Jan 14, 2025 06:02 PM IST
The Drishti 10 Starliner has been built by Adani Defence and Aerospace at its Hyderabad facility with tech transfer from Israeli defence firm Elbit Systems
NEW DELHI: A Drishti 10 Starliner drone, built by Adani Defence and Aerospace, crashed off the Porbandar coast in Gujarat while it was undergoing acceptance trials before being delivered to the Indian Navy, people aware of the matter said on Tuesday.
The medium-altitude long-endurance (MALE) drone is already in service with the navy – it inducted one last year. The navy and the army had earlier ordered two such drones each by invoking emergency financial powers to boost their intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR) capabilities.
The one that crashed was operated by the manufacturer and has been recovered, the people said, asking not to be named. Each system costs around ₹145 crore.
Also Read: How the rise of military drones has transformed battlefields
The Drishti 10 Starliner has been built by Adani Defence and Aerospace at its Hyderabad facility with technology transfer from Israeli defence firm Elbit Systems. The drone is the first major defence platform to be delivered to the Indian military by Adani, and a variant of Elbit Systems’ Hermes 900 Starliner drone.
The all-weather Drishti 10 Starliner is 70% indigenous, has an endurance of 36 hours and can carry a payload of 450 kg. The drone, which has three hard points, can be weaponised if need be.
The development comes four months after an MQ-9B SeaGuardian remotely piloted aircraft (RPA), leased by the Indian Navy from the US, ditched into the Bay of Bengal on following a technical glitch during a surveillance mission.
The navy leased two MQ-9Bs four years ago to boost its ISR capabilities in the Indian Ocean Region (IOR). Last year, India signed a deal worth $3.5 billion with the US to acquire 31 MQ-9B drones to boost its defence preparedness, primarily with an eye on China.
The challenges in the distant seas include China’s carefully calculated power play for influence and defending the rules-based international order.
India’s shipbuilding prowess and steps being taken to bolster its maritime posture in the IOR, where China is seeking to boost its influence, will be in sharp focus as the navy gets ready to commission three major combat platforms into service on Wednesday.
The rare simultaneous induction of two warships and a submarine at the Naval Dockyard in Mumbai will also put the spotlight on the navy’s fast-paced indigenisation and how it is working on becoming fully self-reliant by 2047 when India celebrates 100 years of independence — 60 warships are under construction at various Indian shipyards.
The navy will induct Vaghsheer, the sixth and final Kalvari-class submarine; Surat, a destroyer; and Nilgiri, a frigate — all built at the Mumbai-based Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders Limited (MDL) — on the same day.
The navy is also about to conclude two key deals with France for 26 new Rafale-M fighter jets and three more Scorpene-class submarines to sharpen its combat capabilities.
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