Army chief witnesses Spike anti-tank guided missiles in action

Army Chief General Bipin Rawat witnessed newly-acquired Spike anti-tank guided missiles in function at Mhow, Madhya Pradesh on Wednesday, Army sources said.

Two rounds of these "fire and forget" missiles were tested in front of the Army Chief and they successfully hit their targets, the sources said.

The Army Chief is in Mhow for the Infantry Commanders' Conference.

The Spike missiles were acquired by the Indian Army through the emergency procurement route after the Balakot aerial strikes against the Pakistan-based terrorist groups.

The missiles from Israel have been procured as a stop-gap arrangement till the time the DRDO-developed Man Portable Anti Tank Guided Missile (MPATGM) gets ready for induction into the service.

240 of these Spike missiles and their launchers have been procured from Israel by the Army to meet its emergency requirements.

The missiles which are supposed to be mainly used for anti-tank operations can also be used for destroying hardened shelters or bunkers which may be hiding terrorists.