Faster Than BrahMos, Deadlier Than Agni: How India’s New Hypersonic Missile Changes The Game

Last Updated:July 15, 2025, 16:21 IST

India's DRDO has developed the ET-LDHCM, a hypersonic missile under Project Vishnu, capable of Mach 8 speeds and a 1,500 km range

Outpacing BrahMos and Agni, ET-LDHCM uses a scramjet engine and can carry conventional or nuclear warheads. (Representative/PTI)

India has quietly pulled off a major breakthrough in missile technology with the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) having developed what is now being called the country’s most advanced missile system, the Extended Trajectory Long Duration Hypersonic Cruise Missile (ET-LDHCM). This new missile doesn’t just outperform existing defence systems like BrahMos, Agni-5, and Akash but changes the game entirely.

The ET-LDHCM, developed under the highly classified Project Vishnu, is capable of flying at Mach 8, eight times the speed of sound, and can strike targets up to 1,500 km away. That’s nearly three times faster and more than three times the range of the original BrahMos missile. While BrahMos started with a range of 290 km and now stretches to 450 km, the ET-LDHCM enters an entirely different category of weaponry, combining speed, stealth, and long-range precision.

What makes this missile particularly better is its use of a scramjet engine, a propulsion system that uses atmospheric oxygen and doesn’t rely on rotating compressors like traditional engines. This allows the missile to maintain hypersonic speeds for longer durations. It can also carry conventional or nuclear warheads weighing between 1,000 to 2,000 kg, and fly at low altitudes, making it tough to detect and intercept.

The ET-LDHCM is maneuverable in-flight, giving it an edge over many existing ballistic and cruise missile systems. It’s also built to withstand temperatures up to 2,000 degrees Celsius, ensuring its structural integrity at hypersonic speeds.

The missile is multi-platform compatible, it can be launched from land, sea, or air, making it a flexible weapon suited for targeting command centres, radar systems, naval fleets, or hardened underground bunkers. Its capabilities are so advanced that analysts say it could challenge high-end defence systems like Russia’s S-500 or Israel’s Iron Dome.

India’s test comes amid high geopolitical friction – the Russia-Ukraine war, Israel-Iran tensions, and strained relations with China and Pakistan.

The ET-LDHCM test places India in an elite group of nations alongside the United States, Russia, and China, with indigenous hypersonic missile capability.

What Is Project Vishnu?

Project Vishnu is DRDO’s most ambitious hypersonic weapons programme to date. It involves the development of 12 distinct hypersonic systems, including both offensive missiles and interceptors capable of taking down incoming threats mid-air.

The first successful scramjet engine test under this project was conducted in November 2024, where the engine ran for 1,000 seconds, establishing proof of concept. The ET-LDHCM is the first major missile to emerge from this programme.

Notably, the missile has been entirely developed using indigenous technology, with significant input from MSMEs and private defence contractors. This not only strengthens self-reliance under the country’s defence manufacturing policy but also boosts local innovation and employment.

Defence analysts are calling ET-LDHCM a potential tipping point in South Asian military dynamics. It could alter the strategic balance with China in the Indo-Pacific and enhance deterrence against Pakistan, especially given its speed and survivability against interception.

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