The launch was carried out for a predetermined range and validated all operational parameters of the system, the official added…reports Asian Lite News
India on Wednesday carried out a successful training launch of an intermediate-range ballistic missile, Agni-3, from the APJ Abdul Kalam Island off the coast of Odisha.
A Defence Ministry official said that the successful test was part of routine user training launches carried out under the aegis of the Strategic Forces Command. The launch was carried out for a predetermined range and validated all operational parameters of the system, the official added.
In another move, DRDO’s compendium on low intensity conflict (LIC) products was released jointly on Wednesday by Union Home Secretary Ajay Kumar Bhalla and Secretary DDR&D and Chairman DRDO, Samir V Kamat.
DRDO officials said that in line with the Aatmanirbhar Bharat campaign of the Government of India, the compendium consists of more than 100 technologies, systems and products developed by DRDO for LIC operations. It is a valuable repository of information for the central security forces.
The collaboration, institutionalised to develop technologies and systems for LIC operations, has helped DRDO develop many products and systems required for the central security forces during LIC operations. The collaboration has also helped in identifying futuristic requirements for LIC operations and defining the roadmap for their development, DRDO said.
China has built an arsenal of conventional land-based missiles with its 4,000 km range Dong Feng 26 that can target even an American air force base in the US territory of Guam in the Indo-Pacific…reports Asian Lite News
The Defence Research and Development Organization (DRDO) has finalised the design for a 1,500-kilometer range conventionally armed ballistic missile with an anti-ship variant to counter the threat from China’s rapidly expanding missile arsenal.
The DRDO is now awaiting the go-ahead from the Narendra Modi government to move to the development stage of the still unnamed conventionally armed missile which aims to counter China’s land-based threat from across the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in Xinjiang, Tibet, and Yunnan provinces as well as deter any ship-based threat in the Indian Ocean, Bay of Bengal, and Arabian Sea.
While India has an arsenal of nuclear cruise and ballistic missiles to tackle threats from land and sea it does not have any conventional ballistic missile for this role.
The missile will not only deter any carrier-based strike group from threatening India from the Indian Ocean but also provide land-based protection to its own aircraft carriers in the Bay of Bengal and the Arabian Sea through coastal deployment, the Hindustan Times report states.
With Chinese aircraft carriers expected to enter the Indian Ocean area by 2025 in accordance with President Xi Jinping’s ambition to make the country a global superpower, India needs a conventional intermediate-range ballistic missile to target any sea-based threat to the country ‘s over 7,000-kilometer coastline and island territories. The missile will give the Indian Navy more muscle in addition to the existing submarine based conventional ballistic missile like BA-02 with a range of over 700 km.
China has built an arsenal of conventional land-based missiles with its 4,000 km range Dong Feng 26 that can target even an American air force base in the US territory of Guam in the Indo-Pacific.
China also has an anti-ship conventional missile DF 21 D with a range of 1550 km which the country’s media claims as having the capability to take on US Navy aircraft carriers conducting freedom of navigation operations in the South China Sea.
US President Joe Biden has ruled out supplying it with systems that could reach as far as Russia, despite Kyiv’s repeated demands for them…reports Asian Lite News
Britain said Monday it will mirror the United States and send long-range missile systems to Ukraine, defying warnings from Russian President Vladimir Putin against supplying Kyiv with the advanced weapons.
The UK Ministry of Defence said London had coordinated closely with Washington over its gift of the multiple-launch rocket systems, known as MLRS, to help Ukraine defend itself against Russian aggression.
The M270 launchers, which can strike targets up to 80 kilometres (50 miles) away with precision-guided rockets, will “offer a significant boost in capability for the Ukrainian forces,” the ministry added.
The US last week announced it would give Kyiv its high mobility artillery rocket system, known as HIMARS, which can simultaneously launch multiple precision-guided missiles and is superior in range and precision to existing systems Ukraine has.
However, US President Joe Biden has ruled out supplying it with systems that could reach as far as Russia, despite Kyiv’s repeated demands for them.
Despite that, the US move prompted Putin to warn Sunday that Moscow will strike new unspecified “targets” if the West supplies the missiles to Ukraine and said new arms deliveries to Kyiv were aimed at “prolonging the conflict”.
But unveiling the latest UK contribution, Defence Secretary Ben Wallace insisted Ukraine’s Western allies must maintain their weapons deliveries to enable it to “win” its war repelling invading Russian forces.
