Indian MoD orders additional BrahMos missiles for navy

A BrahMos PJ-10 missile is launched from the vertical launching system (VLS) of the Rajput-class destroyer INS Ranvir . (Defence Research and Development Organisation)

India's Ministry of Defence (MoD) has decided to acquire more BrahMos PJ-10 supersonic cruise missiles for the Indian Navy.

The MoD signed a contract worth about INR17 billion (USD213.3 million) with BrahMos Aerospace Private Limited (BAPL) on 22 September for procuring “additional dual-role”-capable BrahMos PJ-10 missiles to “enhance the operational capability of [the] Indian Navy fleet assets”, the MoD said in a media release.

The Indian Navy will be acquiring the “extended-range variant” of the BrahMos missile under this contract, a source in the MoD cognisant of the matter told Janes on 23 September.

According to the source, the expected range of the BrahMos missiles that will be delivered under this contract is about 350−400 km.

The BrahMos missiles are being primarily acquired for ‘Project 15 Bravo' or the new Visakhapatnam-class destroyers of the Indian Navy, the source said.

In January, the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) tweeted that the first Visakhapatnam-class vessel, INS Visakhapatnam , which was commissioned in November 2021, has tested an “advanced sea-to-sea variant of BrahMos”.

“[The BrahMos] missile hit the designated target ship precisely” during the test, the DRDO said in the tweet.

The Indian Navy plans to induct three more Visakhapatnam-class vessels by 2024. This includes INS Mormugao , which is undergoing sea trials, and is expected to be commissioned by the end of 2022.

The new Nilgiri-class and Talwar-class frigates − scheduled to be commissioned during the next few years − will also be equipped with the BrahMos missiles, the source told Janes .