India’s Agni-5 stands as one of the crucial superior nuclear-capable missiles, measuring 17.5 metres in size, weighing 50 tonnes, carrying a one-ton payload, and boasting a variety exceeding 5,000 kilometres.

The time period Agni means hearth, and the check mission was dubbed ‘Divyastra’, which means divine weapon. The check goals to bolster India’s nuclear deterrence functionality by exemplifying the MIRV (multiple independently targetable re-entry vehicle) technology, which entails launching multiple warheads from a single missile to focus on a number of locations.

This missile might be configured with a mixture of warheads and decoys, doubtlessly complicated adversaries and diminishing the effectiveness of Anti-Ballistic Missile (ABM) missions. Such functionality is designed to overwhelm the adversary’s ABM programs.

Read | Meet ‘Divya Putri’, Scientist Behind Agni-5 Missile With Multiple Warheads

India has no expansionist aspirations and has by no means initiated aggression towards any nation. Nonetheless, it has confronted quite a few aggressions since gaining independence. The MIRV capability would bolster the reassurance stage of India’s deterrence posture in alignment with its no-first-use coverage. It marks a big milestone in India’s indigenous missile improvement programme, essential for addressing safety considerations arising from hostile Chinese actions alongside the border, Pakistan’s backing of terrorism in India, rising navy collaboration between China and Pakistan, and the militarisation of the Tibet Autonomous Region.

Trajectory and Challenges

The Agni-V MIRV missile system, comprising a number of complicated applied sciences, was developed by the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) over a time period. The journey was not with out its challenges.

Countries possessing essentially the most superior missiles have usually saved vital missile applied sciences inside an unique membership. While some have shared older-generation missile applied sciences with shut allies, they’ve kept away from sharing area of interest missile applied sciences with superior capabilities, even with closest allies. India, like many others, confronted denials from this unique group of nations that possessed these superior applied sciences.

Spiral Development

While leapfrogging and lean improvement philosophies maintain relevance, improvement, testing, certification, and operationalisation of vital and complicated applied sciences might be time-consuming and difficult. Additionally, it will not be possible to develop sturdy programs within the first try, thus necessitating a ‘spiral improvement’ philosophy. The improvement of the superior, versatile, correct, and deadly Agni-5 missile is the results of a scientific improvement strategy involving numerous applied sciences and completely different variants of the Agni missile. It has been an extended, arduous, and difficult journey marked by onerous work, failures, and successes.

The conceptualisation of missile improvement dates again to the early Nineteen Eighties, with the launch of the Integrated Guided Missile Development Program (IGMDP) in 1982-83, which set into movement a sequence of missile improvement programmes. The Agni-5 MIRV check flight is the result of 4 a long time of spiral improvement.

A sequence of Agni sequence missiles have been developed thus, together with the primary check of the two-stage Agni expertise demonstrator in 1989, the 700-1,250 km vary rail/street cellular strong gasoline Agni-1 in 2002, the two,000-2,500 km Agni-II, the three,000-3,500 km vary three-stage Agni-III, and the three,000-4,000 km vary strong gasoline propellant Intermediate Range Ballistic Missile Agni-IV.

Ballistic Missile Development: Agni-IV and Agni-V

The improvement of the Agni-IV Intermediate-Range Ballistic Missile (IRBM) and the canister-launched three-stage Intercontinental Ballistic Missile (ICBM) Agni-V concerned the indigenous improvement of a number of vital applied sciences in India. These developments included the implementation of ring laser gyroscopes, composite rocket motors, launchers, and extra. Over time, the Circular Error of Probability (CEP) of those missiles was progressively lowered to reinforce their accuracy and effectiveness.

Handholding During Failures 

The Agni missile improvement programmes encountered quite a few setbacks at completely different phases, stemming from technological, manufacturing, and different flaws. Instances embrace the failed Agni-I missile check on May 29, 1992, the unsuccessful testing of the Agni-III missile with a brand new rocket configuration on July 9, 2006, and the first-night person trial failure of the nuclear-capable Agni-II IRBM missile on November 24, 2009, amongst others. Such setbacks aren’t distinctive to India, as comparable challenges have been confronted by the US, China, Russia, and different nations. Despite these obstacles, India persevered with the indigenous improvement of Agni missiles, demonstrating exceptional resilience throughout adversity.

