It all began with a poster (below) displayed by Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd (HAL) in the India pavilion at the 17th Defence Services Asia (DSA-2022) exhibition, underway between March 28 and 31, at the Malaysian International Trade & Exhibition Centre (MITEC), Kuala Lumpur.
That the poster contained several inaccuracies is self-evident, especially when compared to another poster (below) that was designed and publicised by the DRDO last January.
ANI’s ‘Desi Patrakaars’ WRONGLY ASSUMED that since the HAL poster showed Boeing-built JDAMs, therefore the Indian Air Force (IAF) would be arming its Tejas Mk.1 and Mk.2 L-MRCAs with JDAMs.
However, a quick check at the US Defense & Security Cooperation
Agency’s (DSCA) website reveals that the export of JDAMs to India was never
proposed (see https://www.dsca.mil/tags/india).
Instead, the HAL booth at the DSA-2022 expo hosts a
full-scale mock-up of the SAFRAN-built AASM Hammer precision-guided munition
(PGM).
To give the benefit of doubt to HAL, it can well be that HAL showed the JDAM in its poster to assure the Royal Malaysian Air Force (TUDM) that in case it ordered the Tejas Mk.1A L-MRCA, then HAL would be able to integrate the JDAM (which the TUDM already has for its eight Boeing F/A-18D Night Attack Hornets) with the aircraft’s weapons management avionics suite.
The IAF on its part will be procuring NOT the JDAMs, but the PG-HSLD PGMs.
