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| India-Pakistan |
| India shelves ambitious nuclear missile program |
| 2006-05-28 |
| NEW DELHI - Has the Agni III, India's most ambitious nuclear-capable ballistic-missile program, been aborted or merely put in cold storage? Keen to impress the world community of its peaceful intentions in its quest to obtain nuclear fuel and technology from the United States, France, Canada and Australia, it seems that New Delhi has made up its mind to shelve plans for big military-power credentials for now. The government has decided to cancel the first test-firing of an Indian inter-continental ballistic missile (ICBM), one with a range of 4,000 kilometers (some say up to 6,000km), which is sufficient to reach China and capable of delivering a nuclear payload. Pressure from the US and others cannot be discounted. The United States has always been very suspicious about India's Agni program, and in 1994 persuaded it to suspend testing of the missile after three test flights. The US-backed Missile Technology Control Regime (MTCR) seeks to prevent the proliferation of missiles capable of delivering a 500-kilogram payload over distances of 300km and more. |
| Posted by:Steve White |
| #8 The only ballistic missile the Indian Navy is likely to get its hands on anytime soon is the Prithvi-3, launched from the fantail of an offshore patrol vessel (OPV) of the Suyanka class. |
| Posted by: john 2006-05-28 15:30 |
| #7 Russia may be willing to lease an SSN, but now their SSBNs. ST. PETERSBURG—The construction of a training centre for the Indian military in Sosnovy Bor, 70 kilometers west of St. Petersburg, confirms Russia’s intentions to lease nuclear submarines to India, said Green World Chairman Oleg Bodrov. Sosnovy Bor is home to the Russian Training Centre for Officers of the Russian Navy which houses working nuclear reactors of the type found on nuclear submarines. These reactors are used to test nuclear fuel and other technologies applicable to nuclear submarine reactors. A building recently went up along side the training centre, where Indian specialists will apparently be schooled. Now, according to Green World, “Leasing India two third generation multi-purpose submarines with the option to buy them, as many media reports indicated in late 2004, is apparently becoming a reality.” Bodrov commented further, asking “otherwise, why train some 300 Indian submariners in Russia? That constitutes 4 Akula crews.” Russian has experience in leasing nuclear subs to India. In January 1988, India leased three Soviet-era Skat class—known as Charlie class in NATO designation—multi-purpose submarines, equipped with eight nuclear missile installations. After the term of the lease ran out, the subs were returned to Russia and decommissioned. |
| Posted by: john 2006-05-28 15:01 |
| #6 Lol - that begs a different question: How good are the Indians at naval salvage? :) |
| Posted by: Slolulet Sletch7958 2006-05-28 14:54 |
| #5 Unless they bought one from the Ruskies. |
| Posted by: Nimble Spemble 2006-05-28 14:48 |
| #4 Yes but the Indian ATV project - a nuclear submarine is an SSN. It would be able to fire long range cruise missiles but would be too small for this. And there would need to be a lot of work on navalizing the Agni-3. An Indian SSBN would be decades away... |
| Posted by: john 2006-05-28 14:19 |
| #3 Holy moley. Now yes, an SSBN would tend to rattle cages. That looks like a launch tube on a support structure? |
| Posted by: 6 2006-05-28 11:49 |
| #2 Estimated 10.4 m length (without the RV), diamter 1.8m. 2 stages, solid fuel, 28 tons. With payload of 1800 kg, range is 4400 km. With payload of 1000 kg, range is 7200 km. The Indian DRDO have built a submersible pontoon launcher to test underwater ballistic missile launch technology. This missile can fit that test platform.  |
| Posted by: john 2006-05-28 08:48 |
#1 This is the missile in question |
| Posted by: john 2006-05-28 08:31 |