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Agni Missile System

Jaidev Jamwal

As of now, India has five versions of Agni missiles in service plus one Technology Demonstrator program and two other versions in development. As interesting as it sounds, it is also a bit confusing to keep track of. This article contains information collected from press releases, interviews and other open sources about different versions of Agni missile.  There is a quite a  bit of misleading information and a lot of missing pieces which make writing any article like this a challenging proposition. I’ve gone through dozens if not hundreds of articles, interviews and official websites to collect the information presented here and believe that most of it is as accurate as Indian establishment wants it to be. If there are any inaccuracies, please feel free to point them out.

1. AGNI – Technology Demonstrator 

Agni Technology Demonstrator missile
Agni Technology Demonstrator
  • NAME                 : AGNI – TD
  • RANGE (km)      : 1500 km
  • PAYLOAD (kg)   : 1000 kg
  • WEIGHT (kg)      : 19000 kg
  • HEIGHT (m)        : 21 m
  • DIAMETER (m)  : 1 m
  • SPEED (km/s)    : Unknown
  • STAGES               : Two. First Stage solid (from SLV-3), Second stage liquid (Prithvi 2nd stage)
  • APOGEE (km)     : 300 km
  • LAUNCHER         : Road, Rail
  • OPERATIONAL  : No. Technology Demonstrator
  • NAVIGATION       : RLG INS
TESTS  :
  1. 5 May 1989. – Success. Apogee: 300 km
  2. 22 May 1992.. – Failure. Apogee: 10 km
  3. 19 February 1994. -Success
USER              : None.
 
REMARKS: Agni -TD missile was used as a technology testbed and a technology demonstrator. It used first stage of SLV-3 space vehicle and second stage of Prithvi short-ranged ballistic missile, both liquid fueled. Both of it’s stages had be refueled before launch and thus had little practical use as a strategic deterrent. It’s development was supposedly abandoned after 3 tests.

 

2. AGNI – I

  • NAME                  : AGNI – 1  

    Agni-I
    Agni-I
  • RANGE (km)   : 700 – 800 km
  • PAYLOAD (kg)  : 1000 kg
  • WEIGHT (kg) : 12000 kg
  • HEIGHT (m)       : 15 m
  • DIAMETER (m)  : 1 m
  • SPEED (km/s)    : 2.5 km/s
  • STAGES             : 1 solid motor (10.5 m) + Re-entry vehicle (4.5 m)
  • APOGEE (km) : 300 – 500 km
  • LAUNCHER        : Road, Rail
  • OPERATIONAL  : With 334 Missile Group.
  • NAVIGATION      : RLG INS
TESTS  :
  1. 25 Jan 2002 – Success. Apogee : 300 km. 9 January 2003. Success. Apogee: 300 km MRBM test with dummy warhead.
  2. 4 July 2004 – Success. Apogee: 300 km (180 mi).
  3. 5 October 2007 – Success. Apogee: 300 km (180 mi).
  4. 24 October 2007 -Success. Apogee: 300 km
  5. 23 March 2008 – Success. Apogee: 300 km
  6. 27 March 2010 Success. Apogee: 300 km. Test launch.
  7. 25 November 2010. Success. Apogee: 300 km
  8. 1 December 2011 Success. Apogee: 300 km
  9. 13 July 2012 -Success. Apogee: 200 km. Test mission..
  10. 11 September 2014 – Nation: India. Apogee: 500 km. Training launch.
REMARKS: . Agni – 1 is supposedly Pakistan specific missile. It was developed after Agni – 2 missile to cover the range between Prithivi’s 200-300 km and Agni-2’s 2000 km range. Presumably it will have a smaller cost and small numbers in service.

3. AGNI – II

  • NAME                  : AGNI – 2

    Agni -II
    Agni -II
  • RANGE (km)   : 2000 – 2500 km
  • PAYLOAD (kg) : 1000 kg
  • WEIGHT (kg)    : 17000 kg . Includes 1000 kg payload.
  • HEIGHT (m)       : 20 m
  • DIAMETER (m)   : 1.3 m
  • SPEED (km/s)    : 3.9 km/s
  • STAGES : Two . 1 solid motor (10.5 m) + Re-entry vehicle (4.5 m)
  • APOGEE (km) : 20 – 1000 km
  • LAUNCHER          :  Road, Rail
  • OPERATIONAL  : With 334 Missile Group.
  • NAVIGATION      : RLG INS, TDOA (Time Delay Of Arrival)
TESTS  :
  1. 25 Jan 2002 – Success. Apogee :300 km, Range 2000 km +. Rail launcher.
  2. 9 January 2003. Success. Apogee: 300 km, Range 2100 km with dummy warhead. Road launcher.
  3. 4 July 2004 – Success. Apogee: 300 km (180 mi).
  4. 5 October 2007 – Success. Apogee: 300 km (180 mi).
  5. 24 October 2007 – Success. Apogee: 300 km
  6. 23 March 2008 – Success. Apogee: 300 km
  7. 27 March 2010 Success. Apogee: 300 km.
  8. 25 November 2010. Success. Apogee: 300 km
  9. 1 December 2011 Success. Apogee: 300 km
  10. 13 July 2012 -Success. Apogee: 200 km.
  11. 11 September 2014 – Nation: India. Apogee: 500 km. Training launch 
REMARKS: Agni -2 is the first MRBM in Indian arsenal which incorporates a wide range of vital technologies like road, rail mobility, active guidance for re-entry vehicle among others. It was a vital stepping stone for Indian ballistic missile programe on it’s way to present a credible deterrence against China among other countries.It’s induction in Indian arsenal is an indication of success in creation of light weight nuclear warheads.
 

