DRDO Successfully Flight-Tests Pinaka Long Range Guided Rocket at Odisha’s Chandipur

Bhubaneswar/Chandipur: The Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) on Wednesday successfully flight-tested the Pinaka Long Range Guided Rocket (LRGR) from the Integrated Test Range (ITR) at Chandipur in Odisha, marking another milestone in India’s indigenous defence capabilities.

The flight-test was conducted to validate the rocket’s performance at a user-defined minimum range of 60 km. According to DRDO, the rocket successfully executed all planned in-flight manoeuvres and struck the designated target with high precision, following the predicted trajectory. Range instrumentation deployed during the trial tracked the rocket’s flight throughout the mission.

The Pinaka Long Range Guided Rocket has been developed by the Armament Research and Development Establishment (ARDE) in collaboration with the High Energy Materials Research Laboratory (HEMRL), with support from the Defence Research and Development Laboratory (DRDL) and Research Centre Imarat (RCI).

The trial was coordinated by the Integrated Test Range (ITR) and the Proof and Experimental Establishment (PXE). The rocket was launched using the in-service Pinaka launcher, demonstrating the platform’s capability to fire different variants of the Pinaka rocket system with varying operational ranges from the same launcher.

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh congratulated DRDO, the Indian Army and industry partners on the successful trial, describing it as a significant achievement in India’s indigenous design and development of long-range guided rocket systems.

Defence Secretary and DRDO Chairman Rajesh Kumar Singh, who closely monitored the test, also commended the scientists, engineers and all teams associated with the successful flight-test.

The successful trial is expected to further strengthen the operational capability of the Pinaka weapon system and reinforce India’s push towards self-reliance in advanced defence technologies.