India set to purchase Excalibur GPS-gilded smart artillery ammunition from U.S. supplier Raytheon
NEW DELHI, India – The Indian Army will purchase an undisclosed number of Excalibur artillery projectiles from a U.S. weapons manufacturer. The Diplomat reports. Continue reading original article
The Military & Aerospace Electronics take:
11 July 2019 -- The Indian Army has been given authority to procure goods and materiel worth up to $72 million without prior approval from the Indian Ministry of Defense (MoD) under an emergency procurement procedure following the February 2019 military standoff between India and Pakistan. The Excalibur procurement will take place under this emergency purchase provision.
Excalibur extended-range guided artillery shells can be fired from the Indian Army’s newly acquired M777 155 mm 39-caliber towed howitzer guns and the K-9 Vajra 155 mm/52 caliber self-propelled tracked howitzer.
In November 2016, the Indian government approved the purchase of 145 air-mobile M777 howitzers from BAE Systems at an estimated cost of $750 million under the U.S. Department of Defense’s Foreign Military Sales (FMS) program. The Indian Army will establish seven M777 regiments in the coming years, with the first regiment slated to be operational by the end of October 2019.
Related: Raytheon works to capitalize on Excalibur smart munitions technology for naval guns
Related: Raytheon gets order for 100 Excalibur satellite-guided artillery shells for The Netherlands
John Keller, chief editor
Military & Aerospace Electronics
