‘BrahMos missile now 78% indigenous’: BrahMos Aerospace CEO to WION

When the first batch of Indo-Russian BrahMos missiles was delivered to the Indian Armed Forces in 2004, the missiles were barely 13 per cent indigenous. Over the last 19 years, Indian defence industries from across the government and private sector have been contributing immensely and the potent supersonic cruise missile now comprises 78 per cent indigenous components, Atul Dinkar Rane, CEO & MD BrahMos Aerospace Private Limited told WION.

Rane was in Chennai to unveil the latest version of the indigenous BrahMos missile Checkout Equipment manufactured by Indian private firm Data Patterns. In simple terms, the Checkout Equipment is a sophisticated machine that can perform in-depth diagnostics on the working of all crucial electrical and electronic sub-systems onboard the missile. Once a missile completes a successful Checkout, it is declared operational for use in the frontlines.

"The BrahMos missile is made to last as long as 10years. Annually, the Indian Armed Forces perform a complete health check of the BrahMos missileto ensure it is in perfect condition," he explained.

Simply put, similar to how a gadget is connected to a computer, the missile is connected to the Checkout Equipment and tests are performed on it and detailed reports are obtained.

Data Patterns said they had designed and built the Checkout Equipment based on the requirements and support of India's Government-run defence research lab DRDO and BrahMos Aerospace Private Limited. "Indigenous development of the Checkout Equipment by Data Patterns has resulted in a direct cost savings of about 75% in foreign exchange for BrahMos Aerospace," said Srinivasagopalan Rangarajan, Chairman & MD, Data Patterns.

Rane said that the Checkout system developed by Data Patterns has been deployed by the Indian Army, Navy and Air Force at multiple locations across the country. "Normally, during the development of a missile, we perform a launch and test it. In the case of a Checkout, it is like a virtual launch, where major internal components are put to test. This is a complex piece of equipment, as it has to evolve along with the missile and the modifications it undergoes."

"We have been making improvements on the missile system, the Armed forces always ask for it. We've been improving the system in terms of its performance" CEO, BrahMos told WION, when queried about the reported range upgrades of up to 400km (from 290km) in recent years.

"Now, the whole missile is almost indigenous, sans the Ramjet engine which is of Russian origin. We are now making efforts to even get that technology into the country, maybe 6-8 years down the line," he added.

Brahmos Aerospace was formed as a joint venture between India's DRDO and Russia's NPO Mashinostroyenia, the company was established in India in the year 1998. The word 'BrahMos' is derived from the names of India's Brahmaputra river and Russia's Moskva river.

The firm is responsible for designing, developing, producing and marketing the BrahMos supersonic cruise missile that can be fired from terrestrial, aerial and naval platforms. The missile is regarded as among the best in its class and can fly at speeds of Mach2.8 or 2.8 times the speed of sound.

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