India on Wednesday successfully flight-tested the enhanced Pinaka rocket system, developed by Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), from the integrated test range at Chandipur off the coast of Odisha.
Development of enhanced Pinaka system was taken up to achieve longer range performance compared to the earlier design with reduced length.
“The design and development have been carried out by Pune-based DRDO laboratories, namely Armament Research and Development Establishment, ARDE and High Energy Materials Research Laboratory, HEMRL,” the defence ministry said in a statement.
A total of six rockets were launched in quick succession and the tests met complete mission objectives.
The rockets tested have been manufactured by M/s Economic Explosives Limited in Nagpur, to whom the technology has been transferred, it said.
All the flight articles were tracked by range instruments such as telemetry, radar and electro-optical tracking systems which confirmed the flight performance.
“Enhanced version of the Pinaka rocket would replace the existing Pinaka Mk-I rockets which are currently under production,” the statement added.