Air Marshal Ashutosh Dixit, Vice Chief of the Air Staff, inaugurated the first Indian Air Force Dronathon-2026 at the Pokhran Field Firing Range in Jaisalmer, announced PIB.

The ceremony was attended by senior officials from the Ministry of Defence, HQ IDS, and representatives of the Indian Army and BSF. The initiative marks a significant step by the IAF to engage directly with India’s unmanned systems industry and assess emerging technologies under realistic operational conditions.

The three-day event, scheduled from 14 to 16 September 2026, has brought together more than 20 leading defence companies, Start-Ups, MSMEs, DPSUs, and innovators from India’s rapidly evolving unmanned systems ecosystem.


The Indian Air Force views unmanned systems as a vital complement to manned aviation, providing commanders with enhanced reach, persistence, responsiveness, and flexibility in air operations.

During Dronathon-2026, participating companies and innovators are demonstrating their Unmanned Aircraft Systems and associated technologies at the Pokhran range. The demonstrations cover a wide spectrum of operational capabilities, including surveillance and reconnaissance, autonomous operations, swarm technologies, electronic warfare, and Counter-Unmanned Aircraft Systems.

The central focus is to move beyond technology demonstration towards achieving operational effect. Systems are being assessed for reliability, effectiveness in contested environments, and adaptability to evolving operational requirements and emerging threats.

On the opening day, the Vice Chief of the Air Staff also released the ‘IAF UAS Roadmap’. This roadmap provides clarity to Indian industry on capability priorities and is intended to facilitate focused innovation. It will enable the unmanned airborne systems industry, academia, and research organisations to align their efforts with the future requirements of the IAF.

A major highlight was the successful demonstration of “Vayu UTtaM,” the indigenously developed multi-mode Unmanned Traffic Management system. In real-time trials at Pokhran, it detected and tracked both military and civil UAS.

This capability is designed to facilitate coordinated management of UAS operations in increasingly congested airspace, while also supporting identification and timely mitigation of unauthorised or rogue drones.

With the proliferation of unmanned systems, Vayu UTtaM has potential applications beyond the military domain, including airspace safety, civil aviation, critical infrastructure protection, and public safety.

Dronathon-2026 reinforces the Indian Air Force’s commitment to Atmanirbharta in unmanned systems. The focus extends beyond airframes to the complete ecosystem, encompassing propulsion, sensors and payloads, communications, autonomy, electronic warfare, countermeasures, and airspace management. 

The initiative highlights the IAF’s determination to integrate indigenous innovation into its operational framework, ensuring preparedness for future challenges.

PIB