Modi, Biden affirm plans for procuring armed drones for Indian defence

A fact sheet issued by the U.S. said, “India intends to procure armed MQ-9B Sea Guardian UAVs. This advanced technology will increase India’s Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance (ISR) capabilities.”

United States President Joe Biden and Prime Minister Narendra Modi welcomed India’s plans to procure General Atomics MQ-9B High Altitude Long Endurance (HALE) Unmanned Aerial vehicles (UAV), according to a joint statement issued on June 22 after talks between the two leaders. This sets the stage for the acquisition of 31 armed UAVs — 15 for the Indian Navy and eight each for the Indian Army and Air Force. The process for their procurement through the Foreign Military Sales (FMS) programme of the U.S. has commenced, with the Defence Acquisition Council (DAC) having approved the deal last week.

A fact sheet issued by the U.S. said, “India intends to procure armed MQ-9B Sea Guardian UAVs. This advanced technology will increase India’s Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance (ISR) capabilities.”

Giving further details on the nature of purchase, the joint statement said, “The MQ-9Bs, which will be assembled in India, will enhance the ISR capabilities of India’s armed forces across domains. As part of this plan, General Atomics will also establish a Comprehensive Global Maintenance, Repair and Overhaul (MRO) facility in India to support India’s long-term goals to boost indigenous defence capabilities.”

Now as per process, following the DAC approval the Ministry of Defence will issue a Letter of Request to the U.S. Department of Defence which would issue a Letter of Acceptance from its end. This would be followed by the contract negotiations, which includes the cost, and once details are worked out, the U.S. Administration will have to notify the U.S. Congress of the sale, which is a formality in this case. In the penultimate step, the deal will have to be approved by the Cabinet Committee on Security, after which the contract can be finalised.

Unmatched capability

According to its manufacturer General Atomics, the MQ-9B can provide roughly 80% of the capability of a large human-flown maritime patrol aircraft at about 20% of its cost per hour. That makes it much more economical for navies to — for example — send out Sea Guardians to clear big volumes of air or sea and then, if anything of interest is discovered, vector in a human-crewed aircraft to save it the time, cost, and wear that it otherwise might have expended, the company stated.

This is the primary reason the Indian Navy is keen on these UAVs as it significantly reduces the wear and tear on manned aircraft as well as crew fatigue, its fleet of 12 P-8I long range maritime patrol aircraft, to keep an eye over the large swathes of the Indian Ocean Region.