In a historic achievement, India on Monday successfully flight-tested Hypersonic Technology Demonstrator Vehicle (HSTDV) from Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam Launch Complex at Wheeler Island off the coast of Odisha today.
DRDO with this mission, has demonstrated capabilities for highly complex technology that will serve as the building block for NextGen Hypersonic vehicles in partnership with industry.
— DRDO (@DRDO_India) September 7, 2020
The successful test makes India only the fourth country in the world to procure the vehicle. This indigenously-developed HSTDV is powered by made in India scramjet engine, which will serve as the building block for next-generation hypersonic cruise missiles.
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DRDO has called this a ‘giant leap in indigenous defence technologies and a significant milestone towards an atmanirbhar Bharat’. Defnece minsiter Rajnath Singh, DRDO Chairman and more called the test a milestone in strengthing the defence front of the country.
Defense Minister Rajnath Singh in a series of tweets lauded the achievement of DRDO scientists. He added that with the successful HSTDV flight test, using the indigenously developed scramjet propulsion system will help enhance major technologies that India eyes to contain in its kitty in the near future.
The HSTDV test was conducted from the Dr Abdul Kalam Island off the Odisha coast at 11.03 am. It is designed to cruise at Mach 6 speed and it is aimed at ‘demonstrating autonomous flight of a scramjet integrated vehicle, which can have multiple civilian applications, including launching satellites at a low-cost, as well as military uses in the shape of long-range cruise missiles’, TOI reports.
Now that the test has been successful, India will be making its first hypersonic missile in the next five years.
Defence sources said the hypersonic combustion sustained and the cruise vehicle continued on its desired flight path at a velocity of six times the speed of sound, which is nearly 2 km, for more than 20 seconds.
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Such types of missiles are five times faster than light and sound and can be used as both attacking and anti-air defence purposes.
