SMPP and KNDS Sign Strategic Pact to Manufacture Advanced Loitering Munitions in India

The agreement was signed at the Eurosatory defence exhibition in Paris on Wednesday. Under the partnership, SMPP, through its subsidiary SMPP Ammunition, will manufacture the systems in India in line with the government's Make in India and Self-Reliant India initiatives.

The collaboration will initially focus on supplying the systems to the Indian Army, which has an urgent requirement for loitering munitions as part of its drive to induct advanced battlefield capabilities.

The partnership covers KNDS' VELOCE and RODEUR loitering munition systems, along with the company's ISTAR family of drones. The companies described the combined platform as an integrated "search-and-destroy" capability designed for modern warfare operations.

The systems are engineered to engage high-value targets with precision through a hybrid navigation architecture that combines multi-constellation Global Navigation Satellite System receivers with Inertial Navigation Systems. This configuration enables operations across diverse terrains and contested environments. The fire-and-forget capability is intended to enhance precision strikes against strategic enemy assets.

The agreement also includes technology transfer and indigenous manufacturing, with both companies aiming to strengthen India's domestic defence industrial base and reduce dependence on imported military equipment.

The latest partnership builds on an earlier agreement signed by SMPP and KNDS during the Milipol exhibition in Paris in November 2025. Under that arrangement, the two companies agreed to manufacture KATANA, a 155-mm precision-guided artillery munition designed to deliver extended-range and high-accuracy strikes.

SMPP manufactures ballistic protection systems, ammunition, drones, counter-drone systems and other defence technologies. KNDS, formed through the merger of France's Nexter and Germany's Krauss-Maffei Wegmann, is among Europe's largest land defence groups and supplies military equipment to more than 40 armed forces worldwide.

The agreement represents a major boost to India's defence manufacturing ambitions, combining advanced European technology with domestic production capabilities while supporting the armed forces' push for next-generation precision strike systems and greater strategic self-reliance.