BrahMos Aerospace is a joint venture between India and Russia that manufactures supersonic cruise missiles which can be launched from submarines, ships, aircraft and land platforms

Photo Credit : IAF,

The Indian Air Force successfully launched an extended-range version of the BrahMos Air Launch missile on Thursday.

“The missile achieved the desired mission objectives while carrying out a precision strike against a Ship target from a Su-30 MKI aircraft in the Bay of Bengal region,” the IAF tweeted.

BrahMos Aerospace is a joint venture between India and Russia that manufactures supersonic cruise missiles. Submarines, ships, aircraft and land platforms can all launch missiles. A BrahMos missile travels at 2.8 Mach, or nearly three times the speed of sound.

According to the government, the IAF has gained a “significant capability boost” in carrying out precision strikes from SU-30MKI aircraft over very long distances against land or sea targets.

“The extended range capability of the missile, combined with the high performance of the SU-30MKI aircraft, provides the IAF with strategic reach and allows it to dominate future battlefields,” the Press Information Bureau said.

The Indian Army tested a BrahMos supersonic cruise missile from the Andaman and Nicobar Islands on 30 November. The Army's Western Command had tested the missile's extended range version.

The BrahMos missile test comes just days after India successfully tested the nuclear-capable ballistic missile Agni V from the APJ Abdul Kamal Island off the coast of Odisha. The Agni V has a strike range of up to 5,000 kilometres.