Page 15 - Defence Sector

India clocks defence offsets worth over $7 billion till January 2024

The total amount under defence offset stood at $2.9 billion as of March 2020, according to data from the Department of Defence Production

With an eye on Ladakh, DRDO begins testing an indigenous light tank

The tank has been named Zorawar, after the 19th-century general who conquered Ladakh and Baltistan for his Dogra overlords

India-US partnership within Quad enhances security: General Atomics

The collaboration between India and the US within the Quad framework enhances security and strengthens the ability to respond to emerging geopolitical threats and promotes a rules-based international order, according to a top Indian-American executive in the American defence industry. Vivek Lall, Chief Executive for the General Atomics Global Corporation, also said as his company is building its support network within India, it is also reaching out to the Indian high-tech sector. Collaboration between the U.S. and India, within the Quad framework, enhances security by fostering a strategic partnership to address common challenges, such as regional stability, maritime security, and counterterrorism, Lall told PTI in an interview. The US, Japan, India and Australia had in 2017 given shape to the long-pending proposal of setting up the Quad or the Quadrilateral coalition to counter China's aggressive behaviour in the resource-rich Indo-Pacific region. Lall is on the Advisory Board of

IAF indigenised more than 60,000 components in 2-3 years: Air Chief Marshal

Air Chief Marshal VR Chaudhari on Saturday said the IAF has indigenised more than 60,000 components in the last two to three years. He also said the Air Force cannot rely on foreign OEMs (Original Equipment Manufacturers) for repair and overhaul maintenance activities and that it has to be done in-house. The IAF chief was speaking with reporters on the sidelines of a programme held in the Bhonsala Military School in Nagpur. Queried on tracing the wreckage of a transport aircraft of Indian Air Force in the Bay of Bengal off the Chennai coast, the Air Chief Marshal said, "Unfortunately, it took so long but finally we at least got the technology to (explore) deep sea and locate such things in seabed". "We are grateful to the Ministry of Ocean and Earth Sciences for facilitating this and to be able to discover this wreckage. It brings closure to a long pending sad accident". The wreckage of an IAF transport aircraft has been located at a depth of around 3.4 km in the Bay of Bengal, ne

China abruptly ousts nine military lawmakers as defense purge widens

The nation's top legislative body revoked the lawmakers' membership during a Friday meeting, the official Xinhua News Agency reported

Defence Secretary Aramane urges HAL to partner with private players

Hailing the important work being done by HAL, Aramane said, "HAL has received applause at the highest levels and the government trusts your capability to deliver and make the country self-reliant "

US says its nuclear missile capsules safe, but toxins lurked: Report

A large pool of dark liquid festering on the floor. No fresh air. Computer displays that would overheat and ooze out a fishy-smelling gel that nauseated the crew. Asbestos readings 50 times higher than the Environmental Protection Agency's safety standards. These are just some of the past toxic risks that were in the underground capsules and silos where Air Force nuclear missile crews have worked since the 1960s. Now many of those service members have cancer. The toxins were recorded in hundreds of pages of documents dating back to the 1980s that were obtained by The Associated Press through Freedom of Information Act requests. They tell a far different story from what Air Force leadership told the nuclear missile community decades ago, when the first reports of cancer among service members began to surface: The workplace is free of health hazards, a Dec 30, 2001, Air Force investigation found. Sometimes, illnesses tend to occur by chance alone, a follow-up 2005 Air Force review ..

IAF Chief Chaudhari visits 2 frontline operational bases in western sector

The IAF chief was briefed on the operational readiness of the bases, the statement said

'Govt to increase exports of 10-11 sectors from $160 bn to $500 bn by 2030'

The government is working on boosting domestic manufacturing and increasing exports to USD 500 billion by 2030 from 10-11 sectors, including automobiles, pharma, textiles, medical devices and chemicals, a senior official said on Thursday. These issues were discussed during a meeting called by the Commerce and Industry Ministry on Thursday. The meeting was convened by the Department of Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) in collaboration with Invest India and SCALE (Steering Committee for Advancing Local Value-Add and Exports) Committee to unveil outcomes and recommendations made during the Chintan Shivir for Manufacturing, held on October 12 at Bharat Mandapam here. The 11 sectors are auto components, automobiles (including EVs), capital goods, chemicals, drones, medical devices, aerospace and defence, leather and footwear, textiles, and space. "We are looking at investments in these sectors. We will drill down to each of the areas to see how to promote manufacturing

2023 defence wrap: US supports India's defence modernisation plans

Calling 2023 a 'decisive year', the US Department of Defence, in an official release has stated that it is supporting allies and partners as they invest in their capabilities

N Korea's Kim Jong Un pledges to advance his atomic ambitions in New Year

That's according to an address he gave at a major policy-setting meeting attended by top cadres from his ruling party

