Source : Indian Defence News
It is confirmed that Rudram-III will have a ground attack variant with Penetration-Cum-Blast (PCB) warhead, development of this warhead is completed, and there is an anti-radiation variant also planned.
According to a Twitter post by Varun Karthikeyan, the Rudram-III is a hypersonic, air-launched, quasi-ballistic missile with a range of about 550 kilometers and a speed of more than Mach 5. The Rudram-III is expected to have a ground attack variant and an anti-radiation variant.
The Rudram is a series of air-to-surface missiles developed by the Defence Research and Development Organisation of India (DRDO). The missiles can be launched from a range of altitudes and are designed to destroy enemy communication stations, bunkers, and surveillance radars.
The Rudram is being manufactured jointly by Bharat Dynamics Limited and Bharat Electronics Limited
DRDO is said to be preparing Sukhoi Su-30MKI jets for possibly firing trials.
Rudram-III may have a range of 500 km and can achieve hypersonic speeds. DRDO is planning to bring further software improvements to handle a larger variety of targets under various operational conditions while developing a separate ground-based variant to be launched from a mobile launcher. DRDO is developing Rudram-II with a range of 300 km and air-to-ground attack version Rudram-III with a 550 km range.
According to the report, the plan is to make the missile a part of the Air Force by 2022 after conducting six to seven more tests. The missile’s passive homing head can detect, classify, and engage targets over a wide band of frequencies as programmed
