Anti Tank Guided Missiles What Makes Them So Important

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ATGM

The indigenously developed laser-guided version of the Anti-Tank Guided Missile (ATGM) was successfully test fired by the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) on two separate occasions recently and will undergo more validation tests in coming days before it is ready for the user trials. We look at the importance of the weapons system while countering armoured vehicles.

The development of ammunition that can pierce the armours of tanks and the material that can withstand such ammo has been an ongoing race since World War I. But it wasn’t until the next World War that armies across the world began to use the ATGMs, missile systems that can strike and neutralise armoured vehicles such as tanks.
While Indian Army mainly uses various imported anti-tank guided missiles, the DRDO has been working on ATGMs that can be launched from different platforms as part of the Integrated Guided Missile Development Programme.

The laser-guided ATGM, which was successfully tested recently on September 22 and later on October 1, mainly differs in one aspect from other ATGMS developed till date.
This ATGM — which is yet to receive an operational name — is designed to be fired from tanks. With its range limited to 1.5 to 5 kilometers, it locks and tracks the targets with the help of laser designation to ensure precision in striking the target.
The missile uses a ‘tandem’ High Explosive Anti Tank (HEAT) warhead.

The term tandem refers to the missiles using more than one detonation in order to effectively penetrate the protective armours. This missile has the capacity of piercing armoured vehicles which use specially designed armour plates to counter the impact of such projectiles.
This Laser Guided ATGM has been developed by two Pune based facilities of the DRDO’s Armament and Combat Engineering Cluster — the Armament Research and Development Establishment (ARDE) and High Energy Materials Research Laboratory (HEMRL) — in association with Instruments Research & Development Establishment (IRDE), Dehradun.

The role of armoured and mechanised vehicles has remained decisive even in modern day warfare because of their ability to go past conventional defenses. Tank battles are generally fought in a close range of under five kilometers. The objective is to hit the enemy tank before they can take a clear shot. Development of missile systems that can defeat tanks built using modern armour act as a deterrent against enemy tanks from advancing.
DRDO scientists say the operability of the missile from a tank is a key feature in armoured warfare. The missile has the capability of engaging with the target even if it is not in the line of sight, thus further enhancing its capability.