India has once again shocked the world with their Agni-5 ICBMs worrying about their accuracy. Even India itself cannot determine where the missiles will fall after launch!
So, how was this missile developed? How unique is it? Let's ** together.
India's military prowess has been the subject of much controversy. Many people believe that India's science and technology tree is crooked, and the first-class equipment often fails or does not meet the performance standards.
For example, the Arjun main battle tank, although more than 3 billion rupees were invested, it took more than 30 years to develop, but its domestic production rate is only about 40%, and its performance is not up to standard, and the first shot is always missed.
However, we must not forget that India is a third world country that only began to develop after World War II, and it is quite good to be able to produce such a **, and we should look at it with a more tolerant attitude.
India's Arjun main battle tank claims to have reached the level of the international mainstream third-generation tank, but the actual performance of this tank is worrying. Allegedly, due to the fact that the technology was "borrowed" from German, Hairy Bear, British and even Japanese tanks, the failure rate of the Arjun tank was as high as an exaggerated 75%, and even the Indian army itself was not happy to use it.
This is like the tip of the iceberg, revealing the problem of crotch pulling in India's military industry. India's repeated announcement of the successful test launch of the Agni-5 intercontinental missile has made people see the seriousness of the problem.
Although their tank technology is backward, the problem of ICBMs is even more unbearable.
The Agni-5 ICBM is derived from the name of the Hindu mythological god of fire, Agni, and symbolizes the unquenchable fire of war. The development of this missile was painstakingly developed by DRDO, India's most powerful military research institution.
However, despite the four years of the R&D team's efforts, repeated problems in the R&D process led to the final R&D time being extended to seven years. You know, a lot of experience has been accumulated in the research and development of the Agni series before, and the Indian Ministry of Defense has also given full support, so the seven years are not reasonable.
India's Agni-5 ICBM was able to successfully enter service thanks to the strong support of the United States. On the one hand, the United States provides India with nuclear materials in the name of civilian use, and on the other hand, it is beneficial for India to manufacture them internationally and ensure the smooth conduct of its scientific research work.
If the DPRK had such treatment, the Hwasong-series ICBMs would have certainly been updated to an immeasurable algebra. However, India's military research institutions have not demonstrated the strength they had hoped for, and even when the Agni-5 ICBM entered service in 2014, there were doubts about whether it would be able to achieve the expected range of 8,000 kilometers.
States will soon find out that the accuracy of the Agni 5 may be even more frightening than its range! Although it may not accurately hit targets at 8,000 kilometers, its astonishing accuracy is enough to make the world tremble.
One might ask, if the Agni 5 can hit the target accurately, then why are people so worried? In fact, it is not the accuracy of Agni 5 that countries are afraid of, but its uncertainty.
Surprisingly, this is not the first time that the accuracy of the Agni series of ICBMs has appeared, and the Agni-3, the main missile of the Indian army, has also been out of control many times.
On July 9, 2006, on the small island of Wheeler in the eastern Indian state of Odisha, the Indian army was preparing for a missile test in an intense and orderly manner. Preparations culminated at the moment of the launch of the Agni-3 ICBM.
At 11:05 a.m., the missile made a graceful arc in the clear sky and disappeared into the clouds. However, the disappearance of the missile did not make the testers' smiles disappear, but made their smiles freeze, and the entire launch site was thrown into chaos.
People contacted the top brass in horror to inform them of the disappearance of the ICBM.
Agni 3"The news spread all over the world in an instant, and all parties were nervous, asking what it had fallen on? Is it already**? What should I do if I do?
Thankfully,"Agni 3"It did not cause any damage, but fell safely in the Indian Ocean, which was caused by the failure of secondary fuel to burn on time. After 13 years of refinement, the Indian army conducted another test launch on November 30, 2019"Agni 3"。
The test launch was chosen at night, this time there were no problems with fuel and no burning, but the missile, after flying for more than 1 minute, suddenly deviated from the intended trajectory. It's scarier than the fuel not burning.
India's Agni-3 ICBMs, which have been developed at a huge cost of Rs. 6.5 billion each, are not a qualified ICBM. Similarly, India's own conventional missiles are often problematic.
