India successfully flight tests helicopter-launched SANT missile. Watch
The indigenously designed and developed helicopter-launched stand-off anti-tank (SANT) missile has the ability to neutralise targets in a range of up to 10 kilometres.
The Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) and Indian Air Force (IAF) on Saturday successfully flight-tested the stand-off anti-tank (SANT) missile from Pokhran range.
The indigenously designed and developed helicopter-launched missile has the ability to neutralise targets in a range of up to 10 kilometres. It is equipped with a state-of-the-art millimetre wave (MMW) seeker which provides high precision strike capability from a safe distance.
The ministry of defence said in a statement that the flight test achieved all of its mission objectives. It added that the “release mechanism, advanced guidance and tracking algorithms, all avionics with integrated software, performed satisfactorily and tracking systems monitored all mission events.”
Defence minister Rajnath Singh congratulated the team associated with the mission.
The slow-motion video released by the DRDO shows the SANT missile getting launched from a helicopter and precisely striking the target.
Watch: DRDO’s helicopter-launched SANT missile precisely strikes target
The SANT missile’s flight test is the third in the series of indigenous stand-off weapons to be tested in recent times after the Long-Range Bomb and Smart Anti-Airfield Weapon (SAAW), further strengthening the arsenal of the Indian Air Force. The ministry said that the indigenous developments with advanced technologies are a “firm march towards ‘Aatmanirbharta’ in defence.”
Dr G Satheesh Reddy, secretary, department of defence R&D and Chairman DRDO, said the successful flight test of the SANT missile would further bolster the indigenous defence capabilities. The SANT missile has been designed and developed by Research Centre Imarat (RCI), Hyderabad in coordination with other DRDO labs and participation from industries.
