Supersonic interceptor missile successfully test fired

India on Thursday successfully test-fired an indigenously developed supersonic interceptor missile from a test range off the Odisha coast to validate "some improved features", defence sources said.

The state-of-the-art missile was test fired from a canister at 11.24 am engaging a simulated target at low altitude, the sources said.

The interceptor, an advanced air defence missile which is yet to get a formal name, was positioned at launchpad-4 of the Integrated Test Range on Dr Abdul Kalam Island and roared on its trajectory to hit the target mid-air on the sea surface, the sources said.

Developed as part of efforts to have a multi-layer ballistic missile defence system, it is capable of destroying incoming hostile ballistic missiles, they said.

"While the missile's major health parameters, including its 'kill' effect, have already been validated in earlier tests, the current test was to validate some improved features incorporated in the system," they said.

The interceptor is a 7.5-metre-long single-stage solid rocket propelled guided missile equipped with a navigation system, a hi-tech computer and an electro-mechanical activator.

The interceptor missile had its own mobile launcher, a secure data link for interception, independent tracking and homing capabilities and sophisticated radars, the sources added.