The Indian Navy is looking to acquire new 12.7mm heavy machine guns for the ships/RHIBs it deploys for anti-piracy action. The RFI specifies that the weapon should have an effective range of about 1,800-meters, a cyclic rate of fire of 450 rounds per minute and a barrel life of 10,000 rounds. Both the Indian Army and Indian Coast Guard have active efforts on to acquire similar weapons.
Where's the photo of the dual M2s from Shiv? Were you on one of the Yank ships for a Malabar Ex?
This is great, just as long as there are vendors out there that have weapons that satisfy these criteria. I hope these criteria are based on what is available and not on somone's wet dream.
Hopefully rather than importing them wholesale the Navy will ask for the foreign manufacturers to use their JVs in India to build them here. For instance that factory Kalashnikov was going to set up to build their newer AKs.
BTW how do the great DRDO/Ordiance Factory Rakshaks feel about the fact that they can't even develop satisfactory fixed, unguided heavy machine guns for the Navy after decades of licence-building and repairing them?
Meanwhile a zero-experience private engineering firm like L & T successfully reverse-engineered the Russian 533mm ASW torpedo tube system and RBU-6000 rocket launchers and is now manufacturing them indigenously for the new Project 15A, 17 and 28 ships.
Hopefully this RFP won't end up taking 6 years to resolve, given the AK Antony ministry's track record.
@ Gagan
and i suppose manufacturing the said systems is same as developing as opposed to licensed manufacturing
RFPs and the whole procurement system together with the price negotiation process of the MOD has become a circus.
It takes years (ages) for them to go through the rigmarole that they have devised so much so none is available to the end users on time.
Antony's obsession to keep his clean image is not doing anything positive to the procurement policies if he cannot weed out the corrupted babooos in his ministry. On the whole he turns out to be another MMS who is wishy-washy and indecisive.
Where DRDO and its affiliates are concerned they do not have the R&D and management skills to bring out indigenous products on a time-bound basis.
OFB is making heavy machine guns for T-72/90 tanks for umpteen years. I hope they are good enough for our import loving services
The OFB(on the face of it) seems to make little effort to upgrade or modernize its products.Like the Ambassador Car,whose only evolution was a change in the model number, a monopoly position or bureaucratic hurdles prevents the OFB from catering to new demands of the forces.The OFB must be made to realize,that if it has to have a future,it has to bring itself upto the times and be a fast mover.Recently,the BSF ordered MX-4 Berretta 9mm carbines rather than any of OFB weapons. All the OFB has is old sterlings in 9mm calibre.Why did OFB never take steps to build up a modern 9mm system.All it had was 5.56X30 carbines(which BTW have also not been accepted by anyone). The fate of Zittara 9mm is not known.Unless OFB brings in new technology and new materials things will not improve.Take the finish of the INSAS,it metallic parts are painted in the most horrible paint with an uneven riveted finish.The paint starts peeling and chipping almost instantly.And to top it all,the cost of the weapons(thanks to bloated staff and inefficient manufacturing) is costly. Compare it with the finish and almost silky feel of an H&K or a Beretta or a Colt.Had OFB not been in a monopoly position,there is no way anyone would buy arms from it.The sad part is ,basically the weapons are good.Only poor workmanship and lack of manufacturing techniques bring them down. The government on its part must provide the OFB freedom to act independently.
can we use MK 15 Phalanx instead the 12.7 mm? as it will make Uncle Sam happy
what happened to the vidhwansak gun?
vidhwansak gun is an anti material rifle. this is a tender for a heavy machine gun.
Put an Army Man at the helm of MoD for one lifetime in the Govt, he'll get things in order. Anthony is too slow, uninformed and an impediment.
Is India manufacturing them? or buying from foreign shelves?