BrahMos Missile: India’s Export Deals and Key Features
Why in the news
The Defence Secretary used the Shangri-La Dialogue platform in Singapore to announce that India had signed a ₹5,800-crore pact to sell BrahMos missiles to Vietnam. A comparable deal with Indonesia was said to be close to completion.
Key facts
- Vietnam deal: worth ₹5,800 crore, for supersonic cruise missiles.
- Indonesia: a similar export agreement is in its final stages.
- Maker: BrahMos Aerospace, a 1998 joint venture of DRDO and Russia’s NPO Mashinostroyeniya.
- Name: a blend of the Brahmaputra and the Moskva rivers.
- Launch modes: multi-platform (ground, naval, undersea, aerial).
- Edge over subsonic missiles: roughly 3x velocity, 3x range and 9x kinetic energy.
Missile profile
| Parameter | Detail |
|---|---|
| Class | Universal, long-range supersonic cruise missile |
| Speed | About Mach 2.8 |
| Warhead | Conventional, up to 200 kg |
| Altitude | Up to 15 km; sea-skimming as low as 5 m |
| Propulsion | Solid booster plus liquid ramjet sustainer |
| Operating idea | Fire and Forget |
| Launcher | Transport Launch Canister (TLC) |
Cruise vs ballistic missiles
- A cruise missile is a self-propelled guided weapon that uses wings and an engine such as a turbojet or ramjet, flying low and following terrain, like a pilotless aircraft. Subsonic examples are the US Tomahawk and India’s Nirbhay; BrahMos is supersonic.
- A ballistic missile is powered only in its boost phase and then follows an unpowered arc through space and the upper atmosphere. Types by range are SRBM, MRBM, IRBM and ICBM. India’s Agni series is ballistic.
Significance
- High speed, low flight, sea-skimming and accuracy suit it to hitting ships and precise land targets, as radar struggles to track it.
- Supersonic speed throughout flight makes interception difficult for modern air defences.
- The Missile Technology Control Regime (MTCR) governs missile-technology exports; India has been working within its limits to extend BrahMos range for MTCR-member partners.
Exam angle
- Forum: Shangri-La Dialogue, Singapore.
- Joint venture partners: DRDO and NPO Mashinostroyeniya; year 1998.
- Related terms: MTCR, cruise vs ballistic missile, Agni, Nirbhay.