Pakistan Successfully Tests Medium Range 'Ababeel Weapon System'

Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) of the Pakistan Army informed that Pakistan conducted a successful flight test of the ‘Ababeel Weapon System’ on 18 October 2023.

The objective of Ababeel Weapon System Testing:

• The objective of the test flight was to redefine various designs, technical parameters and performance evaluation of various sub-systems of the weapon system.
• The Ababeel Weapon System is intended to defeat Indian ballistic missile defense systems.
• Theoretically it could also be used in a retaliatory strike to destroy India's nuclear arsenal before it can be used.
• The objective was to ensure the survivability of Pakistan's ballistic missiles in an increasing regional ballistic missile defense (BMD) environment.

Medium-range surface-to-surface ballistic missile:

• Ababeel is Pakistan's surface-to-surface medium-range ballistic missile. Its range is said to be 2200 kilometers.

Capable of dodging S-400 missile defense:

• The primary objective of the Ababeel weapon system is to circumvent India's S-400 missile defence. This missile is capable of conventional and nuclear attacks.

• According to ISPR, the purpose of the weapon system is to maintain retaliatory power and maintain strategic stability in the region.

Ababeel Weapon System:

• The Ababeel missile has a length of 21.5 meters and a diameter of 1.7 meters and is designed to carry both conventional and nuclear warheads.
• It carries multiple independently targetable reentry vehicles (MIRVs), marking South Asia's first MIRV payload.
• The Ababeel missile has a maximum range of 2,200 kilometers (1,400 mi).
• In such a situation, this will be Pakistan's first missile with this capability.
• It can carry a total of 1,500 kg (3,307 lb) of weapons, including three standard weapons of 500 kg (1102.3 lb) or 5 of 300 kg (661.4 lb) or 8 maximum weapons of 185 kg (408 lb).

Major missiles of Pakistan:

• Pakistan currently has 6 operational ballistic missile systems with nuclear capability.
• These include short-range missiles Abdali (Hatf-2), Ghaznavi (Hatf-3), Shaheen-1/A (Hatf-4) and Nasr (Hatf-9).
• Whereas Gauri (Hatf-5) and Shaheen-2 (Hatf-6) with medium-range firepower are included.