Indian Army Conducts Trials of BAE Systems M777 Howitzers reports Press Trust of Indi

[sudhir007]

Indian Army Conducts Trials of BAE Systems M777 Howitzers reports Press Trust of India | India Defence

Press Trust of India quotes unnamed American government officials saying that India was keen on buying 145 M777 howitzers from the United States and the guns were put on trial in India last week. With India's artillery procurements getting delayed, New Delhi had expressed its interest to the US to buy the guns for which US Congress approval had been sought.

"We are now moving towards more military sales" they added. The officials also noted that the Indo-U.S. military relationship was "matured and well evolved," and not based on one transaction. "It is based on exchanges. This is not a relationship, it is partnership," they said, pointing out that U.S. military exercises with India was the "biggest" the Americans held. India's Army, Navy, Air Force and Special Forces hold frequent exercises with the US counterparts.

The M777 howitzer is a towed artillery piece manufactured by BAE Systems' Global Combat Systems division. Prime contract management is based in Barrow-in-Furness in the UK as well as manufacture and assembly of the titanium structures and associated recoil components. Final integration and testing of the weapon is undertaken at BAE's facility in Hattiesburg, Mississippi.

 

[sudhir007]

 

[CONNAN]

may 2007

RFPs Issued for Indian Army 155mm Howitzers, Self Propelled Guns Contracts

2007-05-21 The Indian defence ministry has issued two requests for proposal (RfP) to overseas vendors for 180 155mm/52 caliber wheeled howitzers and 100 tracked self-propelled (SP) guns respectively as part of a long-delayed attempt at standardizing the army's artillery inventory.

Defence sources said the RfP, or an initial inquiry, for the wheeled howitzers was dispatched four weeks ago to 27 vendors while the one for tracked howitzers was issued last week to 17 manufacturers from Sweden, Singapore, France, Spain, Austria, Finland, Israel and Italy.

The eventual contract is to include transfer of technology to locally build the howitzers.

Under the Field Artillery Rationalization Plan, the army plans by 2020-25 on acquiring a mix of around 3,600 155mm/52 cal towed, wheeled and tracked guns for some 180 of some 220 artillery regiments that could cost $5-7 billion. The army's remaining 40-odd artillery regiments are equipped with light guns and missiles.

Trials of the two 155mm systems are expected to take place next summer. They are also likely to include trials for towed 155mm howitzers, the RfP for which is imminent, official sources said.

Presently, the army operates around 14 different caliber guns but has long wanted to configure its artillery force levels predominantly around 155mm/52 caliber howitzers to enhance battlefield effectiveness.

Its most modern platform is the FH 77B 155mm/39 cal Bofors howitzer, 410 of which were acquired in the 1980s to equip around 20 regiments and have since become outdated.

Of the original 410 Bofors howitzers, around 370 remain serviceable, the remainder having been cannibalized to keep the remaining guns operational. But all the Bofors guns suffer from lack of spares and badly require upgrading to 155mm/52cal. The higher the caliber, the longer the howitzers range.

The corruption scandal surrounding the Bofors guns, still under investigation, has however proscribed awarding the upgrade contract to the Swedish company even though it has been sold and is now known as SWS Defence.

The army's and the defence ministry's attempts at involving Tata's, Israel's Elbit and BaE Systems (which now owns Bofors) in upgrading the FH 77B's have so far proven ineffective.

'The army's continuing attempts at acquiring howitzers are confusing to say the least, plagued by bureaucratic and military vacillation that reveal a complete lack of equipment planning and force structure,' a retired two-star artillery officer lamented. He did not wish to be named.

He said the artillery modernization programme had been delayed by nearly a decade raising serious operational implications and warned that if acquisitions were not decided upon soon, the army could easily face a situation in the coming years where it simply has no long-range firepower.

Last year, the army conducted an unprecedented fourth round of summer trials of the Bofors Defence and Israel's Soltam Systems TIG-2002 of towed guns to re-evaluate their performance.

This followed an inconclusive outcome after the third round of trials in November 2004 in which the latter was unable to participate due to 'technical problems'.

The first three rounds of towed howitzer trials that began in 2001, however, also featured South Africa's Denel Ordnance gun alongside its Swedish and Israeli competitors.

But the Congress party-led federal coalition suspended all dealings with Denel two years ago after ordering an investigation into allegations that the South African arms manufacturer had resorted to 'unfair commercial practices' in signing a 400 anti-materiel rifle contract under the previous administration.

This not only frustrated the army's trial evaluation reports but also led the defence ministry to terminate the limited series production of Bhim as the 155mm/52-cal tracked SP howitzers was called, production facilities for which had been set up at great cost.

Bhim was to be built by the state-owned Bharat Earth Movers Ltd in Bangalore by mating the Denel/LIW T 6 155mm/52-cal turret with the chassis of the locally designed, Arjun main battle tank.

 

[CONNAN]

2008 march

BAE Systems To Bid For Indian Army 140 155mm Howitzers Contract

2008-03-14 BAE Systems and Singapore Technologies (ST) Kinetics are to submit bids by 7 April to supply the Indian Army with 140 ultra-light 155 mm/39 cal howitzers. However, the two systems are not scheduled to enter trials until 2009, when they will be tested in the Rajasthan desert and at high altitudes.

