Long Shot

Atul Chandra

The Indian Army is slated to make a greater push towards procuring Self-Propelled Guns (SPG) as it takes in the lessons from the ongoing Russia-Ukraine conflict, which has reinforced the continued relevance of artillery as a battle-winning asset.

BAE Systems is now preparing to restart M777A2 production

However, the use of armed drones, loitering and precision munitions by Russia and Ukraine to target artillery has made fixed artillery positions vulnerable to enemy attacks. This is said to be one of the reasons for the Indian Army now having a marked preference for wheeled and tracked SPGs.

But being more complex, wheeled and tracked SPGs are not only more expensive to acquire, but are also costlier to operate and sustain over their lifecycle. Hence these acquisitions will place a further strain on the army’s already stretched budget. There is also the matter of ensuring sufficient indigenous capability in producing the artillery shells needed for these howitzers in large enough quantities to cater to any future conflict.

Rational Rationale

The Indian Army’s Field Artillery Rationalisation Plan (FARP), which was first conceived in the late Nineties, is now expected to be completed in entirety only by in the early 2040s. Much of this artillery hardware will be produced in India under license from the Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs) or indigenous designs. The army had plans to acquire 1,580 Towed Gun Systems (TGS), 814 Mounted Gun Systems (MGS), 180 wheeled Self-Propelled Guns (SPG), 145 Ultra-Light Howitzers (ULH) and 100 tracked self-propelled guns.

Over the years, two of these requirements have been completed with BAE Systems M777 A2 ULH and Hanwha Techwin—L&T K9 ‘Vajra’ tracked SPGs. These new artillery pieces now equip seven and five army artillery regiments respectively.

India concluded the USD 542 million foreign military sales (FMS) contract for 145 M777A2 ULH in January 2017. The 155 millimetre/39 calibre M777 A2 has proven to be of immense utility in the Eastern Sector, conferring a dramatic improvement in the army’s mobile firepower capability. BAE Systems has also offered India a 52 calibre 155 millimetre barrel for the ULH. This would result in a 155 millimetre, 52 calibre platform weighing under 5,800 kilograms, which BAE Systems has said it is willing to manufacture in India.

In January, BAE Systems inked an agreement with