India’s decision to build the HAMMER precision-guided air-to-ground weapon marks a quiet but consequential shift in how New Delhi is preparing for future conflict. More than a new addition to the arsenal, the Hammer represents a move away from importing ready-made weapons toward absorbing the technologies that define modern air warfare.Developed by Safran Electronics & Defense of France, Hammer is a modular precision strike system designed to attack targets from stand-off range while keeping the aircraft out of heavily defended airspace. Its architecture combines guidance kits, propulsion and standard bomb bodies, allowing rapid adaptation to missions and platforms. The system is already battle-proven and integrated with aircraft like Rafale.
Under a new agreement, Bharat Electronics Limited and Safran will jointly manufacture, customize, supply and maintain the Hammer in India through a 50-50 joint venture. The weapon will be integrated into multiple platforms including the Rafale and indigenous Tejas light combat aircraft, creating a common precision strike capability across both imported and domestic fleets.At a time when air power is defined less by numbers and more by accuracy, stand-off reach and controlled escalation, Hammer’s localization signals a strategic shift from purchasing weapons to mastering precision strike techniques.
hammer in Operation Sindoor : Precise striking with flexibility and control
Indian Air Force Hammer precision-guided munitions deployed during Operation Sindoor on 7 May 2025 as part of a carefully calibrated cross-border strike against terrorist infrastructure in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir.Operation Sindoor was launched in retaliation to the Pahalgam terrorist attack in which 26 civilians were killed on 22 April. A total of nine locations were attacked, including Jaish-e-Mohammed’s primary base in Bahawalpur and Lashkar-e-Taiba’s center in Muridke.Weapon selection was central to the objectives of the operation. The Indian Air Force employed a layered mix of SCALP cruise missiles, HAMMER precision-guided bombs and loitering munitions.Within this mix, the hammer was used where flexibility and adaptability were necessary. Its modular design and multiple guidance options allowed the IAF to launch strikes based on the nature and real-time assessment of individual targets.
The Hammer enabled stand-off engagements without requiring aircraft to fly directly into heavily defended areas. Its off-axis launch capability reduced the risk to Pakistan’s air defense network, especially in areas close to population centers and sensitive military areas.The weapon’s accuracy supported the political and military message of the operation by reducing the risk of collateral damage. By combining HAMMER with SCALP, the Indian Air Force demonstrated a layered strike doctrine, with SCALP neutralizing deep, hardened targets and HAMMER targeting medium-range sites that require accuracy and mobility.
What exactly is the Hammer and how does it work in combat?
HAMMER, short for Highly Agile Modular Munition Extended Range, officially designated as AASM from the French Armament Air-Sol Modulaire, is a precision-guided air-to-ground stand-off weapon designed to bridge the gap between conventional bombs and cruise missiles.Despite often being described as a missile, the Hammer is essentially a guided bomb system. At its core is a standard unguided bomb, which when fitted with modular guidance and propulsion kits becomes a high-precision strike weapon. This design allows the Air Force to convert the existing bomb inventory into modern precision weapons without developing entirely new missiles for each mission profile.
The system is built around two main components. The first is the nose-mounted guidance section that determines how the weapon navigates and locks onto its target. Depending on the mission, this guidance kit can combine inertial navigation and GPS for all-weather strikes, infrared imaging for high-precision strikes on fixed targets, or laser guidance for attacking moving targets.The second component is a tail-mounted range extension kit, consisting of a solid-fuel rocket booster and maneuvering winglets. Once released, the booster ignites to increase stand-off range, while the winglet allows the weapon to change its flight path, make sharp turns and attack the target from an off-axis angle. In combat, this launch enables the aircraft to remain outside heavily defended airspace while carrying out precise attacks.The Hammer kit can be attached to bombs weighing 125 kg, 250 kg, 500 kg and 1,000 kg, including the widely used Mark 80 series of bombs. This scalability allows the same weapon system to be used against a wide variety of targets, from lightly protected structures to hardened bunkers.In operational use, the Hammer has demonstrated the ability to attack targets from significant distances, engage multiple targets in a single flight, and maintain accuracy in a contested environment. Its combination of modularity, mobility and precision makes it particularly suitable for modern air operations where speed, flexibility and controlled growth are critical.
Guided Bombs vs. Missiles: Why the Hammer Holds a Unique Position
In modern aerial warfare, weapons fall broadly into three categories: unguided bombs, guided bombs, and air-to-surface missiles.Unguided bombs are cheap but inaccurate and require aircraft to fly directly over the target. Air-to-surface missiles offer long range and accuracy but are expensive and limited in numbers.
Hammer sits between these two extremes. It provides missile-like accuracy and stand-off range while retaining the flexibility and low-cost structure of a guided bomb.This distinction matters. Guided bombs like the Hammer allow the Air Force to carry a large number of precision weapons, adapt them to a variety of targets, and deploy them from a wide range of aircraft.
