Why in News?

• On January 28, Philippines signed a deal with BrahMos Aerospace Pvt. Ltd. for the supply of shore based anti-ship variant of the BrahMos supersonic cruise missile. This is the first export order for the missile.

About the deal

• The Philippines contract includes delivery of three BrahMos missile batteries, training for operators and maintainers as well as the necessary Integrated Logistics Support (ILS) package.
• The coastal defence regiment of the Philippine Marines, which is under the Navy, will be the primary employer of the missile system.
• The cost of the deal would be $374.96 million.

About BrahMos Aerospace

• BrahMos Aerospace was formed as a joint venture between DRDO, India and NPO Mashinostroeniya, Russia.
• The name BrahMos is a portmanteau formed from the names of two rivers, the Brahmaputra of India and the Moskva of Russia.

Range

• The range of the BrahMos was originally limited to 290 kms as per obligations of the Missile Technology Control Regime (MTCR) of which Russia was a signatory.
• Following India’s entry into the club in June 2016, plans were announced to extend the range initially to 450 kms and subsequently to 600 kms.
• BrahMos with extended range upto 450 kms has been tested several times since.

Platforms

I. Ship-based Weapon System

• Its naval configuration, the weapon has been designed for launch in either vertical or inclined mode from a moving or static maritime platform from stand-off ranges against sea or land targets.
• BrahMos has been deployed on Indian Navy’s frontline surface combat platforms, including Destroyers and Frigates as the “ prime strike weapon”.

II. Land Based Weapon System

• The Land Based Weapon System consist of 4 to 6 Mobile Autonomous Launchers.

III. Air Launched weapon System

• The air-launched cruise missile (ALCM) has precision attack capability against sea and land targets.
• BrahMos ALCM is the heaviest and most powerful weapon to arm the Su-30MKI.

IV. Submarine Launch Version

• BrahMos missile is capable of being launched from submarine from a depth of 40-50 meters.

Other Interested Customers

• There is another long pending deal under discussion for BrahMos missiles for the Philippines Army which could see progress in the near future.
• The next order is likely to be concluded soon as negotiations with Indonesia and Thailand are in advanced stages.

Other Products in limelight

• Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) has received interest from Philippines Coast Guard for procurement of seven Dhruv Advanced Light Helicopters and eight Dornier Do228 aircraft under the $100mn Line of Credit (LoC) extended by India.
• Maritime domain and ship building is another potential area for Indian companies in the Philippines
• India’s LCA Tejas is in the forefront of Malaysia’s requirement for its air force.

Government’s aim

• A target is set at defence manufacturing turnover of $25 billion or ₹1,75,000 crore including exports of ₹35,000 crore in aerospace and defence goods and services by 2025.
• India has put out a range of military hardware on sale which includes various missile systems, Light Combat Aircraft (LCA), helicopters, warship and patrol vessels, artillery guns, tanks, radars, military vehicles, electronic warfare
  systems in addition to other weapons systems.

Measures by Government

• Simplified defence industrial licensing.
• Relaxation of export controls .
• Grant of No Objection Certificates (NOC).
• Extending Line of Credit (LoC) to foreign countries to import defence products .
• Empowering Defence Attaches in Indian missions abroad to promote defence exports.
• To provide faster approvals for export of major defence platforms, a committee comprising of the Defence Minister, External Affairs Minister and National Security Advisor was set up.