The success of the indigenous Agni MIRV programme might be attributed to the synergy amongst builders, customers, and producers. The improvement and testing of the Agni-V MIRV characterize the preliminary steps towards operationalising this expertise.

However, previous person flight trial failures underscore the complexities concerned in transitioning from prototype to operational missile programs. Given China’s development in MIRV expertise, expediting the operationalisation and induction of the Agni-V MIRV is prudent. Additionally, India ought to proceed its Agni-VI program to develop ICBMs with ranges exceeding 8,000 km.

Lessons for India’s UAV Programme

India’s missile and UAV (unmanned aerial automobile) improvement programmes share a typical thread as each have been overseen by DRDO. Yet, their outcomes differ considerably. While the Agni programme efficiently developed complicated and denied applied sciences, yielding a sequence of indigenous Agni missiles, navigation programs, payloads, and demanding subsystems, the progress of India’s UAVs has been much less profitable up to now. In the tactical and Medium Altitude Long Endurance (MALE) UAV phase, initiatives equivalent to Nishant, Panchi, Rustom-I, and Tapas have been undertaken.

However, challenges equivalent to vulnerability to satellite tv for pc detection led to the abandoning of initiatives like Nishant, whereas others like Panchi confronted discontinuation on account of a scarcity of additional orders. Despite having been constructed from a profitable manned plane, the way forward for Short-Range Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (SRUAV) stays unsure.

The Tapas Medium Altitude Long Endurance (MALE) UAV improvement challenge was sanctioned in 2011, with its maiden flight occurring in November 2016. DRDO laboratories performed a pivotal function in creating quite a few vital programs and sub-systems for Tapas, together with the autopilot, communication programs, Automatic Takeoff and Landing (ATOL), Ground Control System (GCS), Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR), Medium Range Electro Optic (MREO), and Indigenous Geo Augmented Navigation (GAGAN), amongst others.

Many of those programs underwent testing on the Rustom-1 platform earlier than being built-in into Tapas, a big achievement contemplating India’s historic dependence on imports for vital programs.

DRDO has encountered challenges in creating tactical or MALE UAVs over the previous three-and-a-half a long time. Despite creating a number of essential enabling applied sciences, India awaits the operationalisation and induction of indigenous UAVs. While the success of the Agni missile programme showcases the potential and capabilities of DRDO scientists, the not-so-remarkable journey in UAV improvement programmes necessitates introspection. The causes behind failures in these UAV programmes have to be totally examined, and options recognized.

An examination is required to find out whether or not the strategy to dealing with failures within the Agni missile programme differs from that in indigenous UAV initiatives. Was the spiral improvement strategy, profitable within the missile program, adopted in UAV improvement? Was there synergy amongst stakeholders within the missile programme, completely different from UAV programmes? Were the approaches of DRDO groups or decision-makers completely different in missile programmes?

While the gaps and challenges of UAV programmes could differ from these of the Agni missile programme, they’re surmountable and have to be addressed. India’s UAV programme stands at a vital juncture, geared up with enabling applied sciences that may result in success. It is passing by way of the Marut second; the well-known indigenous fighter improvement program of the early Nineteen Sixties that would not be retrieved on account of lack of perseverance and different challenges. Thorough evaluation and appropriate course corrections are essential to realign this system.

The DRDO’s capabilities, demonstrated within the missile programme, have to be replicated within the UAV initiatives. UAVs, like missiles, are pivotal to the way forward for aerial warfare and have to be prioritised to fulfill India’s safety wants. The missile programme presents a number of classes in that path.

[Group Captain (Dr.) R.K. Narang, Vayu Sena Medal (Retd.) is a senior fellow at the Manohar Parrikar Institute for Defence Studies and Analysis and a former IAF helicopter pilot. He associated with the Centre for Air Power Studies (CAPS), was Director, Strategic Initiatives at the Drone Federation of India, member of the Drone Working Sub Group, Department of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT), Ministry of Commerce and Industry and of High Power Steering Committee (HPSC) of Innovation for Defence Excellence (iDEX)]

Disclaimer: These are the non-public opinions of the writer.