Technology behind the new cruise missile?

Recently Pakistan successfully tested the “Hatf-VII-Babur” cruise missile. The story has been covered by the international press everywhere because of it’s geo-political implications. There are very little details about the technology behind the missile. Here are the breadcrumbs I’ve found by groveling the net:

An unknown army official says:

“It is a terrain hugging missile, which has the most advanced and modern navigation and guidance and a high degree of maneuverability and its technology enables it to avoid radar detection and penetrate undetected through any hostile defence system”

PakistaniDefence.com has videos and a few more details about what the missile is capable of:

The military said the launch of the missile, which has a range of 500 kilometers (310 miles), meant that Pakistan had “joined a select group of countries which have the capability to design and develop cruise missiles”.
….
Babur was launched vertically with the solid booster motor. Immediately after the launch its guidance and control system takes over and it gains speed and after a few seconds its rocket booster motor is separated. Then the missile automatically opens its wing as a jet plane, and moves towards its target. Special cameras installed in the missile, control and manage its height by minutely monitoring ups and downs of land.

The News is reporting that National Engineering and Scientific Commission (NESCOM) claims that the missile will be in full production sometime next month (their ‘coming soon’ website here).

That’s about all I could find relating to the technology behind the missile. I have a few more questions I would like answered about the missile: Which institution is responsible for creating and putting together the missile prototype? Is it produced indigenously? Who wrote the software for the guidance system? And how does NESCOM fit into the picture?

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15 Responses to “Technology behind the new cruise missile?”

  1. Ahsan Kaleem says:

    General Knowledge”technology enables it to avoid radar detection”

    Please note that any aircraft or missle is able to avoid radar detection as long as it flys close to the ground…approx. 100 meters above ground level.

    “It is a terrain hugging missile”

    This terrain hugging ability makes the missle to avoid detection.

    However the key thing here is that Pakistan has access to advance navigation systems that allows it to create software enabling the missiles it produces to fly at very low levels.

  2. Anonymous Coward says:

    RE: General KnowledgeYeah, the Navigation technology that Pakistan is getting is from the Satellites that have roots in US. Pretty nice thought

  3. Junooniiii says:

    RE: General KnowledgeI wonder if Pakistan is doing anything to have a satellite for navigation purposes only?

    We have now a communications satellite even though its not indigenous. We also need to work on having our own communicatins satellite. Im very impressed how India is going about its space programme. If anyone not in touch with India’s space programme let me say to them that their programme is well thought out and are collobrating with worlds top agencies such as Nasa and so on.

    What Pakistan is lacking is a well defined space policy and also needs to be strict on the implementation side of it.

    My Business & Economics Blog:
    http://bizeco.blogspot.com/

  4. Anonymous Coward says:

    Look at the muppet talkLook at the muppet talk unknown army official said : ‘”It is a terrain hugging missile, which has the most advanced and modern navigation and guidance and a high degree of maneuverability and its technology enables it to avoid radar detection and penetrate undetected through any hostile defence system”‘

    Saying that is as good as saying nothing lol. Pak Def is tsk tsk.

  5. Anonymous Coward says:

    Both countries have limitedBoth countries have limited command-and-control structures, and neither has developed the technology to recall a nuclear-tipped missile fired in error.
    – Says bbc. and I believe BBC rather than petty JANG / Dawn.

    Again Tsk Tsk

  6. Junooniiii says:

    RE:It is true that Pakistan cannot at the moment possess the “most advanced” systems, however i would say that Pakistan has progressed considerably.

    The fact that all our military manufacturing factories are controlled by the military itself makes red tape not to hassle their developments unlike the Indians (classic examples are LCA and Arjun tanks).

    Pakistan does have a very impressive command and control structure, they have it since ‘65!!! India have just in the past few days released their structure details recently!

    Pakistan’s command and control system was made with the help of the US and has been upgraded regularly…If anyone has questions about it…do read respected military journals and different mailitaries remarks including the US’ who speak highly of the Pakistan’s command infrastructure.

    Regarding technology to recall a missile if fired in error? Well please get educated in the military sense as the distance between India’s and Pakistan’s important destinations for these nuclear missiles is so small plus the fact that these missiles travel well over 7 times the speed of sound..not even US has the ability to conqueror such a situation.

    Please post those articles/replies for whom you have ample knowledge of…otherwise please try to be courteous and try asking people to help you with a question rather than make stupid claims.

    Get your facts right first. And please dont try to make this site another one of the many irrelevent forums.

  7. Anonymous Coward says:

    And how about you learnAnd how about you learn english for a change? I do not believe the paki media you dimwit

  8. Junooniiii says:

    RE:Anonymous COWARD…please try to release your desi anger at someone whose mental capabilities are as low as urs. Thankyou

    P.S. I never told you to believe the Pakistani media. With regards to english, im sure i can outclass your pea brain any day.

  9. Anonymous Coward says:

    That certainly is quiteThat certainly is quite apparent with the grammar and spelling mistakes in your post above. Keep on believing yourself you king of wishful thinking.
    As I said earlier regarding your post, I do not believe your paki media. My country’s BBC clearly said:
    “Both countries have limited command-and-control structures, and neither has developed the technology to recall a nuclear-tipped missile fired in error.”

    So you can kiss your sorry paki ass.

  10. Junooniiii says:

    RE:I dont wanna waste anymore time on some uneducated fool like urself, so i’ll just say one thing to you:

    GROW UP!

    http://bizeco.blogspot.com/

  11. Junooniiiis DADDY says:

    Or possibly you do not haveOr possibly you do not have anything to say at all. tsk

  12. Junooniiii says:

    I have alot to say butI have alot to say but frankly, its a waste of time with someone who cannot have an educated conversation (hint hint…u).

  13. Anonymous Coward says:

    bollocksover someone? yeah you bet, not over me mate. try replacing it with ‘with someone’ . and you outclass me. You cannot even outclass gandhi or ali jinnnah’s poor english for that matter.

    Anyway this website’s owner uses http://drupal.org/ opensource engine for this website, such a shameless coward that he removed the drupal links from the bottom of this website. You coward wouldnt have an internet presence if it was not for drupal.org so least you can do is pay them their respect by keeping their link on your puny little bollocks in the bollocks country of the world page about the bollocks IT in the bollocks pakistan

  14. Junooniiii says:

    REshowing your true british colours…NICE!

  15. Your DADDY says:

    still you arent a man enoughstill you arent a man enough to put drupal.org back into the bottom of the page as a gesture of respect.
    tsk cowards