 "What are Javelin ATGMs and Stryker armoured vehicle which PM Modi-Trump talked about?")
Prime Minister Narendra Modi and US President Donald Trump during their bilateral meet on Friday discussed ways to increase defence ties.
The big news coming out of the meeting was that Trump announced that the US would sell India its vaunted F-35 stealth fighter jets.
“We’ll be increasing military sales to India by many billions of dollars. We’re also paving the way to ultimately provide India with the F-35 stealth fighters,” Trump told reporters.
Modi, earlier in the day, said, “America plays an important role in India’s defence preparedness and as strategic and trusted partners, we are moving forward actively towards joint development, joint production and transfer of technology in the times to come… new technologies and equipment will enhance our capacities.”
Modi and Trump announced plans for India to purchase and co-produce “Javelin” Anti-Tank Guided Missiles and “Stryker” Infantry Combat Vehicles in India, as per NDTV.
Let’s take a closer look:
“Javelin” Anti-Tank Guided Missiles
As per the Lockheed Martin website, the Javelin Anti-Tank Guided Missile (ATGM) is the world’s premier shoulder-fired anti-armour system.
The munition can be carried and launched by one person.
The Javelin automatically guides itself towards the target.
This allows the person firing to find cover and duck counterfire.
The Javelin was produced in a joint venture between Lockheed Martin and Raytheon.
As per Raytheon website, it is used by the US Army and the Marine Corps.
The medium-range, “fire-and-forget” missile can be used against a wide range of targets – including armoured vehicles, bunkers and caves.
The Javelin command launch unit – also known as the sight – allows people to locate the target.
The person firing then uses a cursor to aim at the target.
The launch unit sends a lock-on-before-launch signal to the missile.
The Javelin uses an arched top-attack profile – thus rising above its target and hitting where the armour is weakest.
The system works day and night in any kind of weather.
The Javelin has been used in both Iraq and Afghanistan – in over 5,000 engagements.
The system will be produced till 2050.
As per India Today, the Indian Army is looking for an ATGM that works well in hilly terrain.
As per The Print, the Javelin has proved deadly for the Ukrainians against the Russians.
India has been looking to acquire ATMGs all the way back since 2010.
India initially announced it was acquiring the javelin – only to scrap the decision in favour of an Israeli system and then an indigenously-made weapon system.
However, the DRDO being able to come up with an alternative has once again put the ball in the US’ court.
A source told The Hindu the Javelin was recently tested in high-altitude conditions.
However, the performance of the Javelin wasn’t up to par – due to the age of the system.
The Javelin will be trialled again to see if the results are the same.
“Stryker” Infantry Combat Vehicles
The Styker Infantry Combat vehicles are manufactured by General Dynamics, Canada.
The Stryker is an eight-wheeled combat vehicle.
It was named after two Medal of Honor recipients –Stuart S Stryker, who served in World War II, and Robert F Stryker, who served in Vietnam.
As per Army-Technology.com, the Stryker comes in 10 variants – infantry carrier vehicle, a commander’s vehicle, a medical evacuation vehicle, a fire support vehicle, an engineer squad vehicle, an anti-tank guided missile carrier, a mortar carrier, a reconnaissance vehicle, a mobile gun system and nuclear, biological and chemical reconnaissance vehicle.
The Stryker is the first new military vehicle to enter service of the US Army since the Abrams tank in the 1980s.
The vehicle is based on the GDLS Canada LAV III 8×8 light armoured vehicle.
The LAV III is based on the Piranha III which was built by Switzerland’s Mowag – which is now part of General Dynamic, Europe.
The Stryker vehicle is powered by a 350 horsepower Caterpillar C7 engine.
It weighs 18 tonnes and has a range of 483 kilometers.
It can hit a maximum speed of 100 kilometres per hour.
The Infantry version of the Stryker, which has a crew of two, can carry nine men.
It comes with a Remote Weapon Station with an M2 .50 caliber machine gun or MK-19 and a 40mm grenade launcher.
As per Eurasian Times, the Strykers can be transported via Chinook helicopters – which the Indian Air Force already has.
The Stryker made its debut in Operation Iraqi Freedom II.
The Indian Army is looking to deploy the Stryker in high-altitude regions such as Eastern Ladakh and Sikkim – with an eye on China.
The Indian Army is looking to replace its BMP-II vehicles of Russian-origin.
A source told The Hindu that the Stryker, which was tested alongside the Javelin in high-altitude conditions, performed at an optimal level.
The outlet quoted sources as saying that New Delhi wants to buy a few hundred vehicles.
Initially, a few Styker vehicles would be imported.
Then, the bulk of them would be manufactured here in bulk with some local customisations.
Bharat Earth Movers Limited (BEML), the defence PSU, would likely make the vehicles locally.
Eurasian Times reported that the US last year approved plans to help India produce Stryker vehicles locally.
India would thus become the first global producer of the Stryker combat vehicles.
As per India Today, India and the US also announced the Autonomous Systems Industry Alliance (Asia) to scale industry partnerships and production in the Indo-Pacific.
As per NDTV, the joint statement also mentioned US weapons systems that India had already added to its inventory.
This includes C-130J Super Hercules, C-17 Globemaster III, P-8I Poseidon aircraft; CH-47F Chinooks, MH-60R Seahawks, and AH-64E Apaches; Harpoon anti-ship missiles; M777 howitzers; and MQ-9Bs.
With inputs from agencies
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