India conducts maiden flight of glide weapon system

The locally developed ‘TARA’ can convert unguided warheads into high-precision munitions

India has conducted the maiden flight of its locally developed glide weapon system.

The Defense Research and Development Organization (DRDO) and the Indian Air Force successfully conducted the maiden flight-trial off the coast of Odisha on Thursday.

The Tactical Advanced Range Augmentation (TARA) extension kit is equipped to convert unguided warheads into high-precision guided weapons, an official release said.

Maiden flight-trial of Tactical Advanced Range Augmentation (TARA) weapon was successfully conducted off the coast of Odisha on May 07, 2026.

TARA, the modular range extension kit, is India’s first indigenous glide weapon system to convert unguided warheads into precision guided… pic.twitter.com/Ofx8mrGGgY

— DRDO (@DRDO_India) May 8, 2026

The TARA kit, developed by Research Center Imarat in Hyderabad, along with other DRDO laboratories, is equipped to enhance the lethality and accuracy of a low-cost weapon to strike ground-based targets.

The DRDO said the production of the kits for the Indian Armed Forces has already started.

Such kits are attached to a standard unguided bomb to direct the weapon to its target. The kits enable strikes from afar, minimizing the risk for aircraft carriers.

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Russia, the US, China, Pakistan, Israel, and France are some of the countries that have similar kits in their arsenals.

The Israeli Air Force has been actively using SPICE (smart, precise-impact, and cost-effective) kits, which convert an air-dropped unguided warhead into a precision-guided bomb, AP reported.

In December, India’s Defense Acquisition Council, chaired by Defense Minister Rajnath Singh, approved a procurement of defense equipment worth $8.7 billion, which includes a deal for SPICE kits, Indian media reported.

RT reported earlier that Russian forces may have tested an upgraded glide bomb capable of striking targets up to 150 km away in May last year. Russia has reportedly been developing an advanced glide bomb kit known as the UMPB D-30SN.