Hypersonic Technology Demonstration Vehicle (HSTDV) test fired from Kalam Island Off Odisha Coast

Bhubaneswar: Indigenously developed Indian Hypersonic Technology Demonstrator Vehicle (HSTDV) was successfully tested from Kalaam Island off the Odisha coast on Friday.

According to reports, the Indigenously-developed HSTDV was successfully test-fired from launch pad no-4 of Abdul Kalam Island. Its test will help in the development of long-range cruise missiles.

HSTDV developed by the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) was first tested in 2019. For the commoners, it is an unmanned aircraft that can fly at a hypersonic speed of five times the speed of sound.

According to sources, with the scram-jet engine, the HSTDV can travel at Mach 6 (7408.8 km/h). Like a normal ramjet engine, a scramjet engine carries the fuel in the aircraft but uses atmospheric air for the oxidizer. It also uses its high speed to compress the incoming air forcefully before it enters the combustion chamber.

Unlike a rocket engine, which carried both the fuel and the oxidiser, the scramjet carries only fuel. So it can only operate in the suborbital atmosphere when oxygen is present in sufficient amounts.

Technologies tested through the HSTDV test can help India develop hypersonic missiles.

An indigenously-developed Hypersonic Technology Demonstration Vehicle (HSTDV) successfully test-fired from Balasore in Odisha on Friday.