India's Current & Future UAVs & UCAVs

Saichand K

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Yeah..... But where are we in smart ammunition category. Other then Sudarshan, I have yet to learn about any guided or smart bomb from India.
Could anyone please help in this regard?
By the way any latest details and updates about Sudharshan LGB? What is its status? I heard the project the shut? Is it true?
 

Yumdoot

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http://www.ibnlive.com/blogs/india/...ter-the-era-of-armed-drones-10879-995842.html

India is finally looking to enter the era of armed drones
Posted on: 03:15 PM IST May 23, 2015 IST
Ever since a weaponized Chinese CH-3 Drone crashed in Nigeria and Pakistan unveiled an 'indigenous' version of the same drone called Burraq, there is a newfound urgency in India to develop armed unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs). As such, work on weaponizing the Rustom-I medium altitude long endurance UAV is being hastened and first weapon trials will take place this year. The Rustom-I, developed by DRDO's Aeronautical Development Establishment (ADE) will initially be armed with the HELINA anti-tank guided missile (ATGM) and subsequently with smaller munitions specifically developed for UAV carriage.

Armed UAV development in India has been carried out at a rather slow pace till date owing at least partly to American concerns about the same. These concerns were likely taken into account because key domestic UAV development programmes till recently had been somewhat dependent on American sources for key components such as actuators. However the recent United States (US) State Department's withdrawal of export licenses on MTCR grounds for some seven types of MOOG actuators that feature in ADE's flagship Rustom-II MALE UAV means that India need no longer be so concerned about what America thinks. As of now, indigenously developed replacement actuators have completed electro-magnetic interference/compatibility tests etc and high speed taxi-trials (HSTT) of the Rustom-II have re-commenced. These taxi-trials will go up to a speed of 55 knots, just 10 knots shy of take-off speed. First flight will happen in June 2015 after a delay of more than a year on account of MOOG's non-supply. Currently, a move to indigenize all critical components for domestically developed UAVs is also underway.

Now though Rustom-II is essentially a C4ISR platform, it too could potentially feature weapons in the future. But for that, the Rustom-I has to become a pathfinder for armed UAV development in India. At the moment, only some weapon carrying taxi-trials have been done with the Rustom-I. The image enclosed below (Pic) depicts the same.

Meanwhile the manned Light Canard Research Aircraft (LCRA) on which the Rustom-I's planform is based, was used successfully to demonstrate automatic take-off and landing capability (ATOL) just last week. After some more trials, the same capability will be ported to an actual Rustom-I. Once successfully completed, ATOL will take care of one of the prime demands the Indian Army (IA) has made with respect to the Rustom-I's capability set. ATOL after all reduces the occurrence of accidents at airfields and is also a facilitator of true day/night capability. It is likely that the capability growth of the Rustom-I with respect to handling, better recon payloads (also under development) and weaponization will lead to the IA dropping its currently lukewarm approach to the drone.

Nevertheless, even as the IA demands more, the Indian Navy (IN) could well become the first customer of the Rustom-I. In recent months the Rustom-I's maritime recon capabilities have been demonstrated to the IN off the coast of Tamil Nadu. Rustom-I, given its size is far more difficult for targets like illegal fishing trawlers to spot than manned aircraft which usually carry out coastal surveillance duties. Moreover Rustom-I flights are likely to prove cheaper as well.

The Rustom-II however already has some 'firmish' orders on hand. The military across all three services has projected an initial requirement for 75 units. During Aero India 2015, a memorandum of understanding between DRDO, Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) and Bharat Electronics Limited (BEL) was signed for the productionization of the Rustom-II. HAL will be the lead integrator for the Rustom-II with parts built by private players and BEL will supply the ground control systems for the same. Taneja Aerospace and Aviation Limited (TAAL) incidentally has built the fuselage of existing Rustom-II prototypes. The all critical datalinks for the Rustom-II have been developed by DRDO's Defence Electronics Application Laboratory, Dehradun. In the future the Rustom-II will feature indigenous engines in the 165-210 HP class currently being developed by DRDO's Vehicles Research and Development Establishment in partnership with Tech Mahindra. Two flying prototypes of each service version (i.e Army, Navy, Air force) will be part of the Rustom-II development program.

