India News:Interceptor missile test fired.

India test-fires Interceptor missile

Deba R Mohanty============================================================Posted: Sun Mar 06 2011, 10:37 hrsBhubaneswar:

India conducted one more successful test of its ballistic missile defence system when it successfully destroyed an “enemy” ballistic missile with an interceptor missile over Bay of Bengal off Orissa coast this morning .

At about 9.35 am the DRDO scientists launched a target missile from launch pad P-3 from Interim Test Range, Chandipur in Balasore district mimicking an enemy missile. About 3 minutes later, the interceptor missile blasted off from Wheeler Island, 70 km away. Guided by sensors the interceptor hit the "enemy missile" at an altitude of 16 km above the ground destroying it successfully, said Ravi Gupta, DRDO spokesman.

Long Range Tracking Radars located at Konark and Multi-Functional Fire Control Radar at Paradip tracked the enemy missile and passed on the information to Mission Control Centre. The MCC relayed the impact point and assigned the AAD battery to launch the interceptor.

DRDO officials said Sunday's test was endo-atmosphere (below 50 km altitude). The DRDO has so far had successfully tested its interceptor missile on July 26, 2010, November 27, 2006, December 6, 2007 and March 6, 2009. The interceptor trial in March 2010 was a failure.

DRDO sources said in the next one week more missiles would be tested off Bay of Bengal. On March 9, the K-15 missile would be testfired from Vizag coast while Dhanush, the naval version of Prithvi would be tested off Puri coast from a ship. On the same day, Prtihvi-2 missile would be testfired from Chandipur coast.

(source:indian express)

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