India successfully test-fires air-to-air ASTRA missile from LCA Tejas (WATCH)

In a significant milestone, the DRDO successfully test-fired indigenous Beyond Visual Range (BVR) air-to-air ASTRA missile from light combat aircraft (LCA) Tejas on Wednesday off the coast of Goa. Released successfully from the aircraft at an altitude of about 20,000 feet, the missile achieved all objectives of the test. “It was a perfect textbook launch,” an official said.

The ASTRA Missile system 

ASTRA is a state-of-the-art BVR air-to-air missile that engages and destroys highly manoeuvring supersonic aerial targets. It is designed and developed by the Defence Research and Development Laboratory (DRDL), Research Centre Imarat (RCI) and other laboratories of DRDO. 

“The indigenous Astra BVR firing from home-grown Tejas fighter is a major step towards ‘Aatmanirbhar Bharat’.”

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh said the launch would significantly enhance the combat prowess of Tejas and reduce the dependency on imported weapons.

In the 1990s, the DRDO initiated concept studies for developing an indigenous air-to-air missile system. In March 2004, the Atal Bihari Vajpayee government sanctioned the Astra project with a budget outlay of Rs 995 crore. 

After several iterative modifications in the design, the Astra missile began ground testing in December 2012 and the missile was cleared for captive flight trials on the Su-30MKI combat platform in April 2013. The first Astra missile was launched from the Su-30MKI in May 2014 and so far, around 30 missiles have been test-fired to ascertain and validate its performance.