ISLAMABAD, January 9: Pakistan on Monday conducted its first successful test fire of Submarine Launched Cruise Missile (SLCM) Babur-3 having a range of 450 kilometers, from an undisclosed location in the Indian Ocean, the military said.
The missile was fired from an underwater, mobile platform and hit its target with precise accuracy, a statement from the Inter-Services Public Relations said.
Babur-3 is a sea-based variant of Ground Launched Cruise Missile (GLCM) Babur-2, which was successfully tested earlier in December, last year.
Babur-3 SLCM incorporates state of the art technologies including underwater controlled propulsion and advanced guidance and navigation features, duly augmented by Global Navigation, Terrain and Scene Matching Systems.
The missile features terrain hugging and sea skimming flight capabilities to evade hostile radars and air defenses, in addition to certain stealth technologies, in an emerging regional Ballistic Missile Defence (BMD) environment.
“Babur-3 SLCM in land-attack mode, is capable of delivering various types of payloads and will provide Pakistan with a Credible Second Strike Capability, augmenting deterrence,” the army said.
“While the pursuit and now the successful attainment of a second strike capability by Pakistan represents a major scientific milestone, it is manifestation of the strategy of measured response to nuclear strategies and postures being adopted in Pakistan’s neighborhood,” it added.
The test was witnessed by the Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee (CJCSC) General Zubair Mahmood Hayat, Director General Strategic Plans Division (SPD) Lieutenant General Mazhar Jamil, Commander Naval Strategic Force Command (NSFC), senior officials, scientists and engineers from Scientific Strategic Organizations.
President Mamnoon Hussain, Prime Minister Muhammad Nawaz Sharif have congratulated the nation and Military Forces of Pakistan on first successful test fire of Submarine Launched Cruise Missile (SLCM) Babur-3 having a range of 450 kilometers.
The Prime Minister in a statement said that the successful test of Babur-3 is a manifestation of Pakistan’s technological progress and self-reliance. Nawaz Sharif further said that Pakistan always maintains policy of peaceful co-existence but this test is a step towards reinforcing policy of credible minimum deterrence.
Chief of the Army Staff (COAS), General Qamar Javed Bajwa has felicitated the nation over a successful test. Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee (CJCSC) General Zubair Mahmood Hayat, Chief of Air Staff (CAS), Sohail Aman and Chief of Naval Staff (CNS) Admiral Zakaullah have also congratulated the nation on land mark achievement. – Agencies
