Ghauri (missile)
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| Ghauri-I/Hatf-V | |
|---|---|
| Basic data | |
| Function | Medium-Range Ballistic Missile MRBM |
| Manufacturer | Kahuta Research Laboratories (KRL) |
| Unit cost | Unknown |
| Entered service | (Tests) 05/28/98, 05/25/2002 |
| General characteristics | |
| Engine | single stage liquid propellant engine |
| Launch mass | 15,850 kg |
| Length | 15.90 m |
| Diameter | 1.35 m |
| Wingspan | Unknown |
| Speed | Unknown |
| Range | 1,300 to 1,800 km |
| Flying altitude | Unknown (Apogee) |
| Warhead | 15 to 35 kT Nuclear |
| Guidance | Inertial |
| Fuzes | NA |
| Launch platform | transporter erector launcher (TEL) |
Ghauri (Urdu: غوری) is a medium-range ballistic missile in development by Kahuta Research Laboratories (KRL) of Pakistan.
The Ghauri has a theoretical identified range of 1,300 km, experts believe that the range may be shorter based on other factors.[1] and can carry both a conventional and non-conventional payload. It is powered by a liquid propellant engine. Pakistan successfully carried out test of the surface-to-surface Hatf-V (Ghauri) Missile with a range of 1500-km and a payload of 700 kg on April 6, 1998. This test represented a step forward in Pakistan's indigenous missile and satellite launch programme.
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[edit] Etymology
The Ghauri name (also spelled Ghori) is highly symbolic and taken from a Muslim historical figure, Muhammad Ghori who was a rival to the Hindu ruler Prithvi Raj Chauhan of India in the last decade of the 12th century. "Prithvi" is the name India has assigned to its Short-Range Ballistic Missiles (SRBMs). However, the Indian missile's name refers to the Hindi word for Earth, and not the Hindu king. In addition, Pakistan has revealed names for three other new missiles, the "Ghaznavi," "Babar," and "Abdali."
[edit] The Ghauri test launch, April 6, 1998
In August 1997, when Pakistan first announced it was developing the Ghauri, it also referred to the missile as the "MK-III." Following the April 6, 1998 test, the Pakistanis also gave the designator Hatf-5 (or V) to the Ghauri. Hatf ("Deadly" or "Vengeance") is the name Pakistan has given to its domestically produced missiles: Hatf 1/1A (80-100 km / 50-62 miles); Hatf 2 (300 km / 186 miles); and Hatf 3 (600-800 km / 372-496 miles).
[edit] Range
The range of the Ghauri is 1,500 km/930 miles. The reports also state that the missile was flight tested on April 6, 1998 to a distance of 1,100 km/682 miles.
However some reports stated that the missile was fired in a westerly direction from Malute, near the town of Jhelum in north-eastern Pakistan and impacted near Quetta. This is a distance of only some 700 km. According to Professor S.Chandrashekar, a former scientist at the Indian Space Research Organisation, if the missile was fired due east, the effect of the earth's rotation would give it a range of 1,240 km. Fired in a southerly direction (i.e. the likely direction of targets in India), it would reach a range of some 950 km - 1,120 km.
[edit] Payload
The missile's payload is 700 kg/1,547 lb. A report from January 1998 claims that the missile can carry a nuclear, chemical, or anti-tank warhead. Following the April 6, 1998 test, a reporter asked a Pakistani spokesman whether the Ghauri was nuclear-capable, and the spokesman replied: "My understanding is that anything that flies can carry any payload."
[edit] Test Data
The test took place at 0723 hours (local) on 6 April 1998. The launch site was "an army firing range at Malot [or Malute] in Jhelum [or Jelum] District, about 100 km [62 miles] from the federal capital [Islamabad], and [the missile] reached its desired target near Quetta [in Balochistan]....The launching pad was prepared near the tomb of Shahubuddin Ghauri." As such, the test flight was carried out completely overland. No advance notice of the actual flight test appears to have been given by Pakistani authorities. Pakistani sources also report that the flight test lasted 9 minutes and 58 seconds. One report places the total weight of the missile at 16 tons with a fuel load of 14 tons; another report states that "13 tons was fuel, one ton warhead and the rest casing and equipment."
[edit] Guidance/Accuracy
The test was completed without "any error." The guidance system was "100 percent perfect." According to Pakistan's top missile and nuclear scientist, Dr. Abdul Qadeer Khan, "we did consult abroad for the components for the [guidance] system." A report from January 1998 claims the Ghauri "is equipped with the latest guidance system" and has an accuracy (CEP) of 250 m/820 ft at 1,500 km.
[edit] Launcher
The Ghauri missile was test fired from a mobile launcher.
[edit] Operator
Pakistan: The military of Pakistan will be the sole operator of the Ghauri.
[edit] References
[edit] See also
- List of missiles
- Other missiles currently in the service of Pakistan:
