India on Thursday successfully carried out the maiden flight-trial of the indigenously developed Tactical Advanced Range Augmentation (TARA) weapon system off the coast of Odisha, marking a significant boost to the country’s indigenous defence capabilities.

The Tactical Advanced Range Augmentation (TARA) system, developed to convert unguided warheads into precision-guided weapons, was tested jointly by the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) and the Indian Air Force (IAF).

"The Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) and the Indian Air Force (IAF) successfully conducted the maiden flight-trial of TARA weapon off the coast of Odisha," the defence ministry said.

The ministry said TARA is India’s first indigenous glide weapon system designed to convert unguided warheads into precision-guided weapons.

DRDO also announced the successful trial in a post on X.

"Maiden flight-trial of Tactical Advanced Range Augmentation (TARA) weapon was successfully conducted off the coast of Odisha on May 07, 2026. TARA, the modular range extension kit, is India’s first indigenous glide weapon system to convert unguided warheads into precision guided weapons."

According to the ministry, the weapon system has been designed and developed by Research Centre Imarat (RCI), Hyderabad, along with other DRDO laboratories to improve the lethality and accuracy of low-cost weapons for neutralising ground-based targets.

It added that TARA is the first glide weapon to utilise state-of-the-art low-cost systems.

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh congratulated DRDO, the Indian Air Force and industry partners associated with the project for the successful maiden flight-trial.

He described the achievement as a significant step forward in strengthening India’s indigenous defence technology and military capabilities.