Andaman airspace closed for 3 hours for high-altitude weapon test, another one tomorrow
The airspace over the Andaman and Nicobar Islands was closed for three hours on Friday morning to conduct a high-altitude weapon test, according to a senior official from the Union Territory cited by news agency PTI.
The Andaman airspace was restricted from 7 am to 10 am for the test, and a similar closure is planned for the same time on Saturday.
'Like today, the airspace over and around Andaman and Nicobar Islands will be closed tomorrow for three hours (7 am to 10 am),' the official said.
The official added that the closure had been planned in advance. 'We have already issued Notice to Airmen (NOTAM) on May 16,' the official added, 'and instructed that no civilian aircraft will be allowed to fly over Andaman on May 23 and May 24,' he said.
The NOTAM mentioned that the restricted zone would cover an area with a maximum length of around 500 kilometers between 01:30 and 04:30 UTC (7 am to 10 am IST) on both days.
The official confirmed the success of Friday's test. "We have successfully done a high-altitude weapon test today and tomorrow a similar test will be done. This is a routine practice here in Andaman and Nicobar Islands as we have done similar tests in the past also," he said.
The Andaman and Nicobar Command (ANC) is India's only military command that includes all three armed forces—Army, Navy, and Air Force.
The specific type of weapon tested during Friday's high-altitude trial in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands has not been disclosed by defence officials.
The last known major weapon test in the region was conducted in December 2022, when the Indian Air Force successfully fired an extended-range version of the BrahMos Air-Launched missile.
According to the IAF at the time, the missile achieved its mission objectives by 'carrying out a precision strike against a ship target from a Su-30 MKI aircraft in the Bay of Bengal region.'
The BrahMos missile is developed by BrahMos Aerospace, a joint venture between India and Russia. It is a supersonic cruise missile capable of being launched from submarines, ships, aircraft, or land-based platforms.
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