“The UK stands with Ukraine in this fight and is taking a leading role in supplying its heroic troops with the vital weapons they need to defend their country from unprovoked invasion,” he said in a statement.
“As Russia’s tactics change, so must our support to Ukraine. These highly capable multiple-launch rocket systems will enable our Ukrainian friends to better protect themselves against the brutal use of long-range artillery, which Putin’s forces have used indiscriminately to flatten cities.”
Ukrainian troops will be trained on how to use the launchers in the UK, so they can “maximise the effectiveness of the systems”, Britain’s defence ministry said.
London has so far offered more than 750 million pounds ($937 million, 874 million euros) in military support to Ukraine, including sending air defence systems, thousands of anti-tank missiles and various types of munitions, hundreds of armoured vehicles and other equipment.
Making use of existing US research and expertise on the upgraded missile, the contract will mean the UK continues to receive full access to the US Tomahawk programme, support package and upgrades…reports Asian Lite News
The UK’s stock of Tomahawk Land Attack Missiles (TLAM) will be upgraded on Royal Navy submarines to ensure the weapon is even more effective against future threats.
In a £265 million contract with the US Government, with maintenance and technical support at the UK sites of BAE Systems, Babcock International and Lockheed Martin, the Royal Navy’s Astute-Class submarines will be armed with an enhanced Block V standard missile, capable of striking severe threats at a range of up to 1,000 miles.
The upgraded missile will be able to travel further than the previous Block IV iteration, maintaining a precision-strike capability that is unmatched in range and accuracy. The upgrade will also make the weapon less vulnerable to external threats, with modernised in-flight communication and target selection.
At approximately 5.6m long and weighing 2200kg – a similar weight to a 4×4 car – the high sub-sonic Tomahawk was first introduced into UK service in 1998 and can hit in-land targets from the sea within minutes. A weapon of choice since then, it has been successfully deployed during operations in Afghanistan, Libya and Iraq.
Minister for Defence Procurement, Jeremy Quin, said, “This upgrade will equip our Astute-Class attack submarines with the one of the most lethal and precise long-range strike weapons. Enhancing this cutting-edge missile system will ensure the UK can strike severe threats up to 1,000 miles away.”
The Tomahawk missiles will be upgraded as part of a Foreign Military Sale with the US Government, which was negotiated by the MOD’s procurement arm, Defence Equipment and Support and will be active from July.
Making use of existing US research and expertise on the upgraded missile, the contract will mean the UK continues to receive full access to the US Tomahawk programme, support package and upgrades.
DE&S Director Weapons, Ed Cutts, said, “Not only will this FMS sustain and improve a proven, crucial operational capability for any future conflicts, it will continue to ensure interoperability with our US allies and the follow-on support arrangements will sustain jobs for UK industry.”
As Block IV is upgraded to Block V from 2024, it will modernise and improve in-flight communications and navigation, making the missile more effective against future threats around the globe.
The Foreign Military Sale also includes missile maintenance, recertification of existing missiles, spares, operational flight testing, software, hardware and training provisions.
Director Submarines, Rear Admiral Simon Asquith said, “The Tomahawk Land Attack Cruise Missile is a cutting-edge system which provides the UK with real strategic and operational choice. Able to be fired from a stealthy UK nuclear attack submarine, the system’s exceptional range, accuracy and survivability provides the UK, alongside our US Allies, with a world beating precision strike capability.”
⚠️ £265m of UK public money will "upgrade" submarine-launched Tomahawk land attack missiles, which can strike at a range of 1,000 miles.
"Fired from a stealthy UK nuclear attack submarine", it gives the UK "a world beating precision strike capability".https://t.co/1WYbLo7oUr
The announcement builds on commitments made in the Defence Command Paper and Integrated Review, in addition to Royal Navy mission planning and weapon control system upgrades that will improve the performance of legacy Block IV missiles.
Due to be operational in the mid-2020s, the upgraded Tomahawk will align with the delivery of the latest Astute submarines.
With missiles and rockets battering various parts of the country, Zelensky accused Russian soldiers of torture and kidnappings in areas they control…reports Asian Lite News
Six people were killed and 11 wounded, including a child, in a missile strike on the western Ukrainian city of Lviv on Monday morning, regional governor Maksym Kozystkiy said.
Three missiles hit military infrastructure facilities, he said, while one struck a car tire replacement facility.
