DRDO & IAF successfully conduct India’s first indigenous glide weapon flight trial

Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) and the Indian Air Force (IAF) successfully conducted the maiden flight-trial of the Tactical Advanced Range Augmentation (TARA) weapon off the coast of Odisha on 7 May. TARA, the modular range extension kit, is India’s first indigenous glide weapon system to convert unguided warheads into precision guided weapons.

BEHIND THE SCENES

TARA has been designed and developed by Research Centre Imarat (RCI), Hyderabad along with other DRDO laboratories to enhance the lethality and accuracy of a low-cost weapon to neutralise ground-based targets. It is the first glide weapon to utilise state-of-the-art, low-cost systems. The development of the kit has been undertaken with Development cum Production Partners (DcPP) and other Indian industries.

Broadly comparable to the Israeli SPICE system, which is already in service with the IAF, TARA is being integrated with multiple frontline fighter aircraft including the Jaguar, Mirage-2000, Sukhoi Su-30MKI and TEAJS. This integration will provide the IAF with enhanced strike capabilities against ground-based targets, while reducing dependence on imported systems.

Raksha Mantri Shri Rajnath Singh congratulated DRDO, IAF, DcPP, and the Industry for the maiden flight-trial, describing it as a significant development in advancing India’s indigenous defence capabilities.