Trial established SAMHO anti-tank guided missile’s capability to engage targets from minimum to maximum range. The indigenously developed laser-guided Anti-Tank Guided Missile (ATGM) was successfully test-fired from Arjun Main Battle Tank (MBT) by the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) and the Army at the Karakoram range on Tuesday. In the test, the ATGM hit the bull’s eye with textbook precision and successfully defeated the target at minimum ranges. Telemetry systems recorded the satisfactory flight performance of the missile. The test was conducted with the support of the Armoured Corps Centre & School, Ahmednagar.
The all-indigenous ATGM employs a tandem High Explosive Anti-Tank (HEAT) warhead to defeat Explosive Reactive Armour (ERA) protected armoured vehicles. The ATGM has been developed with multi-platform launch capability and is currently undergoing technical evaluation trials from 120 mm rifled gun of Arjun MBT. Stating that engaging the targets at lower ranges is a challenge due to the dimensional constraints of tank launched ATGMs, the statement said it has been successfully accomplished by the ATGM for Arjun MBT. The ATGM’s capability to engage targets from minimum to maximum range has been established. Earlier the trials have been successful for maximum range.
The SAMHO is an Indian gun-launched anti-tank guided missile developed by the Armament Research and Development Establishment (ARDE) for the Arjun tanks of the Indian Army. Originally intended to be fired from the 120 mm rifled gun of Arjun, the DRDO is planning to make it compatible with the T-90 tanks of the Indian Army, which has a 125 mm smoothbore gun. The SAMHO has dual high-explosive anti-tank (HEAT) tandem warheads designed to defeat explosive reactive armour (ERA) protection of modern armoured vehicles and tanks. The SAMHO is a multi-purpose anti-armour guided missile effective against tanks as well as low flying attack helicopters.
The development of SAMHO gun-launched anti-tank guided missile was announced in 2014. The SAMHO missile was developed under the Cannon Launched Missile Development Programme (CLMDP) by the ARDE lab of Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) in association with High Energy Materials Research Laboratory (HEMRL) and Instruments Research and Development Establishment (IRDE). The missile is intended to enhance the firepower of the indigenous Arjun tanks in service with the Indian Army. DRDO also solved the dimensional constraints of tank launched ATGM.