Witnesses said multiple explosions believed to be caused by missiles struck Lviv as the country was bracing for an all-out Russian assault in the east.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky vowed to “fight absolutely to the end” in strategically vital Mariupol, meanwhile, where the ruined port city’s last known pocket of resistance was holed up in a sprawling steel plant laced with tunnels.
Lviv and the rest of western Ukraine have been less affected by the fighting than other parts of the country, and the city was considered to be a relatively safe haven.
Lviv Mayor Andriy Sadovyi said on Facebook that five missiles struck the city and that emergency services were responding to the blasts. He said more details would follow.
With missiles and rockets battering various parts of the country, Zelensky accused Russian soldiers of torture and kidnappings in areas they control.
Ukraine’s government has halted humanitarian evacuations for the second day, saying Russian forces were targeting civilian evacuation corridors.
Deputy Prime Minister Iryna Vereshchuk said Monday that Russia was shelling and blocking the humanitarian evacuation routes. The humanitarian evacuations have been repeatedly paused since the war began after civilian convoys came under shelling.
According to Vereshchuk, the government had been negotiating passage from Mariupol and Berdyansk, among other towns, as well as from the Luhansk region. The Luhansk government said four civilians trying to flee the region were shot to death by Russian forces.
The fall of Mariupol, which has been reduced to rubble in a seven-week siege, would give Moscow its biggest victory of the war. But a few thousand fighters, by Russia’s estimate, were holding on to the giant, 11-square-kilometer (4-square-mile) Azovstal steel mill.
“We will fight absolutely to the end, to the win, in this war,” Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal vowed Sunday on ABC’s “This Week.” He said Ukraine is prepared to end the war through diplomacy if possible, “but we do not have intention to surrender.”
Many Mariupol civilians, including children, are also sheltering at the Azovstal plant, Mikhail Vershinin, head of the city’s patrol police, told Mariupol television. He said they are hiding from Russian shelling and from Russian soldiers.
Capturing the city on the Sea of Azov would free Russian troops for a new offensive to take control of the Donbas region in Ukraine’s industrial east. Russia also would fully secure a land corridor to the Crimean Peninsula, which it seized from Ukraine in 2014, depriving Ukraine of a major port and prized industrial assets.
Russia is bent on capturing the Donbas, where Moscow-backed separatists already control some territory, after its attempt to take the capital, Kyiv, failed.
“We are doing everything to ensure the defense” of eastern Ukraine, Zelensky said in his nightly address to the nation.
As for besieged Mariupol, there appeared to be little hope of military rescue by Ukrainian forces anytime soon. Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba told CBS’ “Face the Nation” on Sunday that the remaining Ukrainian troops and civilians there are basically encircled. He said they “continue their struggle,” but that the city effectively doesn’t exist anymore because of massive destruction.
The relentless bombardment and street fighting in Mariupol have killed at least 21,000 people, by Ukrainian estimates. A maternity hospital was hit by a lethal Russian airstrike in the opening weeks of the war, and about 300 people were reported killed in the bombing of a theater where civilians had taken shelter.
An estimated 100,000 people remained in the city out of a prewar population of 450,000, trapped without food, water, heat or electricity.
Drone footage carried by the Russian news agency RIA-Novosti on Sunday showed mile after mile of shattered buildings and, on the city’s outskirts, the steel complex, from which rose towering plumes of smoke.
Ukrainian Deputy Defense Minister Hanna Malyar described Mariupol as a “shield defending Ukraine.”
Russian forces, meanwhile, carried out aerial attacks near Kyiv and elsewhere in an apparent effort to weaken Ukraine’s military capacity ahead of the anticipated assault on the Donbas.
After the humiliating sinking of the flagship of Russia’s Black Sea Fleet last week in what the Ukrainians boasted was a missile attack, the Kremlin had vowed to step up strikes on the capital.
Russia said Sunday that it had attacked an ammunition plant near Kyiv overnight with precision-guided missiles, the third such strike in as many days. Explosions were also reported in Kramatorsk, the eastern city where rockets earlier this month killed at least 57 people at a train station crowded with civilians trying to evacuate ahead of the Russian offensive.
At least five people were killed by Russian shelling in Kharkiv, Ukraine’s second-largest city, on Sunday, regional officials said. The barrage slammed into apartment buildings. The streets were littered with broken glass and other debris.
Kharkiv Mayor Igor Terekhov, in an impassioned address marking Orthodox Palm Sunday, lashed out at Russian forces for not letting up the bombing campaign on such a sacred day.
