France expressed interest in the Pinaka multiple rocket launcher in November 2024. General Stéphane Richou, the commander of the Army Staff’s “International Relations” division, shared this information with the Indian news agency ANI. The Pinaka is co-produced by Tata Group and Larsen & Toubro and is developed by India’s Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO).
General Richou told ANI, “We are evaluating the Pinaka multiple rocket launcher because we need a system like this. We are assessing it among other systems.”
This information was unexpected for a variety of reasons. France’s 2024-30 Military Programming Law (LPM) prioritizes a “sovereign” solution to replace its final nine unitary rocket launchers (LRU), according to the French defense news website OPEX 360. The Long-Range Land Strike (FLP-T) program has selected two groups for this purpose: Thales and ArianeGroup and MBDA and Safran.
General Pierre Schill, the Chief of the Army Staff (CEMAT), is committed to maintaining the LRUs’ operational status “as much as possible” beyond 2027, despite the potential delay caused by the FLP-T program. He addressed this matter at a Senate hearing on November 6, which occurred precisely three days before General Richou’s remarks to ANI.
The Pinaka system uses 122mm and 214mm rockets, while the LRU uses 227mm M31 rockets. The 227mm caliber is also used by the American M142 HIMARS (High Mobility Artillery Rocket System), which has been inducted by numerous NATO countries, including the United States, Lithuania, Estonia, Croatia, and Latvia, as well as Italy, Poland, and Romania. Denmark, the Netherlands, Germany, and Spain have selected Elbit Systems’ PULS, which is capable of firing 122mm munitions such as the Accular 122 and has a range of up to 35 km.
Isabelle Santiago, a member of Parliament, said that parallel studies were being conducted to investigate the feasibility of using a foreign solution if the FLP-T program experienced delays. She also mentioned that the “American HIMARS, which is already widely used in Europe, or alternative solutions such as the PULS” were being considered.
Nevertheless, the Pinaka system appears to be the most likely contender, as reported by Reuters.
According to Ummalaneni Raja Babu, the director of missile and strategic systems at DRDO, France is currently engaged in negotiations for the Pinaka at the Aero India aerospace exhibition in Bangalore. He further stated, “Discussions are currently underway; however, no agreement has been reached.”
According to a Reuters interview with an Indian official, the Pinaka system was demonstrated to a French delegation in India about three months ago and was regarded as satisfactory.
According to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI), France is the second-largest supplier of military equipment to India. It would be unprecedented for France to acquire the Pinaka system. Armenia has procured sufficient units to outfit four batteries, rendering it the sole exporter of the Pinaka system thus far.
India’s significant purchases of French defense equipment suggest that France’s interest in the Pinaka multiple rocket launcher could be a part of a larger reciprocal agreement.
India has been a significant purchaser of French military equipment, such as the Rafale fighter jets, Scorpène-class submarines, and recent agreements on defense collaboration and aircraft engines. France may be contemplating Pinaka as a gesture of strategic reciprocity, which would strengthen defense ties and encourage additional Indian acquisitions of French technology.
France has been procuring military equipment from India, according to the Indian media. In 2023-24, French imports from India consisted of electronic equipment and software. Nevertheless, this may be required to be bought from the offset operations of the French defense companies in India. India requires the foreign vendor to establish offset arrangements as part of its defense procurement. For instance, Airbus maintains an extensive software development presence in India, with an emphasis on the development of state-of-the-art Information Management Systems. This is accomplished through the “Airbus India Digital Centre,” which is based in Bengaluru. As per the company, engineers at the center collaborate on global aviation technology projects, thereby fostering innovation and sustainability within the Airbus ecosystem. This includes developing software for aircraft operations, customer services, and internal systems, using India’s talent pool to facilitate advanced software development.
Thales, a French electronics company, has billion-dollar offset obligations in India. These obligations are associated with the acquisition of 36 Rafale fighters, the upgrade of 51 Mirage 2000 fighters, the construction of six Scorpene submarines, and other high-value sales to India.