Indigenously developed surface-to-air Akash missile successfully test fired

New Delhi: India on Monday test fired its indigenously developed surface-to-air Akash missile from the Integrated Test Range (ITR) at Chandipur near here.

The missile targeted an unmanned air vehicle (UAV) named ‘Banshee’, an official of the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) said. The missile, with a strike range of 25 km and capability to carry warhead of 60 kg, was test fired from the launch complex-3 of the ITR, he said.

It is a medium-range surface-to-air anti-aircraft defence system developed by DRDO as part of the Integrated Guided Missile Development Programme.

More than three decades after the project was initiated, the missile was formally inducted into the Indian Air Force and the Army last year. Akash has the capability to neutralise aerial targets like fighter jets, cruise missiles and air-to-surface missiles. The last trial from this base was conducted on January 28.