Raytheon Company has won the competition for the next phase of Excalibur Ib and has been awarded a $23 million U.S. Army contract to finalize the next-generation 155 mm precision-guided projectile's design. Delivery of the Excalibur Ib rounds is projected to occur in 2012.Based on the combat-proven Excalibur Ia, Excalibur Ib uses GPS technology to provide a first round, fire-for-effect, ...

BAE system has been approved for providing Engineering and Technical services to the U.S. Army and other federal customers under $ 16 billion government contract which is termed as Rapid Response -3 rd Generation (R2-3G). "The R2-3G contract is a valuable tool for agencies with urgent needs for services," said Chuck Thomas, vice president and general manager of systems engineering ...

India is currently the third largest contributor of troops (military and police) to the United Nations Peacekeeping Operations with a total strength of 8919 personnel serving in nine out of 15 UN Peacekeeping Missions around the world.The Minister for External Affairs, S.M.Krishna informed the Parliament that Indian troops were located in Lebanon, Congo, Sudan, Golan Heights, Liberia, Ivory Coast, Cyprus, ...

The Minister of Defence, A.K.Antony informed the Parliament that the Army followed a philosophy of having a mix of legacy equipment, equipment with matured technology and state-of-the-art equipment. T-72 tank, he said, was not an antiquated equipment and that the Army intends to retrofit/upgrade these tanks to enhance their mission reliability and life expectancy.Orders for 124 Main Battle Tank (MBT) ...

The Minister of Defence, A.K.Antony has informed the Parliament that efforts were been made to bring down the number of suicide cases in the Armed Forces. In 2009, a total of 111 Armed Forces personnel committed suicide and the number for 2010 till July was 59.The measures that are being taken include: liberalized leave policy; professional counselling on stress management; ...

The Union Cabinet has accorded 'in-principle' approval to the setting up of the Indian National Defence University (INDU) at Binola in Gurgaon, Haryana. The Cabinet in its May meeting said the basic objectives for establishing INDU is to assist national security leaders in assessing strategic security challenges holistically and to formulate policies based on researched and informed inputs.The Minister of ...

BAE system Ultra Lightweight WarriorIn today's time the art of war fighting is changing around the world. Science and technology often plays a very vital role in it. New innovative methods are being developed which would help the soldiers. BAE system has come with Ultra lightweight warrior (ULW) system which is innovative body armour. "The success of any military operation ...

The Boeing and its partner iRobot company have received an order of providing small unmanned ground vehicles (SUGV) to the U.S.Army. The order is or 94 mew models of 310 SUGV robots, plus spares for a total value of $14.6 million."Boeing and iRobot are pleased to be working with our customers to provide this life-saving technology in response to urgent ...

Lt General J.P. Singh is the Deputy Chief of Army Staff (Planning & Systems) and is responsible for equipping and developing the capability of the Indian Army. In an exclusive interview to SP's Land Forces, General Singh spoke on various aspects of the procurement procedure of new weapons and defence systems.SP's Land Forces (SP's): How has your tenure in the ...

Naik Husan Lal attained martyrdom on May 23, 2010, while on overseas duty in Congo. He was part of the Indian Peacekeeping Battalion. A stray bullet fired by the rebels hit him and while being airlifted to the hospital at Goma after first aid, he succumbed to the injuries. Paradoxically, there were no casualties to the Congolese patrol, due to ...

LT General (Retd) V.K. KapoorArtillery modernisation has been plagued by inordinate delays due to many reasons, but the most relevant factor is the convoluted procurement process put into place to prevent corruption and ensure transparencyThe Indian Army has once again issued a request for information (RFI) for 155mm/52- calibre towed gun system for the Artillery on July 22, 2010 and ...

* Battlefield Management SystemsGeneral Dynamics UK is the prime systems integrator responsible for the UK's flagship C4I Battlefield Management System (BMS), Bowman.This BMS system provides secure voice communications, a tactical internet and advanced situational awareness to the UK Armed Forces on operations.But it's not just Britain who trusts us to deliver. Our major international partnerships are delivering tailored Battlefield Management ...

