DRDO Kusha M1 Flight: DRDO has taken a big step forward with Project Kusha, which is also called the Extended Range Air Defence System or ERADS. The first developmental flight test of the Kusha long-range surface-to-air missile was carried out successfully on July 23, 2026, from Dr APJ Abdul Kalam Island off the Odisha coast. The test is being seen as an important early win for India’s home-grown air defence work.
The missile was tested against an electronic target that acted like a fast and high-flying enemy threat. Public reports say the system is meant to stop fighter jets, drones, cruise missiles and some ballistic threats.
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How The Three Missile Layers Work
Project Kusha is planned as a three-layer air defence system. The first layer is the M1 interceptor, which is said to cover targets at about 150 km. The second layer, M2, is expected to extend that shield to around 250 km. The outer layer, M3, is being developed to hit threats at roughly 350 km to 400 km. This design gives India a wider safety ring around important places.
The system is often described as India’s answer to the S-400 because it is meant to do a similar job in a made-in-India way. It is also being built to work with the Indian Air Force’s wider air command network, so radar data and threat alerts can move faster during an attack.
Reports say the project has been cleared for five Indian Air Force squadrons at a cost of ₹21,700 crore. Bharat Electronics Limited and Bharat Dynamics Limited are key industry partners in the programme. That means this is not only a DRDO project. It is also a big team effort with Indian defence companies.
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Why M2 and M3
The new M2 and M3 missiles are the next big steps. M2 is meant to push the defence wall farther out. M3 is the farthest layer and is expected to take out high-value support aircraft like AWACS planes, refuelling tankers and electronic warfare jets before they come too close. That gives Indian forces more time and more room to respond.
The missiles are also expected to fly at speeds of up to Mach 5.5 and use advanced AESA radars and hybrid guidance systems. DRDO will now carry out more developmental tests to check rocket motor performance, stage separation, flight control and seeker accuracy before the system moves toward full user trials. The phased induction of the full system is expected sometime between 2028 and 2030.
