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Emerging Trends of Artillery

P K Chakravorty

Market Trends It was interesting to study the Artillery System Market Competitive Review which published a Research Report on the global artillery systems market that has the information for five years up to 2023. The projection of a compound annual growth rate of about 6.8 per cent implies that the world over there is a demand for artillery systems. Further, the leading players in the global artillery systems include Lockheed Martin, Kmw+Nexter Defence Systems, IMI Systems, Hanhwa Group, General Dynamics, Elbit Systems, Denel SOC Limited, China North Industries Corporation, BAE Systems and Avbras. It is pertinent to note that Russian, Turkish and Indian manufacturers have been left out of the study and, therefore, the picture is incomplete to that extent. The first question that obviously strikes a strategic analyst is, “Why is there a growing demand for artillery systems?” The report states that the global artillery systems market is driven by enhanced requirements for advanced military equipment in the developed countries around the world as well as growing demand in the emerging countries. This includes surveillance equipment and platforms. Further, there is a considerable demand for automation of these systems to be effective in a network-centric environment.1 The study has segmented artillery based on region, type, range and components. The regions are North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, Middle East, Africa and Latin America. North America is likely to dominate the global artillery

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Demand for artillery system due to the growing defence expenditure systems is growing due of the United States; Europe will hold the second to increasing number place while the market in Asia-Pacific is expected of territorial disputes. to grow at the fastest rate during the period up to 2023. Accordingly, the decision to make and design in India will pay rich dividends. The study attributes this growth to the increasing number of territorial disputes and the modernisation of the military forces of these countries. The study segments artillery mortars, howitzers, rocket artillery and other equipment. Mortars are in great demand globally, primarily for their small size. In the Indian system, mortars are diminishing as we still have hostile borders where other equipment plays an important role. The howitzer system is expected to grow at the fastest pace during the period up to 2023. Howitzers have a greater range and comprise a better system than mortars, particularly for inter-state conflicts. In terms of range, the study focusses on short, medium and long ranges. It is obvious that medium range artillery accounted for the largest share of global systems. Medium range artillery for the study considered the range from 26 to 50 km. The study points out that up to 2023, the long range segment is projected to grow at the highest rate. This is attributable to the increasing unresolved borders as a greater portion of the target is covered by long distances. As regards components, the study has divided artillery systems into gun, fire control system, ammunition, auxiliary system and others. The fire control systems accounted for the biggest share of the global market. It is pertinent to note that the projected growth would be the highest in the precision ammunition system. This is due to increased accuracy of target detection and firing with the use of Global Positioning System (GPS) fire control systems, onboard navigation, ammunition handling system and digital processing. This gives us a perspective from a business point of view which would be a pragmatic trend.

Current Trends After a stagnation of two decades in its modernisation, the Regiment of Artillery has recently started inducting a variety of 155 mm medium guns.2 The Regiment of Artillery is currently in a Network-Centric Warfare (NCW) environment and has to provide surveillance and reconnaissance resulting in target acquisition which would lead to engagement which needs to be monitored to undertake post-strike damage assessment and ensure that the target is destroyed. In NCW, artillery shapes the battlefield, degrades the enemy’s war-waging capability,

86 ä SPRING 2020 ä scholar warrior scholar warrior destroys his field defences, communication sites and logistics echelons, thereby paralysing him and, thus, accomplishing our mission. The regiment is currently equipped with a variety of surveillance devices, guns, mortars, rockets and missiles. The surveillance devices are a part of the Surveillance and Target Acquisition (SATA) regiments. The devices currently held comprise the Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) which are of four types. These are the Medium Altitude Long Endurance (MALE), Heron UAVs and Short Range UAVs Searcher MK I, Searcher Mk II as also the indigenously built Nishant. These UAVs have been operationally optimised and are an extremely useful tool for surveillance. Our current holdings are minimal and their numbers need to be enhanced.3 The Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) is currently developing the MALE UAV Rustam which will possibly be inducted in the short term. It has been recently reported that the UAVs after being inducted into the artillery for more than two decades are being transferred to the Army Aviation Corps. The task of undertaking surveillance remains unaltered and the Army Aviation Corps will have to strain every sinew to optimise this system and synergise with artillery intelligence which would enable target acquisition and prioritisation. The role of Army Aviation, enunciated correctly by General B S Pawar, must include UAVs and Unmanned Combat Aerial Vehicles (UCAVs) likely to be inducted in the .4 The SATA units are currently equipped with Medium Range Battlefield Surveillance Radars (MBFSR) and Weapon Locating Radars (WLR). Further, SATA units are equipped with the Long Range Reconnaissance and Observation System (LORROS). This equipment has excellent day and night surveillance capability and has proved its effectiveness in operational areas. The SATA units also have a passive weapon locating system known as sound ranging. Bharat Electronics in conjunction with DRDO has developed a WLR which has undergoone evaluation trials and is being inducted. As regards guns, the regiment is equipped with field, medium, self-propelled, light and medium regiments. The field regiments possess either the 105 mm Indian field gun/light field gun or 122 mm field howitzer. The medium regiments possess the 130 mm medium gun, 155 mm Bofors medium gun (39 calibre) and a few regiments of soltam guns. The self-propelled regiments are equipped with 130 mm catapult; and the light regiments are equipped with the 120 mm mortars. The Regiment of Artillery is also holding rockets and missiles. The rocket regiments are equipped with 122 mm GRAD BM-21 rockets, 214 mm

