Russian-made Igla-S air defense system wins Indian tender for MANPADS.

The Russian-made Igla-S (NATO name: SA-24 Grinch) man-portable air defense (MANPAD) system has won a tender issued by the Indian Ministry of Defense (MoD), a military source told TASS.

Igla-S MANPADS (Picture source: Army Recognition)

The Igla-S MANPADS has outrivaled its competitors, namely, the RBS 70NG system developed by Sweden`s SAAB and the Mistral system developed by the French subsidiary of European defense contractor MBDA. All the three weapons have met the technical requirements; however, the Igla-S features the best cost-efficiency ratio [L1]," said the Indian source.

At the same time, a firm contract for the MANPAD systems has yet to be signed. "SAAB and MBDA have challenged the results of the tender. In accordance with India`s defense procurement procedure, the singing of a contract should be preceded by processing of all applications that challenge a tender," said the Indian source.

According to him, the MoD is planning to acquire some 1,000 MANPAD systems worth USD 3 billion. "The Indian MoD has been acquiring these weapons [MANPADS] since 2010," said the source.