India's Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) achieved a major breakthrough in its hypersonic missile program with the successful long-duration ground test of an actively cooled full-scale scramjet combustor. The test, conducted on January 9, 2026, at the state-of-the-art Scramjet Connect Pipe Test (SCPT) facility in Hyderabad, lasted over 12 minutes. This milestone, accomplished by the Defence Research & Development Laboratory (DRDL), validates the design of the advanced scramjet combustor and demonstrates the capabilities of the indigenous test infrastructure.

The achievement builds on an earlier subscale long-duration test carried out on April 25, 2025. The full-scale combustor and the SCPT facility were designed and developed entirely by DRDL, with critical components realized through collaboration with Indian industry partners. Scramjet (supersonic combustion ramjet) technology is essential for hypersonic cruise missiles, which operate at speeds exceeding Mach 5 (over 6,100 km/h) for sustained periods. Unlike conventional rocket engines, scramjets use atmospheric oxygen for combustion, enabling air-breathing propulsion that supports longer-range, high-speed flight.

The Ministry of Defence described the test as a pathbreaking step forward in India's hypersonic missile development program. The successful validation of the combustor design under extended operational conditions confirms the system's readiness for further integration and flight testing. This position India among a select group of nations advancing hypersonic capabilities, which offer strategic advantages in speed, maneuverability, and difficulty to intercept.

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Defense Minister Rajnath Singh congratulated DRDO, industry partners, and academia on the accomplishment, calling it a solid foundation for the nation's Hypersonic Cruise Missile Development Program. In a post on X, he highlighted the milestone and praised the DRDL team. Secretary, Department of Defence R&D, and DRDO Chairman Samir V. Kamat also extended his congratulations to all involved personnel for their commendable effort.

The test underscores DRDO's growing self-reliance in advanced aerospace technologies and comes amid renewed emphasis on indigenous defense systems. Earlier, on January 1, 2026, during a review meeting at DRDO headquarters, Minister Singh had noted the decisive role played by DRDO-developed weapon systems in Operation Sindoor, reinforcing the organization's commitment to national security. This latest success in scramjet technology further strengthens India's strategic deterrence capabilities in the hypersonic domain.

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