India signs Rs 34,500 crore deal with US for 31 MQ-9B Predator drones across armed forces
By Anish Kumar | First Published Oct 15, 2024, 2:48 PM ISTThe deal is being executed under a Foreign Military Sales (FMS) agreement between the United States and India. Of 31, a total of 16 has been earmarked for the Indian Navy, eight each for the Indian Army and the Indian Air Force.
Days after the Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS) clearances, India’s defence ministry on Tuesday inked a deal with the United States’ giant General Atomics for procurement of 31 MQ-9B Predator drones for the three Services, worth Rs 34,500 crore.
The deal is being executed under a Foreign Military Sales (FMS) agreement between the United States and India. Of 31, a total of 16 has been earmarked for the Indian Navy, eight each for the Indian Army and the Indian Air Force.
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India signed a contract for the procurement of 31 MQ-9B predator drones from the US’ . pic.twitter.com/w5Wdlj2FYl
— Anish Singh (@anishsingh21)It must be noted that the US offer was set to expire on October 31.
The naval version of the MQ-9B Predator drones is known as “Sea Guardian” while the air force version is the “Sky Guardian.” The MQ-9Bs are high-altitude, long-endurance (HALE) unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), capable of carrying both surveillance and precision strike missions.
The induction of these drone systems would be significant for the Indian Navy’s surveillance capability over the Indian Ocean region (IOR), where China is assertive.
These drones are expected to be inducted into the forces over a period of four years.
The MQ-9B drones would also serve a multitude of purposes, including supporting naval operations, conducting search and rescue missions, assisting customs authorities, combating wildfires, and fulfilling various other tasks.
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Countries that operate MQ-9Bs are Japan, Belgium, the UK and the US.
With a 79-foot wingspan, General Atomics had said months ago that the MQ-9B “provides enhanced payload capacity and an open architecture system that enables the aircraft to integrate the most advanced sensor payloads for intelligence gathering, survivability, and even kinetic payloads for more complex operational environments.”
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