Indian Army and the Indian Air Force recently conducted two successful flight tests of indigenously developed Anti-Tank Guided Missile (ATGM) Helina.
The flight trials were jointly conducted by a team of DRDO, Indian Army and IAF from an Advanced Light Helicopter (ALH) and the missile was fired successfully engaging simulated tank target on 11 and 12 April at high-altitude ranges as part of user validation trials.
The missile, one of the world’s most advanced anti-tank weapons, is guided by an Imaging Infra-Red (IIR) Seeker operating in the Lock on Before Launch mode.
According to the Defence Ministry, after the validation trials of the weapon at Pokhran in Rajasthan earlier, the missile’s “proof of efficacy at high altitudes paves the way for its integration on the ALH”. The ‘Helina’ is the third generation, fire and forget Anti-Tank Guided Missile that can engage targets both in direct hit mode as well as top attack mode. The system has all-weather day and night capability and can defeat battle tanks with conventional armour as well as with explosive reactive armour.
