The Garuda 105 Go Anywhere Gun (Mobile Artillery System) is a lightweight, modular, high-performance howitzer system developed by Kalyani Strategic Systems Limited (KSSL). The Garuda 105 will be a superior alternative to existing weapon systems such as the 106mm Recoilless Rifle, 120mm Mortar, and other 105mm artillery systems due to its low cost precision strike capability. Utilizing an inventive hydraulic system to reduce recoil, the Garuda 105 was designed to lighten a tried-and-true artillery solution enough to allow such a large cannon on a small platform. By utilizing emerging technologies, it will set the standard for light artillery in the areas of firepower, tactical mobility, strategic deployability and command and control.
The company developed it in collaboration with a small US company called Mandus. A slightly bigger version of this gun has been sent to the U.S. now. Mandus wants to showcase it to the US Army. The Mandus Hawkeye has incorporated a groundbreaking modular design. Due to its lightweight and low recoil forces it can be mounted to many types of military vehicles including wheeled, tracked, rail, watercraft, aircraft and towed systems. This means that a performance based 105mm artillery system can be deployed to the land, sea, and air in ways that were never before possible. Additionally, the Hawkeye Weapon System offers a 360 degree field of fire while mounted on very light weight tactical vehicles.
The Hawkeye’s rate of fire is roughly equal to the towed and manually loaded and fired howitzer variants (versus the remote control fired Hawkeye), which can put out up to six rounds a minute. This sweet rate of fire loses some meaning knowing that the Indian Army’s main near-peer threats, namely Pakistan and China, field artillery that is much longerin range the 105 mm howitzer, however this may be less of a problem on a conventional battlefield as mobility could allow the Hawkeye system to out-maneuver the longer ranged systems. This is due to the simplicity of the system’s design that reduces crew size and decreases maintenance times.
The Garuda 105 has been extensively tested in India and abroad. It is a Hybrid recoil gun which is a new technology that KSSL have developed using company own design. The hybrid part is the metallurgy which reduces the weight and the recoil force of the gun. For instance, the 105mm gun normally weighs three and half tonnes and is towed with wheels, usually by a truck. The company have reduced the weight of the gun to 900 kg by using high strength aluminium and hybrid recoil system, which reduced the recoil forces. KSSL then mounted it on a small TATA 4X4 wheeled chassis and fired it. So it has become a mounted gun. Automated digital fire control and semi-fixed 105mm cartridges allow rapid emplacement and minimal time to first round fire.
