As news of China’s People’s Liberation Army reinforcing its positions in eastern Ladakh has emerged, the Indian Army could soon get six Heron Medium Altitude Long Endurance (MALE) Unmanned Aerial Systems (UAS) on lease from Israel.
Heron is a multi-role drone, with mission endurance of around 30 hours and a range of over 1,000 kilometer and this drone which could also be easily armed will be deployed along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) to monitor Chinese activities in areas along the frontier.
This drone is designed to carry out various strategic missions, including intelligence gathering, surveillance, target acquisition, and reconnaissance, and is equipped with Satellite Communications for Beyond Line of Sight ranges.
The Indian Army and the Indian Air Force already operate a large fleet of Heron drones, which are currently being upgraded with the latest systems, including new communication links.
Because the existing fleet of Heron drones does not have a satellite communication link technology, two drones are launched with a time gap to ensure that surveillance data collected by the first one is relayed back to base through the second drone in case of long-range missions, a report says.
After the new Defence Acquisition Procedure was unveiled by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh in September 2020, for the first time the Indian Army will be leasing an important defense platform.
The Indian Navy has already leased and operates two non-weaponised General Atomics Aeronautical Systems MQ-9B Sea Guardian drones from the US which were handed over at the peak of the standoff in Ladakh last year.
As of now, they are being operated by the Navy from the Arakkonam naval air station in Tamil Nadu for surveillance, reconnaissance, and intelligence gathering in the Indian Ocean.
There is also a strong indication, India may also acquire 30 Predator armed drones from the US through the US Foreign Military Sales route and the lead agency for this procurement, the Indian Navy is likely to approach the Defence Ministry to get in-principle approval.
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