Modularity: Hammer’s core strength
The defining characteristic of Hammer is modularity. Rather than designing a single static weapon, Safran developed a system where guidance, propulsion, and the bomb body could be mixed and matched.The guidance kit mounted on the nose determines how the weapon finds and tracks its target. The rear-mounted range extension kit determines how far it can travel and how fast it can maneuver after release.This modular architecture allows the same basic weapon to be used for close air support, deep attack, bunker destruction and attacks on moving targets, depending on the guidance kit selected.For India, this means fewer types of weapons to manage logistically while maintaining operational flexibility.
Guidance systems and how HAMMER achieves accuracy
The Hammer is available in three primary guidance configurations.The baseline version adds an inertial navigation system and a Global Positioning System receiver. Data from both systems are fused using Kalman filtering, allowing the weapon to maintain accuracy even when the GPS signal is degraded or jammed. This variant achieves a circular error probability of about 10 m and works in all weather conditions.The second version adds infrared homing to the INS and GPS combination. This system matches the target area with a reference image stored in the weapon’s memory, allowing an accuracy of approximately one meter. It operates day and night in good weather and is particularly useful against fixed targets with a clear thermal signature.
The third version replaces infrared homing with laser guidance. This allows the Hammer to attack moving targets, provided they are illuminated by an aircraft, drone or ground team’s laser designator. This version was qualified in April 2013.These variants were redesignated as SBU-38, SBU-64 and SBU-54 respectively in 2010, with the overall system being renamed HAMMER for export.
Range, Agility and Survival
The range of the hammer depends on launch height and configuration. Safran cites a range of more than 32 nautical miles from high altitude and about 8 nautical miles from low level release.The winglets and rocket boosters allow off-axis launches up to 90 degrees, meaning the aircraft does not need to be pointed directly at the target. This reduces the risk to enemy air defense.Multiple hammer weapons can be fired in a single pass against different targets with a single trigger press, a capability that significantly increases strike efficiency.The Hammer entered service with the French Air Force and Naval Aviation in 2007 on the Rafale platform.
Its combat debut came in April 2008 in Afghanistan, when Rafale dropped two Hammer weapons in support of ground troops.The system attracted widespread attention during the 2011 Libya campaign. A Hammer weapon destroyed a Libyan Air Force G-2 Ghaleb aircraft shortly after landing on the runway at Misrata Airport. Another attack destroyed a Libyan tank at a distance of 55 kilometers. A total of 225 Hammer weapons were used in Libya.This war history is important. Weapons that have been tested in real conflicts have credibility in terms of reliability, accuracy and resistance to countermeasures.
India’s induction and integration challenges
India ordered a large number of Hammer weapons in September 2020. Deliveries were completed by November 2020, with the French Air and Space Force transferring part of its own stocks to ensure immediate availability.The Indian Air Force initially integrated the Hammer into the Rafale fleet. Work has since begun to integrate it into the Tejas, a process that involves complex software, avionics and flight control modifications.Successful integration on Tejas will be a major step forward in combining imported high-end weapons with indigenous platforms.
Cost, growth and economies of scale
According to the French Senate Committee on Defense Manufacturing Costs, the total cost of the AASM program, including the development and delivery of 2,348 kits, was €846 million, giving a per-weapon cost of approximately $300,000.
Earlier figures had shown a unit cost of €164,000 excluding development and €252,000 including development. As of 2017, Safran reported a unit cost of €120,000 for the AASM Evolution version, aiming to reduce this to €80,000 through larger production.For India, domestic production offers the ability to reduce costs over time while ensuring availability during a crisis.
Where Hammer fits into India’s precision strike ecosystem
India today operates a layered precision strike inventory.Indigenous systems include Sudarshan laser guided bombs, smart anti-airfield weapons and glide bombs like Gaurav and Garutham.Imported and jointly developed systems include the Spice series from Israel, Hammer from France and the BrahMos-A supersonic cruise missile.The Hammer fills an important middle ground between short-range guided bombs and long-range cruise missiles, offering flexibility, accuracy, and affordability.Hammer manufacturing in India is not just about supply security. This allows Indian engineers and technicians to gain deep insight into the guidance system, propulsion integration and precision strike workflow.
This knowledge is transferable to future indigenous weapons programs and reduces long-term dependence on foreign suppliers for upgrades and maintenance.The deal also strengthens India’s defense partnership with France at a time when New Delhi is diversifying beyond traditional suppliers.The BEL-Safran Hammer joint venture represents a quiet but significant change in India’s approach to air warfare. Precision, modularity and adaptability are now central to the way air power is conceived and deployed.By bringing Hammer production to Indian soil, New Delhi is not just acquiring a weapon. It is gaining the ability to understand, modify and ultimately design modern precision strike warfare instruments.
