India's Current & Future UAVs & UCAVs

WolfPack86

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India's plans for the Reaper drone and the Hellfire missile that killed Soleimani
The MQ-9 Reaper drone and the Hellfire missile: One a high-flying, silent and deadly unmanned aircraft that made its first appearance in 2001, the other a staple missile of US military aircraft since the 1980s.

The combination of the Reaper and the Hellfire is what reportedly killed Iranian general Qassem Soleimani on January 3. In a post-midnight operation, the remotely-piloted MQ-9 launched two Hellfire missiles at Soleimani’s car and convoy, killing 10 in total.

The Reaper is no stranger to targeted assassination missions. In November 2015, it was used to kill ISIS member Mohammad Emwazi—otherwise known as ‘Jihadi John’—while he was traveling in a vehicle in Raqqa, Syria.


Given the platform's proven capabilities, India has been in talks with the US for years now to acquire it. Most recently, in August, it was reported that India planned to tailor the UAV for use by all three services of the Indian Armed Forces.

In addition, the Hellfire missiles made their way into Indian armories after the acquisition of AH-64 Apache helicopters, whose primary munition is this missile.

The Reaper drone, developed by General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, is an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) capable of remotely controlled or autonomous flight operations. According to the US Air Force, the MQ-9 Reaper is an “armed, multi-mission, medium altitude, long-endurance” aircraft primarily designed for offensive strikes.

With a wingspan of 66 feet and the capability to cruise at roughly 230 mph (482 kph), the UAV can also conduct surveillance, and assist in search and rescue missions. An improvement over its predecessor, the MQ-1 Predator, in terms of size and robustness, Reaper drones have become the reliant carrier for launch munitions in order to annihilate targets. The US Air Force is in possession of 93 units of the Reaper drones.

India’s tryst with Reaper drones began way back in 2016—when news regarding India’s planned acquisition of Reapers first surfaced. Initially, India’s intention was to acquire 22 naval variants of the Predator B drone, called the Sea Guardian, for the Indian Navy. In 2019, a report in the Breaking Defense website claimed that the Pentagon and Indian Ministry of Defence were working together to “tailor” standardized versions of the Predator B Reaper drone for use by all three armed services. The Reaper drones could be the new addition to the line of drones operated by the Indian Army, which includes the Israeli Harop attack drone and the Heron surveillance drone.

The US’s designation of India as a Major Defence Partner has made it easier for India to facilitate faster negotiations for acquisitions of military equipment from the superpower. The goal of the designation was to create a tighter defence participation between India and the US and to promote better cooperation and coordination in the field of defence and security.

The AGM-114 Hellfire missiles are air-to-ground, laser-guided, subsonic missiles with significant anti-tank capacity. The Hellfire missiles have several variants, depending on its warhead, guidance system, and its physical variations. A latest and peculiar addition to the line of Hellfire missiles is the Hellfire R9X that uses pop-out sword blades to kill targets with minimal collateral damage—designed for targeted killings. According to Al Arabia, this may have been the variant of the Hellfire missile used to assassinate Soleimani.

In the US, the carriers of these missiles vary according to the armed services—the Air Force carries Hellfire missiles in its Predator and Reaper drones, while the Army carries it in its Apache helicopters.

In 2015, the IAF announced a deal for 22 Apache choppers, equipped with fire-and-forget Hellfire missiles, at a cost of $1.4 billion. The Army soon followed up with its own order for six aircraft in 2018, for $930 million. In late 2019, it was reported that India was set to sign a $930-million deal with the US government for six Apache attack helicopters, with the similar Hellfire missile variant, for the army, under the US foreign military sales programme. The induction process of these helicopters into the Air Force is currently in progress.

The induction of these drones and missiles into the Indian military, both systems being in line with the latest technological advancements in warfare and combat, signifies India’s progress towards modernising its military capabilities. The signing of COMCASA and the acquisition of Major Defence Partner status have also helped India acquire such technologies from the US.
https://www.defencenews.in/article/...Hellfire-missile-that-killed-Soleimani-808757
 

WolfPack86

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30 MQ-9 Reaper Armed UAVS from the US will soon arrive in India
As India and the U.S. look to announce defence deals worth around $3 billion during President Donald Trump’s visit beginning on Monday, the proposal to procure armed drones from the U.S. for the three services is very much under way and the qualitative requirements (QR) are currently being finalised, defence sources said.

“The proposal for 10 High Altitude Long Endurance (HALE) drones for each Service is on. The qualitative requirements (QR) are currently being finalised,” a defence source told The Hindu. “The pricing and availability (P&A) data has been obtained from the U.S. and joint QRs are being formulated, while the payloads will be different for each service,” the source added.

The Navy’s QRs are ready and that of the Army and the Air Force should be ready by the next meeting of the Chiefs of Staff Committee (CoSC), likely within 40 days, the source said.


