Drones and loitering munitions are transforming the battlefield, but India is simultaneously investing heavily in a weapon that has dominated land warfare for generations: the 155mm artillery gun. At the centre of this modernisation are three very different systems: the K9 Vajra-T, M777 Ultra-Light Howitzer and indigenous Advanced Towed Artillery Gun System (ATAGS). The K9 Vajra-T is a 155mm/52-calibre tracked self-propelled howitzer designed to combine heavy firepower with battlefield mobility. India inducted an initial 100 guns and contracted another 100 in December 2024 for more than ₹7,600 crore. Originally associated primarily with plains and desert operations, the K9 was subsequently adapted for deployment in extreme high-altitude conditions. The M777, meanwhile, addresses a different challenge. Weighing roughly 4.2 tonnes, the 155mm/39-calibre ultra-light howitzer can be transported by heavy-lift helicopters, giving artillery commanders considerably greater flexibility in mountainous terrain. ATAGS represents India's indigenous 155mm/52-calibre path. The government contracted 307 guns for 15 artillery regiments in 2025, alongside 327 high-mobility gun-towing vehicles. Also Read: <a href="https://www.wionews.com/india-news/technologies-india-cannot-afford-to-import-iisc-expert-lists-defence-priorities-1789732401699">Technologies India cannot afford to import: IISc expert lists defence priorities</a>

But the rise of drones is changing how all these guns operate. Speaking on WION's Defence Pulse, former Director General of Artillery Lt Gen Tarun Kumar Chawla (R), who has nearly four decades of experience as a gunner, said artillery and unmanned systems should increasingly be viewed as complementary capabilities. “There is space for all these to coexist today,” Chawla explained that drones can penetrate deeper and provide artillery with information that traditional ground observation posts may struggle to obtain. “Drones can play a bigger role as the eyes for the artillery, as the observation platform for the artillery.” That could allow artillery units to locate hostile batteries, logistics facilities and other targets beyond direct observation. But Chawla strongly rejected the proposition that drones could make heavy guns irrelevant. “Guns will not go away.” His reasoning comes down to the ability of artillery formations to generate concentrated and sustained firepower. “Mass effects can only be created by guns.” He also highlighted another vulnerability of unmanned systems: their susceptibility to electronic warfare, including jamming and spoofing. The emerging battlefield therefore may not be artillery versus drones. Instead, drones can find targets while artillery delivers sustained firepower. India's K9, M777 and ATAGS represent three different ways of delivering that firepower across deserts, mountains and conventional battlefields.

India’s K9 Vajra T, M777 and ATAGS underline why artillery remains central to battlefield firepower even as drones and loitering munitions transform modern warfare.

Drones and loitering munitions are transforming the battlefield, but India is simultaneously investing heavily in a weapon that has dominated land warfare for generations: the 155mm artillery gun. At the centre of this modernisation are three very different systems: the K9 Vajra-T, M777 Ultra-Light Howitzer and indigenous Advanced Towed Artillery Gun System (ATAGS). The K9 Vajra-T is a 155mm/52-calibre tracked self-propelled howitzer designed to combine heavy firepower with battlefield mobility. India inducted an initial 100 guns and contracted another 100 in December 2024 for more than ₹7,600 crore. Originally associated primarily with plains and desert operations, the K9 was subsequently adapted for deployment in extreme high-altitude conditions. The M777, meanwhile, addresses a different challenge. Weighing roughly 4.2 tonnes, the 155mm/39-calibre ultra-light howitzer can be transported by heavy-lift helicopters, giving artillery commanders considerably greater flexibility in mountainous terrain. ATAGS represents India's indigenous 155mm/52-calibre path. The government contracted 307 guns for 15 artillery regiments in 2025, alongside 327 high-mobility gun-towing vehicles. Also Read: Technologies India cannot afford to import: IISc expert lists defence priorities

India’s K9 Vajra T, M777 and ATAGS underline why artillery remains central to battlefield firepower even as drones and loitering munitions transform modern warfare.

‘Guns will not go away’: Why India’s K9, M777 and ATAGS still matter in the drone age

France is set to sell 52 Caesar artillery guns to the Czech Republic in a deal worth 257 million euros ($301 million) as Paris pushes for greater European defence autonomy, an Armed Forces Ministry official said on Wednesday.

