BrahMos missile successfully tested using a Sukhoi-30 aircraft

India's Brahmos supersonic cruise missiles mounted on a truck are shown in New Delhi

India successfully conducted the first trial of supersonic cruise missile BrahMos from a Sukhoi-30 MKI on Wednesday.

The government, in a press release said that the missile was gravity dropped from the Sukhoi-30 fuselage and that the two stage missile’s engine fired up and straightway propelled towards the intended target at sea in the Bay of Bengal.

The successful maiden test firing of BrahMos Air Launched Cruise Missile (ALCM) from Su-30MKI will significantly bolster the IAF’s air combat operations capability from stand-off ranges, the government said.

Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman also congratulated Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) and BrahMos for the accomplishment.

Wednesday’s launch is significant as there is no other such weapon available to be fired from land, sea as well as air platforms.

The BrahMos missile

Jointly developed by India and Russia, the air force version of the 8.4-meter BrahMos missile has a strike range of 290 km and carries a conventional warhead of up to 300 kg.

This high-precision missile travels at supersonic speed of Mach 2.8. Though the test was initially planned in 2015, it was deferred due to delay in integration with the aircraft.

Unlike the Army and the Navy versions of the BrahMos missile, the weight of the Air Force version was reduced to help integrate it with the Sukhoi aircraft.