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Indian Artillery is Pinaka rockets and 300 mm Smerch rockets. The on threshold of a missile regiments are equipped with the supersonic new era with steady BrahMos which has a range of 290 km. modernisation. Recently India has joined the Missile Technology Control Regime (MTCR) which has resulted in trials for extending the range up to possibly 400 km. Lately, the regiment has inducted six 155 mm (45 calibre) Dhanush gun systems manufactured by the . The gun is designed, developed and made in India which enhances our indigenous capability of manufacturing state-of-the-art equipment. Further, the equipment has undergone extensive evaluation trials and would attain a maximum range of about 38 km. The other guns pertain to the 155 mm Ultra-Light Howitzer (ULH) (39 calibre) and the self-propelled gun K 9 Vajra (52 calibre). The ULH is manufactured by BAE Systems and is being procured Foreign Military Sales (FMS) route from the US. The equipment, along with the Vajra, was inducted by the Raksha Mantri at Devlali in November 2018. While a few pieces would be obtained from the Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM), the remaining would be made in India by Mahindra Defence. The gun is extremely light and can be helilifted by the Chinook helicopter, CH 47 C which is being procured by the Indian Air Force (IAF). The gun would be a game changer, particularly in eastern Arunachal.5 The K 9 Vajra is a Self-Propelled (SP) gun which is an indigenised version of a South Korean SP gun and which would be made in India by Larsen and Toubro (L&T) Limited. The gun would be utilised in the desert regions bordering our western front and would be the first SP gun after the 105 mm Abbot and the 130 mm catapult to be inducted into the Indian Army. The Prime Minister inaugurated the Armoured Systems Complex of L&T at Hazira around 30 km from Surat to manufacture the Vajra. The delivery of 100 systems is to be completed by about 2022. The self-propelled gun would be state-of-the-art and made in India.6 This would be ideal equipment for export.

Future Trends Recent events have made the Indian artillery realise that it has to be fully prepared for a full spectrum two-front war. The future battle space is likely to be: yy Hybrid. yy Short notice, high tempo and high intensity. yy Enhanced battle space transparency.

88 ä SPRING 2020 ä scholar warrior scholar warrior yy Deeper and wider contact zones with non-contact warfares. yy Greater use of precision weapons. yy Network centricity of both platforms and systems. yy Asymmetric nature. yy To be fought against a backdrop of Nuclear, Biological and Chemical (NBC) warfare.

The Indian Artillery is currently on the threshold of a new era, with modernisation moving at a steady pace. The regiment has expedited the modernisation process, particularly with regard to guns and ammunition. There has been a great breakthrough as far as indigenous development is concerned with the development by DRDO of the Advanced Towed Artillery Gun System (ATAGS). Two prototypes have been developed by Bharat Forge and Tata Strategic Engineering Division. During the development trials, the Bharat Forge and Tata guns achieved a range of over 48 km in September 2017. This is a great achievement and there is a need to start the process of user trials followed by General Staff evaluation. This would really ensure that a gun which is designed and developed in India enters our inventory.7 The other achievement has been in the field of the supersonic cruise missile, the BrahMos. It has qualified in the user trials for the steep dive version of the missile, thereby enabling the equipment to be deployed in the mountains. Further, the missile in a current test has ranged 400 km. There is a requirement to enhance the range to 600 km to engage suitable depth targets across the borders. It should be possible to achieve this range without changes to current equipment configuration. Reports state that the 500 km missile is ready for trials.8 The Request for Proposal (RFP) for the 155 mm (52 calibre) mounted gun system has been revived. This is an extremely important system as the gun is mounted on the vehicle and could be employed universally. The trials of the 155 mm (52 calibre) have been completed and the Elbit towed gun ATHOS 2052 has been selected and the commercial negotiations are on—about 400 guns would possibly be inducted in the next three years.9 The extended range Pinaka rocket of 90 km is also shaping well in the trials undertaken by DRDO. Test firings undertaken at Chandipur on December 19-20, 2019, were extremely successful.10 The Pinaka and the Smerch must be configured for deployment in the mountains and the gunners need to address this issue with deliberation. The long range mortar is also an essential requirement for which suitable efforts must be put in.

