Page 17 - Defence Sector

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

CDS to inaugurate Avionics Expo-2023 in Delhi, focus on HAL capabilities

Hindustan Aeronautics Limited is all set to showcase its rich legacy in the design, development and production of a diverse range of avionics systems during Avionics Expo-2023 to be held at Ambedkar International Centre, New Delhi on December 7-8.The Expo will be inaugurated by the Chief of Defence Staff, General Anil Chauhan.C B Ananthakrishnan, CMD (Additional Charge), HAL said "We will demonstrate HAL's capabilities and contributions toward self-reliance in avionics, to our stakeholders, including the Indian Armed Forces, Ministry of Defence, Ministry of Civil Aviation, DRDO and other important institutions."Avionics Product Displays: The expo will unveil a comprehensive range of avionics products designed and developed by HAL. Attendees will witness cutting-edge avionics systems deployed in various aircraft platforms, including advanced flight control systems, communication systems, navigation systems and more.D K Sunil, Director (Engineering and R & D) said "The event will ...

Navy Day 2023: Defence Chiefs lay wreaths at War Memorial at ceremony

The Indian Navy celebrates Navy Day on December 4 to commemorate "Operation Trident," the Navy's audacious attack on Karachi harbour during the 1971 War

Chemical weapons watchdog vote to keep Syria from getting poison gas

The annual meeting of member states of the global chemical weapons watchdog on Thursday called on countries to prevent the sale or transfer to Syria of raw materials and equipment that could be used to create poison gas and nerve agents. The Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons said in a statement that its annual conference decided that the continued possession and use of chemical weapons by Syria, and its failure to give the organization an accurate inventory of its stocks and to destroy undeclared chemical weapons and production facilities, have harmed the international Chemical Weapons Convention. The decision was backed by 69 nations, while 10 voted against it and 45 nations abstained. It calls on member states to take measures to prevent the direct or indirect transfer to Syria of certain chemical precursors, dual-use chemical manufacturing facilities and equipment and related technology. Syria joined the OPCW in 2013 to ward off the threat of airstrikes in ...

Centre approves procurement of 97 Tejas jets, over 150 Prachand choppers

India on Thursday accorded an initial approval to procure an additional batch of 97 Tejas light combat aircraft and around 150 Prachand helicopters to boost the overall combat capability of the armed forces, official sources said. The Defence Acquisition Council (DAC) headed by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh also cleared a proposal of the Indian Air Force to upgrade its Su-30 fighter fleet, the sources said. It is learnt that mega procurement projects and the Su-30 upgrade programme are expected to cost the exchequer Rs 1.3 lakh crore. The defence ministry is expected to provide the details of the projects cleared by the DAC soon.

Defence Ministry to discuss mega military projects worth Rs 2 trn tomorrow

The projects on the agenda include India's largest-ever deal to buy 97 Light Combat Aircraft Mark1A and upgrade 84 Su-30MKIs

Create culture of quality: Rajnath to manufacturers of military hardware

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Wednesday called on the Indian defence manufacturers to create a "culture of quality" while producing military hardware, describing it as a prerequisite to compete in the global market. Singh said global demands for Indian products can be created only by ensuring quality, noting that such an approach would help the country become a global hub of defence manufacturing. The defence minister was addressing the plenary session of Defence Research and Development Organisation's 'Quality Conclave'. Singh pointed out that the countries, which manufacture quality products, export their equipment across the globe and that India has full potential to become a leading manufacturer of defence equipment. He also underscored the importance of cost control while manufacturing quality defence products. "Cost control should be given utmost importance; however it should not be at the expense of quality. We have to be globally cost-competitive, but it has to be done

US offers India air defence version of Stryker armoured fighting vehicles

This is not the first time that the US has made the push for the sale of Stryker systems to India and did that in the last few high-level meetings with Indian establishments

Outperformance prompts funds to explore defence exemption for L&T

The report further added that the management continues its proactive discussions with ESG agencies on the defence exposure

India-US looking at finalising MQ-9B Predator drone deal by early next year

India is looking at sealing a landmark deal to procure 31 MQ-9B Predator armed drones from the US under a government-to-government framework by March with the US Congress expected to clear the supplies in the next few weeks, people familiar with the matter said. American and Indian government officials will hold the final series of negotiations on the procurement after Washington responds to India's Letter of Request (LoR) for the acquisition of drones from US defence major General Atomics (GA), they said. India is procuring the long-endurance 'hunter-killer' drones to crank up the surveillance apparatus of the armed forces, especially along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) with China. Though the price of the drones will be finalised during the negotiation process, it is estimated that the procurement would cost around USD 3 billion. The people cited above said New Delhi and Washington will depute their respective teams to firm up the deal including finalising the cost and other ..