Zelensky called the bombing in Kharkiv “nothing but deliberate terror.”
In his nightly address to the nation, Zelensky also appealed for a stronger response to what he said was the brutality of Russian troops in parts of southern Ukraine.
“Torture chambers are built there,” he said. “They abduct representatives of local governments and anyone deemed visible to local communities.”
He again urged the world to send more weapons and apply tougher sanctions against Moscow.
Malyar, the Ukrainian deputy defense minister, said the Russians were pounding Mariupol with airstrikes and could be preparing for an amphibious landing to reinforce their ground troops.
The looming offensive in the east, if successful, would give Russian President Vladimir Putin a badly needed victory to sell to the Russian people amid the war’s mounting casualties and the economic hardship caused by Western sanctions.
Austrian Chancellor Karl Nehammer, who met with Putin in Moscow this past week — the first European leader to do so since the invasion Feb. 24 — said the Russian president is “in his own war logic” on Ukraine. In an interview on NBC’s “Meet the Press,” Nehammer said he thinks Putin believes he is winning the war, and “we have to look in his eyes and we have to confront him with that, what we see in Ukraine.’’
Zelensky also marked Easter on Sunday, saying on Twitter: “The Lord’s Resurrection is a testimony to the victory of life over death, good over evil.”
When it fell, it damaged some civilian property however there was no loss or injury to human life was caused…reports Asian Lite News
The Indian Air Force, in its enquiry, has found more than one official guilty in the case of the “accidental” firing of an armed supersonic missile into Pakistani territory, sources said, adding that severe action would be taken against the persons found guilty.
The enquiry is being conducted by Air Vice Marshal R.K. Sinha, who is probing how the missile got fired during routine maintenance work.
An unarmed supersonic missile “accidently” took off from Sirsa and landed at a place 124 km within Pakistani territory on March 9 evening. The Indian Defence Ministry had “regretfully” explained it as “a technical malfunction”.
The ministry had said that on March 9, in the course of routine maintenance, a technical malfunction led to the accidental firing of a missile.
The Indian government has taken a serious view and “ordered a high-level court of enquiry”.
“It is learnt that the missile landed in an area of Pakistan. While the incident is deeply regrettable, it is also a matter of relief that there has been no loss of life due to the accident,” said the ministry.
The Pakistan Foreign Ministry had warned New Delhi of “unpleasant consequences” over what it claims was an Indian originated, but unidentified high-altitude supersonic object that crashed in its territory.
It had urged India to take effective measures to avoid such violations in the future. Pakistan claimed a supersonic missile took off from Sirsa and landed within Pakistani territory. Cruising at an altitude of 40,000 feet, the missile endangered passenger flights in both Indian and Pakistani airspace, and also civilians and property on the ground, it said.
Pakistan had stated that at 6.43 p.m. on March 9, a high-speed flying object was picked up inside Indian flying territory by Air Defence Operations Centre of the Pakistani Air Force. From its initial course the object suddenly maneuvered towards Pakistani territory and violated Pakistan’s airspace ultimately falling near Mia Channu.
When it fell, it damaged some civilian property however there was no loss or injury to human life was caused.
Major General Iftikhar said has “initiated requisite tactical actions in accordance” with the Standard Operating Procedures.
Pakistan had picked up missile at a high-altitude of 40,000 feet and it was traveling at a speeding axis of Mach 2.5 and ultimately Mach 3.
The total distance it travelled inside Pakistan was 124 km. From the total flight time of 6 minute 46 seconds till it hit the ground, it was in Pakistani territory for 3 minutes and 44 seconds.
DRDO conducts successful flight tests Army's surface to air missile
The Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) conducted two successful flight tests of the Indian Army’s version of the Medium Range Surface to Air Missile (MRSAM) on Sunday…reports Asian Lite News
The tests, conducted at the Integrated Test Range, Chandipur, off the coast of Odisha, were carried out as part of the live firing trials against high-speed aerial targets.
The first test was to intercept a medium-altitude, long-range target and the second against a low-altitude, short-range target. The missiles intercepted the targets and destroyed them completely, registering direct hits at both ranges.
Developed jointly by DRDO and the Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI), for use by the Indian Army, the MRSAM Army weapon system comprises multi-function radar, mobile launcher system, and other vehicles.
The flight tests were carried out with the weapon system in deliverable configuration.
