The Indian Defence Ministry stated on Thursday that a missile was accidentally launched into Pakistani territory earlier this week, blaming the accident on a “technical malfunction” that was “deeply unfortunate.”
“On 9 March 2022, in the course of routine maintenance, a technical malfunction led to the accidental firing of a missile. The Government of India has taken a serious view and ordered a high-level Court of Enquiry,” the Ministry of Defence said in a statement.
“It is learnt that the missile landed in an area of Pakistan. While the incident is deeply regrettable, it is also a matter of relief that there has been no loss of life due to the accident,” statement added.
Before landing, the missile travelled more than 100 kilometres inside Pakistani airspace, at an altitude of 40,000 feet and at three times the speed of sound, according to Pakistani officials. The missile did not detonate because it lacked a warhead.
However, Pakistan’s foreign ministry announced that it had summoned India’s charge d’affaires in Islamabad to protest what it called an unjustified breach of its airspace. Pakistan demanded a probe into the incident, which it claimed, it could have put passenger aircraft and civilian lives in jeopardy.
“Be aware of the painful consequences of such negligence and take effective efforts to avoid recurrence of similar violations in the future,” Pakistan advised India.
Major-General Babar Iftikhar, a Pakistani military spokesman, stated in a late-evening news conference that a “high-speed flying object” fell near Mian Channu in the country’s east, and that it originated in the northern Indian city of Sirsa, in Haryana state near New Delhi.
Military specialists are confused by the incident because firing a missile system requires a preparation phase, the identification of a target, and the toggling of many switches.
Both sides handled the issue admirably, according to Happymon Jacob, an international studies professor at Delhi’s Jawaharlal Nehru University.
He remarked on Twitter, “It gives me great optimism that the two nuclear weapon states dealt with the missile mishap in a mature manner.” “New Delhi should offer to pay the Pak family for their home being destroyed.”
BrahMos Missile
The BrahMos is a missile used by both the Army and the Air Force. In addition to surface-to-surface missiles, the Indian Air Force has air-launched BrahMos missiles fired from Su 30 MKIs.
According to sources, the BrahMos’ flight path is determined by the target. When launched from a ship, for example, the missile rises and cruises just above the water’s surface.
While there is no BrahMos base in Sirsa, Haryana, where Pakistan claims the missile was launched, the missile system is operated from specialised trucks and can be transferred from one area to another. Such missile tests are normally conducted from the Andaman and Nicobar Command’s eastern flank.
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