India’s pursuit of unmanned combat capability has entered a decisive phase with a landmark partnership between Larsen & Toubro (L&T) and US aerospace leader General Atomics Aeronautical Systems Inc. (GA-ASI).

Announced on 31 October, this collaboration aims to jointly manufacture advanced combat-proven drones in India, marking a pivotal step toward the nation’s goal of self-reliance in unmanned aerial systems.

The announcement comes shortly before the Ministry of Defence (MoD) is expected to issue a major tender worth about ₹30,000 crore for the acquisition of 87 Medium Altitude Long Endurance (MALE) drones. This program will allow Indian defence firms to partner with foreign original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) to bid for production, elevating India’s indigenous capability in the UAV domain.

Industry sources reveal that the procurement will adopt a two-vendor model, with production divided 64:36 between two Indian firms. This approach ensures the establishment of dual domestic manufacturing lines, strengthening supply chain resilience while accelerating delivery timelines. It also opens scope for exports in the future, as India positions itself as a competitive UAV producer.

Through the L&T–General Atomics partnership, India is expected to produce variants of the MQ-series UAVs, including the battle-tested MQ-9 Reaper. These platforms have demonstrated unmatched endurance, precision strike capabilities and sensor integration across global combat theatres, from the Middle East to Eastern Europe.

This manufacturing plan complements India’s separate government-to-government deal with the United States for 31 MQ-9B Predator drones, classified as High Altitude Long Endurance (HALE) systems. The Predator fleet will greatly enhance surveillance over the Indian Ocean and border regions. However, deliveries are projected only around 2029–2030, prompting the government to fast-track domestic production of MALE-class drones.

Israeli aerospace firms—longstanding partners in India’s UAV ecosystem—are reportedly preparing to join the tender through joint ventures with Indian defence companies. Their participation highlights how India’s competitive tender structure is drawing in multiple global players, each encouraged by the MoD’s increasing emphasis on indigenous value addition and technology transfer.

At the same time, the move complements India’s ‘Atmanirbhar Bharat’ policy objectives, wherein strategic sectors like UAVs must transition from licensed assembly to full-spectrum indigenous design and production.

India’s UAV development story spans more than four decades, beginning with the DRDO’s Lakshya program in the 1980s. Designed as a high-speed target aircraft capable of Mach 0.8 flight, it pioneered India’s early expertise in small gas-turbine engines through the PTAE-7. Lakshya’s technological impact far outweighed its operational use, as it nurtured a generation of engineers skilled in propulsion and control systems.

This was succeeded by Nishant in the 1990s—a tactical surveillance UAV employing catapult launch and parachute recovery. Despite innovations in avionics and camera gimbals, Nishant’s operational reliability issues limited its service life. Meanwhile, Israel’s Searcher and Heron UAVs entered Indian service, filling surveillance gaps and setting new performance benchmarks for endurance and payload capacity.

Rustom-I followed in the early 2000s as an advanced prototype featuring conventional take-off and landing capabilities. It paved the way for Rustom-II, later renamed TAPAS (Tactical Aerial Platform for Advanced Surveillance), which became India’s most ambitious indigenous MALE program. TAPAS integrates modern flight control systems, EO/IR payloads and satellite links—though challenges remain in propulsion reliability, flight duration and sensor integration.

Parallel to TAPAS, the Aeronautical Development Establishment (ADE) has launched initiatives such as the ARCHER and Single Engine Twin Boom (SETB) UAVs, signalling a new approach grounded in modular design and private sector collaboration. These efforts indicate steady progress towards indigenous drone autonomy, though sustained R&D coordination remains essential.

Projects like TAPAS, currently estimated at around ₹2,000 crore with an initial production target of 76 units, show how India’s investment in UAV technology has expanded exponentially. Earlier programs such as Lakshya and Nishant each cost under ₹200 crore, illustrating the growing complexity and strategic value attached to modern drone systems.

Despite major advancements, India still lacks a fully homegrown combat UAV in operational service. The emphasis now lies on synchronising the efforts of the DRDO, private sector innovators and the armed forces. Defence experts argue that India’s success will depend not merely on producing airframes but on perfecting payload integration, autonomy, propulsion, and after-sales sustainability.

Dr Sanket Kulkarni, a defence analyst, emphasised that stronger coordination between research organisations, command users and private technology firms could significantly accelerate the MALE program’s success. According to him, the same cooperative spirit that has delivered modern Indian artillery and naval systems must now drive UAV production.

India’s UAV strategy now rests on a dual track—leveraging global partnerships for rapid capability acquisition while steadily building indigenous design confidence. The L&T–General Atomics partnership encapsulates this balance, combining proven American drone technology with Indian industrial engineering and manufacturing capacity.

By producing MQ-series UAVs locally while advancing indigenous platforms such as TAPAS and ARCHER, India is setting the stage for a mixed fleet blending imported performance standards with indigenous upgrades and autonomy features.

Globally, drones have shifted from auxiliary assets to decisive instruments in warfare. Their widespread deployment in recent conflicts across Ukraine, Nagorno-Karabakh and the Middle East has transformed strategic doctrines. India’s own geography—bordered by two nuclear powers and encircled by vast maritime zones—demands such technological independence.

By nurturing its domestic UAV base and forging selective high-value partnerships, India aims to not only strengthen its defence posture but also emerge as a regional supplier of combat and reconnaissance drones.

The L&T–GA-ASI collaboration is more than a manufacturing contract—it represents a strategic convergence of technology, policy and ambition. It marks India’s transition from merely assembling UAVs to designing platforms capable of autonomous, precision-led warfare.

If sustained through trust, technology sharing and institutional discipline, this partnership could shape an enduring industrial base for India’s drone era—ensuring that future UAVs will not just be made in India, but increasingly conceived, engineered and perfected within its own skies.

Based On India Today Report