India way ahead of Pakistan when it comes to drone power

India targetted nine terrorist bases in Pakistan

India in the early hours of May 7 struck terror bases in Pakistan and Pakistan Occupied Kashmir (PoK) in a joint armed forces effort, called Operation Sindoor, using a mix of high-precision, long-range strike weapons with air power playing a major role.

As worries mount over an escalating military conflict, here is how India and Pakistan match up.

Indian military holds more aircraft than Pakistan, data from SIPRI shows. But it is drone inventory and vessels, where India’s gap with Pakistan is yawning, data shows.

India’s drone inventory of medium altitude long endurance drones was thrice that of Pakistan until 2024.

While India had 200 of these medium altitude long endurance drones, Pakistan’s total inventory was just 60, data from the International Centre for Peace Studies (ICPS) shows.

While India has acquired nearly 2,000-2,500 drones, including mini-UAVs, which are estimated to be 980, Pakistan’s overall drone inventory was 290, ICPS data shows.

SIPRI data puts Indian aircraft numbers at 480 compared with 300 for Pakistan.

Follow our live blog for the latest on Operation Sindoor

India also has four times more vessels than its western neighbour.

Until 2020, numbers from Drone Databook show that India’s drone inventory was among the top 10 nations in the world.

Till 2020, India held 600 drones compared with 1,421 for Turkey, 1,050 for Russia and 13,710 for the US.

Nearly 102 countries in the world had drone inventory in 2020.

India used loitering munitions or "kamikaze drones" in the May 7 strike, reports have said. These drones are used for surveillance, target acquisition, and terminal strike roles. These drone systems hover over target areas and either autonomously or under remote control identify and eliminate threats.

India hit nine terrorist bases in Pakistan and PoK, two weeks after the Pahalgam terror attack in which 26 people were killed. Two of the terrorists involved in the strike were identified as Pakistani citizens.

Pakistan has claimed to have downed Indian drones during the strikes.