ndia Unveils Long-Range Hypersonic Glide Missile, Marking a Leap in Naval Strike Capability

Why in News ?

At the 77th Republic Day Parade on Kartavya Path, the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) unveiled the Long Range Anti-Ship Hypersonic Missile (LR-AShM) for the first time.

This has drawn attention to India’s expanding portfolio of hypersonic missile programmes, signalling a growing emphasis on next-generation strategic and tactical weaponry, particularly for maritime dominance and deterrence.

Background: Hypersonic Weapons and Strategic Competition

Hypersonic weapons—defined as systems travelling at speeds exceeding Mach 5—represent a transformative shift in modern warfare due to their:

• Extreme speed,
• High manoeuvrability,
• Low detectability, and
• Ability to evade missile defence systems.

Globally, only a few countries, including the United States, Russia, and China, have operational or near-operational hypersonic systems. India’s entry into this domain reflects its ambition to enhance credible deterrence, protect maritime interests, and strengthen indigenous defence capabilities.

LR-AShM: India’s Hypersonic Glide Missile

The DRDO showcased the Long Range Anti-Ship Hypersonic Missile (LR-AShM) along with its launcher. The system is tailored to meet the Indian Navy’s coastal battery requirements and can engage both static and moving targets at ranges of up to 1,500 km, carrying multiple payload options.

Quasi-Ballistic, Hypersonic Flight Profile

The LR-AShM follows a quasi-ballistic trajectory, beginning like a ballistic missile but flying at lower altitudes and manoeuvring mid-course.

• It reaches initial hypersonic speeds of Mach 10 and sustains average speeds of around Mach 5.
• The missile uses multiple atmospheric skips, enabling unpredictable flight paths and complicating interception.

Low Detectability and High Survivability

• Flying at low altitude with extreme speed and manoeuvrability, the missile remains largely undetectable to enemy ground- and ship-based radars.
• Its flight profile drastically reduces reaction time for adversary air-defence systems, enhancing survivability in contested environments.

Two-Stage Propulsion and Glide Phase

The missile uses a two-stage solid rocket motor:

• Stage I boosts the missile to hypersonic velocity and then separates.
• After Stage II burnout, the vehicle enters an unpowered hypersonic glide phase, executing controlled manoeuvres within the atmosphere before striking the target.

High Aerodynamic Efficiency

• According to DRDO scientists, the LR-AShM has high aerodynamic efficiency, allowing it to generate effective lift with minimal drag.
• This enables the missile to travel farther, faster, and more accurately using the same energy, significantly enhancing operational effectiveness and strike precision.

Strategic Significance and Road Ahead of LR-AShM

Reduced Reaction Time for Adversaries

At hypersonic speeds, the missile can cover a 1,500 km range in about 15 minutes, leaving minimal time for detection, tracking, and interception.

Extended-Range Variants

Extended-range variants of up to 3,500 km are already under development, which could significantly enhance India’s strategic reach and deterrence posture.

Boost to Sea Denial Capabilities

The missile can neutralise all classes of warships, including aircraft carriers, destroyers, and submarines operating near the surface. Current and future variants are expected to become a critical asset for sea denial operations, particularly in the strategically vital Indian Ocean Region (IOR), limiting adversaries’ military and commercial use of maritime spaces.

Multi-Service and Multi-Platform Potential

Beyond the Navy’s coastal batteries:

• Army and Air Force versions are under consideration.
• Ship-launched variants are also being explored.

This multi-platform adaptability could firmly place India among a small group of nations with comprehensive hypersonic weapons capability.

Leveraging Proven Missile Technologies

The LR-AShM draws on key technologies from India’s existing missile programmes, including:

• The K-15 (Sagarika) from the K-missile family, and
• The BrahMos Aerospace supersonic cruise missile.

This reflects a convergence of proven propulsion, guidance, and control systems into a next-generation hypersonic platform.

India’s Other Hypersonic Cruise Missile Efforts

Amid intense global competition, the DRDO is pursuing two parallel hypersonic paths:

1. Hypersonic Glide Vehicles (HGVs) – Launched via rocket into high altitudes, then detach to glide and manoeuvre through the atmosphere at speeds exceeding Mach 5.
2. Hypersonic Cruise Missiles (HCMs) – Fly within the atmosphere at hypersonic speeds using scramjet engines for sustained, powered flight and high manoeuvrability.

The LR-AShM represents the glide vehicle track, showcasing major indigenous advances in materials science, thermal protection, and control systems for sustained hypersonic flight.

Ramjets vs Scramjets

• Ramjets are air-breathing engines that compress incoming air using forward motion. They:
  • Require assisted take-off,
  • Operate best around Mach 3,
  • Lose efficiency at hypersonic speeds.
• Scramjets (Supersonic Combustion Ramjets) keep airflow supersonic in the combustion chamber, enabling efficient operation above Mach 5.
  • They are technologically far more complex,
  • Essential for sustained hypersonic cruise flight.

Recent Breakthrough: Full-Scale Scramjet Testing

Earlier this month, DRDO achieved a major milestone by conducting ground tests of an Actively Cooled Scramjet Full-Scale Combustor, recording a run time of over 12 minutes.

This built on a successful subscale test conducted on April 25 last year, which ran for more than 1,000 seconds. DRDO had earlier demonstrated hypersonic air-breathing scramjet technology with the Hypersonic Technology Demonstration Vehicle (HSTDV) flight test in September 2020 from Dr APJ Abdul Kalam Launch Complex, marking a foundational step toward operational hypersonic cruise missiles.