The Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS) has approved the establishment of a new missile testing range in Nagayalanka in Krishna district, Andhra Pradesh.
The development of the missile range has not been smooth. The petroleum ministry granted clearance for the project in 2012 after being persuaded that it would not affect plans to prospect for oil and gas in the Krishna River Delta.
The Defence Research and Development Organization (DRDO) originally planned to start construction of the facility in 2013. However, the test site happened to be within the limits of the Krishna Wildlife Sanctuary.
The DRDO received approval from the federal environment ministry to convert 155 hectares of mangrove forest in Machilipatnam, Andhra Pradesh, into a missile launch testing facility. The approval was challenged in the Supreme Court, but the legal challenge didn’t hold.
Phase 2 Ballistic Missile Defence (BMD) Test Site
Official sources say that once the new facility is fully operational, both short—and long-range missiles could be tested there. However, the test range is being primarily developed for testing missiles being developed for India’s Phase 2 Ballistic Missile Defence (BMD) program.
India currently has two missile test ranges at Chandipur and Wheeler Island. The existing ranges do not facilitate the testing of Phase 2 BMD interceptors, which requires two ranges placed well apart along the missile trajectory.
DRDO is developing two new missile ranges at Nagayalanka in Krishna district, Andhra Pradesh, and at Rutland Island in the Andamans.
BMD Phase 1 & 2
During BMD Phase 1, DRDO developed and deployed a system to defend against missiles with less than 2,000 km range, such as Pakistan’s Ghauri and Shaheen missiles and China’s solid-fuel Dongfeng-21 (NATO designation: CSS-5).
Under Phase 2, DRDO is augmenting missile defense capability to provide a shield against missiles with ranges greater than 2,000 km that can additionally deploy decoys or maneuvers.
The Phase 2 system will require longer-range radars (Detection range of 1,500 km as opposed to 600 km for Phase 1 radars) and new hypersonic interceptor missiles flying at Mach 6-7 (as opposed to Mach 4-5 for Phase 1 missiles) with agility and the capability to discriminate against ballistic missile defense countermeasures.
The system will intercept missiles at very high altitudes and be capable of handling multiple, simultaneous attacks.
Swordfish Radar
BMD Phase 2 uses the indigenously developed Swordfish Long Range Tracking Radar (LRTR) for target tracking. The L-band AESA radar is a derivative of the Israeli EL/M-2080 Green Pine long-range radar used while developing BMD Phase-I. The detection range for the latest variant of the Swordfish is reported to be 1500 km.
Phase 2 Interceptor Missiles
The Phase 2 missile defense system will be based on the AD-1 and AD-2 interceptor missiles that are currently under development.
These interceptors would be capable of shooting down missiles that have ranges greater than 5,000 km, which follow a distinctly different trajectory than a missile with a range of 2,000 km or less. During their final phase, ICBMs hurtle toward their targets at speeds twice those of intermediate-range missiles. (6-9 km/s)
The Phase 2 system will match the capability of the THAAD or Terminal High Altitude Area Defence missiles deployed by the United States as part of its missile shield. THAAD missiles can intercept ballistic missiles over 200 km away and track targets at ranges in excess of 1,000 km.
The AD-1 is a long-range interceptor missile designed for both low exo-atmospheric and endo-atmospheric interception of long-range ballistic missiles as well as aircraft.
It is propelled by a two-stage solid motor and equipped with an indigenously developed advanced control system, navigation, and guidance algorithm to precisely guide the vehicle to the target.
AD-1 Tests
On November 2, 2022, the DRDO successfully conducted the maiden flight test of the AD-1 interceptor missile with a large kill altitude bracket from Abdul Kalam Island. The test was carried out with the participation of all BMD weapon system elements located at different locations.
The maiden test validated the basic functionality of the system elements (radar, launcher, MCC) deployed in their operational geographical locations.
The DRDO carried out follow-up tests of the AD-1 interceptor in July. The tests appear to have focused primarily on validating radar tracking, missile guidance, and the communication layer of BMD Phase-2.
Unlike the interceptor’s maiden test in November 2022, the July test also involved the launch of a target missile.
The press release announcing the tests stated that the test “fully met all the trial objectives validating complete network-centric warfare weapon systems consisting of Long-Range Sensors, a low-latency communication system, MCC (Missile Control Centre), and Advanced Interceptor missiles.”
Floating Test Range
In addition to the two ranges being developed in Andhra Pradesh and the Andaman Islands, BMD Phase 2 will reportedly also use a Floating Test Range (FTR).
The Hindu reported on September 7, 2015 that construction is underway of a floating test range (FTR) – a 10,000 ton ship that will be used to launch target missiles for testing BMD interceptors.
A DRDO scientist told The Hindu that the FTR “will pave the way for conducting trials for different trajectories, varying altitudes, and also for higher ranges. We can go up to 1,000-1,500 km without any problem. Currently, we have to conduct simulation tests for longer ranges.”
Ocean Surveillance Ships (OSS)
DRDO has ordered two Ocean Surveillance Ships (OSS) for Phase 2 of its BMD program. The Indian Navy will operate the ships.
The first of the ships, INS Dhruv, was commissioned into the Indian Navy on September 10, 2021. The ship, which has a displacement of 10,000 tonnes, was built by the Hindustan Shipyard in collaboration with the DRDO and NTRO.
The ship has a state-of-the-art active scanned array radar (AESA) developed by the DRDO, which will enable it to scan various spectrums, monitor spy satellites watching over India, and monitor missile tests in the entire region.
A sister ship of INS Dhruv is under construction at Cochin Shipyard.
- Vijainder K Thakur is a retired IAF Jaguar pilot, author, software architect, entrepreneur, and military analyst.
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