The CoSC consists of the three chiefs and is headed by the Chief of Defence Staff (CDS), who is also the permanent Chairman of CoSC.

This week during Mr. Trump’s visit to New Delhi, the two sides are expected to announce deals for 24 MH-60R Multi-Role Helicopters for the Navy and six AH-64E Apache attack helicopters for the Army worth around $3 billion. The two deals got the final approval from the Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS) last week. There are several other big ticket deals in the pipeline, which includes the armed drones, air defence system to protect Delhi, MK-45 127mm naval guns and six more P-8I long patrol maritime patrol aircraft.

The issue of procuring armed drones from the U.S.— the MQ-9 Reaper or Predator-B built by General Atomics — has been long under discussion, with questions being raised over its necessity given the steep cost and also the operational requirement in the Indian context. With a vast ocean space to monitor and increasing profile in the Indian Ocean Region (IOR), the Navy has been the one pushing for High Altitude Long Endurance (HALE) drones to beef up surveillance.

“There is a drive towards fleet rationalisation,” a Navy source said, adding that they are at a point where in place of manned platforms they should look at unmanned ones. “As we look at unmanned platforms, the number of minesweepers has been reduced from 12 to eight and requirement for additional P-8Is has been reduced from 10 to six, the Navy source explained.

The HALE drones can conduct surveillance, while the P-8Is will be for Anti-Submarine Warfare (ASW) role, the source stated, adding that the Navy is looking for Seaguardian drones armed with missile and radars for maritime reconnaissance.

“If the process goes as per plan, then we expect to issue the Acceptance of Necessity (AoN) by first half of this year,” another source said. The U.S. has in principle approved the sale of these armed drones to India following which the P&A data was made available.


Expensive platforms ::

For the Navy, the Seaguardian can fly in sync with its P-8Is, which are also from the U.S. With India signing the Communications Compatibility and Security Agreement(COMCASA) in 2018, U.S. origin platforms will also get encrypted systems which will further improve their capabilities. The unmanned platforms reduce the number of personnel, their turnaround and associated costs, officials said.

While the Navy has a different requirement, there have been questions on the need of armed drones for the Army and the IAF due to which the deal has been delayed for a long time. Each drone with its load of weapons and sensors is expected to cost around $200 million. “It is more expensive than a fighter aircraft,” a defence source said.

According to General Atomics, Seaguardian, the maritime variant of Predator-B, can fly at an altitude of over 40,000 feet and has a maximum endurance of 35 hours. It can carry an external payload of 2.1 tonnes across nine hard points.
https://www.defencenews.in/article/...-from-the-US-will-soon-arrive-in-India-809429
 

SavageKing456

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It's scale models are doing wind tunnel testing . Once that done prototype should be build.
If i am not wrong
will kaveri engine be integrated in AURA?
IF yes then how come DRDO taking much time as they already have the engine ready:india2:
 

IndianHawk

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Recently we found that Pakistan has a mystery submarine do you know that?
Nothing mystery to it. It's a small sub for special force operation. Many nations operate these. We might have many of them but no one will know !
 

SavageKing456

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Nothing mystery to it. It's a small sub for special force operation. Many nations operate these. We might have many of them but no one will know !
Anyways we need not to fear lol
Our satellites are constantly spying
Them.
If they would have any classified project india will already know it beforehand:)
 

nongaddarliberal

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30 MQ-9 Reaper Armed UAVS from the US will soon arrive in India
As India and the U.S. look to announce defence deals worth around $3 billion during President Donald Trump’s visit beginning on Monday, the proposal to procure armed drones from the U.S. for the three services is very much under way and the qualitative requirements (QR) are currently being finalised, defence sources said.

“The proposal for 10 High Altitude Long Endurance (HALE) drones for each Service is on. The qualitative requirements (QR) are currently being finalised,” a defence source told The Hindu. “The pricing and availability (P&A) data has been obtained from the U.S. and joint QRs are being formulated, while the payloads will be different for each service,” the source added.

The Navy’s QRs are ready and that of the Army and the Air Force should be ready by the next meeting of the Chiefs of Staff Committee (CoSC), likely within 40 days, the source said.


The CoSC consists of the three chiefs and is headed by the Chief of Defence Staff (CDS), who is also the permanent Chairman of CoSC.

This week during Mr. Trump’s visit to New Delhi, the two sides are expected to announce deals for 24 MH-60R Multi-Role Helicopters for the Navy and six AH-64E Apache attack helicopters for the Army worth around $3 billion. The two deals got the final approval from the Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS) last week. There are several other big ticket deals in the pipeline, which includes the armed drones, air defence system to protect Delhi, MK-45 127mm naval guns and six more P-8I long patrol maritime patrol aircraft.

The issue of procuring armed drones from the U.S.— the MQ-9 Reaper or Predator-B built by General Atomics — has been long under discussion, with questions being raised over its necessity given the steep cost and also the operational requirement in the Indian context. With a vast ocean space to monitor and increasing profile in the Indian Ocean Region (IOR), the Navy has been the one pushing for High Altitude Long Endurance (HALE) drones to beef up surveillance.

