# DRDO Explores 3,500-Kilometer Hypersonic Anti-Ship Missile to Bolster India's Maritime Defense

> India is evaluating an extended-range variant of its Long Range Anti-Ship Missile capable of striking naval targets up to 3,500 kilometers away using hypersonic boost-glide technology.

**Type:** article · **Category:** Madhya Pradesh · **Published:** 2026-08-30 · **Source:** TrendKia
**Canonical:** https://trendkia.com/en/madhya-pradesh/hind-mahasagar-mein-3500-km-tak-achook-nishana-drdo-taiyaar-kar-raha-hypersonic-anti-ship-missile-24514 · **Language:** English
**Tags:** DRDO, Hypersonic Missile, Indian Ocean, Indian Navy, BrahMos, Defense Research

India is actively modernizing its armed forces—spanning the Army, Air Force, and Navy—to prepare for the dynamics of modern warfare. Thousands of crores are being funneled into high-tech defense segments, particularly advanced missiles, fighter jets, and autonomous drones. Under the flagship AMCA project, efforts are underway to design fifth-generation, sixth-generation, and beyond fighter aircraft. Concurrently, India's Defense Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) recently issued a NOTAM covering nearly 3,000 kilometers over the Indian Ocean. Defense analysts view this move as a precursor to testing a medium-to-long-range missile system. Alongside these developments, DRDO scientists are laying the groundwork for a major leap in naval deterrence by significantly expanding the reach of land-based anti-ship weaponry.

## Strengthening Maritime Security Across the Indian Ocean
To secure its maritime boundaries and establish an expansive strike capability, India is looking beyond immediate coastal defense. DRDO is currently conducting feasibility studies for an extended-range variant of the Long Range Anti-Ship Missile (LR-AShM), targeting an operational strike range of up to 3,500 kilometers. While official military clearance for full production remains pending, the existing LR-AShM possesses a 1,500-kilometer reach. Expanding this to 3,500 kilometers—more than double its current limit—transforms the missile from a coastal protection system into a deep-sea strategic deterrent across the Indian Ocean Region. Launched from land-based mobile units, it would allow Indian forces to neutralize hostile warships and high-value naval assets at unprecedented distances.

## Understanding the Hypersonic Boost-Glide Mechanism
The proposed long-range missile will rely on hypersonic boost-glide technology, a significant departure from standard cruise or conventional ballistic trajectories. In this operational concept, an initial rocket booster stage accelerates the missile to extreme altitudes and ultra-high velocities. Once outside the dense layers of the lower atmosphere, the hypersonic glide vehicle separates and skims along the upper atmosphere, taking advantage of aerodynamic lift to cover vast distances. Achieving speeds of approximately Mach 10 (roughly 12,348 kilometers per hour) across thousands of kilometers demands far more than simply adding extra fuel tanks. It requires a complete redesign of the rocket motor, staging mechanisms, propulsion chemistry, and aerodynamic contours.

## Overcoming Thermal Extremes and Propulsion Challenges
Sustained hypersonic flight across 3,500 kilometers presents severe engineering obstacles, chief among them being thermal friction. At speeds near Mach 10, friction against atmospheric air pushes surface temperatures on the missile skin beyond 2,000 degrees Celsius. To survive these brutal conditions without structural failure or sensor damage, DRDO engineers are developing specialized heat shielding, high-temperature composite materials, and specialized airframes. Furthermore, ensuring pin-point accuracy over such vast expanses necessitates a fail-safe navigation suite, making the integration of India's indigenous NavIC satellite navigation system a critical priority.

## Precision Guidance and Electronic Warfare Resilience
In modern high-intensity conflict zones, adversary electronic warfare systems regularly attempt to jam or spoof satellite positioning signals. To maintain targeting accuracy despite heavy signal disruption, the extended-range LR-AShM will incorporate redundant internal navigation hardware. Fiber-optic or ring-laser gyroscope-based inertial navigation units will guide the missile along its planned trajectory even if satellite feeds are completely cut off. This multi-layered guidance architecture ensures that the weapon remains fully functional in contested electronic environments.

## Creating a Formidable Anti-Access Shield alongside BrahMos
A 3,500-kilometer hypersonic missile will not replace established platforms like the BrahMos cruise missile, but will instead complement them. While BrahMos offers rapid, highly effective precision strikes at short to medium ranges, the long-range hypersonic boost-glide system establishes a strategic layer of defense targeting distant naval formations. Land-based deployment of this weapon gives India a formidable Anti-Access/Area-Denial (A2/AD) capability, creating a vast danger zone for hostile fleets seeking to approach the Indian mainland or island territories such as the Andaman and Nicobar Islands. Although formal military induction will require years of iterative design, ground testing, and flight evaluations, achieving this benchmark will represent a major landmark in Indian defense engineering.

## What this means for you
Developing a 3,500-kilometer range hypersonic missile significantly strengthens India's overall defense umbrella and maritime deterrence.

- **National Security Shift:** The extended reach establishes a powerful shield over the Indian Ocean Region, protecting strategic sea lanes and coastal borders.
- **Technological Self-Reliance:** Integrating indigenous NavIC guidance and cutting-edge propulsion reduces dependency on foreign military tech.
- **Strategic Deterrence:** Deploying robust Anti-Access/Area-Denial capabilities pushes enemy warships further away from mainland India and island territories.
- **Economic Stability:** Securing key maritime corridors safeguards India's ocean-bound trade and energy supply routes from external naval threats.

## Questions & Answers

### 1. What is the targeted range for the new missile variant?
The study targets an extended strike range of up to 3,500 kilometers, more than double the current 1,500-kilometer capability.

### 2. What top speed is the missile expected to reach?
It is designed to achieve hypersonic speeds around Mach 10, which translates to roughly 12,348 kilometers per hour.

### 3. How does hypersonic boost-glide technology operate?
A rocket motor pushes the missile to extreme altitude, after which a glide vehicle detaches and glides through the upper atmosphere using aerodynamic lift.

### 4. Will this weapon replace the existing BrahMos missile?
No, it will complement BrahMos by taking on long-range strategic targets while BrahMos handles short-to-medium range precision strikes.

### 5. What guidance systems will ensure precise targeting over long distances?
It will utilize India's indigenous NavIC satellite system alongside fiber-optic or ring-laser gyroscopes for electronic warfare resilience.

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