The Indian Air Force’s Sukhoi Su-30MKI, Light Combat Aircraft Tejas Mk 1A, and MiG-29 UPG will be given the Astra air-to-air missile system by the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO). Astra is an air-to-air missile system that has been designed and built to shoot down enemy planes and drones beyond the range of human sight.
About The Astra Missiles
The DRDO made the Astra missile, which is a state-of-the-art air-to-air missile. This missile is made so that it can hit and destroy air targets at different distances and heights. The range of the Astra missile is up to 110 km, and it can hit targets up to 20 km in the air.
The missile can hit both targets that move quickly and ones that don’t, making it very useful in air-to-air combat. It does very well because it has a solid-fuel rocket motor and an advanced guidance system. The missile’s guidance system uses inertial navigation, mid-course guidance, and active radar homing for final guidance.
This makes it possible for the missile system to track and engage targets even when there is bad weather or electronic countermeasures. The Sukhoi Su-30 MKI, the Mirage-2000, and the Tejas are just some of the planes that can fire the Astra missile.
The missile has an onboard radio proximity fuse that lets it go off when it’s close to the target, doing the most damage and impact. The Astra was tested for the first time in 2003, and it went through several successful tests before it was put into use.
This missile is very important for India’s air defence because it gives the country its own, very advanced air-to-air defences. The Indian company Hindustan Aeronautics Limited made the fighter plane LCA Tejas, which these missiles will be put on (HAL). The plane was made to replace the MiG-21, which was getting old.
The Tejas is a single-engine fighter plane that is light and can be used for air superiority, ground attack, and reconnaissance. It can go as fast as Mach 1.8 and has a range of more than 3000 km, making it a very flexible plane. The Tejas has a state-of-the-art weapon system, an advanced radar, an electronic warfare suite, and a wide range of air-to-air and air-to-ground missiles.
The cockpit of the plane is also made to be easy for the pilot to use. It has a modern glass cockpit and a heads-up display, which give the pilot a great view of what’s going on around them. The Tejas has been updated with new technologies and a new weapons system, among other things. It is on the same level as modern planes with the latest technology.
The weapons and electronics on the Tejas Mk 1A are very advanced. It has the Derby Beyond Visual range missile from Israel. The Tejas is a big deal for India’s aerospace industry because it is the first plane that was designed and made in the country from start to finish.