The Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) on October successfully flight-tested ABHYAS, the High-speed Expendable Aerial Target (HEAT), from the Integrated Test Range (ITR) at Chandipur off Odisha coast.
According to the official reports, the performance of the target aircraft was monitored through telemetry and various tracking sensors including Radars and Electro-Optical Tracking System (EOTS). It can be used as an aerial target for the evaluation of various missile systems, according to a PIB release.
ABHYAS is designed and developed by DRDO’s Aeronautical Development Establishment (ADE), Bengaluru. The air vehicle is launched using twin under-slung boosters which provide the initial acceleration to the vehicle. It is powered by a gas turbine engine to sustain a long endurance flight at subsonic speed.
The target aircraft is equipped with a MEMS-based Inertial Navigation System (INS) for navigation along with the Flight Control Computer (FCC) for guidance and control. The vehicle is programmed for fully autonomous flight. The check-out of air vehicles is done using a laptop-based Ground Control Station (GCS).
Pic Courtesy – Google
