Friday, September 19, 2014

Brahmos Missile Facts We Tend to Ignore

Brahmos-A mockup on a Su-30MKI at Aero India 2013

Brahmos is not the only supersonic cruise missile, as is often claimed by the DRDO and local India media. The Chinese YJ-12, also powered by a ramjet engine like the Brahmos, can fly at speeds greater than Mach 4 and has a max range of 400-km! The YJ-12 can be launched from Chinese Su-30MKK aircraft.

The missile is armed with a newly designed 205 kg warhead, compared to the 200-kg warhead of the Brahmos missile. (Brahmos-A, the air launched variant of the missile, is reported to have a 300-kg warhead)

YJ-12 AShM can be armed with a radar seeker, an imaging infrared seeker, or a television seeker,

Brahomos-A weighs 2.55-ton or 5,600-lb making it the heaviest ALCM known to mankind! The Russian Kh-101/-102 (conventional and nuclear versions respectively) ALCM, carried by Russian Tu-95MS and Tu-160 bombers. is the current heaviest ALCM with a launch weight estimated at 5,300 lb. The Kh-101 has a range of 2000-3000 km (6,000 miles according to Russian media!) and features a 880-lb / 400-kg warhead,

Further Reading Links for IDP Sentinel Members

Brahmos Missile - IDP Sentinel
Brahmos-A ALCM Variant (IDP Sentinel)

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