India successfully carries out final trial of anti-tank guided missile with a warhead in Pokhran
India on Thursday successfully carried out the final trial of the Defence Research and Development Organisation-developed Nag anti-tank guided missile with a warhead. The test was carried out at 6.45 am at the Pokhran field firing ranges in Rajasthan.
The missile system is now ready for induction into the Indian Army. The Nag trial comes after the DRDO tested the helicopter launched Stand-Off Anti-Tank Missile (SANT) with beyond 10 km range from Balasore testing range in Odisha on October 19.
"India today successfully carried out the final trial of the DRDO-developed Nag anti-tank guided missile with a warhead. The test was carried out at 6:45 am at the Pokhran field firing ranges in Rajasthan," Defence Research and Development Organisation officials said today.
The army had been looking for such a missile system to take down the enemy tanks and other armoured vehicles. The Nag Missile system fired from a Nag Missile Carrier (NAMICA) can take our targets at ranges of 4 to 7 kilometres and is fitted with an advanced seeker to home on to its target.
A third-generation anti-tank guided missile, NAG has top attack capabilities that can effectively engage and destroy all known enemy tanks during day and night.
The Army needs third-generation ATGMs with a strike range of over 2.5km with fire and forget capabilities. It needs them to equip its mechanised infantry units to carry them on their Russian BMP vehicles.
Currently, the Army is using second-generation Milan 2T and Konkur ATGMs and has been looking for about third-generation missiles, which are important for stopping advancing enemy tanks.
In 2018, the Defence Ministry had cleared the acquisition of 300 Nag missiles and 25 NAMICAs for the Indian Army.
Earlier on October 18, India sucessfully test-fired the BrahMos supersonic cruise missile from an indigenously built stealth destroyer of the Indian Navy in the Arabian Sea. The missile, fired from INS Chennai, hit the target with pin-point accuracy after performing "extremely complex" manoeuvres.
