight duration.

During the course of the flight, it reached an altitude of 300 km and re-entered the atmosphere, withstanding high temperatures of more than 2,000 degree Celsius, as specially-developed heat shields provided protection to the electronic components and the payload.

The radars and electro-optical tracking system along the coast monitored the missile's path and trajectory-related parameters in real time.

Two down-range naval ships, about 700 km from the Wheeler's Island, tracked the missile reaching the target.

[bunkerhill7]

Nothin` better than a good crossfire.