On 09 March 2022, an Indian Air Force (IAF) BrahMos supersonic land-attack cruise missile (LACM) crashed in Mian Channu, an area located in Khanewal District in Pakistan’s Punjab province.
In a press conference, the Director General of Inter-Services Public Relations (DG ISPR), Major General Babar Iftikhar, said that the Pakistan Air Force (PAF) monitored the BrahMos’ flight path from its apparent launch point near Sirsa, India, to its impact point in Pakistan.
On 11 March 2022, India’s Ministry of Defence (MoD) disclosed that the BrahMos missile crashed because of an “accidental firing” resulting from “a technical malfunction.”
The incident may not have escalated into an official row, but its impact could start – or potentially accelerate – Pakistan’s efforts to grow its early-warning and land-based air defence capabilities. Pakistan would aim to build a better deterrence element to thwart such activity. However, in the absence of strong foreign relations maneuvering, a robust air defence set-up may not form the deterrence element alone.
The Challenge of Intercepting Cruise Missiles
Jointly developed by India and Russia, the BrahMos is a supersonic-cruising LACM capable of reaching top speeds of around Mach 4. Its weight and range vary based on the specific model. For example, the newest version, i.e., the air-launched BrahMos, can reach a range of over 400 km.
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