The Indian Press are now reporting that the Philippines is reportedly interested in acquiring their Pralay Short Range Tactical Quasi-Ballistic Missiles (QBM). No other Details have been revealed yet other than this.
The Pralay is called a “Quasi-Ballistic Missile” because it doesn’t follow a predictable, Ballistic Trajectory or Path, making it more difficult to shoot down and predict its Target. It can also perform Evasive Maneuvers as it homes in to its Target, adding more to the difficulty of shooting it down.
It has a Warhead of 1,000 kg and a range of 500 km in Service with the Indian Armed Forces, but Export Models will reportedly be limited to only 500 kg and 290 km to observe the Missile Technology Control Regime (MTCR) International Agreement.
It uses an Inertial Navigation System (INS) and Millimeter Wave Radar (MMR) for Digital Scene Matching Area Correlator (DSMC) as Guidance Systems, giving it an accuracy of only around 10 meters. It is optimized to hit Major but Stationary Targets on Land.
It is very fast with a maximum Speed of up to Mach 6.1, or 7,470 kph, but it is also a very heavy one weighing at around 5,000 kg each. As of now only the Indian Armed Forces is using it with an estimated Inventory of around 370 units, but export Prospects include not only the Philippines but also Armenia.
MY THOUGHTS:
The Pralay is basically India’s equivalent to Russia’s Iskander Missiles, which has proven to be very effective so far in the ongoing War in Ukraine. My Issues with the Pralay though is that first, it is only limited for use against Static Targets, so its Main Use for the Philippines are likely to be China’s Artificial Islands in the South China Sea (SCS).
But with its Range limited only 290 km, that means only a few of those Islands will be within its Range, namely Mischief Reef, Fiery Cross Reef and Subi Reef. At least two other Artificial Islands, Johnson South Reef and Cuarteron Reef are already outside of its Range.
The Missiles could be based in our Territories in the Spratly Islands to enable to reach more of those Artificial Islands, but they would also be quite vulnerable there since they will only have a very limited Area to move and hide around with.
The Missiles are also quite heavy, heavier than the BrahMos or the Iskander, so it will limit the mobility of the Vehicle that will carry it around and launch it, especially as its typical Launcher carries two of them.
Personally I think it would be better if we get QBMs with more Range, say around 500 km, and maybe with a bigger Warhead as well at 1,000 kg. And also the ability to hit moving Targets like Ships so it will have more flexibility on how it is used.
I am not sure if such Missiles are available that can be purchased by the Philippines, but that would for me be most Ideal. Remember that the MTCR is just a Guideline and not legally binding, so I don’t understand why some Defense exporting Countries like India insists on following it so strictly.
Pralay vs China’s HQ-9B: Why the Philippines Wants India’s Tactical Ballistic Missile for South China Sea Defence {Archived Link}
Inquiry to ChatGPT on “How near China’s Artificial Islands are to the Philippines”, 08/25/25 {Archived Link}
Inquiry to ChatGPT on How effective are Russia’s Iskander Missiles in the War in Ukraine”, 08/25/25 {Archived Link}
