In another big deal for BrahMos supersonic cruise missiles, the defence ministry is about to finish buying over 200 more of these long-range missiles for the Navy’s front-line warships.
The Rajnath Singh-led Defense Acquisitions Council will soon look at the proposal to buy the missiles and other equipment that goes with them (DAC). “Then it will be sent to the PM-led cabinet committee on security for the final approval.
At the moment, the details of the deal are being worked out. There will be deliveries over a long period of time. “The final cost will depend on how many BrahMos are cleared and how they are set up… “It could be more than Rs 15,000 crore, though,” a source said.
These missiles will be used on warships like the four Project-15B destroyers (two of which, INS Visakhapatnam and INS Mormugao, have already been commissioned) and the seven Project-17A frigates (five of which have already been “launched” in water).
Ten frontline warships are already equipped with BrahMos missiles, which were made by Russia and the U.S. together. These missiles fly at Mach 2.8, which is almost three times the speed of sound, and their vertical launch systems have been put on five more warships.
On March 5, the Navy tested the air-breathing BrahMos from a warship in the Arabian Sea. It used “an indigenous seeker and booster designed by DRDO.”
The military is also bringing in BrahMos missiles that have been upgraded and now have a range of 450 km instead of 290 km. A version of BrahMos with a range of 800 km has also had its first test, and a couple more are planned for this year.
Over the years, BrahMos has become the “prime conventional (non-nuclear) strike weapon” for the military. Contracts worth more than Rs 38,000 crore have already been signed.
BrahMos will be added to all frontline warships over time. On January 10, for example, the DAC approved buying BrahMos launchers and fire control systems for Shivalik-class frigates and next-generation missile vessels “to improve the ability to carry out maritime strike operations, including stopping and destroying enemy warships and merchant vessels.”
In a similar way, the IAF wants to equip another 20–25 Sukhoi-30MKI fighters with the BrahMos after Hindustan Aeronautics changed the first 40 jets so they could carry the missile.
Sukhois with BrahMos missiles have a combat radius of almost 1,500 km without having to refuel in the air. This makes them a very powerful weapon for pinpointed strikes against high-value targets like warships on the high seas or enemy positions, bunkers, command-and-control centres, and other similar places on land.
Along the 3,488-km Line of Actual Control, the Army’s BrahMos missile batteries have been set up in both Ladakh and Arunachal Pradesh as part of a larger plan to be ready to fight China.
India also wants to sell the BrahMos to other countries. In January 2022, it signed a $375 million contract with the Philippines to buy three anti-ship coastal missile batteries.
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