“There is a drive towards fleet rationalisation,” a Navy source said, adding that they are at a point where in place of manned platforms they should look at unmanned ones. “As we look at unmanned platforms, the number of minesweepers has been reduced from 12 to eight and requirement for additional P-8Is has been reduced from 10 to six, the Navy source explained.

The HALE drones can conduct surveillance, while the P-8Is will be for Anti-Submarine Warfare (ASW) role, the source stated, adding that the Navy is looking for Seaguardian drones armed with missile and radars for maritime reconnaissance.

“If the process goes as per plan, then we expect to issue the Acceptance of Necessity (AoN) by first half of this year,” another source said. The U.S. has in principle approved the sale of these armed drones to India following which the P&A data was made available.


Expensive platforms ::

For the Navy, the Seaguardian can fly in sync with its P-8Is, which are also from the U.S. With India signing the Communications Compatibility and Security Agreement(COMCASA) in 2018, U.S. origin platforms will also get encrypted systems which will further improve their capabilities. The unmanned platforms reduce the number of personnel, their turnaround and associated costs, officials said.

While the Navy has a different requirement, there have been questions on the need of armed drones for the Army and the IAF due to which the deal has been delayed for a long time. Each drone with its load of weapons and sensors is expected to cost around $200 million. “It is more expensive than a fighter aircraft,” a defence source said.

According to General Atomics, Seaguardian, the maritime variant of Predator-B, can fly at an altitude of over 40,000 feet and has a maximum endurance of 35 hours. It can carry an external payload of 2.1 tonnes across nine hard points.
https://www.defencenews.in/article/...-from-the-US-will-soon-arrive-in-India-809429
Hydroxicloroquine is getting us a lot of goodies from the US.
 

Aniruddha Mulay

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Hydroxicloroquine is getting us a lot of goodies from the US.
This news of India acquiring armed drones from the US was floating around since last year.
It was stated that the deal of the 30 MQ-9 Reaper drones would be signed in the months following Trump's India visit. This deal is not related to hydroxychloroquine.
 

SavageKing456

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This news of India acquiring armed drones from the US was floating around since last year.
It was stated that the deal of the 30 MQ-9 Reaper drones would be signed in the months following Trump's India visit. This deal is not related to hydroxychloroquine.
well he said right we are getting goodies from US
many india based FDA Companies were allowed in US within 24 hours
this will also affect on indo-US relations
 

Aniruddha Mulay

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well he said right we are getting goodies from US
many india based FDA Companies were allowed in US within 24 hours
this will also affect on indo-US relations
Hopefully those goodies do not come with strings attached so we are free to use them however we like.
 

WolfPack86

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India’s HAL Demonstrates Flight of 10Kg Rotary Wing UAV

India’s Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) has demonstrated flight of 10kg Rotary Wing (Helicopter) unmanned Aerial Vehicle (RUAV).

The RUAV is of a 2-stroke petrol engine, twin blade main rotor and tail rotor, payload capability of 2.5Kg including live stream video camera and range of the vehicle is 8-10 Km with an endurance of one hour, the company said in a statement Friday.

The flight lasted for about ten minutes during which the Attitude Control Attitude Hold (ACAH) mode, Position Control, Position Hold mode (autonomous hover), low speed flight in forward, backward and sideward directions, were demonstrated.

The video feed from onboard the helicopter was streamed live and shown on the dedicated video receiver. The status of the helicopter, its parameters and its real-time position on the map were also shown.
 

WolfPack86

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Aero India 2019: HAL unveils rotary-wing unmanned aerial vehicle

Specifically designed to perform intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR) operations, the UAV was developed by HAL in co-operation with the country’s Aeronautical Development Establishment (ADE) and the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Kanpur, to meet specific requirements of the Indian Army and Indian Navy.


The 200 kg UAV, which is equipped with a twin-blade main rotor and a locally developed petrol engine, is stated to have a range of 200 km, endurance of six hours, and a service ceiling of 6,000 m. The platform, the fuselage of which is 4.2 m long and 1.28 m wide, is reportedly capable of flying at a top speed of 200 km/h and can carry a 40 kg payload.


The preliminary design of the platform was completed in January, with clearance for the preliminary design review (PDR) now pending.


The UAV, which features a full‐authority digital engine control (FADEC) and SLR-DC datalink, can fly in fully autonomous mode, including auto take-off and landing with a return-to-home recovery option, according to HAL. It uses GPS for interactive command and control with completely programmable mission management computers. Real-time data and video links are available for line-of-sight operations.


The UAV can be used for humanitarian assistance and disaster relief (HADR) missions, coastal surveillance, radar and missile decoy operations, detecting improvised explosive devices and landmines, and tracking and designating targets.
 

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