Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) successfully conducted a flight test of the Pinaka Long Range Guided Rocket

Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) successfully conducted a flight test of the Pinaka Long Range Guided Rocket

¨  Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) successfully conducted a flight test of the Pinaka Long Range Guided Rocket (LRGR) on 8 July 2026 at the Integrated Test Range (ITR), Chandipur, Odisha.

¨   The rocket successfully demonstrated the user-defined minimum strike range of 60 km.

¨  It completed all planned in-flight manoeuvres and accurately hit the designated target.

¨     Pinaka is an indigenous Multi-Barrel Rocket Launcher (MBRL) system developed for the Indian Army.

¨     The system is capable of launching different variants of the Pinaka rocket family from a common launcher platform.

¨     The Pinaka LRGR was designed by the Armament Research and Development Establishment (ARDE) in collaboration with the High Energy Materials Research Laboratory (HEMRL).

¨     The development programme also involved Defence Research and Development Laboratory (DRDL) and Research Centre Imarat (RCI), both DRDO laboratories.

¨     The Integrated Test Range (ITR), Chandipur is one of India's premier missile and weapon testing facilities on the east coast of Odisha.

¨     The test was conducted using an in-service Pinaka launcher, demonstrating launcher commonality for multiple rocket variants.

¨     The Pinaka Long Range Guided Rocket (LRGR-120) successfully completed its maiden flight test in December 2025 with a maximum range of 120 km.

¨     The Indian Army currently operates around six to seven Pinaka rocket launcher regiments and plans to further expand its Pinaka force structure.