The Indian Air Force (IAF) has officially declared the induction of the indigenously built Beyond Visual Range (BVR) air-to-air missile Astra, Defence Aviation Post reports.
Astra has a scope of 110 km and has been integrated with Sukhoi-30MKI. It is set to be incorporated with Tejas, MiG-29, and Mirage 2000 fighters of the IAF.
The 110 km range of Astra counteracts Pakistan’s edge over India in aerial weaponry. This reportedly came into light during the two air forces’ confrontation after India’s strikes at the Balakot terror camp. The Pakistan Air Force (PAF) had conveyed AIM-120 AMRAAM with a scope of 110 km. Maximum India managed to counter that was through the R-77 which has an 80 km range.
Along these lines, India’s Su-30 MKIs were pegged once more into defensive maneuvers once AMRAAM-armed PAF F-16s attacked on India post the Balakot strikes.
The IAF can take part in “both short-range targets at a distance of 20 km and long-range targets up to a distance of 80-110 km,” said an IAF spokesperson. Astra has mid-course internal guidance with terminal active radar homing and is also the country’s first indigenous air-to-air missile.