India’s accidental launch of a supersonic missile into Pakistan last month may result in disciplinary action against a handful of officers. The operational lapse was linked to the Commanding Officer of the BrahMos unit, media reports suggest. 

The Court of Inquiry, which was set up to investigate the incident, found the Commanding Officer and a few other officers responsible for the misfire into Pakistan, the Times of India reported citing unnamed sources.

Also Read: US speaks out on India’s missile misfire into Pakistan

The unarmed supersonic missile, which was accidentally launched from an Indian Air Force base on March 9, travelled nearly 124 kilometers into Pakistan. However, the projectile landed in Pakistan’s Mian Chunnu and did not cause any immediate harm.

The report suggested that the findings of the Court of Inquiry were now being “legally vetted” by the authorities. “The lapses and extent of culpability of those in command have to be established to ensure the charges stand up legally”, an unnamed official said, according to the Times of India.

“The overall standard operating procedures for the operations, maintenance and inspections of such missile systems have also been reviewed”, the individual added.

The mobile command post of the BrahMos unit was being handled by a Group Captain-rank officer.

Also Read: Rajnath Singh says India’s missile misfire occurred during routine maintenance

BrahMos, a supersonic missile jointly developed by India and Russia, can travel at Mach 2.8. The projectile also does not have self destruct mechanism, meaning that there was no way to abort the fire once the missile was launched.

A few days after the incident, India admitted that the firing was “accidental” and cited routine maintenance and technical fault. New Delhi also announced that it would be setting up a commission to probe the incident. However, Islamabad was against the move and demanded a joint investigation.