The Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) and the Indian Air Force (IAF) on Thursday successfully carried out the maiden flight trial of the Tactical Advanced Range Augmentation (TARA) weapon system off the coast of Odisha, the Defence Ministry said.
TARA is India’s first indigenous glide weapon system designed to convert unguided warheads into precision-guided weapons through a modular range extension kit.
Developed by Hyderabad-based Research Centre Imarat (RCI) in collaboration with other DRDO laboratories, the system aims to improve the lethality and accuracy of low-cost weapons for targeting ground-based threats, according to the Defence Ministry.
Officials said TARA is the country’s first glide weapon to use advanced low-cost technologies. The project has been developed in partnership with Development cum Production Partners (DcPP) and other Indian industries, which have already begun production activities.
Defence Minister Rajnath Singh congratulated the DRDO, IAF, industry partners and associated teams for the successful maiden trial, calling it a major step forward in strengthening India’s indigenous defence capabilities.
DRDO Chairman and Secretary, Department of Defence R&D, Samir V Kamat, also praised the teams involved in the successful test.
