Indian Air Force successfully test-fired an extended-range variant of Brahmos missile

The Indian Air Force successfully tested the air-launched Brahmos missile's extended-range (ER) version on Wednesday, allowing it to engage targets farther away than previously. The missile's extended-range version has a maximum range of 400 to 500 km and can hit both land and marine targets while flying at supersonic speed.

A senior Indian Air Force officer told India Today that a Sukohi-30MKI aircraft took off from a southern Indian airfield and went more than 1,500 kilometres before precisely hitting a target with its missile. The IAF may now strike valuable targets on land or in the sea thanks to this capacity. The IAF now enjoys a strategic advantage because to the missile's longer range and the Su-30MKI's superior performance.

A former IAF chief pointed out in a recent podcast that Su-30 MKI jets equipped with air-launched Brahmos missiles were also stationed in Eastern Ladakh in 2020 amid tensions along the India-China border.

India and Russia jointly own Brahmos Aerospace, which is responsible for developing the Brahmos missile.