South Korea’s Hanwha Defense is pushing a new combat vehicle with a 105mm turret mounted on its K21 chassis for the Indian Army.
Just last week, the Indian Army released Request for Information (RFI) to seek prospective vendors to procure around 350 light tanks in a phased manner under the Make in India initiative.
Indian Army plans to procure versatile combat platforms, weighing less than 25 tonnes, to sharpen its edge in mountain warfare as they will be able to exploit the limited space available in mountainous terrains by way of enhanced mobility, thus providing additional firepower.
The RFI dated April 22 and published on Friday stated that the Defence Ministry intends to procure a “new generation combat vehicle platform, approximately 350 Light Tanks in a phased manner, along with performance-based logistics, niche technologies, engineering support package, and other maintenance and training requirements.” “The last date of acceptance of receipt of response is June 18, 2021,” the RFI stated.
One potential option could be a proposal from a South Korean company based on its K21-105 tank.
Hanwha Defense says the vehicle has a 105mm turret mounted on a K21 infantry fighting vehicle chassis. It has strong firepower and maneuverability that enables the vehicle to perform a wider variety of tactical operations than main battle tanks.
The company also shared a promo video of its K21-105 tank, which is classified as a medium tank.