The DefExpo 2018 witnessed the launch of yet another new, modern gun by India’s Artillery power house, the Kalyani Group. The Ultra-Light Howitzer (ULH), which is a 155/39 cal gun system was unveiled here at Chennai today. The Gun comes in two variants – the conventional Recoil ULH and Advance Hybrid Recoil ULH.
Conventional Recoil ULH is a 155mm/39 cal long range field artillery weapon system weighing less than 4.8 tons. This breakthrough has been achieved through innovative design and use of special lightweight materials. Advance Hybrid Recoil ULH is a variant of Conventional ULH which incorporates the state of the art advanced recoil system which further brings down the weight of the gun to less than 4.5 tons. A one of its kind variant designed in the world, this gun provides high filed maneuverability. Another feature in its cap is that the 4×4 Armoured Gun Mounted Vehicle (AGMV) on which the Hybrid Recoil ULH has been mounted, is also designed and built by the Kalyani Group.
These niche guns have been explicitly designed to meet the growing requirements for flexible and accurate artillery fire support capable of rapid re-deployment by the battlefield helicopters and also being towed by lightweight limber or utility vehicles. Kalyani Group has designed the complete system which includes ordnance, recoil system, super structure and under carriage including weldment, trail and outriggers. The salient features of ULH – both variants – include quick emplacement, digital fire control, high reliability and easy maintenance. The ordnance of both the guns has been proof fired at P2 pressure in Mar 2018 at CPE, Itarsi.
Mr Rajinder Singh Bhatia, Director of Kalyani Strategic Systems Ltd said, “Kalyani Group has always been at the forefront of technology and is today a one stop solution for artillery platforms. The Ultra-Light Howitzer is a complete game changer and put us straight up on the world map. We have designed and developed these ULHs which are futuristic in outlook & use. This will ensure that the solution remains valid and in service for a very long time, thereby proving to be cost and effort effective solution. These guns are the perfect example of Make in India”.
The other guns in Kalyani Group artillery product profile include Bharat 52, Bharat 45, Garuda 105 and ATAGS (in collaboration with DRDO).