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DRDO joins exclusive club after long-range air-to-air missile test

Technology available 'only with a handful of countries', says defence ministry

DRDO, air to air missile, SFDR technology from the Integrated Test Range at Chandipur
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DRDO carried out a flight demonstration based on the SFDR technology from the Integrated Test Range at Chandipur off the coast of Odisha on Friday | PTI

Ajai Shukla New Delhi
A successful test on Friday of the technologies that go into a “solid fuel ducted ramjet” (SFDR) has propelled the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) into an exclusive group of manufacturers that can build long-range air-to-air missiles (AAM) capable of shooting down enemy aircraft hundreds of kilometres away.

The DRDO has already impressed the Indian Air Force (IAF) with its home-grown Astra medium-range AAM. The IAF is planning to equip the Tejas Mark 1A fighter with the Astra Mark 1, enabling it to strike airborne targets at ranges of 60-70 km.

The Tejas Mark 2 fighter will field the Astra Mark