Indian Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) successfully tested a long-range Supersonic Missile Assisted Torpedo (SMART) system developed indigenously last week, according to India Today.
This missile is being designed and developed by DRDO’s lab for the Indian Navy, a defense official said. The entire flight path of the missile was successfully monitored and all intended parameters were achieved.
There are no systems comparable to SMART, since no torpedo is currently designed to be attached with a missile as booster phase to increase its range and make it a hybrid weaponry system. The weapon is a next-generation missile-based standoff torpedo delivery system.
The system has been designed to enhance anti-submarine warfare capability far beyond the conventional range of the torpedo, allowing the land forces to apply anti-submarine warfare as a greater role from land assisting the fleet and protecting the coast at expanded range.
During the testing phase, the missile is launched from a ground mobile launcher. It covered an extensive range of distances, according to DRDO. The system is also a canister-based missile system comprised of very intricate and state of the art technologies, including two-stage solid propulsion, electro-mechanical actuators and precision inertial navigation, which is a dual-stage attaching mechanism between torpedo and missile stages.
After it is commissioned, the missile will be used for creating a stronger bubble of defense against submarine and surface vessels of the enemy from the coast itself.