Stealth-guided missile destroyer INS Imphal commissioned into Navy

Speaking at the commissioning ceremony Admiral Hari Kumar said that the INS Imphal is the first warship to be named after a prominent city of the north-east

China unveils Hu Zhongming as new naval chief amid rising maritime tensions

Hu Zhongming was promoted to the rank of general at a ceremony in Beijing attended by President Xi Jinping on Monday

Israel to increase defence spending by at least $8 billion as war rages

The ministry, in a document presented to parliament on Monday, said the overall 2024 budget will probably have to total 562 billion shekels

Iran's navy adds domestically manufactured cruise missiles to its arsenal

Iran's navy on Sunday added domestically produced sophisticated cruise missiles to its arsenal, state TV reported. The TV said both Talaeieh and Nasir cruise missiles have arrived at a naval base near the Indian Ocean in the southern Iranian port of Konarak, some 1,400 kilometers (850 miles) southeast of the capital, Tehran. Navy chief Adm. Shahram Irani said the Talaeieh has a range of more than 1,000 kilometers (620 miles) and called it "fully smart. Irani said the cruise missile is capable of changing targets during travel. He said the Nasi has a range of 100 kilometers (62 miles) and can be installed on warships. Last month, a container ship owned by an Israeli billionaire came under attack from a suspected Iranian drone in the Indian Ocean, as Israel wages war on Iran-backed Hamas in the Gaza Strip. From time to time Iran announces the test firing, production and commissioning of new military equipment that cannot be independently verified. The country says it has a stock of

Macron invited for R-Day: Propelling Indo-French defence into new orbits

Emmanuel Macron's surprise R-Day visit shapes a strategic rendezvous as France becomes the linchpin in India's defence, space, and nuclear ambitions. SUBHAYAN CHAKRABORTY writes

India takes over as co-chair of IONS Working Groups on Maritime Security

India has taken over as co-chair of the IONS Working Groups on Maritime Security and HADR for the forthcoming cycle, officials said on Friday. The eighth Indian Ocean Naval Symposium (IONS) Conclave of Chiefs was conducted by the Royal Thai Navy in Bangkok from December 19-22, the defence ministry said in a statement. The chiefs of navies and senior delegates from 27 member and observer countries took part in the event, it said. Indian Navy Chief Admiral R Hari Kumar attended the event with a three-member naval delegation. During the conclave, Thailand assumed the duties of "chair of IONS and the work plan for the next two years was finalised", the statement added. "As a first, a flag designed by India was selected as the IONS flag. India also took over as the co-chair of IONS Working Groups on Maritime Security and HADR for the forthcoming cycle. Republic of Korea Navy was welcomed by the conclave as the latest 'observer', raising the collective strength of IONS to 34 (25 members

US Senate passes annual defence policy bill with $886 billion package

The National Defence Authorization Act (NDAA) is one of the largest bills passed annually by lawmakers and is a yearlong process for Congress

Stephanie Pope to be next CEO of Boeing, with effective from Jan 1

Boeing has promoted the head of its services business to chief operating officer, putting the female executive in discussion as a potential heir apparent to CEO David Calhoun in a male-dominated industry. Boeing said Monday that Stephanie Pope's elevation to the job, which includes the title of executive vice president, takes effect January 1. Pope has spent nearly 30 years at Boeing, holding down key financial jobs in the company's defense, commercial airplanes and services divisions. She became CEO of the services unit last year. Some industry observers were quick to tap Pope, 51, as a contender to become the aerospace company's next CEO. Richard Aboulafia, managing director of aerospace consultant AeroDynamic Advisory, named Pope and Chief Financial Officer Brian West as potential successors to Calhoun. Calhoun, 66, has held the top job since January 2020, when he replaced Dennis Muilenburg, who was fired during the fallout from two fatal crashes involving Boeing 737 Max jets. .

Scheme to hire Agniveers will ensure youthful profile of forces: Army chief

Indian Army Chief Gen Manoj Pande on Thursday called the Agnipath' scheme a path-breaking manpower intake methodology and asserted that it will ensure the youthful profile of the armed forces. Under the Agnipath scheme, which was introduced in 2022, soldiers are enrolled as Agniveers by the armed forces for four years. They can then go back to society and take up jobs in other sectors to pursue a career of their choice. In the human resource management domain, the introduction of the Agniveer (Agnipath) scheme has been a path-breaking manpower intake and management methodology. This will ensure the youthful profile and bring more technologically adapted and oriented soldiers into ranks and file, said the Army chief. Gen Pande was speaking at the convocation and scroll presentation ceremony at the College of Military Engineering in Pune. He said the scheme also ensures that the best of the best are retained as core manpower of the armed forces. Gen Pande said that the integration o