By NNN-PTI,
New Delhi : After a string of successful missile tests, India will undertake the climax trials of its indigenous third generation anti-tank missile ‘Nag’ next week.
The ‘fire and forget’ anti-tank missile, named after the King of snakes, Cobra, would undergo its final baptism trials for two days next week in the Pokhran desert, almost 22 years after it was first conceived, DRDO officials said.
Seven missiles would be fired against static and moving targets for 48 hours starting July 27 to test the land version of the weapon, which its makers the DRDO, claim can defeat any futuristic battle tank over a range of four kms.
“User trials by the army would come close on the heels of the Pokhran trials,” officials told PTI exuding confidence that the country’s first ever such weapon would be inducted in large numbers by November-December this year.
Army needs these missiles in large numbers which is evident by acquisition of 4,000 Anti-Tank Guided Missiles recently from Russia and France.
Now the forces are about to float new tenders to induct another 4,000 such missiles and DRDO expects the indigenous Nag to be on top of the contention.
Nag, is the last of the five missile systems successfully developed by the DRDO under the Integrated Guided Missile Development Programme (IGMDP).
The other four Surface-to-Surface Prithvi and Agni series of missiles as well as Surface-to-Air Akash are in the process of induction. About Trishul multi-mission missile, DRDO says development trials are already over.