India successfully tests new 250 km strike range air-launched ballistic missile

The Indian Air Force (IAF) has successfully carried out a test firing of a new version of an air-launched medium-range ballistic missile that is capable of hitting targets at a distance exceeding 250 km.

The missile, also referred to as ROCKS or Crystal Maze 2, originated from Israel and underwent a test launch from a Su-30 MKI fighter jet in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands last week.

Sources in the defence forces told India Today TV that the missile boasts a strike range of over 250 km and is capable of targeting enemy long-range radar and air defence systems.

The IAF now plans to focus on mass production of these missiles under the Make in India initiative, leveraging the technology acquired from Israel. CM-2 represents a new generation extended stand-off range air-to-surface missile, designed to strike high-value stationary and relocatable targets in GPS-denied environments, like the one India faced during the Kargil War.

With options for either a penetration or blast fragmentation warhead, the missile is capable of destroying above-ground or well-protected underground targets, even in heavily surface-to-air defended areas.

The deployment strategy of the ROCKS involves releasing the missile well outside the surface-to-air defended area, followed by a high-velocity trajectory to minimise the risk to aircraft and missiles.