UN peacekeepers from 16 countries undergo military training in India

The Centre for United Nations Peacekeeping-India conducted a course for military officers of 16 friendly foreign countries and the Indian Army to enhance leadership skills, tactical thinking and operational effectiveness, according to a statement. The United Nations Pre-Deployment Course (Training of Trainers) was conducted under the aegis of the Indian Army from November 6-24, it said. The course, themed on the UN framework and designed as an empowering and collaborative training programme, was organised jointly in collaboration with the Ministry of External Affairs, a defence statement issued on Friday said. The event underscores India's commitment to fostering greater international cooperation in UN Peacekeeping Operations, it said. The course aimed at enhancing leadership skills, tactical thinking and operational effectiveness among officers, creating a platform for cross-cultural exchange and professional growth, the statement said. Participants engaged in a series of dynamic

India, UK discuss regional security issues at Defence Consultative meet

India's Defence Secretary Giridhar Aramane and his UK counterpart David Williams co-chaired the annual India-UK Defence Consultative Group (DCG) meeting here on Friday, discussing a host of regional security issues and defence industrial cooperation. According to a statement by the Defence Ministry, Aramane and Williams, the Permanent Secretary of the UK's Ministry of Defence, reviewed the ongoing defence cooperation activities, discussed the situation and potential cooperation in the Indian Ocean Region and defence industrial cooperation proposals in missile systems and Electric Propulsion, among other possibilities. Both sides planned for increased interactions and joint activities in the maritime domain with a focus on joint exercises, Maritime Domain Awareness and information exchange. They appreciated the commencement of the India-UK 2+2 Foreign and Defence Dialogue and the increased pace of military-to-military engagements in all domains. Williams later laid a wreath at the .

Defence shipyard GRSE to develop electric tugs 'E-VOLT 50' with partners

Garden Reach Shipbuilders and Engineers (GRSE) Ltd, a leading defence shipyard, has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Shift Clean Energy (Shift), Seatech Solutions International (Seatech), and the American Bureau of Shipping (ABS) to develop electric tugs named E-VOLT 50. This project seeks to mitigate carbon emissions, enhance operational efficiency, and establish new benchmarks for performance and environmental sustainability within the tugboat industry in a step towards India's aspiration to become the 'global hub for green shipbuilding' by 2030. GRSE will construct the tugboat based on the design by Seatech, while Shift will provide energy storage solutions. ABS will oversee the construction and design process, ensuring adherence to all applicable regulatory standards, thereby certifying safety, reliability, and compliance, the company informed the bourses. "The 'E-VOLT 50' represents a bold step towards a cleaner and greener future for maritime sector. By harnessi

Headquarters, Integrated Defence Staff, CSIR tie up for R&D in defence tech

A Memorandum of Understanding between the Headquarters, Integrated Defence Staff and the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) was signed here on Thursday for technical collaboration, joint research and development in the field of defence technology, the Defence Ministry said in a statement. The MoU was signed by Lt General JP Mathew, Chief of Integrated Defence Staff to the Chairman Chiefs of Staff Committee (CISC), Ministry of Defence (MoD) and N Kalaiselvi, Director General, CSIR & Secretary, Department of Scientific and Industrial Research (DSIR), Ministry of Science & Technology (MoST). The MoU between the HQ IDS and CSIR aims to provide an umbrella framework for initiating collaborative interaction between CSIR Labs, HQ IDS and armed forces, namely Indian Army, Indian Navy and Indian Air Force, for enhancing scientific understanding of technologies related to defence and undertaking joint research and development in dual-use technologies. The Defence ...