DRDO, India's military scientific research institution, once cooperated with the Chelome Missile Design Bureau of Mao Xiong to successfully develop the "BrahMos" supersonic cruise missile, which is known as the world's third largest missile.
Although some people question whether the BrahMos can really rank among the top three in the world, its excellent performance is due to the technical support of the Woolly Bear P800 Ruby missile. However, India did not put much effort into the R&D process, and it can be said that it was a complete win.
Subsequently, India decided to develop it independently, and on the basis of the BrahMos, they launched the Dreadnought cruise missile, which they called themselves "the Indian version of the American Tomahawk missile" and confidently ranked it in third place in the world. ”
Indian military testers conducted the Nth test launch of a Dreadnought cruise missile in Odishabang, the site of multiple failed tests of the Agni-3 intercontinental missile. However, the results of this test launch were not satisfactory, and shortly after the launch, the missile made a 180-degree bend and flew towards the launch position.
The Indian army testers at the scene panicked and fled, fully aware of the consequences if the missile fell on their heads. Fortunately, the missile ended up falling in the nearby sea, avoiding a catastrophe.
India's military-industrial manufacturing has long been in question, further exacerbated by the failed test launches of its Agni-3 intercontinental missile and Dreadnought conventional missile. Especially with the Agni 5, people are cautious about its performance.
In fact, the most important feature of ICBMs is their ability to cross continents with an ultra-long range, while the internationally recognized standard for ICBMs is more than 8,000 kilometers.
Therefore, if the range is less than this standard, then it can only be counted as a long-range missile.
While India claims that the Agni 5 has a range of up to 8,000 kilometers, its actual range may be much lower than that. Even at the maximum range, the range of this missile is just about to reach the threshold of an intercontinental missile.
Considering that India often exaggerates the performance of its missiles, the actual range of the Agni-5 may be shorter. However, range aside, what about the rest of the Agni 5's performance?
I'm afraid it's hard to be optimistic.
When it comes to speed, the Agni 5 performs well, using a ** solid-fuel engine with a terminal speed of up to Mach 24, which seems to have reached the standard of hypersonic speed.
However, the top ICBMs of China, the United States, and Russia all have terminal speeds of more than Mach 25, and although the gap between the two is not large, the technological gap represented by them is huge.
The range and speed of the Agni 5 are 8,000 kilometers and Mach 24, respectively, while China's Dongfeng 41 has Mach 26 and Mach 1The key to the performance of 50,000 kilometers lies in the former's lack of material technology.
The total weight of the Agni 5 is up to 50 tons, most of which are projectile bodies made of special steel, which are quite bulky. Most of the China-US-Russia ICBMs of the same weight use composite materials to wrap around the shell, which is lighter and thinner.
Due to the large volume and weight of the steel casing, the Agni 5 had to cut the amount of fuel. Coupled with the self-developed HTPB engine and the generation gap between China, the United States and Russia, the missile's flight speed and range are limited.
What's even more embarrassing is that due to the poor material technology, in order to increase the range, India can only choose a lightweight warhead, resulting in the warhead can only carry a lightweight nuclear warhead, up to 11 ton.
In the face of India's Agni-5 ICBM, we can't just see the 11 ton of nuclear warheads, while ignoring the 1 of our country's Dongfeng-41 intercontinental missile6-ton heavyweight nuclear warhead.
This gap is enough to be reflected in the power, and the Agni 5 also has problems in terms of accuracy, composite guidance technology and GPS mid-course guidance, etc., and is nicknamed the "Brownian motion bullet".
In general, the Agni-5 cannot be compared with the top ICBMs of China, the United States and Russia in terms of power, speed, range, and accuracy, and even so, we cannot deny India's achievements in missile manufacturing.
Although the Agni-5 ICBM adopts international advanced technology, such as ring-type laser gyroscope inertial guidance, split-guided multiple warheads, and trace composite materials, on the whole, the performance of the missile still needs to be improved, and there are many problems that need to be solved.
At present, the Indian army is not equipped with this missile, which shows that it has not fully met expectations and is still a long way from forming a combat capability.