DRDO's Agni-II Prime launch fails

The maiden test launch of Agni-II Prime, a nuclear-capable surface-to-surface missile with a strike range of 2,500 km to 3,000 km, ended in a failure after the missile dropped into the sea a few seconds after launch from Wheeler Island, off the Orissa coast, on Friday. The missile, a modified version of Agni -II, is an intermediary between Agni-II and Agni-III. It has two stages and both are powered by solid propellants. Sources in the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) said soon after the missile took off at 10. 02 am from a mobile launcher of Integrated Test Range at Wheeler Islands, it dropped into the sea. “Experimental launch of Agni-2-P Missile experienced a trajectory deviation. A detailed analysis was in progress to find out the exact cause for the failure and it might take at least two to three days to make a preliminary assessment,” said a DRDO official.