India successfully tests missile interceptor

[Coventina]

Source: International Herald Tribune

NEW DELHI: India successfully tested its homegrown missile interception system Friday for the third time, the Defense Ministry said, boosting the chances of turning it into a viable defense system.

The incoming missile was fired from a ship in the Bay of Bengal and intercepted at an altitude of 46 miles (75 kilometers), the Defense Ministry said in a statement.

"The mission control room burst into raptures as the radar display indicated the interception and destruction of the decoy enemy missile by the interceptor," the statement said.

The test comes at a time of heightened tension between India and its archrival Pakistan over the deadly Mumbai attacks, which India blames on Pakistani militants. Both nations are nuclear armed.



Read more: http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2009/03/06/asia/AS-India-Missile-Defense.php

[Massacure]

1. Why does the United States have so much difficulty doing what the Indians can do?

[Alexander]

2. Because we outsource all the work to India anyway?

[Sultana]

3. Well, we've just come out of 8 yrs of *

[hack89]

4. The Aegis Ballistic Missile Defense System is the most successful system in the world

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aegis_Ballistic_Missile_Defense_System

No other system in the world has as many successful intercepts. This is the system that the Japanese are threatening to use to shoot down that North Korean missile that may be launched soon.

It is the only operation system in the world that has shot down an orbiting satellite, for example.

[Nihil]

5. Gosh! Really?!

> It is the only operation system in the world that has shot down
> an orbiting satellite, for example.

Not that the trajectory of the target was known then ... :P
There's nothing quite like the Aegis for increasing the amount
of crap orbiting the earth.

Mind you, that's not to say it doesn't work against targets with
trajectories that haven't been available for weeks: Iran Air Flight 655
proved that it is a very effective weapon against civilian aircraft ...
all you need to kill 290 people with a single weapon is to have a
dickhead in charge of it ...

[Threedifferentones]

6. Hmmmm

I do not know the meaning of the word "operation system," so this may not qualify. But, China, at least, has shot down an orbiting satellite.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/16689558/

Still, all these systems are so far pretty much moot, since an unexpected attack with multiple missiles from multiple origins would overwhelm any nations defenses.