Along with active tenders for virtually the entire gamut of infantry weapons, here’s the latest. The Indian Army has just sent out requests for information (RFIs) on a potential new Heavy Machine Gun (HMG) for its forces — 12.7mm x 99mm with a minimum effective range of not less than 2,000-metres. According to the RFI, the weapon should have the capability to be used from a Light Strike Vehicle/Infantry Fighting Vehicle and in a ground role while mounted on vehicle and tripod respectively. It continues: The weapon should be easy to carry by the three men crew in dismantled condition and be assembled with ease while being used in the ground role. The weapon should be robust enough to withstand rough usage and simple to maintain in operational conditions normally encountered in India including high altitude areas, jungles and desert. The gun should of course be capable of firing High Explosive Incendiary (HEI), Armour Piercing High Explosive (APHE), Armour Piercing Discarding Sabot (APDS), Target Practice (TP) and corresponding tracer ammo.
The specs put out are in fact almost identical to the superb Browning M2HB HMG already in service with the Indian Army, and which the new guns will replace. The other 12.7mm vehicle-mounted HMG in service with India is the Russian NSV 12.7mm HMG. RFIs for a new HMG have been sent to agencies that include Rosoboronexport for the Degtyarev Kord 12.7mm HMG, General Dynamics for the still in-development M806 HMG and also the Browning M2E50 (a modernised variant of the venerable M2).
Photo by Shiv Aroor (Off the coast of Mullaitivu, Sri Lanka)
Hummmm…….India manufactures nuke subs, aircraft carriers, combat aircrafts, missiles, but not machin guns, which must be imported!
Strange….
Either choose the Russian HMG or re-engineer the good old Browning. Stay clear of the GenDyn model. US made infantry weapons are great for use by gun clubs, lousy on the field. This is an age old problem from the WW1 thru WW2, Korea, Vietnam etc.
shiv,
Where does india use the M2?..i've never seen it ANY army pic…EVER!……
I've never seen it either on a APC, Bunker etc…
pls. enlighten me…
thx
The Kord HMG seems good,Russians could give us the local license production…
why does the DRDO not get into this ? they seem preoccupied with food,farming ,etc. Does ARDE doene anything in the last 25 yeras ?
Hummmm…….India manufactures nuke subs, aircraft carriers, combat aircrafts, missiles, but not machin guns, which must be imported!
Strange….
Strange maybe to you, but it is perfectly normal for DRDO. The super dooper "scientists" over there, touch only "state of the art" mumbo jumbo which our politican don't understand.
DRDO Conning the CONgress….. Strange isn't it???
The gun that should be selected is this one
http://world.guns.ru/machine/mg26-e.htm
since it was shelved the cost of reactivating it willl be cheap as no one in nato uses this it, It could be possibly completely picked up for licence manufacture.
Thank god its about time we got .50 calibers into the force in large numbers. That would seriously improve the war fighting ability in the squad level.
Infantry small arms design and manufacture is not a low tech affair. It is a very challenging area of technology. German, Austrian, Swiss, Belgian and Italian small arms are widely acknowledged to be the best in class, while Russian small arms are hard to beat for the serviceability and ruggedness. For those who snark about DRDO's inability to design and make small arms, you should also ask the police departments in the US why they swear by the Glock 17/19/26 or HK MP5s, as well as the US military why they use Beretta/SIG Sauer handguns, HK-MP series, and expecially why the USMC grunt desperately wants to be rid of the M4 and instead use the HK416. Only the Russian military is self-reliant on indigenous small arms. Militaries all over the world (yes the US too) freely import and co-design small arms with foriegn makers (like the HK416 a joint US-German design)
12.7mm QJG-89 heavy machine gun
very light MG?
why not take a look at the desert tactical HTI 50 BMG? its a good gun with a bull pup config so recoil is reduced too. . .
because they are looking for heavy machine guns, not a anti-materiel sniper rifle?