India’s 5,000-Km Range Agni-V Missile, Capable Of Reaching All Major Chinese Cities, Test-Fired Successfully

India has successfully test-fired its Agni-V nuclear-capable intercontinental ballistic missile that can reach all major Chinese cities, Times of India has reported.

The missile was test-fired at 9:48 am from the Abdul Kalam Island missile test facility located off the coast of Odisha.

The Agni-V is a three-stage, solid-fueled missile with a range of 5,000 km. It is 17-metre long, weighs over 50 tonnes and is capable of carrying a 1.1-ton payload.

The missile, often referred to as ‘China Killer’, was successfully test-fired last time on 18 January 2018. India has so far conducted five tests of the missile, all of which have been successful, according to Times Now. At least two of the four tests have been conducted from a canister on a road-mobile launcher. Today’s test was also conducted with the help of a mobile launcher, NDTV has reported.

Apart from the Agni-5, India has Agni-1 with a 700-km range, Agni-2 with a 2,000-km range, Agni-3 and Agni-4 with 2,500 km to more than 3,500 km range.

By some accounts, the range of the Agni-V is around 8,000 km. Chinese experts have accused India of ‘deliberately downplaying’ the range of the missile.

"The Agni-V actually has the potential to reach targets 8,000 km away, but the Indian government had deliberately downplayed the missile's capability in order to avoid causing concern to other countries," Du Wenlong, a researcher at China's PLA Academy of Military Sciences, had told Global Times in April 2012.

Also Read: Why The Agni-V Is A Game Changer For India