India issues fresh Notam for 2,530km off Odisha coast, likely for long-range missile test
RNA illustration. (Map not to scale)
New Delhi: India has issued a notice to air missions (Notam) for a likely long-range missile test off the Odisha coast, with the restricted corridor scheduled to remain active from August 6 to 7. The notified 2,530-kilometre flight route is consistent with past test corridor data from the Dr APJ Abdul Kalam Island off the coast of Odisha, operated by the Defence Research and Development Organisation and the Strategic Forces Command.
Officials are maintaining the usual secrecy around pre-mission details, but the notice has fuelled speculation that the trial could involve a next-generation land-based Agni missile system or the K-4 submarine-launched ballistic missile. The mission is expected to test parameters such as precision guidance, re-entry performance and propulsion, in keeping with the pattern of India’s recent strategic weapons trials.
Pattern of back-to-back tests
This is not India’s first Notam this year for a long-range trial off the Odisha coast. In May, India issued a Notam for a 3,560km missile test over the Bay of Bengal, with testing windows planned for May 6, 8 and 9 between 6pm and 9pm IST. That notice, too, sparked speculation over a possible Agni-6 intercontinental ballistic missile test.
The May trial, when it eventually took place on the evening of May 8, sent a luminous, comet-like trail across the sky over coastal Odisha, visible as far as Cox’s Bazar in Bangladesh. Two days later, the defence ministry confirmed it as a flight trial of an advanced Agni missile fitted with a multiple independently targeted re-entry vehicle, or Mirv, system, tested with several payloads aimed at different targets spread across the Indian Ocean region. The defence minister, Rajnath Singh, complimented the DRDO, the Army and the industry involved for the success.
Agni-6 still awaited
India’s next-generation intercontinental ballistic missile, the Agni-6, remains the subject of persistent speculation whenever a long-range Notam is issued off the Odisha coast. The former DRDO chairman, Samir V Kamat, has said the missile, with a range of more than 10,000km, is fully ready for testing and awaits final clearance from the government. Having already tested the Agni-5, India appears to be working towards extending its strike range well beyond 10,000km, even as the shorter August corridor points to a different system being trialled first.
No official confirmation has been issued for the upcoming test.
As with the May trial, that confirmation is likely to come only once the missile has flown, and only after the usual period of open-source speculation has run its course. For now, the Notam itself is the only formal word from the government, and coastal Odisha will once again be watching the evening sky over August 6 and 7.
