Test-fire of Agni-II missile fails to meet desired parameters

India on Thursday test-fired its medium-range nuclear-capable Agni-II missile having a strike range of more than 2,000 kms from an island off the Odisha coast as part of a user trial by the army.

The test, however, did not meet all the desired parameters, official sources said.

The trial of the surface-to-surface missile was conducted from a mobile launcher at the Integrated Test Range (ITR) on Abdul Kalam Island at around 10.25 am, they said.

Agni-II has already been inducted into the services and today's test from Launch Complex-4 of the ITR was carried out by the Strategic Forces Command (SFC) as part of a training exercise.

Logistic support for it was provided by the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), they said.

The two-stage missile equipped with advanced high- accuracy navigation system was propelled by solid rocket propellant system, the sources said.

Agni-II, which has a length of 20 metres, weighs 17 tonnes and can carry a payload of 1000 kgs over a distance of 2000 kms.

It is a part of the Agni series of missiles developed by the DRDO which includes Agni-I (700-km range), Agni-III (3,000 kms), Agni-IV (4,000 kms) and Agni-V (more than 5,000 kms).

The last user trial of Agni-II conducted on November 9, 2014, from the same base was a success.