The performance of the weapon system was validated through the flight data captured by range instruments like radars, electro-optical tracking systems and telemetry deployed by ITR, Chandipur.
Senior officials from the DRDO and the Indian Army were present at the test site.
Defence Minister Rajnath Singh congratulated the DRDO, the Indian Army, and the industry for the successful flight tests of MRSAM-Army, saying both the successful tests establish the capability of the weapon system in intercepting targets at critical ranges.
Defence R&D Secretary and DRDO Chairman Dr G. Satheesh Reddy complimented the teams involved in the successful flight trials and termed these tests major milestones for ‘Aatmanirbhar Bharat’.
The United States has transferred a “significant number” of Patriot missile systems to Saudi Arabia over the past month, The Wall Street Journal reports citing senior US officials…reports Asian Lite News
Riyadh had been requesting Patriot deliveries from Washington since the end of last year when the supply was running low.
According to The Wall Street Journal, it took the administration of US President Joe Biden several months to fulfil Saudi Arabia’s urgent request, amid high demand for Patriot interceptors among Washington’s allies .
A US official told the newspaper that the Patriot transfers are intended to help Saudi Arabia fend off drone and missile attacks carried out by the Houthi rebels in Yemen.
Yemen has been gripped by an internal conflict between the government forces and the Houthi movement for over six years. Since 2015, the Saudi-led coalition fighting on the government’s side has been conducting air, land and sea operations against the rebels. The Houthis often retaliate by firing projectiles and bomber drones on Saudi territory. The United Nations has described the situation in Yemen as the world’s worst humanitarian crisis.
Two days ago, the Saudi air defences intercepted and destroyed a ballistic missile and nine bomb-laden drones targeting civilian objects and economic installations in the Kingdom.
Following the attacks, a limited fire was also reported at the Aramco distribution station for petroleum products in Jeddah which was brought under control later.
“Initial investigations indicate that the militia has used (Iranian) cruise missiles that targeted Al Shuqaiq Water Desalination Plant and Aramco’s Jizan Bulk Plant,” said Brigadier General Turki Al-Malki, spokesperson for the Saudi-led Coaliton.
The targeted locations also include the power transmission station in Dhahran Al Janub, the National Gas and Industrialization Company’s Khamis Mushait Gas Station, and Aramco’s Liquified Gas Plant in Yanbu.
These hostile attacks and scattered debris as a result of their interception caused some material damages to the facilities, civilian vehicles and civilian houses, and no loss of life was recorded until the issuance of the statement.
He said these attacks are a dangerous escalation and represents Houthis’ approach towards the peace consultations offered by the GCC.
“They also represent the terrorist Houthi militia’s position in regards to the invitation extended by H.E. the Secretary-General of the Gulf Cooperation Council in order to host inclusive Yemeni-Yemeni consultations, and underline the militia’s approach of rejection towards all international efforts and initiatives, including the Saudi Initiative, and reaching a comprehensive and sustainable political resolution to end the Yemeni crisis,” the statement added.
GCC Secretary General Dr. Nayef Al-Hajraf had earlier invited all Yemeni parties involved to hold consultations under the auspices of the council, set for March 29 to the seventh of April in the Saudi capital, Riyadh. (with inputs from ANI/Sputnik)
The Defence Minister informed that the government has taken serious note of the inadvertent missile firing incident, and that “a formal high-level inquiry has been ordered, reports Asian Lite News
Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Tuesday said that a high-level probe has been ordered into the inadvertent firing of a missile that landed in Pakistan on March 9 saying that “if any lapses are found, action will be taken accordingly”.
Addressing Rajya Sabha, the minister informed that standard operating procedures (SOPs) for “operations, maintenance, and inspection” of such systems were being reviewed in the wake of the incident.
“I’d like to tell this House about an incident that occurred on 9th March 2022. It’s related to an accidental missile release during the inspection. During routine maintenance and inspection of the missile unit, around 7 pm, one missile got accidentally released. While this incident is regretted, we are relieved that nobody was hurt due to the accident,” the Defence Minister told Rajya Sabha.
Singh sought to assure Parliament that the “Indian missile system is very reliable and safe” and that the “safety procedures and protocols are of the highest order”.
“I can assure the House that the missile system is very reliable and safe. Moreover, our safety procedures and protocols are of the highest order and are reviewed from time to time. Our Armed Forces are well-trained and disciplined and are well experienced in handling such systems,” Singh said in the Upper House of Parliament.
