With the recent test-firing of Agni-V missile, India simultaneously and successfully tested the Smart Anti-Airfield Weapon System or the SAAW system.
About SAAW:
- The Smart Anti-Airfield Weapon is an indigenously designed and developed smart weapon.
- It is a 120 kg-class light-weight high-precision guided bomb and one of the world class weapons systems.
- It is developed by the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO).
- The weapon is capable of engaging ground targets with high precision up to a range of 100 km which include runways, bunkers, aircraft hangers and other reinforced structures.
About The Project and Test Firing:
- The SAAW was test fired from a Sukhoi Su-30MKI fighter at the Integrated Test Range (ITR), Chandipur, Odisha.
The latest SAAW test was carried on Su-30MKI - During the test, the captive and release trials were tracked by Radar and Telemetry ground stations at ITR during the entire duration of the flight.
- The performance of all systems was satisfactory with all the mission objectives achieved.
- This is the second time in the last seven months when such a test has been successful. Earlier this year in May, the DRDO conducted the first test on the weapon system from the IAF Jaguar DARIN-II aircraft in Bengaluru.
SAAW was tested from IAF Jaguar Earlier in May - ₹58 crore was sanctioned for the project by the government in September 2013.
