Bhubaneswar/New Delhi, July 11: In a significant boost to India's self-reliance in defence technology, the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) and the Indian Air Force (IAF), on Friday, successfully conducted a flight test of ASTRA, Beyond Visual Range Air-to-Air Missile (BVRAAM), equipped with an indigenous radio frequency seeker, from a Sukhoi-30 Mk-I fighter aircraft off the coast of Odisha, Ministry of Defence officials said.

According to the Ministry of Defence during the mission, two missile launches were carried out against high-speed unmanned aerial targets, under varying ranges, target aspects, and launch platform conditions.

In both instances, the Astra missiles successfully intercepted and destroyed the targets with pinpoint accuracy, validating the system's performance.

The Ministry of Defence said that the indigenous radio frequency seeker, designed and developed by DRDO, demonstrated exceptional performance, along with all other subsystems of the missile.

The tests were closely monitored through flight data captured by tracking instruments of the Integrated Test Range (ITR) in Chandipur, reaffirming the missile's reliability and precision.

The Astra missile, with a range of more than 100 km, is equipped with advanced guidance and navigation systems.

The development of the missile has been a collaborative effort involving multiple DRDO laboratories and more than 50 Indian industries, both public and private, including Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL).

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh congratulated the DRDO, IAF, and the industry partners for the successful development and testing of the indigenous radio frequency seeker.

He hailed the achievement as a major milestone in critical defence technology, reinforcing the vision of Atmanirbhar Bharat.

Samir V. Kamat, Department of Defence Research and Development Secretary and DRDO Chairman, also extended his congratulations to all teams involved, commending their dedication and efforts in achieving this significant breakthrough in air-to-air missile capability. (IANS)

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