The Defence Minister informed that the government has taken serious note of the incident, and that “a formal high-level inquiry has been ordered”.
“The inquiry would determine the exact cause of the accident,” said Singh
“We attach the highest priority to the safety and security of our weapon systems. If any shortcoming is found, the same would be immediately rectified,” he said.
India on March 11 had said that a technical malfunction during routine maintenance had led to the accidental firing of a missile.
Pakistan Army had said that an Indian projectile had entered the Pakistani airspace and caused some damage to surrounding areas after it fell near a place called Mian Channu in their territory.
The Defence Ministry then said that it had ordered a court of enquiry into the incident adding that it was a matter of relief that there was no loss of life due to the accidental firing.
Pak speaks to UN chief
Pakistan Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi spoke to UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres and exchanged views with him on current regional and global issues, particularly the “blatant violation of Pakistan’s airspace by the ‘accidental’ firing of a missile by India on March 9”, Dawn news reported.
Qureshi briefed Guterres over the phone on the so-called ‘accidental’ fire of a missile that he said reflected India’s disregard for aviation safety as well as regional peace and stability.
Pakistan continued to act with restraint and responsibility, the Foreign Minister said.
Noting “multiple shortcomings and technical lapses of a serious nature in India’s management of strategic weapons”, Qureshi said the incident was consistent with New Delhi’s “irresponsible conduct” and needed to be addressed by the international community, including the UN Security Council, and underscored Islamabad’s demand for a joint probe into the incident, Dawn reported.
On the situation in Ukraine, Qureshi shared Pakistan’s perspective on the ongoing conflict, its adverse economic impact on developing countries, and Islamabad’s efforts in support of a solution through dialogue and diplomacy.
On his part, Guterres apprised the Foreign Minister of the recent initiatives being explored by the UN to address skyrocketing inflation worldwide in the wake of the situation in Ukraine.
An unarmed supersonic missile “accidentally” took off from Sirsa and landed at a place 124 km within Pakistani territory on Wednesday evening, the Indian Defence Ministry said on Friday, “regretfully” explaining it was “a technical malfunction”…reports Asian Lite News
The ministry in a statement said: “On March 9, 2022, in the course of a routine maintenance, a technical malfunction led to the accidental firing of a missile.”
The Indian government has taken a serious view and “ordered a high-level court of inquiry”.
“It is learnt that the missile landed in an area of Pakistan. While the incident is deeply regrettable, it is also a matter of relief that there has been no loss of life due to the accident,” said the ministry.
Earlier in the day, the Pakistan foreign office summoned India’s charge d’affaires and lodged a protest over what it termed as unprovoked violation of its airspace. In a statement it has warned New Delhi of “unpleasant consequences” over what it claims was an Indian originated, but unidentified high-altitude supersonic object that crashed in its territory.
On 9 Mar 2022 during routine maintenance, a technical malfunction led to accidental #missile firing
Govt of #India has taken serious view & ordered Court of Enquiry
In its statement it has urged India to take effective measures to avoid such violations in the future.
On Thursday, Pakistan claimed a supersonic missile took off from Sirsa and landed within Pakistani territory. The missile was cruising at an altitude of 40,000 feet and endangered passenger flights in both Indian and Pakistani airspace, and also civilians and property on the ground.
Major General Babar Iftikhar, Director General of the Pakistani Armed Forces Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), said at 18.43 hours on March 9, “a high-speed flying object was picked up inside Indian flying territory by Air Defence Operations Centre of the Pakistani Air Force. From its initial course the object suddenly maneuvered towards Pakistani territory and violated Pakistan’s airspace ultimately falling near Mia Channu.”
Pak’s DG ISPR Major General Babar Iftikhar (https://www.facebook.com/DGISPRofficial1)
He was addressing a press conference on Thursday evening on the incident. He said that there were no human casualties. “When it fell it also damaged some civilian property. Thankfully no loss or injury to human life was caused.”
Major General Iftikhar said “initiated requisite tactical actions in accordance” with the Standard Operating Procedures.
“Whatever caused this incident to happen, it is for the Indians to explain,” he said.
He stated that the missile was picked up at a high-altitude of 40,000 feet and was travelling at a speeding axis of Mach 2.5 and ultimately Mach 3. The total distance it travelled inside Pakistan was 124 km, and from the total flight time of 6 minutes 46 seconds till it hit the ground, it was in Pakistani territory for 3 minutes and 44 seconds.
