India's approach towards high tech drones from the US
Drones or unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) are dominating the battlefields in combat in the twenty-first century. The current confrontation between Russia and Ukraine, which involved the deployment of drones, has caused both nations to reconsider their drone arsenal. This recent use of drones on battlefields highlights the importance of the technology for observation and surveillance tasks as well as for taking punitive action.
India is in "advanced stage" talks with the US to spend over $3 billion on 30 MQ-9B Predator armed drones to ramp up its surveillance network along the border with China and in the Indian Ocean region. The MQ-9B includes integrated signals intelligence and communications intelligence equipment, as well as any extra specialised sensors that are required. India was able to purchase armed drones from the United States in 2019, and the country even provided integrated air and missile defence systems. Reliable defence establishment sources claim that talks are now underway between New Delhi and Washington for the government-to-government purchase of drones from the US defence company General Atomics. General Motors claims that the MQ-9Bs are constructed in accordance with NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization) standards and international civil aviation laws. The acquisition request was driven by the Indian Navy, and it is likely that each of the three services will receive 10 drones. The drones can fly for up to 35 hours when commanded remotely.
WHY DOES INDIA NEED PREDATOR DRONES?
The three defense services of India that is, Army, Navy and Air Force are purchasing the long-endurance hunter-killer drones because they can be used for a variety of operations, including maritime surveillance, anti-submarine warfare, over-the-horizon targeting, and striking stationary ground targets. The Indian Navy has been lobbying for High Altitude Long Endurance (HALE) drones in light of India's expanding involvement in the Indo-Pacific and the Indian Ocean regions. The US has provided Transfer of Technology (ToT) to help India develop and manufacture armed HALE unmanned aircraft, under a government-to-government contract which is a part of India's road towards Atmanirbhar Bharat in the Defense sector.
The MQ-9B drone is a variant of the MQ-9 "Reaper" drone, which was used to launch a modified Hellfire missile that killed Ayman al-Zawahiri, the leader of al-Qaeda, a month ago in the heart of Kabul. The HALE drones can fly for almost 35 hours while carrying four Hellfire missiles and over 450 kg of explosives. The MQ-9B comes in two versions: SkyGuardian and SeaGuardian. For a year of monitoring the Indian Ocean, General Atomics leased two MQ-9B Sea Guardian drones to the Indian Navy in 2020. The lease was then given an extension.
The MQ-9B drone is the first hunter-killer unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) designed for long-duration, high-altitude observation missions. The Indian military can keep an eye on the high-altitude border regions of the Himalayas thanks to the drone's operational height of more than 40,000 feet. The Predator's 40-hour maximum endurance makes it appropriate for 24-hour surveillance. The MQ-9B Sea Guardian may also provide electronic warfare, maritime surveillance, assault, and expeditionary operations. The MQ-9B Sea Guardian is also capable of automatic takeoffs and landings. The MQ-9 UAVs are referred to as remotely piloted vehicles/aircraft (RPV/RPA) by the USAF. The first hunter-killer UAV, as it is often known in the US, is watched over and controlled by pilots at the ground control station (GCS).
There have been multiple military standoffs between India and China along their 3,488 km border since 2020. Both sides are said to have sent out close to two lakh troops each. Using a fleet of unmanned drones, India has significantly increased surveillance along the Line of Actual Control (LAC), and deploying these drones would significantly improve India's monitoring programme as well. Additionally, with China stepping up its naval activity in the Indian Ocean Region (IOR), including docking its newest space-tracking ship Yuan Wang 5, close to the Indian coastline to track satellite, rocket, and intercontinental ballistic missile launches, the need for Reaper drones to control China seems essential. In order to keep track of expanding Chinese activity, such as repeated forays by PLA warships into the Indian Ocean region, the Indian Navy has been strengthening its surveillance system and the purchase of MQ-9B drones is a tactical decision due to the same reason.
INDIA-US DEFENSE RELATIONS
The defence cooperation between India and the United States has improved recently. India was named a "Major Defence Partner" by the United States in June 2016, opening the door for the transfer of essential military hardware and technologies. Over the last several years, the two nations have also signed important defence and security agreements, such as the Logistics Exchange Memorandum of Agreement (LEMOA) in 2016, which permits both forces to utilise each other's facilities for supply replenishment and repair. In 2018, the two parties inked COMCASA (Communications Compatibility and Security Agreement), which enables military cooperation between the two nations and permits the transfer of sophisticated American equipment to India. To strengthen their mutual defence cooperation, India and the US also signed the BECA (Basic Exchange and Cooperation Deal) agreement in October 2020.
