Context: The Defence Research & Development Organisation (DRDO) and the Indian Air Force (IAF) successfully conducted flight-tests of the indigenous RudraM-II Air-to-Surface missile from an airborne platform at the Integrated Test Range (ITR) in Chandipur, Odisha.
About The RudraM-II Missile:
What It Is?
- RudraM-II is an advanced, high-speed, indigenously developed Air-to-Surface anti-radiation missile. It is designed to be launched from frontline fighter aircraft to detect, track, and neutralize enemy radar, communication networks, and surface-to-air missile (SAM) sites by homing in on their radio frequency emissions.
Developed By: The missile has been developed under a collaborative ecosystem led by the Research Centre Imarat (RCI), Hyderabad, functioning as the nodal DRDO laboratory.
Aim:
- The primary objective of RudraM-II is to provide the IAF with Suppression of Enemy Air Defences (SEAD) capability.
- By destroying the enemy’s ground-based radar and air defense infrastructure during the initial phases of a conflict, it ensures safe operations for friendly strike aircraft.
Key Technical Features:
- Hypersonic Velocity: The missile is capable of reaching a peak velocity of Mach 5.5, making it an incredibly fast weapon that minimizes the target’s reaction and interception time.
- Extended Stand-Off Range: Features a striking range of approximately 300 km, allowing Indian fighter jets to launch the weapon from well within safe airspace without entering the envelope of enemy air defense systems.
- Payload Capacity: Equipped to carry a conventional warhead weighing up to 200 kg, optimized for destroying hardened radar installations and concrete command bunkers.
- Dynamic Launch Envelope: Designed for multi-altitude flexibility, it can be safely released from airborne platforms (such as the Su-30MKI) flying at altitudes ranging anywhere between 3 km and 15 km.
- Hybrid Guidance Architecture: Integrates a state-of-the-art navigation suite combining an Inertial Navigation System (INS) and GPS with a highly sensitive Passive Homing Head (PHH). The PHH acts as a radio ears-and-eyes system, detecting and locking onto enemy radio frequency transmissions across a very wide frequency band.
Significance:
- RudraM-II showcases India’s growing indigenous missile capability, reducing dependence on imported air-to-surface weapon
- The missile is set to replace older Russian-origin Kh-31 missiles, offering better range, speed, accuracy, and guidance systems.
