India on Thursday test-fired its indigenously developed nuclear-capable Prithvi-II ballistic missile from the Integrated Test Range (ITR) off Odisha coast as part of a user trial by the Army.
The surface-to-surface missile was flight tested at around 0907 hours from a mobile launcher at ITR's launch complex-3.
The state-of-the-art Prithvi is the first ballistic missile developed under the country’s prestigious Integrated Guided Missile Development Programme (IGMPD) and has the capability to carry 500 kg of both nuclear and conventional warheads with a strike range of 350 km. The flight test of the Prithvi-II met all the mission objectives.
The test-fire of the ballistic missile, already inducted into the armed forces, underwent user trial by the army and monitored by scientists of Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO). Prithvi-II was successfully flight tested several times as part of the training exercise and the last trial was a complete success on August 25 this year when it reached the predefined target in the Bay of Bengal with a high accuracy of better than 10 meters, sources said.
The missile uses advanced inertial guidance system with maneuvering trajectory.