Who Owns BrahMos?

BrahMos Aerospace was established on February 12, 1998, through an intergovernmental agreement between India and Russia. The joint venture combined India's DRDO expertise in missile guidance and integration with Russia's NPO Mashinostroyeniya's experience in ramjet propulsion technology, particularly from the P-800 Oniks (Yakhont) anti-ship missile program. The name "BrahMos" is derived from the Brahmaputra River of India and the Moskva River of Russia, symbolizing the partnership between the two nations. Initial capitalization was $250 million, with India contributing 50.5% and Russia 49.5%, establishing a management structure slightly favoring the Indian partner while maintaining strong Russian technical influence.

The first successful test launch of the BrahMos missile took place on June 12, 2001, from a land-based launcher at the Integrated Test Range in Chandipur, Odisha, India. The missile achieved its design speed of Mach 2.8 (approximately 3,450 km/h), making it the fastest cruise missile in operational service worldwide. The Indian Navy inducted the ship-launched variant in 2005, deploying it first on INS Rajput, followed by the Indian Army's land-based mobile launcher variant in 2007. By 2010, the missile had been integrated onto multiple naval vessels and mobile land-based launchers, with production capacity reaching 50 missiles annually.

A significant milestone was reached in November 2017 when the air-launched variant was successfully tested from a Su-30MKI fighter aircraft after extensive modifications to reduce the missile's weight by 500 kg while maintaining its performance characteristics. This achievement made India one of only a few countries capable of launching supersonic cruise missiles from land, sea, and air platforms. The air-launched variant entered service with the Indian Air Force in January 2020, completing what defense analysts termed the "supersonic cruise missile triad" for India's armed forces.

In 2022, India secured its first export deal for BrahMos missiles with the Philippines, valued at $375 million for three shore-based anti-ship missile batteries. This was followed by advanced negotiations with Vietnam, Indonesia, and the United Arab Emirates. By late 2023, BrahMos Aerospace had completed deliveries to the Philippines and signed a second export contract with Vietnam valued at approximately $500 million.

The 2024-2025 period marked significant technological advancements for the BrahMos program. In April 2024, BrahMos Aerospace successfully tested the submarine-launched version from India's new Kalvari-class submarine, extending the missile's deployment capabilities to all four military domains: land, sea, air, and underwater. In September 2024, the company unveiled the operational BrahMos-NG (Next Generation) variant at the DefExpo 2024 in Lucknow, India. This smaller, lighter version (weighing 1.5 tons versus the original's 2.9 tons) maintained the supersonic speed while enabling deployment from a wider range of platforms, including smaller naval vessels, lightweight aircraft like the Tejas LCA, and compact land-based launchers.

The most ambitious development program, BrahMos-II, achieved a breakthrough in November 2025 with the first successful test of its scramjet engine technology. This hypersonic variant targeting speeds of Mach 7+ (approximately 8,600 km/h) represents the next evolution of the platform, expected to enter service by 2028. As of early 2026, BrahMos Aerospace has delivered over 1,200 missiles to the Indian Armed Forces and export customers, with annual production capacity expanded to 120 missiles. The company generates annual revenues exceeding $1.8 billion and employs approximately 2,100 scientists, engineers, and support staff across facilities in India and Russia.