India on Tuesday signed a mega deal with US for the procurement of 31 MQ-9B Predator drones, also known as "hunter-killer" drones, at a cost of nearly $4 billion.
The high-altitude long-endurance drones will add more teeth to the Indian military's combat prowess along the borders with China and Pakistan and significantly enhance its surveillance capabilities.
Drone deal
Moneycontrol had earlier reported that out of the 31 drones India will acquire, 15 will be for the Indian Navy and eight each for the Indian Army and Indian Air Force.
The Navy version of the drone is called Sea Guardian while the IAF and Army version is known as Sky Guardian.
These drones can fly up to an altitude of 40,000 feet and can stay airborne for nearly 40 hours. They can also carry up to four Hellfire missiles and around 450 kgs of bombs.
TOI reported that along with the 31 MQ-9B drones will come with 170 Hellfire missiles, 310 GBU-39B precision-guided glide bombs, navigation systems, sensor suites and mobile ground control systems, among other equipment.
The drones have a range of about 1,800 km and are manufactured by US firm General Atomics.
Interestingly, US used the MQ-9B drone to launch a modified version of the Hellfire missile that killed al-Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahiri in the heart of Kabul in July 2022.
The Sea Guardian drones can also carry out a variety of roles, including maritime surveillance, anti-submarine warfare and over-the-horizon targeting among others.
Why the Predator drones matter for India?
The Predator drones can prove to be a game-changer for India as they will enhance its surveillance capabilities, particularly along the border with China and in the Indian Ocean Region.
The drones will allow India to extensively cover its maritime regions, particularly because they can fly for a full day.
The MQ-9B drones have been reinforced by extensive ISR (intelligence, surveillance, reconnaissance) missions.
This is important for India due to the Chinese Navy’s expanding footprint in the Indian Ocean Region (IOR), which poses a major strategic challenge for New Delhi in the maritime domain.
The drones can also keep an eye on Chinese spy ships in IOR.
Moreover, Predator drones are considered far superior to their Chinese counterparts like Cai Hong-4 and Wing Loong-II. The Chinese drones are also being supplied to Pakistan, TOI reported earlier.
The drones can also be used by IAF and Army to strike critical infrastructure and high value targets in the worst case scenario, according to a Hindustan Times report.
Moneycontrol had reported earlier that India plans to deploy the drones at ISR command and control centres at Arakkonam (Tamil Nadu) and Porbandar (Gujarat) for maritime securuty and Sarsawa (UP) and Gorakhpur (UP) for the land borders.
The strategic placement in Sarsawa and Gorakhpur will ensure that both the line of control (LOC) with Pakistan and the line of actual control (LAC) with China is comfortably within reach.
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