Indian UAV programmes need to be speeded up. For that it is important that the proposed aeronautical test range in Karnataka be set up without any more delay. This would be crucial for not just developing UAVs armed with kinetic munitions but also for honing airborne unmanned electronic attack capability.

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cobra commando

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NEW DELHI: India is finally getting set to launch an ambitious project to develop its own stealth combat drones or UCAVs (unmanned combat aerial vehicles), which will be capable of firing missiles and precision-guided munitions at enemy targets and then returning to home bases to re-arm for further missions. Sources said the government was close to approving a Rs 2,650 crore Project Ghatak to develop the futuristic "Indian Unmanned Strike Air Vehicle" , which has already been cleared by the defence ministry. "The project is now being evaluated by an expert committee set up by the finance ministry. Once approved, Project Ghatak will be placed before the cabinet committee on security for the final nod," said a source.Project Ghatak flows from the earlier AURA (autonomous unmanned research aircraft) programme, which was sanctioned in 2009 at a cost of Rs 12.50 crore to carry out a "conceptual and feasibility study" for the future Indian UCAV. "The (AURA) project was successfully completed in April 2013 within the time schedule," minister of state for defence Rao Inderjit Singh told Parliament earlier this month. Project Ghatak, initiated by the Aeronautical Development Agency-DRDO combine in consultation with the IAF, now plans to bring in "collaborators" from the initial stage itself. Weighing less than a fighter jet since it will be "more of a flying- wing in design", the UCAV will take at least a decade to become fully-operational. Interestingly, the UCAV will be powered by a "52-kilonewton dry variant" of the indigenously- developed Kaveri aerospace engine, which could not pass muster to become the power plant for the Tejas light combat aircraft.


Read more:
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/...tealth-combat-drones/articleshow/50165296.cms
 
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India set to develop own stealth combat drones
Rajat Pandit | TNN | Dec 14, 2015, 02.40 AM IST
Representative image
NEW DELHI: India is finally getting set to launch an ambitious project to develop its own stealth combat drones or UCAVs (unmanned combat aerial vehicles), which will be capable of firing missiles and precision-guided munitions at enemy targets and then returning to home bases to re-arm for further missions.

Sources said the government was close to approving a Rs 2,650 crore Project Ghatak to develop the futuristic "Indian Unmanned Strike Air Vehicle", which has already been cleared by the defence ministry. "The project is now being evaluated by an expert committee set up by the finance ministry. Once approved, Project Ghatak will be placed before the cabinet committee on security for the final nod," said a source.

READ ALSO: IAF to get mini drones for covert operations

Project Ghatak flows from the earlier AURA (autonomous unmanned research aircraft) programme, which was sanctioned in 2009 at a cost of Rs 12.50 crore to carry out a "conceptual and feasibility study" for the future Indian UCAV. "The (AURA) project was successfully completed in April 2013 within the time schedule," minister of state for defence Rao Inderjit Singh told Parliament earlier this month.

Project Ghatak, initiated by the Aeronautical Development Agency-DRDO combine in consultation with the IAF, now plans to bring in "collaborators" from the initial stage itself. Weighing less than a fighter jet since it will be "more of a flying-wing in design", the UCAV will take at least a decade to become fully-operational.

Interestingly, the UCAV will be powered by a "52-kilonewton dry variant" of the indigenously-developed Kaveri aerospace engine, which could not pass muster to become the power plant for the Tejas light combat aircraft.



The Kaveri engine failed to provide the higher thrust required to power Tejas throughout its flight envelope, which led India to procure American GE engines for the indigenous fighter project. But all the work done on the Kaveri engine, on which Rs 2,839 crore have been spent after it was first approved way back in 1989, will now not go waste, sources said.




