Amphibious Armoured Vehicle: India's Answer to Chinese Aggression at Pangong

Chinese aggression on the LAC in eastern Ladakh does not seem to lessen. From firing warning shots to Chinese army playing Punjabi songs on loud-speakers, Beijing is trying its best to change the status quo. Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Thursday said that no force in the world can stop Indian army soldiers from patrolling the country’s border in Ladakh region.

“I want to make it clear, skirmishes and face-off are because of this (issue of patrolling),” he said, adding the patrolling pattern is traditional and well defined. “No force in the world can stop Indian soldiers from patrolling. Our soldiers have sacrificed their lives only for this,” the minister said.

PLA was seen deploying load-bearing hexacopter drones to carry supplies to the harsh terrain of the border region, meanwhile our forces have been keen to conduct high-altitude trials of its latest military hardware. There are two vehicles are the TATA-DRDO WhAP (also known as Kestrel), and the Kalyani M4 light strike vehicle.

The TATA-DRDO WhAP (aka Kestrel)

Designed and developed jointly by DRDO and TATA, the Kestrel is an 8-wheeled Amphibious Armoured Personnel Carrier, capable of attaining speeds of 100 km/hr on road and 10 km/hr in water.

Being an amphibious vehicle, the Kestrel gives a significant advantage to the troops – not halting for bridges to be laid down by engineers when encountered with a small river or similar hydrological formations. The Kestrel can be configured to various modifications and has been seen with the Protector Remotely Controlled Weapon Station and a BMP-2 30mm turret as its main armament, while secondary armament includes a coaxial 7.62mm general-purpose machine gun.

The ongoing brawl at Ladakh and subsequent testing might see hastening of the development and acquisition process.

The Kalyani M-4

Manufactured by South Korean, Paramount Group, the Mbombe-4 (M-4) is a 4-wheeled Light Armoured vehicle- bridging the gap of an APC and an armored car.

According to experts, partnered with the Tata Kestrel, the Kalyani M4 makes an interesting combination of armor and speed. While the Kestrel provides the armored punch that spearheads an assault, the M4 will back it up with its speed, maneuverability, and ease of maintenance. The Kalyani M4 can go up to speeds of 140 km/h while carrying 6 crew members including the driver.

The Army is also testing the HAL-built Light Combat Helicopter (LCH), Rudra attack helicopter and has just reached a milestone by completing high-altitude trials of the HAL’s light utility helicopter (LUH).