India's 155 mm guided munition. (Janes/Sohini Mandal)
India's Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) unveiled a prototype of a new 155 mm guided projectile for Bharat Forge Limited's (BFL's) 155 mm/52 calibre Advanced Towed Artillery Gun System (ATAGS) at the Aero India 2025 show in Bangalore.
The guided projectile is fin-stabilised and guided by GPS and inertial navigation system (INS). The munition is 1 m in length, weighs around 50 kg, and is expected to have a range of 40 to 50 km when fired from ATAGS. DRDO officials said the projectile is currently in the design and development phase.
ATAGS has been jointly developed by DRDO in collaboration with industry partners including BFL and its subsidiary Kalyani Strategic Systems Limited (KSSL) as well as Tata Advanced Systems Limited (TASL).
India's Chief of the Army Staff Lieutenant General Upendra Dwivedi announced in January in a press conference that a contract to procure ATAGS is expected to be finalised by March 2025. A DRDO spokesperson told Janes on 10 February that the Indian Army will receive 307 ATAGS units under this deal.
According to Janes Land Warfare Platforms: Artillery & Air Defence , ATAGS weighs 12 tonnes. It can fire six rounds in 30 seconds and five successive rounds in a short duration.
DRDO says on its website that ATAGS has the capability to fire future long-range guided munitions for “precision and deep strike” operations. It adds that the ATAGS is configured with an “all-electric drive that will ensure maintenance-free and reliable operation over longer periods of time”.
For more information, please see ATAGS 155 mm (52 calibre) .
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