Hyderabad, May 20 (UNI) In a major boost to India’s Aatmanirbhar Bharat initiative in the defence sector, the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) completed the final deliverable configuration development trials of the Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Launched Precision Guided Missile (ULPGM)-V3 in both Air-to-Ground and Air-to-Air modes.
The trials were conducted at the DRDO test range near Kurnool in Andhra Pradesh using an integrated Ground Control System (GCS) designed to command and control the ULPGM weapon system. The advanced GCS incorporates state-of-the-art technologies to automate readiness and launch operations.
DRDO partnered with Bharat Dynamics Limited (BDL), Hyderabad, and Adani Defence Systems & Technologies Limited, Hyderabad, for the development and production of the missile system. The ULPGM-V3 was integrated with UAVs developed by Newspace Research and Technologies, Bengaluru, for the current trials.
The missile was developed by Research Centre Imarat (RCI), Hyderabad, which served as the nodal laboratory, in collaboration with other DRDO laboratories, including Defence Research & Development Laboratory (DRDL), Hyderabad, Terminal Ballistics Research Laboratory (TBRL), Chandigarh, and High Energy Materials Research Laboratory (HEMRL), Pune.
According to a DRDO release late on Tuesday night, the missile has been developed entirely through the Indian defence ecosystem with the participation of several MSMEs and industries. The successful trials confirmed a fully mature domestic supply chain capable of supporting immediate serial mass production.
Defence Minister Rajnath Singh congratulated DRDO, public sector undertakings, defence production partners, and industry stakeholders for the successful development trials of ULPGM-V3 in anti-tank Air-to-Ground mode as well as Air-to-Air modes targeting drones, helicopters, and other airborne threats. He described the achievement as a strategic milestone towards self-reliance in defence manufacturing.
Secretary, Department of Defence R&D and DRDO Chairman Samir V Kamat also congratulated the teams associated with the project for the successful accomplishment.
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