Representatives from both companies have told Jane's that they were negotiating collaborative agreements with local companies to jointly build the howitzers under licence and satisfy the mandatory offset obligation of 30 per cent of the overall contract value. BAE Systems is offering its M777 155 mm/39 cal towed howitzer, which weighs less than 4,220 kg. ST's rival Pegasus 155 mm/39 cal lightweight howitzer weighs 5,400 kg.

The M777 howitzer is a towed artillery piece developed by British Vickers group, and is produced by BAE Systems Land Systems in the US. It is in the process of replacing the M198 howitzer in the United States Marine Corps and United States Army service by 2010. The M777 is also being used by the Royal Regiment of Canadian Artillery, and has been used in action in Afghanistan along with the associated GPS-guided "Excalibur" ammunition. It is also being assessed in trials by the British Army as a candidate for replacing the L118 Light Gun in some Regiments.

Specifications
* Length:
o 30.4 ft (9275 mm) in tow
o 33.5 ft (10210 mm) firing mode
* Width:
o 9.1 ft (2770 mm) in tow
o 12.2 ft (3720 mm) firing mode
* Height: 7.4 ft (2260 mm) in tow
* Barrel life: 2650 firings
* Maximum effective range:
o conventional ammunition (unassisted): 24.7 km,
o rocket-assisted projectile: 30 km,
* Rate of fire:
o 5 round/min, rapid
o 2 round/min, sustained

 

[CONNAN]

september 2010

BEML Offers 155mm, 52 caliber Artillery Gun; Field Trials Begin


155mm, 52 caliber Artillery Gun on T72 chasis

2010-09-29 Bharat Earth Movers Ltd. (BEML) has reportedly offered a 155mm, 52-caliber state-of-the-art artillery gun. The Bangalore-based defence public sector undertaking is ready with the wheeled gun and field trials have already started at its testing tracks in the Kolar Gold Fields (KGF), Karnataka.

This development comes in the backdrop of the fact that the artillery has not purchased a long-range gun in about 20 years following the Bofors gun controversy. The Government recently gave the nod to inviting global tenders for the 155mm guns and the proposed contract for over 1000 guns, besides other range of artillery guns including Howitzers, worth over Rs. 20,000 crore.

BEML chairman and managing director VRS Natarajan said they were the nodal processing agency for this gun, which would enhance the lethality of the defence forces. The gun is part of a technology transfer between a Slovakian company, DMD, and BEML to produce this high-precision gun for the Indian armed forces.

Natarajan said, "We have already been made a nodal processing agency for the 155mm, 52-caliber gun which is a state-of-the-art weapon to be inducted by India. We will produce and supply this to the defence forces. It’s a technology transfer; India wants to go for a very upgraded tank which is faster, lighter and able to have a greater fire power with lethality."

He also said, "For the wheeled gun project, we have tied up with a Slovakian company, DMD, for a defence offset and the vehicle has already been made available for trial. The time frame is about three years from the date of order by the defence forces. We expect it to commence in the current year or at most the next year."

According to the BEML chief, the company was also looking at the tracked version of the same gun, which will give better fire power. "We have already set up a state-of-the-art, world-class test track. We have a firing range too," Natarajan said, adding that the PSU was also in the process of setting up infrastructure for the overhauling of T72 and T90 tanks.

According to officials, the 155mm, 52-caliber gun -- which is already in use by NATO countries - would augment Indian capabilities. At present, BEML has set up a testing range at KGF and started the trial of Suzana guns. This wheeled gun would increase the artillery power of the Indian Army. The gun's trial evaluation is over and it is waiting for the request for proposal from the Indian Army, the officials added.

---------- Post added at 03:01 AM ---------- Previous post was at 03:00 AM ----------

any more news on tracked guns

 

[sudhir007]

the thread is M777 ultra light Howitzers

 

[CONNAN]

the thread is M777 ultra light Howitzers

oops my bad i always get confused between these 2 contracts

 

[Kinetic]

I think we have bought M777 already for mountain divisions!!!

 

[Dash]

I think we have bought M777 already for mountain divisions!!!

Iam sure you will be very happy if all the deals of IN,IAF and IA gets sealed off tomorrow-)

 

[Kinetic]

Iam sure you will be very happy if all the deals of IN,IAF and IA gets sealed off tomorrow-)

i thought there were some news that India bought 145 M777 in earlier this year but thanks to the babus they ave ruined it against. According to latest reports MoD adopted new policy so everything have to be started from first!!!! Anthony has big mouth but very small hands.

 

[Dash]

i thought there were some news that India bought 145 M777 in earlier this year but thanks to the babus they ave ruined it against. According to latest reports MoD adopted new policy so everything have to be started from first!!!! Anthony has big mouth but very small hands.

But I think whatever deals they planned before the latest DPP they remained unchanged. they will will use the new policy to deals coming onwards. Are you sure?

 

[Luftwaffe]

I really feel sad for russia.

 

[DEXTOR]

I really feel sad for russia.

really??

 

[Dash]

I really feel sad for russia.

Where did Russia come from??????

 

[!!craft!!]

as china come round the corner every now and then!!!!