India is moving closer to developing its first hypersonic cruise missile, with strong progress reported on the scramjet engine that will power it. Senior government officials said early results have been encouraging, marking a major step toward building a missile that can reach speeds of Mach 8, or nearly 10,000 kilometers per hour. At such speeds, the missile would be almost impossible to stop with existing defense systems.
The project, called Project Vishnu, is now before the Cabinet Committee on Security led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Although much groundwork has been completed, scientists at the Defence Research and Development Organisation are focused on solving one of the biggest challenges in hypersonic flight, managing extreme heat. To prevent the structure from melting, the titanium body of the missile will be covered with silica tiles. Wind tunnel testing is also underway to study air resistance and improve speed efficiency.
Officials said the first version of the missile will fly at Mach 8, and later models could reach Mach 10. Only a few countries are developing similar technology. Russia and China are working on systems that glide in the final phase of flight, while India aims for a fully powered hypersonic missile.Once the Cabinet Committee on Security approves resources, development is expected to move faster. Much of the early-stage technology has already been completed, and when finished, Project Vishnu will be handed over to the Indian Air Force, giving India a place among the few nations capable of producing true hypersonic missiles.
