BrahMos will go from supersonic to hypersonic in ten years

BrahMos is set to be hypersonic in the next ten years if all goes as per plan. Work to upgrade the BrahMos missiles from supersonic to hypersonic speeds are underway, informed Sudhir Kumar Mishra, CEO and MD of BrahMos Aerospace Ltd.

Interacting with the media after Godrej Aerospace handed over the 100th set of airframe BrahMos Aerospace and also won the order to produce 100 more units of the air-launched versions of the missile, Mishra said the process has already begun.

Mishra said that the current BrahMos missiles have a speed of 2.8 Mach. In two years time, we would have a speed of 3.5 Mach. In the next three to four years time, we would have a speed of 5 Mach," he further added.

"Then we have to go hypersonic which would take seven to 10 years from ramjet engine we have to move to scramjet engine," he said, adding that the development is going to be a complex process."

The hypersonic missile would have immense destructive power besides its speed.

The Missile Technology Control Regime (MRCR) regime has enabled India to trade in high-end missile technology and also enhance its joint ventures with Russia.

BrahMos is a supersonic cruise missile with a flight range of up to 290 km. It can cruise at an altitude of 15 km and as low as 10 metre above the ground and maintains supersonic speed (more than 1 km per second) throughout the duration of its flight. Once the missile is fired, it doesn't need any guidance from a control centre. This makes it a 'fire and forget' missile.

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