Incidentally, the armed forces already have Israeli Harop 'killer' drones, which basically act as cruise missiles to first detect and then destroy specific enemy targets and radars by exploding into them in kamikaze fashion.




Moreover, some of the existing Indian fleet of Israeli Heron and Searcher-II UAVs are also being upgraded with "add-ons" to ensure they can undertake a combat mission over and above their current surveillance and precision-targeting roles, as earlier reported by TOI.



But UCAVs are far more advanced, and considered among the most potent game-changers in modern day warfare. The 'Predator' and 'Reaper' drones which are controlled from the US through satellites, for instance, have been extensively used to fire 'Hellfire' missiles against Taliban targets in the Af-Pak region.




The armed forces, on their part, are keen to further induct a wide variety of drones, ranging from hand-launched mini ones to full-fledged UCAVs. The Army, for instance, wants at least 598 mini-UAVs to ensure "battlefield transparency" and "beyond the hill surveillance" in a 10-km radius for its infantry soldiers.

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/...tealth-combat-drones/articleshow/50165296.cms
 

sorcerer

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DRDO Claims Nishant Program Still Alive After Crash


India's Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) insists its indigenous Nishant unmanned air vehicle program is alive and well, despite reports it had been shelved after a crash in November.

In fact, DRDO says it is now developing a new variant of the 20-year-old design – a wheeled model called the Panchi.

“A product improvement project, Panchi (wheeled version of Nishant), catering to the army requirement of conventional take-off and landing has been undertaken,” the DRDO says. “The project is in an advanced stage of development. Panchi could be utilised by [the] army for their tactical UAV requirements.”

The surveillance UAV is catapult-launched and parachute-recovered, and it is believed the failed release of the parachute led to the November crash. The army had a requirement for 12 of the type, but it is believed only four were delivered, and all four crashed.

India is keen to have a presence in the UAV market, and in July 2015 Indian company Tata Advanced Systems announced it had teamed with Boeing to develop unmanned systems.

A February 2015 deal between Indian Dynamatic Technologies and the USA’s AeroVironment, meanwhile, will lead to the development of the “Cheel” UAV, derived from the latter’s family of small UAVs.


There has also been speculation India wishes to buy larger Western systems such as the ubiquitous General Atomics Aeronautical Systems MQ-9 Reaper, but its failure to be signed on to the Missile Technology Control Regime could prevent this. The nation has, however, acquired a number of Israel Aerospace Industries Heron UAVs.

Source>>
 

Prashant12

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IIT-K's UAVs land on defence radar

Kanpur: Three smart multi-function unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) developed by the IIT-Kanpur have reportedly evoked a response from the Indian defence forces as they could possibly be used in military operations and are cheaper than those currently being sourced from foreign countries.

A defence team is expected to visit the institute soon to see a demonstration of the UAVs that could be used for surveillance in insurgency-hit areas as well as in battlefields for various operations. The UAVs are fitted with gadgets of various kinds, including electro-optical and thermal cameras and are ready for mass production, claimed IIT-K sources. The first UAV has been named as SWATI or Silent Watch Aircraft For Tactical Intelligence. SWATI requires a small runway of only 50 to 80 meters to take off and can have a maximum take-off weight of 16 to 22 kgs. It could fly with either fuel or batteries. With petrol, it can stay in air for about eight hours and with batteries it has a four-hour endurance. It can keep an eye over an area of 100 kms.

"A key feature of this UAV is that it can transmit videos live to the base station. SWATI is auto pilot, follows command from the ground and is ready for production," said Prof Deepu Philip of IIT-Kanpur on Monday. Prof Philip has worked on the development on these UAVs along with Prof A K Ghosh, Prof Nischal Verma and Prof Satyaki Roy. A team of 30 students has also worked tirelessly with their professors to make these UAVs a reality. He further claimed that if a UAV with a configuration similar to SWATI is procured from outside India it will cost Rs 2 crores, whereas in bulk production its cost will slip down to Rs 20 to Rs 30 lakh only.

