LCA Tejas successful test fires Derby air-to-air beyond visual range missile

Indigenously developed light combat aircraft (LCA) Tejas successfully fired Derby air-to-air beyond visual range missile (BVRM) off the Goa coast. The successful test demonstrated its overall capability as effective supersonic combat jet. It also expands firing envelope as well demonstrated safe operation of Tejas during missile plume ingestion into aircraft engine under worst case scenarios. It will also enable its developers state-run HAL and Aeronautical Development Agency (ADA) of the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) inch closer to final operational clearance (FOC).

Derby BVR missile

Derby is short to medium range BVR Air-to-Air missile. It is a dual-use missile (air-to-air and surface-to-air).It is developed jointly by Israeli armament development agency Rafael and Israel Aircraft Industries MBT. It has maximum effective range of about 50 km.
The missile weighs around 118 kg light and is 3.8 metres long. Its weight allows it to be adapted to various modern fighter aircraft. It is active radar air-to-air missile for fighter aircraft and has capability to be launched at target day or night and in all weather conditions. It has look-down and shoot-down capability, fire and forget mode and advanced Electronic counter countermeasures (ECCM) tailored to customer’s operational requirements.

Month: Current Affairs - April, 2018