Even though the US has only offered the MQ-9 Reaper drones to NATO countries, India has earned the US's trust enough to acquire them. Sharing sensitive military technology is the main prerequisite for using the Reaper, and the defense agreements guarantee this. India is a no-brainer for the Reaper contract since it is a cornerstone of American policy in Asia's Indo-Pacific region, and dissuading China is against that policy. It is essential to equip Indian services with cutting-edge technology in light of China's adventurism along the disputed boundary and its expanding presence in the Indian Ocean region. Such cooperative components, which were formerly barriers, are now seen as landmarks. There will undoubtedly be difficulties as the United States and India try to increase their security collaboration. However, the impetus for continuing involvement and advancement is crucially increased by India's expanding position as a regional security supplier, coupled with tangible improvement in bilateral relations.
DRONE MANUFACTURING IN INDIA-
By 2030, India will have a total manufacturing potential for drones and the parts that go into them of around US$23 billion. The Indian government is promoting the use of drones in several businesses, and a new strategy for their development has been adopted. Bharat Drone Mahotsav 2022, the biggest drone festival in India, just took place there. The Indian Army, Navy, and Air Force secured drone technology contracts totalling more than Rs 500 crore in 2021. Also, in August 2021, the Indian government released the Drone Rules, which streamlined the certification process, removed the complex approval processes required to operate drones, and encouraged R&D. The Indian government's Defence Research & Development Organization (DRDO) has developed many unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) systems, including Lakshya, Nishant, Abhyas, TAPAS-BHI-201, Fluffy, Imperial Eagle, and Rustom 1 and 2. The DRDO is developing the Ghatak drone, which most likely includes a deck-based UCAV variant for the Indian Navy.
In the short term, there is excellent potential for the localisation of components like batteries, airframes, and motors. India has been working to develop its own effective counter-drone technology because of the threats from its close neighbours. It will be extremely costly and challenging to construct a dependable system over such a wide and diversified terrain or our borders. While controlling a small number of these drones would be straightforward, India needs an entire system that can control hundreds or perhaps thousands of these drones buzzing an area of tactical or strategic importance. India requires a sophisticated detection and neutralisation system with several layers.
Regarding drones, the military environment and culture in India are evolving. Currently, the artillery is in charge of guaranteeing the most effective use of drones, which was initially the responsibility of the Indian Army Aviation Corps. The Indian Army is now pursuing loitering weapons, which were previously only used by the Indian Air Force (IAF). India may use UAVs extensively to address its challenges, including law enforcement, anti-smuggling, border surveillance, coastline monitoring, and early warning in defence of vital assets like nuclear plants, power-producing facilities, significant grid installations, dams, reservoirs, and urban terrorism to armed insurgencies. Unmanned aircraft continue to be India's most potential future technology, and the country does have a robust aerospace sector. When investing in new defence systems, India must consider the promise and challenges posed by the evolution of warfare.
CONCLUSION-
India will have to concentrate on producing drone and counter-drone technologies coupled with improved software installations in the quickly developing UAVs market. As the country faces tactical and strategic difficulties, targeted investments in cyber and electronic countermeasures, along with local unmanned system manufacture, would be beneficial. Drone use in India's business sector is strongly promoted, and this includes fields like agriculture, building and real estate, land surveying, railroad track mapping, energy production, mining, industrial asset inspection, and so on. The laws governing the manufacturing, sale, and use of UAVs have gotten increasingly lenient as the country observes the companies blooming in the field. However, they also need to be integrated with other industries.
Beyond the unnerving possibility of a direct terrorist attack, there is an increasing risk of rogue, hostile drone use in civilian settings. As the market for unmanned aircraft systems expands, counter-drone systems must be versatile enough to locate and eliminate drones of various sizes and forms. The variety of readily available aircraft has increased. Furthermore, it is essential to consider drones as a complement to various military and surveillance options rather than as a replacement. Drones have developed into a paradigm-shifting technology that will likely completely transform both the public and military spheres in ways we could never have imagined.
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(The views expressed are those of the author and do not represent views of CESCUBE.)
