India tests TARA air-launched weapon for first time

An Indian Air Force (IAF) Sepecat Jaguar launches a Tactical Advanced Range Augmentation (TARA) weapon on 7 May 2026. (PIB)

India's Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) and the Indian Air Force (IAF) have conducted the maiden flight-trial of the domestically developed Tactical Advanced Range Augmentation (TARA) weapon.

TARA, a modular range extension kit, is India's first domestically developed glide weapon system to convert unguided warheads into precision-guided, long-range munitions, according to the Indian Ministry of Defence (MoD).

The maiden test was conducted off the coast of Odisha state, in eastern India on 7 May, India's Press Information Bureau (PIB) said one day later. The trial involved a 500 kg bomb equipped with the TARA kit. A PIB-published photograph shows an IAF Sepecat Jaguar aircraft launching the weapon.

TARA is a product of DRDO's Hyderabad-based Research Centre Imarat (RCI), working in collaboration with other DRDO laboratories. According to PIB, the kit employs low-cost systems. Development-cum-production partners (DcPP) and other Indian companies have started production of the kit, the agency said.

Adani Defence and Aerospace displayed a model of TARA at Aero India 2025, indicating that the company is a development and production partner for the programme. The company also presented information at Aero India 2025 stating that the weapon can be deployed from altitudes ranging 10,000-45,000 feet, and at speeds near Mach 0.8. When released from an altitude of 42,000 feet at Mach 0.9, the bomb can strike targets up to 80–100 km away.

The kit is offered in two accuracy variants. The ‘SAT' (Satellite Aided Terminal) variant achieves a circular error probable (CEP) of less than 20 m, while the ‘UC-IIR' (Uncooled Imaging Infrared) variant improves accuracy to less than 3 m CEP, according to Adani.