New Delhi: India conducted two successful flight tests of a very short-range air defence missile off the coast of Odisha on February 28 and 29, 2024.

According to the defence ministry, the DRDO conducted two successful flight tests of Very Short-Range Air Defence System (VSHORADS) missiles on February 28 and 29 from a ground-based portable launcher off the coast of Odisha from integrated test range, Chandipur.

“During all the test flights, the targets were intercepted and destroyed by the missiles, meeting the mission objectives,” the ministry said. It said the tests were carried out against high-speed unmanned aerial targets under different interception scenarios.

Designed and developed indigenously by Research Centre Imarat (RCI) in collaboration with other Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) laboratories and Indian industry partners, VSHORADS is a man-portable air-defence system and incorporates many novel technologies, including a miniaturised reaction control system (RCS) and integrated avionics, which have been successfully proven during the tests, the ministry said in a statement.

It added, “The missile is propelled by a dual-thrust solid motor and meant for neutralising low-altitude aerial threats at short ranges. The design of the missile including launcher has been highly optimised to ensure easy portability.”

Congratulating the DRDO and the Indian Army for the successful development trials, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh said the new missile, equipped with modern technologies, will give further technological boost to the armed forces.