India’s Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) has flight-tested the high-speed expendable aerial target (HEAT), Abhyas.
Abhyas was tested from DRDO’s integrated test range (ITR) in Chandipur, Odisha, India, on 22 October.
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It is designed and developed by DRDO’s Aeronautical Development Establishment (ADE) as a HEAT system in Bengaluru, India.
The target aircraft’s performance was monitored through telemetry and other tracking sensors, including radars and an electro-optical tracking system (EOTS).
In a statement, the Indian Ministry of Defence (MoD) stated that the current flight test is executed as a part of developmental flight trials.
According to the MoD, the expression of interest (EOI) for vehicle production has already been sent to Indian industries.
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By GlobalDataOnce developed, this target aircraft will meet the needs of high-speed HEAT for the Indian Armed Forces.
MoD said: “Dr G Satheesh Reddy, Secretary, Department of Defence R&D and chairman, DRDO also congratulated the teams associated with successful flight test of ‘ABHYAS’ and termed it as a force-multiplier considering its accuracy and effectiveness.”
The locally developed missile target vehicle can be used as a target to evaluate the effectiveness of several missile systems.
The vehicle is equipped with a small gas turbine engine and leverages MEMS-based inertial navigation system (INS) to navigate and the Flight Control Computer for guidance and control.
Launched using a twin underslung booster, the vehicle is programmed for fully autonomous flight.
