DRDO Successfully Tests Scramjet Engine

On 9th January 2026, India marked a major advance in hypersonic weapons development as the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) successfully conducted a long-duration ground test of an actively cooled, full-scale scramjet engine at Hyderabad, strengthening the country’s Hypersonic Cruise Missile programme.

Key Points:

Long-Duration Test: DRDO conducted a long-duration ground test of a full-scale scramjet engine, achieving a runtime of over 12 minutes.
Test Facility: The test was carried out at the Scramjet Connect Pipe Test (SCPT) facility of the Defence Research & Development Laboratory (DRDL) in Hyderabad.
Programme Milestone: The achievement represents a critical milestone for India’s Hypersonic Cruise Missile programme.
Builds on Earlier Success: The test builds upon a sub-scale long-duration scramjet test conducted on 25 April 2025, reflecting steady progress.
Indigenous Development: Both the scramjet combustor and the SCPT facility were designed and developed indigenously by DRDL with support from industry partners.
Hypersonic Capability: Hypersonic cruise missiles are designed to sustain speeds exceeding Mach 5, or over 6,100 km/h, using air-breathing engines based on supersonic combustion.
Design Validation: The successful run validated the combustor design and demonstrated the advanced testing capabilities of the SCPT facility.