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In conjunction with the Army Aviation Corps, the artillery also needs UCAVs and loitering missiles. Aerostats are required to enhance surveillance of depth areas for acquisition of targets. The surveillance equipment needs to be beefed up with additional equipment as also there is a dire need for satellites to provide surveillance and target acquisition. The Artillery Combat Command and Control System (ACCCS) will be combining these elements to provide synergised firepower. The system needs to be updated and introduced in all formations. The employment of Precision Guided Munitions (PGMs) to ensure destruction of targets by accurate fire merits serious consideration. The Regiment of Artillery needs to seriously consider this aspect and evaluate requirements based on the prevalent operational environment. Further sensor-fuzed ammunition needs to be procured for precise engagements of mechanised targets. It is time now to think about the future. The ongoing cases would possibly fructify in the next decade. What are the issues we must get involved to ensure that we are not left behind? These are as follows: yy PGMs which could be co-developed between the DRDO and Raytheon. The 155 mm Excalibur is an excellent PGM which could be made in India, making it an excellent weapon against targets needing precise engagements which would include terrorists hideouts across the Line of Control (LoC). As per reports, it has recently been acquired as per the fast track procedure and could pay rich dividends at the LoC.11 yy UCAVs are the need of the hour. These could be made in India with initiative taken like in the case of UAVs by the Directorate General of Artillery. yy There is a need for hypersonic cruise missiles. The Directorate General of Artillery must ensure that BrahMos Aerospace works towards this end. yy Development of a 200 km gun using rocket projectiles. DRDO could co-develop this with Lockheed Martin which has developed a 62 calibre naval gun and is keen to make in India. yy There is a need to develop Direct Energy Weapons (DEWs), particularly microwave weapons which can be used on missiles, lasers on UCAVs and the electromagnetic rail gun. Artillery must get involved to ensure that they continue in their race forward.

Major General P K Chakravorty, VSM (Retd) is a Senior Fellow (Veteran) at CLAWS, New Delhi. The views expressed are personal

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Notes 1. Market Watch, “Artillery Systems Market Competitive Review, Latest Innovation, Trends, Size, Share, Growth, Analysis, Forecast to 2023”, www.marketwatch.com September 5. 2019. Accessed on January 10, 2020. 2. Lieutenant General B S Pawar,“Artillery Modernisation a Reality Check”, www.bharatshakti. in, November 22, 2018. 3. P K Chakravorty, ‘‘UAVs Indian Perspective”, India Strategic, February 2012, www. indiastrategic.in. Accessed on January 12, 2020. 4. Lieutenant General B S Pawar, Indian Army Aviation Corps Today and Tomorrow”, Defence and Security Alert, January 2020, www.dsalert.org. Accessed on January 12, 2020. 5. Rahul Singh, “Indian Army M 777 Regiment to get 3 Made in India Guns”, Hindustan Times, New Delhi, November 13. 2019, www.hindustantimes.com. Accessed on January 12, 2020. 6. ‘‘PM Inaugurates L&T’s K 9 Vajra Gun Making Facility”, January 19, 2019, www.the hindubusinessline.com. The Hindu Business Line. Accessed on January 12, 2020. 7. “Indian Army to Soon get Longest Range Advanced Towed Artillery Gun System”, The New Indian Express, www.newindianexpress.com, November 22, 2019. Accessed on January 12, 2020. 8. PTI, “Upgraded BrahMos with 500 km Range Ready: CEO, BrahMos Aerospace”, The Economic Times, July 8, 2019, www.economictimesindiatimes.com. Accessed on January 12, 2020. 9. Swarajya, “ATHOS 2052 Emerges Winner in Towed Artillery Competition”, www.swarajyamag. com. Accessed on January 12, 2020. 10. Lieutenant General P C Katoch, “Upgraded Pinaka Rocket System”, SP’s MAI, January 4, 2020, www.spsmai.com. Accessed on January 12, 2020. 11. S K Gurung, ‘‘Army Fires Excalibur Rounds for First Time Using M 777 Howitzers”, Economic Times, December 10, 2019, www,economictimes.indiatimes.com. Accessed on January 12, 2020.

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