Navy to lease auxiliary vessels and operational enablers?

The Indian Navy is looking to leasing certain military platforms under the new policy allowing lease of military hardware.

Vice Chief of the Naval Staff, Vice

Admiral G Ashok Kumar, while speaking at the symposium on

“Leveraging leasing for force level maintenance & modernisation” organised by the FICCI, said leasing could mitigate short term capability gaps. The Navy looks to lease operational support and auxiliary vessels and these could be mine-sweepers, utility helicopters and unmanned platforms (UAV). Elaborating, the VCNS said that these could include vessels for coastal security patrols, minesweeping, seabed mapping, and auxiliary vessels such as tankers, barges and tugs. “We could also look at operational enablers such as utility helicopters unmanned vehicles and high speed aerial and surface targets for operational training”.