The Philippines became the first country to purchase BrahMos, the world’s best cruise missile jointly developed by India and Russia. Many countries are approaching India in search of BrahMos, one of the best missiles in the defense market. Arab countries have also come forward to buy Brahmos.
The Philippines’ decision to buy the BrahMos cruise missile is expected to benefit India in the global arms market. It is known that the Philippines demanded 3 battery BrahMos missiles. A battery has 4 to 6 missiles. The deal is worth $ 37.49 billion (approximately Rs 2,774 crore). The missile will be deployed by the Philippine Coast Guard Regiment. China poses a major security threat to the Philippines. It is known that Vietnam and Chile are also interested in buying Brahmos.
This is the first time India has exported a weapon of strategically high value. India exported arms to 42 countries worth about Rs 8,500 crore last year, but all of them are small arms such as rifles, torpedoes, shells, spare parts for large arms and parachutes. The Dhruv helicopter, developed by Hindustan Aeronautics, is one of the largest military equipment exports in the past.
Earlier, Financial Express Online reported that it had expressed interest in purchasing BrahMos missiles from the Gulf region, including Qatar, the UAE and Saudi Arabia. Discussions are still ongoing. Negotiations have reportedly stalled due to the global crisis caused by Kovid-19.
The Philippines has become the first country to acquire an Indo-Russian BrahMos system, despite negotiations with several countries, including Thailand, Indonesia and Vietnam, to sell land and sea-based versions of the supersonic cruise missile.
The BrahMos aerospace team, which builds the weapons system, had already visited Manila. Manila is reportedly preparing to equip the Philippine Army’s first land-based missile system battery with India’s BrahMos.
The BrahMos is the only supersonic cruise missile in the world. Special editions of the BrahMos have been developed for land, naval and air forces. Only Sukhoi 30 aircraft are capable of carrying BrahMos missiles. Sukhoi was modifying and preparing for this. The modified aircraft was handed over to the Air Force in February 2015 at Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) in Bengaluru. The Sukhoi 30-Brahmos integration was completed after another year of testing and work.
The advantage of the BrahMos-Sukhoi combination is that it can attack even targets that are not clearly visible. The BrahMos missile was jointly developed by India and Russia. The speed is 3,200 kilometers per hour. Weight 2500 kg. Can be touched from land or sea. The range of the micro-attack is 290 km. It can launch up to 16 missiles at a time. All 16 missiles will launch at three-second intervals and reach the exact target. No matter how small the goal, it will reach exactly. No matter how big the target, it can be completely destroyed.
India is also developing BrahMos missiles with high range capability. The increase in the range of the BrahMos was made possible in June 2017 when India became a member of the Missile Technology Control Regime (MTCR). India gained membership despite strong Chinese intervention. MTCR is a consortium of 34 countries involved in the manufacture and distribution of ballistic missiles. MTCR allows member states to test missiles and drones weighing up to 500 kg and up to 300 km and to exchange technologies with each other.
The transfer of missiles with a range of more than 300 km to countries not member of the MTCR was banned. Russia was already a member of the MTCR. Due to this, the range of BrahMos, a joint venture between India and Russia, was reduced to 300 km. It was this obstacle that India strategically overcame with membership. After joining MTCR, India and Russia were able to jointly sell BrahMos.
Ballistic missiles travel half the distance using gravity. Cruise missiles, on the other hand, use fuel from start to finish. Therefore, the accuracy of the BrahMos cruise missile is high. The BrahMos can be controlled up to the destination like a drone. For example, even the most difficult destinations in the hills can overcome the obstacles of nature and smash the Brahmos accurately.
About Brahmos
1. BrahMos Aerospace was established by DRDO (India) and NPOM (Russia).
2. BrahMos Aerospace was established in February 1998.
3. The Brahmos are named after the rivers Brahmaputra and Moskva.
4. The BrahMos supersonic cruise missile is capable of launching from land, air, ship and submarine. (Mac3 is faster)
5. The flight range of BrahMos is 290 km.
6. The BrahMos can carry 200 to 300 kilograms.
7. The first version of BrahMos was tested in 2005 by INS Rajput.
8. In 2007, BrahMos was tested offshore.
9. Can be launched from underwater.
10. In 2015, BrahMos was tested from the sea.
11. In 2017, BrahMos tested the state-of-the-art fighter aircraft Sukhoi-30.
12. India and Russia are behind the new experiments with the hypersonic version of BrahMos.
English Summary: Philippines Gives $374 Million Contract To BrahMos Aerospace To Supply Missiles
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