Journalism of Courage
The Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) has successfully conducted three successive flight-trials of the Very Short-Range Air Defence System (VSHORADS) from Chandipur off the coast of Odisha. These tests were carried out against high-speed targets flying at very low altitude.
VSHORADS is a fourth generation technically-advanced miniaturised Man Portable Air Defence System (MANPAD), indigenously designed and developed by DRDO’s Hyderabad-based premier facility Research Centre Imarat (RCI) in collaboration with other DRDO laboratories and Indian Industry partners.
During all the three flight-tests on Saturday, the missiles intercepted and completely destroyed the targets which had a reduced thermal signature to mimic low flying drones. These targets were flown at different flying conditions.
The flight-tests were carried out in final deployment configuration where two field operators carried out the full operation sequence of weapon readiness, target acquisition and missile firing.
“The flight data captured by various range instruments like telemetry, electro-optical tracking system and radar deployed by Integrated Test Range, Chandipur, confirmed the pin-point accuracy and established the unique capability of VSHORADS missile system in neutralizing drones along with other classes of aerial threats.
The flight-tests were witnessed by senior officials of DRDO, armed forces and development and production partners,” a press statement from the Ministry of Defence read.
Defence Minister Rajnath Singh congratulated DRDO, armed forces and the industries for the successful flight tests, terming it as a great success. DRDO chairperson Dr Samir V Kamat also congratulated the entire DRDO team, users and the industry partners.
The development trials of the missile were carried out at the Pokhran Field Firing Ranges in Rajasthan in October last year and showcased repeatability of hit-to-kill capability of the weapon system in various target engagement scenarios covering approaching, receding and crossing modes. The DRDO said that the missile system has the capability to meet the needs of all the three branches of the armed forces — Indian Army, Navy and Air Force.
During the development phase of the VSHORADS missile, two production agencies were engaged in the development-cum-production partner (DcPP) mode. In the development trials in October last year, the missiles produced through DcPPs were successfully used, paving the way for early user trials and production in a short time. Similarly, two successful trials were conducted in February 2024 and in September 2022.
