New Delhi: Chaired by defence minister Rajnath Singh, the Defence Acquisition Council (DAC) on July 29 reviewed and approved amendments to the deal for 31 MQ-9B High Altitude Long Endurance (HALE) Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAV) from General Atomics of the US. The proposal regarding the scheduled refit of aircraft carrier INS Vikramaditya later this year was also given approval by the DAC, according to media reports.
“The amendments approved are within the scope of the Acceptance of Necessity (AoN) that was granted for the MQ-9B deal. They are related to the indigenous content and related aspects,” said a media report citing a defence source.
The deal has to be approved by the Cabinet Committee on Security, before it can be inked. According to official sources, the US has completed the process from its end with letter of offer and acceptance to India delivered early March and it’s now for India to complete the procedure before the deal can be signed. The MQ-9B deal as well as the GE-414 jet engine deal are expected to be concluded during the visit of the US President to India in December, when India will be hosting the Quad leaders’ summit.
Estimated to cost $3.99 billion, India is looking to procure 31 MQ-9B UAVs, 15 Sea Guardians for the Indian Navy and 16 Sky Guardians – eight each for the Indian Army and Air Force. As part of the deal, General Atomics is scheduled to establish a Global Maintenance, Repair and Overhaul (MRO) facility in India which would count towards offset obligations.
In addition, the DAC also accorded AoN, the first step of the procurement process, for procurement of Advanced Land Navigation System (ALNS) for Armoured Fighting Vehicles (AFVs) of the Army and 22 Interceptor Boats for the Coast Guard. The defence ministry said in a statement, “The ALNS Mk-II is compatible with Indian Regional Navigation Satellite System, NAVigation using Indian Constellation (IRNSS, NavlC), India in addition to Global Positioning System (GPS) and Global Navigation Satellite System (GLONASS). The system is spoof-proof with high levels of encryption.”
According to the statement, the ALNS Mk-II offers compatibility with defence series maps resulting in very high accuracy in navigational applications for AFVs. This equipment will be procured from Bharat Electronics Limited, Chennai under Buy [Indian-Indigenously Designed Developed and Manufactured (lDDM)] category of the procurement procedure.
The defence ministry said that the second AoN is for procurement of 22 Interceptor Boats for the Coast Guard with latest state-of-art system capable of quick interception and shallow water operation in territorial waters. “These boats will be used for coastal surveillance and patrolling, search and rescue operations, including medical evacuation,” it added.