The second UAV is AMITA or Autonomous Man-packable Intelligent Tactical Aircraft and does not require a runaway to be launched. The light-weight AMITA can be carried in three backpacks. It can be hand-launched and weighs just six to eight kgs. It can remain in the air for more than three hours.

"AMITA can be guided and navigated to reach its command post from where it is being operated (meaning that this UAV can be guided to reach its navigator's location). If the navigator changes its ground location, AMITA can reach the new location," Prof Philip informed TOI.

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/...and-on-defence-radar/articleshow/52409366.cms
 

Prashant12

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Rustom-II UAV to be tested in Chitradurga

The first flight of India's new combat-capable unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) Rustom-II is scheduled to be held by the end of July in Chitradurga test flight range.


Scientists at the Aeronautical Development Establishment (ADE) would move to the test range later this week for the trial as an window between July 28 and August 2 would be kept open for the flight in the presence of Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar.

Once ready, the medium-altitude, long-endurance (Male) UAV is likely to be an asset for the military not only for its surveillance capability, but also for its ability to be used as an unmanned armed combat vehicle in the line of the US’s Predator that New Delhi is interested to buy.

“Rustom-II is a very big platform with a range of 250 km. However, for the first flight we will be flying it up to a distance of 50-100 km,” said a source associated with the UAV’s development.

Compared to Rustom-I that was test flown for the first time in November 2009, Rustom-II will be having Electronic Intelligence, Communication Intelligence, Medium and Long-Range Electro-optic Payloads and Synthetic Aperture Radar that will enable it to see through the clouds.

“Rustom-I is a primitive vehicle with minimal capabilities. Rustom-II, on the other hand, has several capabilities, including the ability to carry weapons,” G Satheesh Reddy, Scientific Adviser to Raksha Mantri, told DH.

Once fully ready, Rustom UAVs are meant to replace Israeli Heron unmanned aerial vehicles being used by the air force and the navy. The aircraft is named after former Indian Institute of Science professor Rustom Damania, who pioneered aviation research in India in the 1980s.

Addressing a seminar on UAV in Delhi last November, an ADE official stated that the three services initially projected a requirement of 76 of these platforms.

However, like many other defence research and development organisation (DRDO) projects, Rustom-II is also facing time overrun as the production schedule, first fixed for 2016, has now been pushed to 2017 with the possibility that it may get further delayed.

The biggest challenge faced by the scientists is the excess weight of the airframe. The airframe had a weight of about 2,400 kg by 2015 end, which ADE scientists would have to bring down to about 1,700 kg in the final version for accommodating every sensor package.

Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd and Bharat Electronics Ltd partners DRDO in the development of Rustom-II and has committed several hundred crores as financial support.

http://www.deccanherald.com/content/557158/rustom-ii-uav-tested-chitradurga.html
 

Lions Of Punjab

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Chennai college students develop UAV prototype with limitless reach & scope
SOURCE: ENS



A student of KCG College of Engineering has developed a prototype of a new generation unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) that can be run from any part of the country. In fact, from any part of the world because it depends on the internet! “Traditional UAVs have limited bandwidth restricting its control radius to short ranges. However, this UAV will have a wider range and is controlled using internet-based virtual private network (VPN),” claims E Elanthamizhan of KCG who completed this year and did the project. This automated vehicle generally uses joystick or remote control and cannot be used for long ranges because it works with limited bandwidth of 2.4 GHz. “As I am an aeronautical engineer I had the idea of developing UAV system which can be controlled from anywhere in the world by means of VPN. Currently, UAV is controlled only till 2.4 GHz as approved by the US-based Federal Communication Commission (FCC). This is the bandwidth frequency in which they are controlling the UAVs,” he said. This bandwidth will not allow the quadcopter or the UAV to travel more than 1-2 km and to do so one needs to increase the signal strength.

idrw.org . Read more at India No 1 Defence News Website , Kindly don't post our articles on other copycat websites http://idrw.org/uav-prototype-limitless-reach-scope/ .
 

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