Amid perceived security threats from China and Russia, countries are filling up their inventories with munitions lethal enough to take down their enemies. Two missiles making headlines amid rising tensions are Astra and Aster.
With roughly similar nomenclature, the two missiles are expected to play similar roles—bolstering firepower amid emerging threats from China and Russia.
Even though delays have marred the delivery of India’s indigenous LCA Tejas Mk-1A, the Aeronautical Development Agency (ADA) conducted a test launch of the Astra missile from one of its prototypes.
In the other part of the world, European countries, including the UK, France, and Italy, confirmed a new order for the European Aster missile.
India’s Tejas Mk-1 Fires Homegrown Astra Missile
The Indian Ministry of Defence (MoD) announced that the indigenous Tejas Light Combat Aircraft Mk-1 effectively destroyed an aerial target on March 12 by firing the Astra beyond visual range air-to-air missile (BVRAAM).
Conducted at Chandipur in Odisha, the test showed that when fired from the prototype of the indigenous combat fighter, the Astra missile is capable of engaging targets over a distance of 100 kilometres, beyond the range that is visible to the pilot, said the MoD.
Designed and developed by the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), the enhanced guidance and navigation capabilities of the beyond visual range missile enable it to destroy targets more precisely. The MoD stated that all the subsystems performed accurately, validating all mission parameters and objectives.
The successful test-firing is believed to be a significant milestone towards the induction of the LCA Mk1A variant. However, Squadron Leader Vijainder K. Thakur (retd), an IAF veteran and a popular military commentator highlighted: “The use of a LCA Mk1 to qualify the missile for use on Mk1A caused some confusion. The recent test was likely done from a LCA LSP aircraft equipped with the Israeli Elta EL/M-2052 Active Electronically Scanned Array (AESA) radar, to qualify the missile for use on LCA Mk1A.”
Intriguingly, the delivery of the Tejas MK-1A aircraft has been grossly delayed amid a rapidly depleted squadron strength in the Indian Air Force (IAF), which has led to widespread bickering across the service. The IAF Chief, A.P. Singh, has been particularly critical of the laxity in the production and delay in the delivery of the aircraft.
However, the state-owned Hindustan Aeronautics Limited announced that the delivery of the 180 Mk-1A variant, which has been delayed due to the delays in the delivery of GE-404 engines, will be completed by 2031-32.
The Astra, India’s first indigenously developed beyond-visual-range air-to-air missile (BVRAAM), has been positioned as a superior alternative to the widely used Russian-origin R-77 missile.
Vinod Kumar, General Manager of New Projects at BDL, stated last year: “Astra is currently in production, and we anticipate receiving additional orders. We are also exploring the possibility of exporting the Astra missile.”
In August 2023, the Tejas LSP-7 successfully tested the Astra missile off the coast of Goa, proving that it could engage targets farther than 100 kilometers away. Building on this achievement, the IAF has permitted BDL to manufacture 200 more Astra-Mark 1 missiles. Already integrated with the Su-30, they will now be equipped with the Tejas Mk-1A.
Astra is a powerful tool in aerial combat because of its sophisticated characteristics. With the missile, a pilot can target enemies that are far out of their line of sight. The missile’s 20-kilometer operational ceiling guarantees that it could successfully attack adversaries in a variety of combat situations.
The Astra missile, which can reach Mach 4.5, offers the quick reaction and interception essential in modern air combat. Its 100–120–second flight time allows it to eliminate threats quickly, a capability fully verified by DRDO’s rigorous testing on several platforms, including Tejas.
The sophistication of Astra extends to its guidance system. Using a combination of inertial guidance, mid-course updates, and terminal active radar homing (effective at 13 kilometers), the missile ensures high precision in target engagement. This advanced guidance, coupled with its resistance to electronic countermeasures (ECM), significantly enhances the Indian Air Force’s combat effectiveness.
European Allies Bank On Aster Missiles
France, Italy, and the UK confirmed earlier this week the order for 218 more Aster missiles and the acceleration of the delivery of already ordered missiles as part of a joint acquisition plan.
The Organisation Conjoint de Coopération en matière d’Armement (OCCAr) signed the agreement on behalf of the Segretariato Generale della Difesa for Italy, Defence Equipment & Support for the UK, and DGA for France for the benefit of their respective armed services.
OCCAr is bolstering the European missile sector with this new contract, backed by MBDA and leading European companies like Thales, Avio, and KNDS Ammo.
The deal includes the manufacturing of new Aster 15s (for the French Navy) and Aster 30 B1s (for the SAMP/T NG for France and Italy, as well as the naval defense systems of the three countries).
“It aims to accelerate production of the Aster missiles ordered in December 2022, with 134 additional missiles delivered between 2025 and 2026. Initiated in 2024, this increase in production rates is the result of adaptations made by MBDA and its subcontractors to meet the challenges of the defence effort,” states the DGA press release.
The Aster missile family forms a key component of various European air defence systems, equipping the navies, air forces, and armies of France, Italy, and the UK. The latest additional order also demonstrates how important this cooperation is to the member governments. Both the Aster 15 and Aster 30 are two-stage missiles that share accelerators and a terminal delivery mechanism.
Aster 15 is vertically launched and autonomously guided to withstand saturating strikes from fighter planes, maneuvering missiles, and slower aircraft like reconnaissance and marine patrol planes. Due to its very short missile preparation time and very high speed, the Aster weapon system has a rapid engagement capability.
The Aster 30 missile can engage conventional and ballistic targets. It can travel at a speed of 1.4 kilometers per second and intercept targets at altitudes from 50 meters to 20 kilometers.
Aster 30 is used on the SAMP/T NG system, which consists of a command-and-control module, a radar with 360-degree coverage and a range of over 350 kilometers, and up to six launchers. Each launcher is equipped with eight Aster 30 missiles and a battery that normally requires 20 crew members. Each launcher can fire eight missiles in ten seconds.
OCCAR stressed the agreement’s importance and the need for “upgraded Air-Defence systems to face increasingly more challenging threats” in light of the “present geopolitical environment.”
Moreover, the development comes as cracks have appeared in the Transatlantic relationship since Donald Trump became the American president.
Trump has trained his guns on his NATO allies, exhorting them to increase defense spending and threatening that Washington would not be responsible for their defense. The new missiles will equip European countries as security threats continue to rise.
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