4. AGNI – III

  • NAME                   : AGNI – 3 

    Agni 3
    Agni 3
  • RANGE (km)       : 3500-5000 km
  • PAYLOAD (kg)    : 2000-2500 kg
  • WEIGHT (kg)      : 22000 kg.
  • HEIGHT (m)        : 17 m
  • DIAMETER (m)   : 2 m
  • SPEED (km/s)     : 5.6 km/s
  • STAGES               : 2
  • APOGEE (km)      : 100-500 km
  • LAUNCHER         : Road, Rail
  • OPERATIONAL   : Since 2010.
  • NAVIGATION     : RLG INS
  • AGENCY              : ASL
TESTS  :
  1. 9 July 2006- .  Failure. : Failure.Apogee: 100 km (60 mi).
  2. 12 April 2007. Success.  Apogee: 400 km (240 mi).
  3. 7 May 2008  Success. Apogee: 350 km (210 mi).
  4. 7 February 2010  Success.  Apogee: 350 km (210 mi). Range: 3,500 km (2,100 mi).
  5. 20 September 2012  Success.Agni III RV  500 km (310 mi). Test mission.
  6. 23 December 2013  Success. 350 km (210 mi).
  7. 16 April 2015  Success. Apogee: 350 km (210 mi)
REMARKS: Agni-3 is an advanced and longer ranged IRBM successor to Agni-2 MRBM. This was the first missile in Agni series with 2 m diameter compared to 1 m and 1.3 m diameters of previous missiles. The first Agni-3 missiles wighes 50 tonnes, though it was reduced to 22 tonnes later by use of composites materials.
 

5. AGNI – IV 

  • NAME                  : AGNI – 4 

    Agni-IV missile
    Agni-IV
  • RANGE (km)       : 3000-4000 km
  • PAYLOAD (kg)    : 1000 kg *
  • WEIGHT (kg)      : 17000 kg.
  • HEIGHT (m)        : 20 m
  • DIAMETER (m)  : 2 m
  • SPEED (km/s)    : 5.6 km/s
  • STAGES              : 2
  • APOGEE (km)    : 500-900 km
  • LAUNCHER        : Road, Rail
  • OPERATIONAL  : Since 2010.
  • NAVIGATION      : RLG INS, MINGS
 
TESTS  :
  1. 15 November 2011. Success. Range 3000 km +. Apogee 900 km. 800 kg payload.
  2. 19 September 2012. Success.  Range 4000 km . Apogee 800 km
  3. 20 January 2014. Success. Range 4000 km +. Apogee 850 km
  4. 2 December 2014. By SFC, Success. Range 3000 km +. Apogee 500 km
  5. 9 November 2015.
  6. 02 January 2017.
REMARKS: Agni – 4 was called Agni-2A or Agni-2 Prime for a short while and was presumably used as a test bed for a bunch of new technologies including a new navigation system and composite stages. There is no reliable open source confirming it’s exact payload capacity.
 http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/agniiv-testflight-a-stupendous-success/article2629274.ece
Agni-IV missile is equipped with 5th generation onboard computer and distributed architecture. It has the latest features to correct and guide itself for in-flight disturbances
The missile is reportedly equipped with state-of-the-art avionics V-12 fifth generation On-Board Computer.

6. AGNI – V

  • NAME                  : AGNI – 5 

    Agni - V missile
    Agni – V
  • RANGE (km)       : 5000-8000 km
  • PAYLOAD (kg)    : 1500 kg *
  • WEIGHT (kg)       : 17000 kg.
  • HEIGHT (m)        : 17.5 m
  • DIAMETER (m)  : 2 m
  • SPEED (km/s)    : 5.6 km/s
  • STAGES               : 3 (2nd & 3rd Stage made of composites)
  • APOGEE (km)     : 
  • LAUNCHER         : Canister. Road, Rail
  • OPERATIONAL  :
  • NAVIGATION     : RLG INS, MINGS
TESTS  :
  1. 19 April 2012 . Success. Apogee: 600 km.
  2. 15 September 2015. Success.
  3. 31 January 2015. Successful. Canister launch. Range 5000 km. Apogee: 500 km.
  4. 26 December 2016 . Range, 2500 km. Flight time :19 minutes.

6. AGNI – VI

Under Development

  • NAME                  : AGNI – 6
  • RANGE (km)       : More than 6000 km
  • PAYLOAD (kg)    : 
  • WEIGHT (kg)       : 
  • HEIGHT (m)        : 
  • DIAMETER (m)  : 
  • SPEED (km/s)    : 
  • STAGES               : 3 
  • APOGEE (km)     : 
  • LAUNCHER         : Canister. Road, Rail
  • OPERATIONAL  :
  • NAVIGATION     : 

6. AGNI – 1P

Under Development

  • NAME                  : AGNI – 1P
  • RANGE (km)   : 300 -700 km
  • PAYLOAD (kg) : 
  • WEIGHT (kg)   : 
  • HEIGHT (m)        : 
  • DIAMETER (m)  : 
  • SPEED (km/s)    : 
  • STAGES              : 
  • APOGEE (km) : 
  • LAUNCHER         : Canister. Road, Rail
  • OPERATIONAL  :
  • NAVIGATION     :

 


https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1itQOZenz5GmSDJ0mlR8pIN9GgZIN93-CdDYEYVvd7aA/pubhtml?gid=409154531&single=true

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