India enters elite club of hypersonic technology |
India on 7th September entered the Hypersonic Regime with the first successful test of a Hypersonic Technology Demonstration Vehicle or HSTDV --which can be used for futuristic missile systems and aircraft. The test was conducted off the coast of Odisha. So far, Russia, China and the US have been developing hypersonic test vehicles. A hypersonic cruise missile, once developed, can defeat any Chinese defensive system. India`s Defence Research and Development Organisation ( DRDO ), which conducted the test, called it a "historic mission", which was "a giant leap in indigenous defence technologies and significant milestone" towards a Self-Reliant and Empowered India. Calling it a "major technological breakthrough," DRDO chief Dr Satheesh Reddy said: that this testing paves the way for many more critical technologies, materials, and hypersonic vehicles` development. This puts India in a select club of nations which have demonstrated this technology. Prime Minister Narendra Modi also congratulated DRDO on the achievement. He tweeted- Congratulations to @DRDO_India for the successful flight of the Hypersonic Test Demonstration Vehicle today. The scramjet engine developed by our scientists helped the flight achieve a speed 6 times the speed of sound! Very few countries have such capability today. The DRDO said, the Indian hypersonic test vehicle flies six times the speed of sound.
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