Pune: Indian Army Chief General Manoj Mukund Naravane flags off and inducts the first set of indigenously developed next-generation Armoured Engineer Reconnaissance Vehicle (AERV) and other equipment into the Corps of Engineers, at Bombay Engineering Group (BEG).

"Induction of these indigenous AERVs will give a boost to operations especially on the western front and an imp step towards the 'Aatmanirbhar Bharat' in manufacturing defence equipment", said Army chief General Manoj Mukund Naravane.

"The requirement of AERV was long felt especially for our armoured formations, strike cores, who are mainly operating on the Western border...This platform will speed up the process of reconnaissance which used to be done manually" he further added.
About DRDO Developed AERV

The DRDO has developed a number of new combat engineering equipment for the Indian Army. The AERV is developed by Vehicle Research and Development Establishment, Ahmednagar jointly with Research and Development Establishment, Pune, in coordination with C-TEC, as per the QRs of the Indian Army for enabling the combat engineers to conduct recce operations.

The AERV is designed to provide engineering support in both offensive and defensive operations in plains, desert and riverine terrain. It has no gun and is fitted with specialised equipment, including an echo-sounder, a water current meter, a laser range finder and GPS. On the left rear of the hull, a marking system with 40 rods is fitted. The AERV is equipped with a range of advanced survey instruments to carry out terrestrial and river-bed survey to facilitate construction of assault bridges across water obstacles and a number of other engineering tasks.

The AERV is based on tracked BMP-2 amphibious Infantry Combat Vehicle which allows operation on land and water with equal efficacy. The onboard equipment can be operated by the crew in hatch down condition from within the confines of the armour protected vehicles.

Ordnance Factory, Medak has been entrusted with the responsibility of production in collaboration with Bharat Electronics Limited, Pune.