Special CorrespondentA forum for meeting and interacting with defence players from across the world, Eurosatory helped decision-makers and industry players obtain information about solutions for security forcesThe need for products and systems to secure the homeland from armed conflicts, internal and external insurgencies and the changing threats and operational skills were well addressed at Eurosatory 2010, held at the Viparis ...

Raytheon has developed an enhanced counter-sniper capability by linking its Boomerang acoustic sensor and networkready long-range advanced scout surveillance system (LRAS3). Raytheon Combat Systems Vice President Glynn Raymer said that connecting Boomerang and netted LRAS3 was a plug-and-play operation that resulted in a powerful counter-sniper capability.

Chairman Chiefs of Staff Committee and Chief of Air Staff (CAS) Air Chief Marshal P.V. Naik released two joint operational doctrines, namely Joint Doctrine for Perception Management and Psychological Operations and Joint Doctrine for Air and Land Operations. The doctrines formulated by the Doctrine Directorate of Headquarters Integrated Defence Staff (IDS) to create the requisite synergy between the three Services ...

SpearNet offers simultaneous voice, data and situational awareness in a low-cost multi-mission, multi-role radio. Light weight, rugged and reliable, it provides enhanced capability to the individual soldier and greater command and control options to commanders. The ability to transmit real-time data from soldiers, as well as a vast array of sensors, makes SpearNet an important element of any communications solution. ...

Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) successfully conducted the fourth consecutive Interceptor Missile test in endo atmospheric regime at 15 km altitude off ITR, Chandipur, Orissa, on July 26, 2010. The single stage interceptor missile fitted with directional warhead and other advanced systems neutralised the target. The target ballistic enemy missile was launched from Launch Complex - III, ITR, Chandipur.

Pakistan laments that US drones have killed more civilians than terrorists, vociferously opposes targeting terrorist hideouts, and yet badgers the US for transfer of drone technology. Why?Although the US military's strategy towards Pakistan's tribal region, which is at present limited to specific drone attacks against hardened Al-Qaeda and Taliban targets, may not have resulted in desired operational success, the Pakistani ...

Lt General (Retd) V.K. KapoorThe way forward to deal with the Maoists will require an enlightened and caring political leadership to institute land reforms, efficient administration, and effective police machineryThe bloodletting by the Naxals (Maoists) is becoming more dangerous and threatening by the day. The state police and Central police forces deployed in Naxal affected states and districts barring Andhra ...

LT General (Retd) Vijay OberoiThose opposed to the AFSPA call it a draconian law that needs immediate repeal. Those who want it to continue are convinced that it is essential if insurgents and terrorists are to be tackled successfully.Lately, there has been a wide debate in the media about the pros and cons of the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act, ...

Lt General (Retd) P.C. KATOCHWe need officers in Special Forces who are physically and mentally tough, out of the box thinkers with high initiative, have sharp intellect with creative intelligence, high on adaptability, ready to give/accept blunt advice, able to learn from subordinates in addition to seniors and peers, courageous as a lion, cunning as a fox and techno-savvy to ...

The ongoing debate on the validity and legitimacy of the Armed Forces Special Powers Act 1990 (AFSPA) in Jammu and Kashmir, always tends to evoke emotional and wrathful responses by the bleeding hearts intelligentsia, least informed about the facts regarding the AFSPA. The essence of the AFSPA is briefly given in the ensuing subsequent paragraphs. Important sections of the Act ...

Army Chief General V.K. Singh was on a trip to Vietnam from July 26 to 29, 2010. During this trip, General V.K. Singh called on General Phung Quang Thanh, Minister of National Defence of Vietnam, besides holding talks with Chief of General Staff and Chief of Army of Vietnam. The Army Chief also visited historically important cities of Hanoi and ...

Lt General (Retd) P.C. KatochConsidering that terrorism is here to stay and insurgencies can hardly be wished away, we need to be prepared against these threats compounded by asymmetric warfare being waged by our adversariesConflict situations require superior battlefield transparency, handling of information and efficient command and control set-up, all in a telescoped observe, orient, decide and act (OODA) cycle. ...

General Dynamics UK experience of C4I programmes, and delivering interoperability and integration, is key to the success of India's Battlefield Management SystemIndia, as we know, is planning to modernise the communications systems used by its armed forces in order to give it a military advantage. Adding command and control capability through a cohesive Battlefield Management System (BMS) will without doubt ...