The Indian army began to receive the new Israeli Spike anti-tank systems. Revised several times under the pressure of local industry contract was for the purchase of the format of urgent operational needs: otherwise the Indian armed forces were left without modern means of destruction of tanks.
publication Sources Times of India reported, that the first batch of 210 Spike missiles with a dozen launchers arrived in India about 10 days ago. Delivery takes place against the backdrop of continuing tension with the nearest neighbor India, Pakistan.
Purchase was made in April 2019 of the year. It was conducted by virtue of, Defense R & D that India DRDO (Defence Research and Development Organisation), responsible for Indian project ATGM third generation, I was not able to provide a massive army of working model.
An order for the purchase will be repeated, if the development of the portable anti-tank from the DRDO will not be completed in the coming year. We do not want a slow down in the elimination of our critical operational deficiencies due to the inability of local producers and supervising their departments to accomplish the task.
– Army source stressed in a conversation with the Times of India.
The DRDO, in turn,, conviction, they can submit MP-ATG to the test in the coming year. Army feels the urgent need to equip more 380 infantry battalions and 44 mechanized infantry units, According to the source, “tank Destroyer” –
ATGM third and fourth generations, as the second generation of its available ATGM are not able to keep accurate fire at night for a long time and need to be replaced.
Spike - one of the most common and well-known anti-tank guided complexes in the world. At the moment he is in service in more than 20 countries, in some of them - for example in Germany - manufactured under license.
On Spike mounted infrared homing, allowing to implement the principle of "fire and forget", or "shot, I gauge and adjust ". The system also allows you to hit most of the existing armor types, including the upper hemisphere.
India is the largest customer of Israeli defense industry. The initial contract for the supply of products within MPATGM (Man-Portable Anti-Tank Guided Missile) for the needs of the Army of India got the company Rafael. Its total cost, followed by localization of the program Make in India, was 525 millions of dollars.
According to the requirements of the first tender, published in 2009 year, supplier should have given 321 ATRA third generation, 8,356 ATGM them, 15 simulators and associated services. Besides, within Rafael deals, American manufacturers overtook the competition in the race FGM-148 Javelin Raytheon and Lockheed Martin, pledged to spend on reinvestment or purchase Indian products 30% of the transaction amount, as well as the transfer of technology of production of missiles India.
Israeli company was built plant, which was supposed to start local production in 2018 year. However, the deal was thwarted in 2017 year due to the intervention of DRDO, claiming, that the Indian industry, having experience in creating ATRA 2nd generation Nag and Anamika, could create a perspective for ATGM 3-4 of the year. Purchase of the foreign missiles, According to Indian authorities, could harm its own defense industry development program.
Indian media say, that purchase “tank Destroyer” Israel – necessary measure. Due to the, that Indian industrialists were unable to provide their own alternative to the Israeli complex, Army had to make an emergency purchase of Israeli products.
