French-origin HAMMER, used during Operation Sindoor, to be manufactured in India

A French-origin weapon called the ‘HAMMER’, used during Operation Sindoor by the Indian Air Force, will now be made in India.

Public sector undertaking Bharat Electronics Limited (BEL) and French-major Safran Electronics and Defence (SED) today signed a joint venture cooperation agreement (JVCA) for producing the HAMMER.

‘HAMMER’ is an abbreviation of ‘Highly agile modular munition extended range’. It is a smart precision guided air-to-ground weapon in India.

The Ministry of Defence said HAMMER is a combat-proven, precision-guided weapon system known for its high accuracy and modular design, making it adaptable for multiple platforms, including the Rafale and Light Combat Aircraft Tejas.

It will localise the manufacturing, supply and maintenance of HAMMER to meet the operational needs of the IAF and the Indian Navy. The MoD said “the indigenisation level will progressively increase up to 60 per cent with key sub-assemblies, electronics and mechanical parts being manufactured locally”.

The transfer of production will happen in a phased manner with BEL leading final assembly, testing and quality assurance.

This JVCA underscores BEL’s commitment to strengthening India’s defence industrial base and aims at leveraging SED’s extensive experience in manufacturing of smart precision guided air-to-ground weapon.

The JVCA was inked by CMD, BEL Manoj Jain, and Executive Vice President, SED Alexandre Ziegler, in the presence of Secretary Defence Production Sanjeev Kumar and CEO Safran Olivier Andries in New Delhi.

The agreement formalises the intent expressed in the MoU signed between BEL and SED on February 11 during Aero India, reaffirming the willingness of both sides to incorporate a potential Joint Venture Company (JVC) in India.

The JVC shall be formed as a private limited company with 50:50 shareholding.