President Emmanuel Macron said on Tuesday that Europe needed to stop being naive when it comes to defending its interests and must build its own military capacity after sealing a 3 billion euros ($3.5 billion) frigate deal with Greece and penning a cooperation agreement.

Paris was plunged into a dispute with the United States, Australia and Britain earlier this month over a trilateral nuclear security deal which sank a multi-billion dollar French-designed submarine contract with Canberra.

"This (Czech deal) comes after a period of rapprochement with the Czech Republic that was marked on a strategic level, but also a vision that is closer to what European defence policy should be and should bring us," the official told reporters ahead of a visit by Armed Forces Minister Florence Parly to Prague on Thursday to sign the contract.

Most of the guns will be assembled in the Czech Republic.

France has also sought to bring European allies into military operations in the Sahel region of Africa where it has some 5,000 counter-terrorism troops fighting Islamist militants as part of efforts to encourage a broader European military strategy.

The Czechs are one of nine countries that has contributed special forces to a European contingent.

France is set to sell 52 Caesar artillery guns to the Czech Republic in a deal worth 257 million euros ($301 million) as Paris pushes for greater European defence autonomy, an Armed Forces Ministry official said on Wednesday.

France is set to sell 52 Caesar artillery guns to the Czech Republic in a deal worth 257 million euros ($301 million) as Paris pushes for greater European defence autonomy, an Armed Forces Ministry official said on Wednesday. President Emmanuel Macron said on Tuesday that Europe needed to stop being naive when it comes to defending its interests and must build its own military capacity after sealing a 3 billion euros ($3.5 billion) frigate deal with Greece and penning a cooperation agreement. Paris was plunged into a dispute with the United States, Australia and Britain earlier this month over a trilateral nuclear security deal which sank a multi-billion dollar French-designed submarine contract with Canberra. "This (Czech deal) comes after a period of rapprochement with the Czech Republic that was marked on a strategic level, but also a vision that is closer to what European defence policy should be and should bring us," the official told reporters ahead of a visit by Armed Forces Minister Florence Parly to Prague on Thursday to sign the contract. Most of the guns will be assembled in the Czech Republic. France has also sought to bring European allies into military operations in the Sahel region of Africa where it has some 5,000 counter-terrorism troops fighting Islamist militants as part of efforts to encourage a broader European military strategy. The Czechs are one of nine countries that has contributed special forces to a European contingent.

In European push, France to sell artillery guns to Czech Republic

Dhanush Artillery Gun to be inducted into Indian Army

India&#39;s defence procurement agency has cleared a proposal to buy 145 M777 Ultra Lightweight Howitzer artillery guns from BAE Systems, a British multinational defence, security and aerospace company, in a deal worth an estimated $750 million, a defence ministry source said today. 
 
Under the deal, 120 of the 145 guns will be assembled in India, said the source, who asked not to be identified in line with defence ministry rules. 
 
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi wants to upgrade the country&#39;s military hardware by replenishing its range of artillery weapons after years of delays in ordering new equipment. 
 
But Modi wants deals with foreign companies to include the setting up of factories and plants in India to boost the local industry. 
 
BAE said in February it had chosen Indian conglomerate Mahindra Group to build a plant for the assembly of Howitzer artillery guns it hopes to sell to India. 
 
The source said the proposal would soon be communicated to the United States, where BAE manufactures the weapons. 
 
(Reuters)

Worth an estimated $750 million, India's defence procurement agency will buy M777 Ultra Lightweight Howitzer artillery guns from BAE Systems

India's defence procurement agency has cleared a proposal to buy 145 M777 Ultra Lightweight Howitzer artillery guns from BAE Systems, a British multinational defence, security and aerospace company, in a deal worth an estimated $750 million, a defence ministry source said today. Under the deal, 120 of the 145 guns will be assembled in India, said the source, who asked not to be identified in line with defence ministry rules. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi wants to upgrade the country's military hardware by replenishing its range of artillery weapons after years of delays in ordering new equipment. But Modi wants deals with foreign companies to include the setting up of factories and plants in India to boost the local industry. BAE said in February it had chosen Indian conglomerate Mahindra Group to build a plant for the assembly of Howitzer artillery guns it hopes to sell to India. The source said the proposal would soon be communicated to the United States, where BAE manufactures the weapons. (Reuters)

India clears deal to buy 145 artillery guns from British security firm

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