India, U.S. conclude $3.5 billion deal for 31 MQ-9B armed UAVs

India secures deal with U.S. for 31 Predator drones, including 15 Sea Guardian for Navy and 8 each for Air Force and Army.

India and the U.S. on Tuesday (October 15, 2024) concluded a close to $3.5 billion deal for the procurement of 31 MQ-9B armed High Altitude Long Endurance (HALE) Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAV) manufactured by General Atomics.

The deal was signed today morning and is close to $3.5 billion, two official sources confirmed.

The deal also includes 170 AGM-114R Hellfire missiles; 16 M36E9 Hellfire captive air training missiles; 310 GBU-39B/B laser Small Diameter Bombs (SDB); and 08 GBU-39B/B LSDB guided test vehicles with live fuzes among others.

The deal for 31 MQ-9B UAVs, 15 Sea Guardians for the Indian Navy and 16 Sky Guardians— eight each for the Indian Army and Air Force— was formally approved by the Cabinet Committee on Security last week along with another major deal for the indigenous construction of two Nuclear Attack Submarines (SSN).

These advanced UAVs, once inducted, will significantly augment India’s Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance (ISR) capabilities. For the Navy, it is a great force multiplier in keeping an eye over large swathes of the Indian Ocean Region and will reduce the wear and tear on its P-8I long-range maritime patrol aircraft.

As part of the deal, General Atomics is scheduled to establish a Global Maintenance, Repair and Overhaul (MRO) facility in India which would count towards offset obligations.

As reported by The Hindu earlier, end-July the Defence Acquisition Council (DAC) chaired by Mr. Singh approved amendments to the MQ-9B deal related to indigenous content and related aspects.