Current Status of Indian Drone Aircraft Industry

The Indian drone aircraft industry is experiencing rapid growth, with the government announcing plans to allocate $1 billion for drone development and manufacturing by 2025. This significant investment aims to make India a major player in the global drone market.

The Indian drone market is expected to reach $1.4 billion by 2026, growing at a CAGR of 14.2%. This growth is driven by increasing demand from various industries such as agriculture, construction, and surveillance.

India has already seen a significant increase in drone adoption, with over 1,000 drones registered with the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) since 2018. This number is expected to rise as more industries and individuals take advantage of drone technology.

The Indian government has also established a drone policy, which allows for the use of drones in various sectors, including agriculture, construction, and surveillance.

Additional reading: Ar Drone 1

The design and development of Indian drone aircraft is a fascinating topic. The Rustom-1, for instance, is derived from the National Aerospace Laboratories' light canard research aircraft (LCRA), developed in the 1980s under the leadership of Rustom Damania.

The Rustom-1 has a wingspan of 7.9 m (26 ft) and weighs 720 kg (1,590 lb). It's a significant size, but its conventional launch method makes it more accessible than some other drone aircraft.

The Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) is taking a new approach to product development, moving away from traditional methods. They're adopting a practice of concurrent engineering, where production issues are considered from the initial design stage.

This approach involves the production agency participating in the development process, right from the design stage. It's a more efficient way of working, which can help overcome time delays in crucial projects.

Rustom-1 can see enemy territory up to a distance of 250 km (160 mi) and carry a variety of cameras and radar for surveillance. Its payload capacity is not specified in the article.

The Rustom-H, on the other hand, is a Medium-Altitude Long-Endurance (MALE) Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV). It's a twin engine system designed for surveillance and reconnaissance missions, with a payload capacity of 350 kg (770 lb).

Some of the advanced technologies and systems used in Indian drone aircraft include:

The Indian drone aircraft has a range of models and variants to suit different needs and purposes. The Rustom-1 is a single-engined UAV that's been developed for technology demonstration purposes and has a range of 200 km.

It's based on the NAL's Light Canard Research Aircraft (LCRA) and has an impressive endurance of 10 hours. The Rustom-1 also has a maximum altitude of 20,000 ft.

The Archer is a further development of the Rustom-1 and features a single engine in pusher configuration. It's designed for ISTAR operations and includes Autonomous Take Off and Landing (ATOL) capabilities.

The Archer also has an EO/IR payload and is being developed for various applications. The basic variant is being developed for ISTAR operations, while a weaponised variant is being developed for air-to-surface missile fire testing.

Here are the different variants of the Rustom and Archer:

The Indian government has allowed the development of the Rustom MALE UAV project in association with a production agency cum development partner (PADP).

The project has made significant progress, with the ADE officials issuing requests for proposals (RFP) to four vendors: Tata Power Strategic Engineering Division, Larsen & Toubro Limited, Godrej Aerospace Limited, and Hindustan Aeronautics Limited-Bharat Electronics Limited (joint bid).

These four companies were chosen out of 23 firms that responded, and negotiations are currently underway between them and the Indian armed forces.

The private majors are looking for support and commitment from the armed forces before they start executing development and production plans, as the chosen PADP will have a financial stake in the project.

The Indian government may have to guarantee that a specific number of Rustom UAVs will be bought, and the armed forces are being asked to take up a financial stake as well.

The project achieved a major milestone on 09 Nov 21 by indigenously developing Automatic Take off and Landing (ATOL) using GAGAN SBAS.

On 09 Mar 22, the programme achieved a double digit Endurance, clocking 10:20 hours, surpassing the previous time of 08:05 hours achieved in 2020.

Discover more: Indian Military Drone