K-4 Submarine-Launched Ballistic Missile

From Astra Kosh, the AlphaDefense encyclopedia · Category: Strategic Systems
Contents
  1. Design
  2. Status
  3. Specifications
  4. Sources

K-4 is an intermediate-range submarine-launched ballistic missile (SLBM) developed by DRDO for India’s Arihant-class nuclear ballistic missile submarines, giving India a substantially longer-range sea-based second-strike option than the shorter-range K-15 Sagarika it complements.[1]

Design

K-4 has a mass of about 17 tonnes, a length of 12 m, and carries a strategic nuclear warhead of up to roughly 2,500 kg, giving it an operational range of approximately 3,500 km — several times the range of the roughly 750 km K-15, and enabling Indian SSBNs to threaten targets across a much wider strategic footprint while remaining farther from an adversary’s coastline and anti-submarine defences.[1]

Status

K-4 entered service in August 2024, becoming the primary long-range strategic weapon aboard India’s Arihant-class SSBN fleet. DRDO’s broader submarine-launched missile roadmap extends beyond K-4 to progressively longer-range K-5 and even conceptual K-6/K-7/K-8 systems, reflecting a long-term ambition to extend India’s sea-based deterrent range toward genuinely intercontinental distances.[1][2]

Specifications

Type Intermediate-range submarine-launched ballistic missile (SLBM)
Developer DRDO
Length / Weight 12 m / ~17 tonnes
Range ~3,500 km
Payload ~2,500 kg strategic nuclear warhead
Platform Arihant-class SSBN
In service August 2024
Related programme K-15 Sagarika (shorter range); K-5/K-6 (longer-range successors in development)

Sources

  1. Wikipedia, “K-4 (missile).”
  2. IDRW, “Beyond K-4 and K-5: DRDO’s Long-Term SLBM Roadmap Extends to K-6, K-7 and Even K-8.”